Tools
Essential Tools
This is the part of my kit I would use for basic pinball maintenance. Rebuilding flippers/pop bumpers, repinning GI connectors, fixing switch problems, basic cleaning and shopping out a game. When people ask "What do I need to maintain my games?", this is what you need.
| Tool | Notes | Where I Buy | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soldering iron | Used all the time to replace switches, coils, and board work. You can't fix much without one. I use a Weller WES51. Get one with variable temperature at a minimum, not one of the $10 pencil ones that just plug into a socket from Walmart. Obviously not a soldering gun either. You want good leaded, rosin core solder. I use MG Chemicals solder. Get cleaning wire too. Get some flux too. | Amazon |
$50+ |
| Solder sucker | Even with a desoldering tool, it's nice to have one of these cheap vacuum pumps for quick jobs like coils. | Amazon | $6 |
| Digital Multimeter | Alligator clip test leads will be useful as well | Amazon | $20+ |
| Mechanics tool kit | You should have a socket set, wrenches, allen wrenches, screwdrivers, etc. You should get a security bit set. I recommend having good pliers too, I use this Knipex Cobra. | Anywhere | $100 |
| 1/4" Nut Driver | Get a magnetic tip. I use the one from Klein Tools. This is the main size used everywhere above and below playfields. It's worth getting a long dedicated driver and not fiddling with your crappy socket set. | Amazon | $8 |
| Wire cutter | Small is better. The little red ones are great. | Amazon | $4 |
| Tweezer nose pliers | Lots of uses, I hold wires with them a lot. | Amazon | $14 |
| 0.156" Crimper | Common size connector that needs repinning. I use a Molex 3136-CT. Buy both sizes of crimp contacts, keys, and plenty of header pins/housings. Don't bother stocking up on different sizes. Just get big connectors and header pins, they easily cut to size when you use them. | GPE | $15-150 |
| Novus 1,2,3 | Plastic polishers. Novus 1 used to polish plastics. Novus 2 frequently used for initial cleaning. Novus 3 used for heavy plastic scratches. | Amazon | $10 |
| Flexstone | For cleaning EM switch contacts (not for solid state games). I don't see a benefit to buying the more expensive kind. Get a bunch, they wear out. | PBR | $1 |
| Metal File | For cleaning tungsten EM switches (not for solid state games). | PBR | $3 |
| Wax | Everyone has their own opinion on wax. You want non-cleaner carnauba paste wax. Many will recommend against liquid waxes, especially Millwax and Wildcat. I'm not going to claim one is the best. Well reviewed carnauba paste wax choices are:
|
Amazon | $15-40 |
| Microfiber towels | Use when cleaning anything, not paper towels | Amazon | $20 |
| Flipper gauge | For setting the proper gap between a flipper and the playfield. You can make one out of a credit card. | Marco | $1 |
| Wire stripper | I'm probably the one person in the world who doesn't prefer the squeeze type. | Amazon | $12 |
| Isopropyl alcohol | Cleaning things. Sometimes used with magic erasers. | Anywhere | $2 |
| Stranded copper wire | Two common gauges are 18AWG and 22AWG. Various sizes and colors won't hurt. | Ebay | $20 |
| Target foam | 3/16" high density weather stripping works | Pinrestore | $5 |
| Wood glue | Used for repairing stripped screw holes in the playfield along with toothpicks or bamboo skewers. | Amazon | $3 |
| Various cleaners | Windex, Sprayway, Mean Green, Simple Green. For cabinet, optos, glass, ultrasonic cleaner, etc. Not Pledge. | Anywhere | $5 |
Also Important
Tools that aren't necessary to survive but will make your life easier or game cleaner.
| Tool | Notes | Where I Buy | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ultrasonic cleaner | I ultrasonic clean almost everything. You can technically live without one and do an OK job cleaning by hand but it will change your life. In my opinion, nothing on a machine is really clean until it's been through the ultrasonic cleaner. Some of the restoration guys use very big, very expensive ones. The <$100 ones are fine for most playfield components. You need a cleaning solution, either Ultra Dust or Mean Green are popular. | Amazon |
$90+ |
| Electric duster | Dry parts after ultrasonic cleaning. Blow dust and stuff out of the cabinet (while wearing a mask!). All around useful thing to have. | Amazon | $60 |
| Evaporust | Miraculously cleans rusty parts. Store it in a sealable container. Reuse it by filtering it through a coffee filter. | Harbor Freight | $25 |
| Plastic welder | Used to fix broken plastics and cracked ramps. I love Ambroid Pro-Weld. It's discontinued and hard-to-find but occasionally pops up on Ebay UK or hobby stores. Bondic is a somewhat less durable option. | Hobby Stores | $10 |
| Epoxy putty | Such as Quikwood or JB Weld. Used to repair damaged holes before covering with a Cliffy. | Amazon | $9 |
| EPROM burner | I use a GQ-4X. If you even have a couple games, you might as well invest in one now rather than spending $10 a chip to burn EPROMs. You also need a UV eraser. | Ebay | $100 |
| Magnetic pickup tool | Easily take balls out of a trough. Fish for dropped screws, etc. | Amazon | $5 |
| Switch adjustment tool | Bend and adjust leaf switches, much better than needlenose pliers. | Pinball Life | $9 |
| Shop vac | To vacuum out the cabinet | Anywhere | $20+ |
| Heat shrink tubing | Put over spliced wires. Also used on flipper pawls. Obviously you need a heat gun as well. | Ebay | $5 |
| Zip ties | Cable management and tying up flipper capacitors | Amazon | $10 |
| Cotton swabs | Cleaning under inserts and some other uses | Amazon | $2 |
| Goo Gone | Clean up soldering flux and other crap you find. NOT Goof Off. | Amazon | $10 |
| Fine tipped markers | Useful for labeling connectors | Amazon | $10 |
| Toothbrush | Cleaning some components and cleaning flux off PCBs | Anywhere | $1 |
| Business cards | Cleaning gold plated leaf switches or light cleaning EM contacts | Anywhere | $0-5 |
| Light socket cleaning stick | Put in a drill and clean flakey sockets. | PBR | $7 |
Nice To Have
Parts that aren't needed for basic cleaning and common repair tasks but that I own specifically for pinball restoration.
| Tool | Notes | Where I Buy | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vibratory Tumbler | For polishing metal and screws. Bigger is better. I use a Lyman Pro 1200, it's cheap. Use crushed walnut reptile bedding for cheap media from any pet store. Flitz is a popular additive. | Amazon | $50-200 |
| Desoldering iron | Useful when you need to desolder 48 pins at a time. I still like the cheapo spring loaded tool for many jobs. I have a Hakko 808, it's been replaced by the FR300. Get a discount on it via Pinside. | Hakko | ~$150 |
| Rivet Press | Used for installing new ramp flaps and certain plastics. Pinrestore has a nice, easily available one. Well reviewed cheaper ones like Third Hand can be harder to find. I buy my rivets and backing washers from Pinrestore as well, get various sizes. | Pinrestore | $200 |
| Butane Soldering Iron | Used for flame polishing ramps. Some people use a blowtorch, but I like this. I use a Weller P2KC. | Amazon | $65 |
| Random Orbital Sander | For sanding the insides of cabinets | Amazon | $30 |
| Bench buffer/grinder | Metal parts need shiny | Harbor Freight | $60 |
| Rotisserie | I've used this for EM games mostly since it's a bigger pain to constantly move the playfield up and down | Ebay | $250 |
| Detail Sander | For sanding the inside corners of cabinets | Amazon | $35 |
| Paint Pens | For basic touch ups | Pinrestore | $3-6 |
| Caligraphy markers | For basic touchups on EM pop caps | Marker Supply | $2/ea |
| Digital Level | For leveling the playfield to exactly 6.5 degrees. PinGuy is also a useful app for this. | Amazon | $0-50 |
| Lockdown bar gasket | "Beer seal". Sometimes crusty or messed up and is nice to replace. | Pinrestore | $6 |
| Round hole brushes | Cleaning little holes and such. Harbor Freight also sells many sizes. | Pinrestore | $10 |
| 0.100" crimp tool | Connections from switches to the MPU. All these crimpers are sometimes required, but less commonly than .156" | GPE | $15+ |
| 0.093" crimp tool | I just have the Molex kit 76650-0018. Used for various power connectors, not something I commonly have to repin. | GPE | $32 |
| 0.062" crimp tool | I just have the Molex kit 76650-0019. Used for many under playfield connectors. | GPE | $32 |
| 64 Switch Matrix Tester | Pinitech makes a lot of cool products. This will let you test switches without having to jump J207 to J209. A complete luxury product, but when you want to troubleshoot switch problems, it's so nice to have. | Pinitech | $90 |
| Pinguard Rubber Cleaner | Does what it says | Pinball Life | $6 |
| Metal polish | Ball guides, some other metal parts that you can't tumble. Brand probably doesn't matter. | Amazon | $10 |
| Bulb tester | Pure luxury product, useful for comparing/testing bulbs without plugging them into a pin. | Pinball Life | $30 |
| Fiberglass Scratch Pen | Prep surfaces (especially flakey lamp sockets on EMs) for soldering | Amazon | $7 |
| Socket Cleaning Stick | To clean bayonet lamp sockets | Marco | $6 |
| Pin punch set | To punch out roll pins. A pain without proper tools. | Marco | $13 |
| Gun Blue | For ramp flaps | Amazon | $6 |
| Mineral Spirits | Loosen magnet cores from their bracket | Anywhere | $10 |
| Plastic Razors | Clean up residue after mylar removal | Pinrestore | $2 |
Some stuff I don't have that might be useful for pinball restoration work includes an orbital sander with dust extractor, band saw, sandblasting cabinet, spray booth for clearcoating, and electroplating kits. I make do for now.
Parts
I originally intended to dump a full list of parts I have on hand but it's really ridiculous, game-specific, and grows just about weekly. Buying many spare parts before you need them is really a sucker bet. Undoubtedly whatever you don't buy is what you're going to end up needing. Whenever I need some $0.30 transistor or plastic spacer I don't have, I make sure to buy a bunch though. Here is a list of some common things I have.
- Flipper rebuild parts (pawl, plunger, link, bushings, bat, EOS switch, coil stop)
- Pop bumper rebuild parts (metal, yoke, fiber yoke, plunger, rings, spring, body, base, lamp socket)
- A ton of LEDs from CometPinball.com in various styles/colors
- White rubber in every size imaginable
- Flipper rubber of different sizes and colors
- Blue ball stop rubber
- Rubber grommets (flipper and apron)
- Coil sleeves of every size imaginable
- Coils (FL-11629, FL-11630, magnet coils, many odd ones)
- Plungers (slingshots, knockers, ball launchers)
- Ball popper cups
- Plastic star posts (Every color and style, mostly clear and red)
- Metal posts of common styles
- Plastic ball guides
- Clear PETG washers to protect plastics
- Various plastic and nylon spacers
- Drop targets
- Screws, nuts, and washers (hex screws, ramp screws, pop bumper screws, hardware of a hundred sorts)
- Springs (flippers, pops, roto-targets, plunger, stepper, drop target, relay)
- Tee Nuts (#6, #8, #10, 3/8-16)
- E-Clips of various sizes
- Incandescent bulbs (#47, #555, #51, #89, #906)
- Bulb caps/condoms of every color
- Lamp sockets of every style
- Trifurcon pins, key pins, header pins, and molex housings for 0.062", 0.093", 0.100", and 0.156" crimp connectors
- WPC driver bridge rectifiers (35a/400v)
- Capacitors (15,000uf/35v, 100µF/10V, EOS caps...)
- Transistors (TIP102, 2N4401, TIP107, TIP36C...)
- Resistors
- Bally SCRs (MCR106, 2N5060)
- Diodes (1N4004, 1N4148...)
- ULN2803A and 74LS374 for WPC switch matrix
- Fuses (Slow and fast blow, many different ratings)
- Leaf switches (EOS and slingshot switches mostly)
- Leaf switch components (blades, contacts, spacers, screws, bakelite)
- Microswitches with various actuators
- Optos
- Magnet cores
- Ribbon cables
- Keyless and keyed locks
- Cabinet backbox lock plates/screws
- Backbox hinges
- Backbox wing bolts
- Pushbuttons (flipper buttons, start, extra ball, screws)
- Leg parts (legs, leg levelers, brackets, bolts, cabinet protectors)
- Ball shooter parts (rods, springs, outer springs, washers)
- Cheap remote battery holders (not the ridiculous wooden dowel ones)
- DMDs
- Playfield glass (standard, widebody)
- Pinball Life Ultra Shiny pinballs
No comments:
Post a Comment