1st pin refurb - Space Riders

gameguy1957

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Thanks to ataritoobin my Space Riders is complete. First pic is current. Second pic is what it looked like when I drug it home, can't really tell the shape except for the missing artwork on the backglass.

Other than the backglass, it didn't work and the whole playfield was covered in sawdust and some sort of red, powdery looking stuff.

Cleaning all of the contacts and fuses brought it back to life.

I also pulled the playfield, disassembled and polished everything, and then replaced the rubber and pinballs.
 

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Here's an example of what was covering the whole playfield and all of the parts.

It took two weekends to scrub this junk off of everything, but everything was in nice shape under all of the funk.

It's been a blast to play a pinball again and the kids have never seen or played one, so it was fun watching them enjoy it.

-JM
 

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Very nicely done. Kudos to you, my friend.

Atari pinballs don't get a lot of love. It's nice to see one lovingly restored. I would love to pick up a Space Riders. There is a lot of love in this paragraph.
 
Very nicely done. Kudos to you, my friend.

Atari pinballs don't get a lot of love. It's nice to see one lovingly restored. I would love to pick up a Space Riders. There is a lot of love in this paragraph.

Yes indeed love is in the air! Nice loking pin. I have a question though, when looking at the left picture it appears the left flipper is not aligned right, or it's just the way the picture is, but it does look as it sits lower then the right flipper bat. GREAT job, and theres nothing better then watching your kids smile and having fun.
 
It is low and a little weak. Didn't notice it until we started playing it. The playfield was too dirty and gritty, the pinballs rusted, and the rubber was all brittle and broken. So I didn't try to play it before doing the refurb.

It actually took a while to notice it flipping weakly. It starts off good and then gets weaker the longer you play.

Anyhow, it's first on the list. I also have to adjust a bumper and a slingshot switch. Hopefully I'll have time this weekend to get to it.

-JM

Yes indeed love is in the air! Nice loking pin. I have a question though, when looking at the left picture it appears the left flipper is not aligned right, or it's just the way the picture is, but it does look as it sits lower then the right flipper bat. GREAT job, and theres nothing better then watching your kids smile and having fun.
 
It is low and a little weak. Didn't notice it until we started playing it. The playfield was too dirty and gritty, the pinballs rusted, and the rubber was all brittle and broken. So I didn't try to play it before doing the refurb.

It actually took a while to notice it flipping weakly. It starts off good and then gets weaker the longer you play.

Anyhow, it's first on the list. I also have to adjust a bumper and a slingshot switch. Hopefully I'll have time this weekend to get to it.

-JM

Some fresh coils will get her strong again, I say this because you say at first there strong ( the flippers) then they go weak. Simple stuff and you'll have her playing strong. Keep updating the progress and let us know if it was the coil.
 
Some fresh coils will get her strong again

Nope. Coils don't go weak. Not possible. It's just a bunch of wire. This is a very common misconception. Don't feel bad. I used to think that myself long ago.

EDIT: You're going to have a hard time finding the coils that live inside the rotary solenoids anyway. I would take a look at the power supply and connectors throughout the machine.
 
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That looks great! Glad you were able to get it going. I always loved that 70s Atari pinball artwork :)
 
Nope. Coils don't go weak. Not possible. It's just a bunch of wire. This is a very common misconception. Don't feel bad. I used to think that myself long ago.

EDIT: You're going to have a hard time finding the coils that live inside the rotary solenoids anyway. I would take a look at the power supply and connectors throughout the machine.

I wonder what it could be then?
 
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