Battlezone - Finally working! - need help with two things

morphis72

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Battlezone - Finally working! - need help with two things

After a long journey my Battlezone is finally up and running! I need help with two last details.

1) I'm missing the monitor bezel. Should I cut a replacement out of cardboard or does someone reproduce them? Is there a template?

2) It's been soooo long since I have played a working Battlezone that I don't remember. My controllers don't return to center. Is this normal or am I missing the centering grommets?
 
Before you order the new grommet check if the old one is in there. If its ripped or not and check if the thing is greased.
 
After a long journey my Battlezone is finally up and running! I need help with two last details.

1) I'm missing the monitor bezel. Should I cut a replacement out of cardboard or does someone reproduce them? Is there a template?

2) It's been soooo long since I have played a working Battlezone that I don't remember. My controllers don't return to center. Is this normal or am I missing the centering grommets?

I have one... a bezel
 
I have one... a bezel


Maybe I am misidentifying the part I need. When I put the monitor into the game the mirror is in place and it is superimposing the red ring around the radar. So, I think I have the bit in your photo, or at least part of it. I need to go back and look now. I am assuming there was some cardboard or something that went around the monitor to stop you from seeing the mounts and down into the cabinet?
 
Oh BTW, forget what I said for #1. I was thinking open-face BZ (as that's what I have), not the one with the mirror.

Not sure what part you're looking for though, as I'm less familiar with the mirrored cabs.

Also, when you rebuild your joysticks, get yourself some dielectric grease (a.k.a. spark plug boot grease). It's available at any auto parts store. Put a dab on the ball, and in the trough at the bottom of the stick, where the curved metal spring is. Works wonders.

Also, if your sticks are old and haven't been refurbished, you'll find the old grease has solidified into an almost wax-like consistency. Clean it all off with soap and hot water (or a citrus-based cleaner. NOT Goof Off, which will melt the plastic). Especially clean the coil spring and ball that go in the end of the stick. Let it dry, hit it all with the dielectric grease, and they'll be as smooth as silk.
 
Oh BTW, forget what I said for #1. I was thinking open-face BZ (as that's what I have), not the one with the mirror.

Not sure what part you're looking for though, as I'm less familiar with the mirrored cabs.

Also, when you rebuild your joysticks, get yourself some dielectric grease (a.k.a. spark plug boot grease). It's available at any auto parts store. Put a dab on the ball, and in the trough at the bottom of the stick, where the curved metal spring is. Works wonders.

Also, if your sticks are old and haven't been refurbished, you'll find the old grease has solidified into an almost wax-like consistency. Clean it all off with soap and hot water (or a citrus-based cleaner. NOT Goof Off, which will melt the plastic). Especially clean the coil spring and ball that go in the end of the stick. Let it dry, hit it all with the dielectric grease, and they'll be as smooth as silk.

This is excellent info. Thank you!
 
When you go to wizzes workshop at that link above, he has a big part about the bezel you need too. He sells the red and green films that attach to the bezel, and shows pictures of how the bezel was made so you can use that to make yourself a new one out of cardboard. That's what I did, turned out nice.
 
Thanks! And I will thank Bill too. :)

The red and green gels look great. After installing them it tickled a vague memory of the game being green like that in the arcade! The centering grommets are very stiff but it really makes the game more playable when the joystick returns to center as it should.

And Joey's bezel fits like a glove and looks great. My previous attempts at manufacturing a bezel always ended in something that did the job but looked like Jason Voorhees did all of the cutting.

Is there any guidance on how bright the monitor should be set? With the gels in place it makes the dimmer background items such as the obstacles and volcano almost fade out completely. When targeting a tank it brightens up to the level I would expect. My concern is that if I crank up the brightness I will be risking further burn in on my tube.
 
I find there's a fairly narrow window for BZ, in terms of tuning the monitor so you can see the background graphics sufficiently, without it being overdriven such that you see the retrace lines.

I wouldn't worry about burn in a home environment. On my AD and BZ, I turn the contrast and brightness up all the way, and then dial back the brightness until you can't see the retrace lines, and the dot in the middle disappears.
 
I find there's a fairly narrow window for BZ, in terms of tuning the monitor so you can see the background graphics sufficiently, without it being overdriven such that you see the retrace lines.

I wouldn't worry about burn in a home environment. On my AD and BZ, I turn the contrast and brightness up all the way, and then dial back the brightness until you can't see the retrace lines, and the dot in the middle disappears.

It will take less abuse being that it isn't on all day every day. My tube already has some pretty significant burn but it becomes barely noticeable after the monitor is installed. Even more so with the gels in place. Perhaps I am being overly cautious.

Thanks for the advice!
 
Can't get checkout to work. Ugh.

Actually, I had a similar problem. I can't remember if I was using Chrome and switched to IE or the other way around. But, using a different browser got me through the checkout.

If all else fails he uses email after you place the order to confirm it and send payment details.

Try emailing him at [email protected]
 
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