Noob ?: Centipede/Missile Command Monitor troubleshooting...

ThomasM

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Noob ?: Centipede/Missile Command Monitor troubleshooting...

Hi all - quick noob question as I enter the world of monitor fine-tuning.

Both my Centipede and Missile Command are fully restored and in great condition, but the monitors could be alot crisper. I'm looking for the best way to get them back in order.

I think that doing a cap kit is beyond my skills - but I'm wondering if swapping in new chassis in both would be a good fix? I'm pretty confident I can discharge and uninstall the chassis and swap a new one back in.

My question: would this be a reasonable approach and should it realistically give me good results?

Also - what's the best/easiest way to determine what chassis I need? They are both original monitors (I think) - seems a stupid question, but what's the best way to figure out what chassis I need?

Thanks
 
pictures would help to answer alot of your questions.

if you swap chassis you will still have to do alot of fine tuning adjustments so its not just swapping.

you could do cap kit yourself and if so i stock all the parts and Best Quality Kits.
OR
you can send them out to some repair places such as Paul400, ecwestjr, buffett on here.
 
Thanks - yes, I thought I could send them out. I will take some photos when I'm back home in a week or so and see if anyone can help me out.

When you say fine-tuning, do you mean the adjustments on the board itself (eg: focus, color, hold, etc) or something else? Thanks
 
Thanks - yes, I thought I could send them out. I will take some photos when I'm back home in a week or so and see if anyone can help me out.

When you say fine-tuning, do you mean the adjustments on the board itself (eg: focus, color, hold, etc) or something else? Thanks

yes those adjustments on the monitor (eg: focus, color, hold, etc)
 
If you can remove a chassis (safely) you are ahead in the game. Doing a cap kit is not rocket science. If it is your first just be patient and go slow. As you go along check the solder joints to be sure they are good and you don't have any solder bridges.

What I would do on any chassis that will be your first time workin on take pictures of the solder side of the board. Then you can compare the solder joints to be sure there are no solder bridges. Sometimes you may need to use a magnifying glass. I do. But i'm old.

Cap kits will help. However you may also need to have your tube rejuvenated.

If you need the chassis capped and tuned up let me know.

Ed
 
Cap kits are easy, diagnosing other issues beyond that can be difficult. I capped a nintendo pp-7b in 45 mins today. You'll never learn unless you try. But I'd still send them to buffett for the time being.
 
Awesome, thanks so much - I may very well delve into the world of cap kits once I gain some confidence!

yup, i would practice on old TV's and other equipment first.
remove the parts and then put them back on.

look at your work and compare the solder joints to the other factory joints on the test equipment.
look to see how bad you did or did not damage the traces during the removal process.

once you get your skill level up then try a cap kit.

some chassis you can make worse if your soldering skills are not good or up to par and you will just damage the chassis and make it harder to fix.

this also goes hand and hand to the equipment you have.

most cheap desoldering tools can be a pain to use and you will have poor results.

so when your ready to dive in, ask on here and we can give you recommendations on the tools you should get.

this is just my advice.

Peace
Buffett
 
Thanks guys - much appreciated. The support on here is great - a fantastic community that only makes me want to continue getting into the hobby! With 10 games now, it may start getting out of hand :)
 
Great - will do - thanks alot. As I work through my 10 arcades I might be sending you alot :)

If you have ten arcade machines you may want to invest your time in learning how to solder as well as a good soldering iron. Cap kits are definitely not difficult, and you will find that there will be plenty of other things to solder as time goes on and you collect more machines. There are tons of youtube videos out there showing how to do cap kits. Search for "John's arcade cap kit" and you will find plenty of in depth videos on how to do this.

Also, the type of chassis is usually on a sticker on the metal frame.

You should try adjusting all the pots on your chassis and flyback to see if you can fine tune your monitor that way, if you haven't already.
 
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