What's new
Pinball info

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

In Progress Williams - BSD

James

Site Supporter
Joined
Dec 29, 2017
Messages
5,092
Location
Norwich
Alias
James
So here it is, the next project and I am more than fired up and ready to get on with this one... It is the biggest project I have been involved in and there is a lot of work, but I am going to go for it and see on some key decisions, such as a new play-field - I think it may end up with one. So... let's dive in.

Screen Shot 2018-09-07 at 06.44.33.png

BRAM STOKERS DRACULA
SHOP LOG - THIS IS WAR!
Initial shots of the unit show what there is wrong, this cab isn't new to the forum and I managed to convince a fellow Norfolk pinball buddy to let me have this project to do. Everyone knows from my collection I am a huge horror fan and unfortunately limited on funds, so this made perfect sense as a project, once you have the bug, you have the bug.

IMG_6879.jpg

The game arried into my office and I never really paid attention ot the artwork before, but have fallen in love with it, that castle scene - I love it, clearly a candidate for redecal, but I have always said, it is about the play-field and how it plays for me, so this can wait if it ever gets done. Note the cobwebs all over the machine, that's a feature you know, not one I will keep, but a feature.

IMG_6878.jpg

I had to take the head off to transport home as I was going to be using my car - the play-field is coming out anyway and there is a tonne of testing work to be done, loom needs cleaning etc, so that didn't bother me. Boards looked ok from the front, but they of course (as we will see later) hide some terrible secrets (not so terrible, emphasised for the horror theme).

IMG_6877.jpg

IMG_6884.jpgIMG_6883.jpgIMG_6882.jpgIMG_6881.jpg

This is why it needs a new play-field, if there were an insert set, I would jump on that, I don't have to have a mint play-field on this, but those inserts I don't think will do.. so there is a decision to be made there. NO ONE MAKES AN INSERT KIT FOR BSD - it is so annoying and I have emailed everyone, the guy that makes the new play-field is really happy to sell me a new one, but not an insert set, which I kind of get, but also, find a little annoying. Closer inspection I can see some slight planking, so maybe not the end of the world that it will have to have a new one.

IMG_6908.jpg

Luckily, Ron Jeremy is ok.

IMG_6897.jpg

Back home and yes there is filth but it isn't the end of the world under there, everything will be coming out - so will go from there.


Onto the first step

So the first thing I wanted to check was the driver board, with everything off, I am hoping I can go for a methodical look at what the issue is - having learnt what I have thus far from working on machines. The listing had the solenoids down as not working but the flippers as working, So I got my setup together, ready to go. It aint much, but it works.

IMG_6906.jpg

Initial visual inspection, shows the heat sync paste is a little messy, probably ok, may cause some issues how thick it is on the bottom one there, I will have that off and re-paste once all working.

D7D5CBA4-F9FE-4CA0-AC29-E4A8E1DD0BCD.jpg

IMG_6899.jpg

Trace repair looks ok - note the corrosion from the flux though, will have them off, clean, re-work. Buzzed out and all still good on the connections they make though - top and bottom side.

IMG_6900.jpg

Sheared off screw heads and some more flux corrosion, will have the make these screws work again (probably cut a flat head into them) remove, desolder, clean, test component, resolder).

Didn't take a picture but also a connector has been reworked, needs the same love, rework and clean before going back in.

That was my initial findings, but all of the Bridge Rectifier and caps tested out ok with the meter - fuses all buzzed out too ok, will take out and clean tonight/tomorrow just to double check.

SO - if there is a power issue on the coils, I am going to start at the begining.


Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 21.44.49.png

Ensure 51 VAC at pins J102 pin 8 and 5 from the transformer, this also controls the flippers which work, so be interesting to see what happens here.

According to the schematic from there, it is only through some fuses to the output pins, so will trace and test those too, noting J107 6.3.2.1 but will work through that accordingly and check as I go through. First step is as above :)

Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 22.05.23.png
 

Attachments

  • IMG_6909.jpg
    IMG_6909.jpg
    118.7 KB · Views: 17
  • IMG_6907.jpg
    IMG_6907.jpg
    143.7 KB · Views: 16
Small update really, waiting for lift table to come tomorrow, as I am going to be trying to do a few projects going forward as I have the bug bad (even had a friend over today who told me he wants a project machine for us to do together, an old EM is his preference and I have wanted to do one, so suits me just fine) - bought a couple of tools too, so excited. Today I just did some cleaning in the head getting it ready to fault find on the boards, now I have tidied up some of the fixes and changed up some fuses that were gone (just one I think actually)

IMG_6934.jpg

The speaker panel and DMD were both like this and that yellowing you can see is nicotine I think, had the entire thing fully stripped down, cleaned the flasher board with alcohol, cleaned the panel down, sorted out the speaker panels by spraying them black.

IMG_6937.jpg

In the backbox and on the boards and even in this little insert here I am finding spiders and the cobwebs on the boards took an age to get off.

IMG_6940.jpg

Compared to what it was, this is sparkling, obviously I will do some work on the backbox, but want it up and running before I strip it down and this was something to do tonight whilst I had some time.
 
Put everything back together and noticed that I must have pulled out one of the wires to the flipper connectors because it was hanging out... FFS - thats a crimp I have to buy now and it is one of the smaller ones, so need to work out what I need, anyone who can point me in the right direction it will be appreciated. So.. fired it up and....

That's right, the sounds in the background you can hear is the solenoids working, but now... no flippers because of that wire being out I think, I could croc clip it but will look into that tomorrow.


So... good points (which there are few)

- Myst in ball search pulls the ball across the play field
- GI seems ok
- DMD seems good
- Solenoids work

Bad

- Oh it needs work
- A lot of work
- Menu button doesn't work
 
Bit more of an update, mainly been focusing now on stripping down the play field, ready to try out the decals my friend made up. Cut them out quickly just to have a look over how they would look, think they look good, sent the designer over the colour variance and he has ammedned to blend it in much better, so will use the V2 ones one the actual inserts when I do them.

IMG_7031.jpg

IMG_7028.jpg

With the paint being taken back a bit on both sections I will try and sort that out too with a colour match. Although may try and paint that in, instead of airbrushing as it is quite minor.

Have had some metal work in the tumbler today, wasn't going for perfection - just an improvement
IMG_7034.jpg

IMG_7050.jpg

Not that this element will be seen anyway, still.... getting better.

As you can see the whole machine is a little bit dirty....

IMG_7039.jpg

The plastics also needed a bit of clean, which they got today

IMG_7044.jpgIMG_7045.jpgIMG_7046.jpgIMG_7049.jpg

More went into the tumbler tonight, will get that out tomorrow and continue stripping down during the week...
 
They are waterslides - or will be - depends on what I print them on I guess, just ordered all the stuff for waterslides though, but can be returned if anyone has any ideas?
 
you've done well there ,,they do look good .you've done well to get that scan and all work done.. would have costs me ten times as much from a photo
 
Run some tests with the waterslides and whatever you decide to use to protect them.

A plastic playfield protector will be the easiest and possibly cheapest cover.

1k, 2k and lacquer can lighten or darken waterslides, so it's worth testing and adjusting colours as needed. When I did the Magic Circle playfield all the blues went a lot darker but as almost the whole playfield was waterslides it was not noticeable.
 
Start off with a bit of a random one...I have a UV light to set some hard coat I bought as found on Pinside, so as soon as I got it, I checked over the play field (I wanted to make sure it worked) and this came up.... weird.

IMG_7062.jpg

I have spent some time stripping back the inserts and the playfield, the insert stripping takes quite some time as removing a LOT of hard coat. I think that it is coming on and probably once the insert decals are in, won't be too bad at all....

IMG_7083.jpg

I woke Ron Jeremy up and bought him up to speed on the world of pinball...

6DA5FF8A-39D6-40C2-81F6-87306CAFD29B.jpg

"If my day wasn't Vlad enough... now your telling me Stern are running Spike!!!"

Oh.. gotta love them there operators - ladies and gentlemen, I give you Pinballs first adjustable rubber.

IMG_7082.jpg
 
Last edited:
My TAF and STTNG have /had this not checked Dr Who because I have lost my UV light , can't remember if JD had it or creech ,it could be which supplier , supplied the playfield I think !
 
I remember seeing something about those numbers on Pinside. Something to do with gambling restrictions in American states and supply of pinball machines to operators.

I think they concluded that if a machine was found in a state where the machine was not distributed to they could use the hidden identifiers on the machine to track down the out of state distributer who originally purchased the machine and illegally put it where it was found.
 
IMG_7103.jpg

More tearing down, this game is complicate and it is slow going with all the pictures I am taking.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_7101.jpg
    IMG_7101.jpg
    106 KB · Views: 13
More off today, slow progress on this as I am playing so much TWD....

IMG_7122.jpg

This does not look good....

IMG_7119.jpg
 
That's because the spring is to small (the correct part number) what I did was use a length of fairly thick copper wire and fashioned a arm from the coil to the gate. Took a little adjusting but was more reliable than the overstretched spring
 
Is it supposed to just pull the gate open then? The Myst gate?
 
Correct the coil energises and pulls it open. I thought mine had the wrong spring so I bought a new one with the correct part number but was the same so I'd say it's a design flaw.
 
Looking great mate. That coffin scoop is huge when you see it without the ramp and coffin.
Sorry if you have mentioned before, but are you planning on clear coating or putting down new Mylar down when done?
 
Was thinking of a playfield protector, will cover any dimples in the finish too...
 
Well - I have now put the decals on - they came out OK - not as good as I had hoped, but better than when I got the machine - I used some UV setting clearcoat to level them out after and this has created a little glare on the darker inserts, but this is OK when the light comes through, this was never going to be a lovely machine, but it will be a playable one that now the player will know what is going on. So on that note, with what it owes me, I am happy with it.

02FD7B98-4E5D-4CF3-95D5-240D07247908.jpg

IMG_7190.jpg

IMG_7185.jpg
IMG_7222.jpg
IMG_7225.jpgIMG_7226.jpg
 
Like many things in life, especially first times, things never live up to expectations.

It looks great to me. Massive improvement on what you started with. Be proud.
 
Yeah great work James. Inspiring! I've never played Dracula outside of virtual, but it's still one of my faves. Looking forward to seeing more progress.
 
Was thinking of a playfield protector, will cover any dimples in the finish too...

What protector were you considering, I hear some can have an effect on things like ball spin?

Not that id probably be able to notice.
 
What protector were you considering, I hear some can have an effect on things like ball spin?

Not that id probably be able to notice.

I looked at one on eBay due to price but after speaking to some people that was the feedback, basically avoid so I have and gone the clear route.
 
Back
Top Bottom