Got my first --sort of-- pinball machine. How to maintain it?

opt2not

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Got my first --sort of-- pinball machine. How to maintain it?

I picked up a Baby Pac-man cabinet recently, and have never owned a pinball cabinet before so I was looking for some advice on maintaining the pin section of the game. I've got a bunch of experience with video game cabs, but never had to keep with a completely physical game 100% working before.

mGvGw33.jpg


Firstly, the cabinet is beautiful. Very little damage on it. This was a friend of mine's and I've been asked to hang onto it indefinitely.
I've already re-capped the monitor a while back, nice bright and clear image on it. Even replaced the joystick with a fresh grommet and better condition leafs than what it originally had.
The video portion of the game is fine and dandy, no problems.

In the pin section, the playfield is in great condition. I recently waxed it with pinball wax, and plays pretty fast and overall well.
But I tend to get the ball stuck in the rubber bumper (the one that says "Evens up Pac-man columns 3 or 4") on the right side. Sometimes the ball just slips under it, and gets stuck under the screened-plastic which forces me to have to lift the glass up and pull the ball out, mid-game.
Also, sometimes when I hit the ball to the eject hole on the right side, it doesn't tend to want to settle and bounces back out more times than not.

<the below image isn't my pic>
image-4.jpg


Anyone know how I can tune this up so that I don't get into these issues again? Also any general maintenance tips? I'm a complete noob at pinball, so any sources or guides you can point me too are appreciated. Thanks!
 
Congrats - pinball is a whole other thing, as you're finding out.

It looks to me like your leaf switch on the right side slingshot is on the outside of the rubber.

Should be on the inside.

RM
 
Great game to have!

For the right bumper, make sure you have the right sized rubber on it. If it's too big, it's probably giving too much and allows the ball to slip under the plastic. I honestly can't say that's ever happened to me on my machine.

As for the eject hole... First off, I'd check to make sure the game is level. Place a torpedo level on the playfield (not the glass) and make sure it is horizontally level. It also could be the nature of the beast because I know if I hit the ball too hard towards that saucer, it bounces out on me, too.

That machine won't require much maintenance at all. Just keep the playfield waxed and cleaned and you should be good to go. That's about all I've had to do with my playfield area in the years I've owned the machine. Oh, and to replace some light bulbs when they die. :)
 
Thanks Ripweade! I'm going to order a Pacman rubber ring set, 'cause I think the rubbers are a bit worn and could use a replacing.


I noticed in the manual that their are 4x Rubber Rings (2 1/2") listed for those side slingshot bumpers, which leads me to believe that perhaps 2 should be installed per? No where else on the play-field uses this size rings, but I haven't been able to find any pictures of other people's cabinets with double rings installed on each bumper. Does yours have a single rubber ring installed on those side bumpers?

****edit: Looks like there are supposed to be 2 rings on those side bumpers. I was able to find some images of them:
CIMG0936.jpg

Tough to tell in these two images, but it looks like double rubber rings there!
8277685998_cb1a9bfae5.jpg

babypac.JPG
 
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I've been in the pinball maintenance crash course latetly too.

The thing I've learned about pinball maintenance is that repair is a fairly constant battle, and that the issues are usually mechanical or bad connections, which are easy fixes. You're always replacing rubber, pinballs, lights, etc. You're always adjusting things so that they work properly. The maintenance is usually pretty quick and easy (broken solder joints, dirty optos, bent switches, etc.) It's a lot more organic than arcade repairs, which are often PCB and monitor related. If you play a lot, you're going to be repairing a little. You pretty much have to learn to fix the little things.

I would regularly clean the playfield with Novus 1 (only use Novus 2 if its' bad) and wax with 100% Carnauba wax. There's a lot of debate on certain waxes and whether they will damage the playfield or hinder future repairs if needed, but everybody seems to agree that the 100% pure Carnauba is safe. Also regularly replace the rubber AND the pinballs. It' cheap and replacing pinballs prevents and nicked ball from damaging the game.
 
I'm extremely jealous! Had my chance to get a non working machine and the seller dicked me!

That's a rough day. Think you are getting a sweet project game and end up getting raped instead. Sorry bro.

You shouldn't have to replace the rubbers a whole lot but depending on how much metal on pinball contact your game has, the balls could be replaced regularly. I know the High Speed I just fixed up is the first game i have with multiball and they do a number on each other when they bump into each other.

Keep it cleaned regularly for sure. When I worked at Aladdin's Castle we cleaned and waxed once a week. Granted that was location use. Maybe every few weeks in the house. As stated earlier a knicked up ball acts like sandpaper as it moves across the playfield. Dirt and dust on the playfield will act as an abrasive as the ball rolls over it as well. A big cause of dust and particles in a pinball can be from old rubbers as they break down over time. Just look at any pin that uses black rubbers. You can definitely see it then.
 
Sweet! where did you pic this up? I thought you were downsizing?
Yeah, I thought so too. Famous last words...

So I plan on re-building the flippers, and replacing the rubbers for now. The flippers are in need of a rebuild, as I've found that the right-side flipper Coil Stop has been cracked, which is effecting the action of the flipper's return state.

The play-field has been recently waxed, so perhaps I'll do it again in another few weeks. Perhaps once a month might be good enough for in-home use.

In terms of pin parts, where's the best/affordable place to order from?

Thanks for all the tips guys, this has been a big help.
 
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