Car Hop Pinball

[bubba]

I have a chance to pick up a Gottlieb Car Hop Pinball. Its hard to tell by the pictures, but it looks to be in decent shape.. Its supposed to work. Is a Solid State machine..

Here is the IPMD info on the machine.. it sounds like a fun game.. The guy is asking $700 for it. I'm going to try for it. Does that sound like a decent price? Anything to look for? I don't know anything about pins yet. I love the 50's theme and its probably within 15min of my house...

http://www.ipdb.org/search.pl?any=CAr+Hop&search=Search+Database&searchtype=quick#3676

[Kilroy]

You're right, looks to be a fun game, and I've never seen one that allows  you to switch to retro  sounds.  My pinball is mechanical, so i cna't speak for the  elctronics, but I  do offer-

Look at the drop targets , make sure they are  intact and clean.  It's near impossible to find repro's unless it's a popular machine. The back glass  should be crack free, paint  not chipped  (I'm weird that way)
A manual and schematics are a good thing also.

I'd go for it   

[bubba]

I'm going to go see it.. The weather here has gone from bad to horrible, so I don't think I'll get to him tonite. I told him I want it.. He's owned it for 5 years, and is now moving. He can't take it with him. He said its in great shape, including the playfield and backglass.  I hope so... 

[bubba]

How do you move a pinball machine? Are they stable enough to transport with the legs on it or is it better to remove the legs? How heavy are they?

[davethebirdman]

Take the legs off and lay it flat in the back of a car.... They are heavy but if you have moved a few soda machines or a couple of jukes they are feather weight in comparision.

I managed to get mine out of the car on a barrow and into the house all by myself. Had to get the mrs to help me put it on the workmate to get the legs on though...

[bubba]

Cool.. Thanks for the info Dave...

Hey did you get my info?

[collecture]

Had to get the mrs to help me put it on the workmate to get the legs on though...

Why? 

[dr galaga]

You can also take the head off the machine too (or fold it down on some models).  Open the back door on the head and there should be 4 bolts holding the head on.  Disconnect the wire harnesses first.  I used to have a van and I all I did was take the head off my pin and put the machine in the back with the legs still on!

Did you get anywhere with your DK?

[bubba]

Not yet... I'm going to order a flyback, but I really don't see that being the problem. There is no power on the B+ of the board. If the flyback blew, I would have expected a fuse to blow as well. All fuses are good. I found a tech site, forget which one right now, but he had a photo of what the screen looks like when different rom chips fail. There is one chip that will cause a black screen, but there is no mention if the sound worked. I'm having a hard time finding any tech info and the wiring diagrams I've found are all very difficult to read.

[dr galaga]

Is this the page? Does it sound like the monitor comes on (high pitch sound)?  I'm trying to get a good set of DK schematics myself since all the ones I have come across are pretty poor quality too.  If you haven't ordered a flyback yet, you may want to try ordering one from Bob Roberts.  Call him up and tell him you think you need a new flyback and tell him what it is/isn't doing.  Bob is a retired arcade tech. who basically runs his business as a hobby.  As long as he breaks even every year he is happy.  He may be able to guide you in the right direction.

[dr galaga]

You may also want to look at the Video Problems on the DKJr page.

[bubba]

Yeah, thats the page. That got me thinking. I think I'll give Bob Roberts a call. I didn't realize he was like that. I am kind of stuck. Ill make an effort to find a good set of schematics..

Thanks..

[davethebirdman]

Tom - The Workmate is my black and decker bench... I thought it would be a bit harsh to ask Mrs Birdman to hold the whole cabinet up ewhilst I bolted on the legs.

Kken - In the post yesterday. Hopefully to you for Xmas. Have worked long shifts so couldn't get to post office before...

[bubba]

Dave.. no problem at all.. I really do appreciate it. You have a total for me yet?

[bubba]

Well, it followed me home tonite... Its not as pretty as I hoped, but its still cool for a first game. I brought a buddy with me, and he kept on saying how nice it is, and how good a shape its in.. In reality, the paint is faded on the cabinet... otherwise it is in good shape. I wanted to beat the guy up a bit on the price, but with my buddy it was kind of hard to do. I'll get some pics tomorrow...

[bubba]

What do you use to clean and wax the playfield with. I have Butchers wax (Bowling Alley Wax), but it says it leaves a satin shine to it. I want a high gloss I think, right?

[collecture]

I brought a buddy with me, and he kept on saying how nice it is, and how good a shape its in.. In reality, the paint is faded on the cabinet... otherwise it is in good shape. I wanted to beat the guy up a bit on the price, but with my buddy it was kind of hard to do.

I did that once...brought a friend along to help and he just made it harder to barter because he just kept saying nice things about the machine. I wanted to slap him upside the head!  

Now I just tell my buddies to keep their mouth shut (or sit in the car until I need them) and let me do the talking.

[Kilroy]

Save your money and avoid pinball wax. A friend with a massive  collection of pinballs suggested Kit Car w/ carnuba (he swears by Kit, claims it has a higher Carnuba content  than other brands) Apply it with a peice of nylon stocking ( it's abrasive enough to  pick up the  grime buildup, but  not to  rub off paint)   let the wax dry to a haze, then  buff with a soft and clean cloth.

In between waxings, I  do a quick  clean  with Lemon Pledge, it leaves a shine, but doesn't leave a  waxy buildup. And it smells  good. 

[bubba]

Tom.. I did learn my lesson... I'm kinda shocked with this guy.. I really didn't expect to have that happen with him.

Kilroy.. Thanks.. The bowling alley wax is pure Carnuba..

I pulled the glass and started cleaning up the playfield a bit.. There is a protector over the main section which cleaned up fairly well. The spots off the protector are dirty and will need some work to clean. I put it back together until I get the bumper kit.. Then  I'll rip into it and detail it all...

[bubba]

You may also want to look at the Video Problems on the DKJr page.

Bob Roberts did me well. I sent him an email on Friday, telling him the problem, telling him that people wanted me to replace the flyback, and also some of the diagnostics I've done already. He wrote me back suggesting its not the flyback and its probably a cold solder joint. I pulled the chassis and inspected.. sure enough, there was a bad solder joint on the main power resistor. I resoldered it, and its working fine now... 

[dr galaga]

Congrats!  Sometimes it is like you are a not a repairman, but a detective.

[TomFromJersey]

Ken
  You can use any window cleaner(without amonia) to clean the playfield. Or better yet use Novus. Then use the wax. Inspect the balls, old nasty balls do more damage to a playfield then anything else. They are only $1 to $1.25 ea for new ones. Next time take me, and I'll pick the machine apart real good for you.

[bubba]

Yeah, Tom, after I spoke to you, I had a different attitude when I was going to look. My buddy is a quiet guy who never has much to say... apparently at someone else's house, he can't keep his mouth shut....

I was going to give you a call today, but the kids and weather got ahead of me..

[glassbottlesrule]

Bubba check out the pin repair guides at the marvin3m site.  Clay who wrote them is a great guy and seems to be a pure genius when it comes to pins.  For real dirty playfields I use a mister clean magic eraser dipped in rubbing alcohol followed by novus 2.  If it's not bad I just use the novus 2. I then follow any cleaning with3 or 4 coats of a good carnuba wax and always ditch the ball and through a new one in.

http://www.marvin3m.com/fix.htm

[bubba]

Cool.. thanks for the link. Hopefully I'll be getting the new rubber kit soon. When I get that, I plan on getting into the machine and giving it a really good cleaning.. I'm going to get some of that Novus as well.