Star Trip
Game Plan, 1979HI,
I just picked up a Game plan Star Trip and the MPU has severe battery acid damage. I can repair most boards with acid damage but this one is one of the worst I have seen.
I am hoping that someone here has a working MPU-1 or MPU-2, or one that is damaged that they would part with.
Thanks for all your help 
When I was rebuilding my (long since gone) Gameplan Agents 777, I also had a severely acid damaged MPU-2 board. In an attempt to repair it, I had the help of my friend who is a professional circuit board repair technician. He had be bring it down to the lab, we used his super nice Pace desoldering station to remove all of the acid washed components. After they were removed, we used an ultra sonic cleaner to abate any remaining acid.
After the board was deemed "acid free", I lightly sanded the traces in the area to remove any surface corrosion. I tracked down all NOS components for the section we removed and carefully installed everything.
Even after about 4 hours total of repair time (it was super clean work), I wrote the board off as "absolutely possessed". I could never get it to bench boot. The batteries on those boards are absolutely brutal. Lesson #1 learned "if there's Gameplan Acid Damage, don't waste your time trying to repair it".
So I did the only sensible thing at the time- forked over $300 for a reproduction MPU-2. There was a company (I forget who at this time) that was re-running boards in small batches. I had to wait about 6 months for there to be enough people on the list to make the run worth-while for the manufacturer. Board showed up, game booted right up and (as far as I know) is still working just fine in the new owners gameroom.
All said and done, lesson #2 was learned - avoid Gameplan games. They're a complete pain in the A$$ to find parts for, especially the MPU-2. The only way I would ever consider another one is if it was 100% complete and fully working. Forget about it if you need a few plastics...
I agree they are a bear to fix and if the corrosion is extensive may not be worth trying to repair. Unfortunately, sockets can be damaged by the battery, ROMs can be damaged, and other components can also go bad. Lots to change out and test to get it working correctly. Changing the ROMs to 2716s is a challenge in and of itself to figure out how to cut and strap the board correctly for them. But they can be repaired.
Replacement boards are available from Jim @ Echo Lake:
Jim Francesangeli
Echo Lake Pinball Service & Sales
925 Marwin Dr.
Hinckley, Ohio 44233
tel: 330-278-2228
jvbuzzard(at)earthlink(dot)net
viperrwk
Quoted from viperrwk:Replacement boards are available from Jim @ Echo Lake
Thats who it was! Jim @ Echo Lake. I can confirm those boards are NICE quality. The screw-eyelets for mounting line up just fine, the connectors are a perfect match (wasn't expecting a perfect match in a 'botique run' repro MPU). Truely a drop in replacement.
I have also used echo lake's boards, they work great. I have two of them in use. Just replace it and forget it.
I have already contacted Jim ant Echo Lake Pinball a week ago, he is running a new batch of 40 units (the good news) but they are all spoken for and will not be running any more (the bad news). The parts are getting to hard to find. This is why I am looking for a used board to repair. I am a board repair tech and have been repairing arcade/pin boards since the mid 80's. So if you have a board or two that you are willing to part with please let me know.
Thanks for the link viperrwk, I have sent a pm to him
Post edited by rcarlson : Thank you
Quoted from rcarlson:I have already contacted Jim ant Echo Lake Pinball a week ago, he is running a new batch of 40 units (the good news) but they are all spoken for and will not be running any more (the bad news). The parts are getting to hard to find. This is why I am looking for a used board to repair. I am a board repair tech and have been repairing arcade/pin boards since the mid 80's. So if you have a board or two that you are willing to part with please let me know.
Thanks for the link viperrwk, I have sent a pm to him
Post edited by rcarlson : Thank you
Ack! Did Jim tell you this would be his last run ever? If so that is very bad news for current and future GP owners...
viperrwk
Yes, This would be the last run it seems, and is limited to 40 units. (I spoke to Jim's wife on my call back, Jim was out for a run)
I am going to see if I can get him to make a few extra blank boards or make some that are not fully populated. I know it is going to be hard to keep the GP games up and running in the future and to bring back the ones just sitting and waiting to be restored. (I am not holding out hope on this)
You can still find the HM-6551-9 ram and most of the other parts but they are going away fast.
Quoted from rcarlson:Yes, This would be the last run it seems, and is limited to 40 units. (I spoke to Jim's wife on my call back, Jim was out for a run)
I am going to see if I can get him to make a few extra blank boards or make some that are not fully populated. I know it is going to be hard to keep the GP games up and running in the future and to bring back the ones just sitting and waiting to be restored. (I am not holding out hope on this)
You can still find the HM-6551-9 ram and most of the other parts but they are going away fast.
Thanks for the update. I imagine it would be too much work for him to re-layout the board to use 5101s instead of the 6551. I imagine that's the hardest chip to get. The others should be pretty easy, relatively speaking.
viperrwk
Get on the list:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/game-plan-pinball-owners-and-future-owners-must-read
viperrwk
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Hemet, CA
Malmberget