pcb

All posts tagged pcb

It has taken me longer than expected to advance to the next pinball machine in the queue. I did have plans for a short break after completing Harley (I still need to get around to doing the final write up), but a parts delay delay and sorting out a few mechanical issues at the end of that game ate up the gap I had planned. Sometimes, that’s how it plays out. The good news though, is this next game is one I’m really excited to be working on. It’s been raining SEGA’s here lately, with the next game up for a complete rebuild being a beautiful Batman Forever. It was released by SEGA in 1995 and roughly 2500 units were made. I don’t think SEGA games get enough credit and as a result, people miss out on some great fun. The game has plenty to offer players, serving up multiple ramps, rails, a diverter, 3 flippers, pop bumpers, targets, drop targets, a VUK, canon, Bat cave ball lock, large display (192×64), video modes and up to 6 players at once. The only thing it’s missing for me is a spinner. The game is also a widebody, but with plenty of things around the playfield, it feels filled to the brim. There’s even an easter egg hidden in the game – “After a certain number of slingshot hits, after a 3 second lag, a giant bat will appear on the screen and screech at you. If you hit the trigger then you will get 50M extra points”. I’ll have to keep an eye out for that one – easy points! There are a few issues that need to be sorted out along the way and I’ll go in to those as I work my way through the game. For the most part though it’s working well and just needs a good clean. Time to get started.

Batman Forever Pinball Repair
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Something no pinball owner wants to see when they take the backglass off their machine is a set of bleeding batteries. The damage they cause can be fixable, but is often expensive either with board repairs or replacement boards. This is preventable with regular changing of the batteries, but is something so easily forgotten. (photo courtesy of peakpinball.com)

Pinball remote battery pack
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The Counterforce to do list is beginning to thin out and I’m looking forward to (hopefully) having it knocked over in the next few weeks. Although as it turns out, in this update, I do a few extra things I had originally decided not to – but it’s worth the time. First on the hit list for this update is the pop bumpers. They need a proper service. I think they are many, many years over due for one. There are two pop bumpers located on the playfield and at first glance, they have been well worn over the years. The caps have some sticky crap attached to the top of them. The decoration is wearing and there is some serious playfield wear below the (once clear) platters.

Counterforce Pinball
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I find it hard to believe I’ve had my Galaga machine now for over 3 and a half years. This machine is where it all began for me. Seems like yesterday I was constructing it and playing it for the first time. Before this project, I would struggle to hang a picture on the wall properly. I’ve since gone on to build and restore several arcade machines and I now find myself wrapped up in Pinball restoration and repairs. Time flies all too fast. Recently I purchased a 4/8 restrictor board to install into this machine and decided to fix up two other issues at the same time.

Over the 3.5 years, the machine has held up really well. Even with two young kids in the house, there is minimal cabinet damage and marking. The coin slot has survived a few scares as the kids loved to insert anything they could find into the slot (and if they were lucky, it would pass straight through and come out the return slot – which made doing it again even more appealing).

Galaga
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While I’ve been enjoying my Pole Position restoration, I have been getting the urge to construct a new machine again. I recently acquired a few different PCB’s that would go great in a new cab. I posted about the Mortal Kombat 1 set a few weeks back, but I’ve put that on hold for the moment as I’m undecided on what sort of machine it will go into (a replica upright, or a custom themed lowboy). Meanwhile, another PCB was screaming out to me to go into a machine – Arkanoid.

While I don’t find Arkanoid to be overly exciting as a game, the fact it uses a spinner makes it different to other cabs I’ve build, and some of the original Taito cabs are pleasing to look at.

Arkanoid PCB

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