pop bumpers

All posts tagged pop bumpers

Time for an update on the service and repair on my X-Files pinball machine. After the work done so far, the game has been holding up well. I have really come to appreciate it and going by the audit menu, I’ve put just over 150 games into it. It’s a fun title and I think does not get the credit it deserves. While it’s playing well, it can be even better. To get the machine into the state I want it, I need to give the playfield (and all its surface components) a really good clean. I also want to rebuild the pop bumpers and add LED’s for the GI. That means it’s time to take the machine offline for the next week (maybe two) and give the playfield and it’s parts a solid clean.

First to come off the machine were the ramps. This then allowed me access to the plastics below. With the plastics off I could then access all the various posts and ball guides. There are quite a few to remove. The plastics all need a good clean and these will get the novus treatment before being installed again. Often, dust and crap attaches to the underside of the plastic too, which can affect how well they look lit up. So both sides of each piece will require a clean. I also removed the sling shot parts and return lanes.

XFiles Pinball
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The Pinbot playfield swap continues to move forward, with bits and pieces done each day. Following on from my previous update, the first task to report on is getting everything on the old playfield ready to dump/move/slide/transfer across to the new one. This involves removing all screws, so anything attached to the underside of the playfield is free to be moved. It also means the removal of all staples holding the GI sockets to the playfield and the ground braid that runs between them. There are a few instances where wires had been soldered to lamp socket screws, which means they will need to be desoldered first so I can remove the screw. I started at the base of the playfield and slowly worked my way up to the top. Eventually I had worked my way up the entire playfield, leaving nothing attached to the surface. It just looks like a big mess.

Pinbot Pinball Restoration
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This update kicks off with the safe arrival of a package from Titan Pinball in the USA. Inside, red and blue silicon “rubber” rings which will replace the white rubber and add some extra cool factor to the playfield. Also included are post sleeves, mini post rings and new shooter rod tip. I was really impressed with the customer service from Titan and will order from them again. I’m really looking forward to seeing the rings installed and how they respond during play.

Pinbot Pinball Machine
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It’s been quite awhile since I last did any work on my Pinbot. Not really intentional, but other pinball projects / tasks came up (Counterforce, Mariner, Last Action Hero) which were more pressing. A lot of hard work went into the machine in earlier posts and it’s been a lot of fun to play. One thing has remained outstanding though – the playfield swap. Almost 2 years ago now (July 29th, 2014) a CPR gold playfield arrived, which I wanted to install into my machine. Time sure has flown and I didn’t realise how long I had put it off. Doing a playfield swap is no easy task and certainly not something to perform quickly – so it’s been easy to push the task off until later. But it will be put off no longer. I feel ready to take the task on and essentially complete my work on Pinbot. I have a new CPR reproduction plastic set waiting to go on too, along with LEDs and some coloured Titan silicon “rubbers”. This machine is going to look f*cking awesome once done. The CPR playfield looks amazing.

Pinbot Pinball Restoration
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It’s time to look at the last set of assemblies on the playfield that have not yet had my attention – the three pop bumpers. These guys get a decent work out in just about every game played on the machine, so their assemblies are crying out for a clean.

Last Action Hero Pinball
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