(Topic ID: 48087)
Linked Games
Seawitch
Stern Electronics, 1980-
Star Gazer
Stern Electronics, 1980
Topic Gallery
Newbury, OH
Quoted from tdiddy:Mine is centered
The reason I spotted the off-center pops area is a few weeks ago I saw another pinsider's Seawitch and the entire play field theme was off-center and too low. It was so for out of whack that even the Keylines were cutting into the inserts as in the tops of the keylines were below the tops of the inserts. The pin plays very well, though. But that play field will never will be restorable to be a top flight pin. And he is planning to buy a repro from John.
This is a case of where years ago this pin looked good enough to sell and place in an arcade. The players dropped quarters, the op made money, and Stern sold a pin. All were happy.
I'll try to call him in a couple of days and see if he can take some pics of his out-of-whack play field.
Quoted from greatwichjohn:Bump for the weekend for Seawitch #1 test print to playfield. People have been patiently awaiting them going out.
John, in your pic there is the edge of another Seawitch poking out on the right hand side. The blue on that sliver of Witch that is poking out is the color of blue I am familiar with.
Also, the designer's name and the waves below the sling area look black and gray on my laptop.
It will be next week before I will be home and have a look on my desktop.
Halifax, NS
That is the donor playfield (original used production) behind the new playfield. Shows the blue looks correct!
I would imagine the off center is probably due to stretching during the scanning as it appears to get worse the further up you go. As for the colors, it's hard to say as there were probably different mixes done. Personally if the colors match the new playfield plastics then everything would look good. The Aquamarine color of the older playfields may appear even more greenish due to the yellowing of the varathane clear used back then. That's not to say the color is correct, or wrong. You'd have to have several playfields and examine the colors under star posts etc where the color has not faded or changed much from when it was put on.
Quoted from greatwichjohn:I don't do plastics, & use the color done by my art contributor.
I was talking about the plastics that have already been done by CPR.
greatwichjohn there seems to be some concerns over the playfield colors. I think that we all realize that the the playfield colors may have varied during the production run, and some playfields may have experienced more fading due to up exposure.
Since we can’t see the test playfield in person, can you take a couple of pictures of the nos playfield next to the test playfield, nos on the left and test repro playfield on the right? I suggest taking one picture from one foot away, and one five feet away.
Thanks,
John
on a related note, it would be killer if we could get steve young to heat stamp the pop bumper caps with the radiating lines on the edge of the caps
Quoted from j_m_:on a related note, it would be killer if we could get steve young to heat stamp the pop bumper caps with the radiating lines on the edge of the caps
I asked him about that a few months ago. He said that it would require a special dye/tool setup fee of $400. I offered to pay the $400 and buy a large number of these caps. He basically said that he too many other projects already and wasn't interested in accepting my order. Of course, I still don't own a Star Gazer. Someone posted that they made decals with the ridge lines to place on the repro bumper caps.
Quoted from Redketchup:repro pop bumper cap with decal!
I've got two good originals and missing the 3rd. The repro cap isn't the same shade/thickness so it looks very different when lit. I'm probably going to have to replace them all with new ones with stickers. 
Seems like it might be not that hard to manually create the ridge lines with a hot nail or something, then paint in the lines? Anyone tried that?
Quoted from Fytr:I've got two good originals and missing the 3rd. The repro cap isn't the same shade/thickness so it looks very different when lit. I'm probably going to have to replace them all with new ones with stickers.
Seems like it might be not that hard to manually create the ridge lines with a hot nail or something, then paint in the lines? Anyone tried that?
The hot stamp lines (ridge lines) are raised, not indentations. Same as the pop bumper caps for Seawitch
I had an NOS seawitch playfield years ago and the registration of the inserts and artwork was terrible. I think the playfields look great and I'll gladly take one that is slightly off or the colors are not an exact match. Perfection is something that will prove elusive and the original games were far from perfect right out of the crate.
Here are pics of my original playfield they look more like the colors of the nos one.
The repo dark blue looks more purple and the light blue looks off . Makes it look like a different game to me.
FF14C325-CDBB-4AB0-8001-9D87337FBCF9 (resized).jpeg
09398CA3-E379-4AC2-9686-D5D44E75F9DE (resized).jpeg
6691DBB0-6280-4EC9-809F-3D685226F15C (resized).jpeg
D1BA28BE-369F-4F68-BFDA-AA2C2ECE13E1 (resized).jpeg
CA2FC221-6905-4D34-84C9-B360F540DAEA (resized).jpeg
B2058A67-96FB-4AB3-9B41-A92C8BBDDE9E (resized).jpeg
6CE123FD-7489-4876-B9D4-BCAA2A573E90 (resized).jpeg
903250D2-4534-4B25-A9CF-6A3B2FD02789 (resized).jpeg
B6916E9C-E73E-46EC-9379-3920C64FEAB5 (resized).jpeg
Quoted from bluespin:The hot stamp lines (ridge lines) are raised, not indentations. Same as the pop bumper caps for Seawitch
Good point. I wonder if it might be feasible to 3D-print the pop caps?
Quoted from Fytr:Good point. I wonder if it might be feasible to 3D-print the pop caps?
I was just going to get some automotive pinstripe tape.
Quoted from Fytr:The hot stamp lines (ridge lines) are raised,
That is caused by a very hot stamp and being forced down onto the plastic cap.
The person wanted to knock out as many pop caps as possible in the shortest amount of time.
Quoted from Redketchup:repro pop bumper cap with decal!
who makes the decals and where are they available?
Quoted from RazerX:who makes the decals and where are they available?
You can grab the pdf I made (and shared with Redketchup) and uploaded 4 years ago here:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/star-gazer-owners-i-need-your-help
(Click the first image in the TOPIC GALLERY and then click on the bottom right: Download PDF Document)
Spinner decals here:
Guys I won't be over to the printer until next week for Seawitch. Here are more pictures of Star Gazer playfields after getting 2 coats of clear coat. People will be slowly contacted on the list.
IMG_1196 (resized).JPG
IMG_1195 (resized).JPG
IMG_1191 (resized).JPG
IMG_1192 (resized).JPG
IMG_1193 (resized).JPG
IMG_1194 (resized).JPG
IMG_1187 (resized).JPG
IMG_1188 (resized).JPG
IMG_1189 (resized).JPG
IMG_1190 (resized).JPG
Quoted from BigMcLargeHuge:Mine is certainly not centered. I can take a picture if anyone wants to see.
Show it.
Yes these new playfields are with the new contractor. So far 4 playfields done, & they are doing a very nice job. They will now be doing 4 playfields at a time. & hopefully 1 week or less return. So far it is 1-2 weeks. I still need to find out what product they are using, for those who wish for more clear. Still haven't heard if Ron K is going to clear playfields to his high standard (non cleared direct to him for work for buyers). The contractor that did CPR's work, & my Star Gazer, & other restorations had some poor results at times. In the past the different contractors have blamed either myself or printer, for their mistakes, & poor results.
I'm going to explain the process I do for small playfield production. I'm no art guy so it has to be found, & hopefully ready. Star Gazer was perfect to go, & Seawitch isn't. Production donor playfield used for cnc, & art on clear laid on top to use/adjust. CNC work done. Playfields are prepared for inserts. I use 2 part epoxy from Lee Valley, which CPR used way back in the early day. Inserts installed, after day or more epoxy built up on edge & over inserts. Hand sand level (mostly orbital electric & hand sand shooter), minor repairs, sand repairs, & quality inspection. 2 coats of waterbourne varethane interior gloss. Most dust is from me, & possibly very minor at printer, & likely little in finish clear done in pro paint booth. I inspect & grade, & paint gray underside. Finished playfields shipped in custom double cardboard box by UPS.
The new body shop sprays 2 coats of finish in the same day. It cures fast & hard, looks more like original clear back in the 70's & early 80's. They do no sanding between coats, or polishing. In the past sanding or rubbing compound was in the finish clear coat. By not sanding you don't risk sanding through the clear & ink. I try not to touch playfield clear since it scratches so easily. So people can see the fine results, at a very fair price. The new playfields are no longer cleaned of roll over stars. I use the white stars upside down, & body shop when we apply clear. I supply the white stars, & owners should test them from top (upside down) to verify perfect movement. If ok install, if not carefully clean out clear.
Thank you to our veterans & those who have fought for our freedom. I'm in my early 50's, & very grateful not to have gone to war.
Is it possibleto be put on the star gazer list still?
Or ask for a spot if someone passes?
Thanks if so and put me down.
Quoted from greatwichjohn:You should be ok on the end of the list.
Thanks for confirmation. Just keep me posted if you need any info or payment.
Quoted from cottonm4:Show it.
It's not bad, but they are certainly not centered.
Thanks guys keep the pictures coming. Also I'm slowly contacting those on the last wait list for surplus Star Gazer playfields. Likely all will be $600 US each to USA with finish clear, & $100 US off no clear. Sent replies to a few 80 - 90 days back on list. If your over 90 days let me know. Thanks
Are you ready for a Star Gazer playfield $600 US. paypal: contact me here for my info by PM_
Will need your full info, email, & phone number for UPS. If not you might still get one before xmas. 17 remaining, 2 ready to ship now, next 4 in for clear.
Now that I am home and can see the trial repro play field on my desktop (2006 Mac Pro) it has more of a vibrant blue look to it. On my Macbook, it looks purple. The waves below the flippers area still look black instead of green/aqua; There is no change for me there.
I have no idea why the two Macs would show the same pic/same color in such a different way.
The dark blue that I see on my desktop has a nice appearance that I could live with, while the purple hue I saw on my Macbook was a no go.
I could live with the pops being a little off-center if it comes to that. They are not a deal breaker.
Correct some of the inserts in the Riptide area and give me that greenish hue down at the flippers and I would be happy with this play field that I see on my desktop.
They look aqua from here. Without calibrated displays and cameras we are pretty much guessing on color. John could do side by side pictures but I also trust he is using his Mark I Eyeball to validate colors. I know I'm wary about fade when I compare, since the colors on my field are bolder where it was covered.
While it's true that each display will show things differently, I'm seeing a little red in that blue (thus the earlier comment about purple), and I'd wager that there should be less red in that blue.
I understand that red is most prone to fade, so it might be tough to know what the original PF looked like, perhaps someone with a NOS SW PF can show us what to expect.
I look forward to seeing the results of a side by side on John's side.
In my opinion, this first blue isn't in the ball park.
mof
Quoted from dothedoo:I'm wondering how much the blues should match the blues on the apron.
Not that much, I don't think. On my SW, the dark blue designs on the apron are a close match for the dark blue on the play field. If the light blue of the apron matched the light blue of the lower play field there would be no contrast between the apron and play field and it would all run together. Using that logic, the apron had to be a third shade of blue, IMO.
Star Gazer: There are going to be a few shooter lane blemish playfields $50 off, so $550 US each. I'm into the next 4 in for clear (these are likely sold). So if you are on the list, & I haven't responded back. Let me know. I will be taking the last 6 in for printing this week, & 4 for clear next week. So only about half left (10 to fill people wanting one). If you are missed I will likely do some more in the spring after Seawitch.
Star Gazer: Looks like both Ron & Neo will be clearing playfields to a superior standard. So please contact them about cost & time line. I will ship them direct if people want, & the playfields are $100 US off for no clear coat. Pictures of #2 no clear going out to another customer this week.
Seawitch Update: got the second one done, & first one back from the printer. I missed that the top increase X was printed white on both, my mistake for not seeing this earlier. The blues are darker on the second one which is likely going to be the final version. I will get the playfields clear coated for protection. 2 guys have already wanted these discounted early playfields. If they want to switch to production ones I will make them available in December. The art is where its going to be with the printer, & nothing is going to change. The colors will be the latest version from files supplied. I will take the latest darker blues version after finish clear to the cnc shop. Tweak some light lenses towards the art (center them better), & center the pop bumpers better.
Reply
Wanna join the discussion? Please sign in to reply to this topic.
Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!
Donate to PinsideGreat to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!
