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In Progress Zaccaria Space Shuttle

Moonraker

Moonraker

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For time reasons, I don't normally do shop logs. Thanks to COVID-19 I now have a little more time on my hands than I would normally so here is one that is a work in progress. It was a basket case that came with Dark Shadow (which was not quite as bad as this one as it didn't have damaged inserts or plastics).

So a few pictures...

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Then on to earthing and the power supply...

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Can you see the naughty...?

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Have a closer look...

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You can see where some components died... [for the un-initiated R2 and R3]

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This is the 170V display supply so no displays until it's fixed... I put beefier components in just in case the problem was still there, although I'd like to think that now the game has the correct fuses then one of those would blow first.

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Thats not too bad really, i wouldn't call it a basket case. You'll have that up and running in next to no time. :)
 
BigIan said:
Do you think the wire was used because the fuse kept rolling away ?

Or maybe the first time it was put on to tight and broke the clips
Click to expand...

Didn't have a fuse or broke the clips so used the wire instead as fuses are vastly overrated...

I forgot to mention this was routed in Italy before being brought to the UK.
 
PSU installed in the game...

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All voltages tested, all present and correct.

MPU and driver installed in the game...

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Not working...?

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Decided it was the 5101 memory that wasn't working. Eventually replaced that after buying and building a tester for 5101 memory chips which confirmed it was duff.

The game still didn't boot, so with a little help from friends (@Zaccaria Keith) it was traced back to a missing voltage on the PSU caused by D3 dying (bottom left).

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And tad dar...

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Should point out that I'd replaced all the blown GI bulbs (hence it nicely lit above) as that can prevent a Space Shuttle from booting.
 
There was a few issues with displays, so I removed and went over them carefully. Stripped and cleaned each display then checked for dry joints as there is normally a lot. Also replaced electrolytic cap on each. One display has a bad burn, possibly the cause of PSU component failure?

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More deceased wildlife...

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In spite of all the effort the displays are not much better and I'm considering buying a set of LED replacements along with a replacement backglass.
 
Nice work Peter. I always wish at the end of a rebuild that I had taken more photos of before and after!

I've stopped replacing the large electrolytics now unless they are out of spec. I have a tester that can check capacitance and, more importantly, ESR (effective series resistance) which tells you the condition of the capacitors - if they are drying out the ESR will increase long before the capacitance starts to fall. The tester can usually test them in circuit too. I have found that these big electrolytics from ~40 years ago are invariably still as good as the day they shipped, whereas the modern ones will often be failing after 5 - 10 years. The older devices, being much larger, are much less highly stressed and use less agressive chemicals in the electrolyte, so as long as they aren't showing any physical signs of leakage or damage, and they pass the capacitance and ESR tests then I reckon they will outlast the modern replacements! Only time will tell but I have tested 60 - 70 year old ones that are still good. Obviously it is important to be able to test them fully though, otherwise replacement is the only option. The tester is also great for identifying the capacitor failures in the switch-mode power supplies of all those household gadgets that stop working after 5 - 15 years and actually just need a few capacitors replacing to make them as good as new - being able to test most of them in circuit makes the job a lot quicker.

I have some spare plastics for Space Shuttle if you are missing any.

Keith
 
I used to leave caps well alone but have had a few go down over the years and then it's a buggerance factor that I can do without as it will almost certainly happen during a meet/tournament. Especially displays, which may get damaged if not switched off. So I now replace when commissioning a machine for peace of mind.
 
Zaccaria Keith said:
Also, you won't thank me for this now you have built a 5101 tester 😀, but I always replace them now with these in order to do away with the battery all together and save the parameters indefinitely with the power off.

Keith
Click to expand...

Nice but I have a few spare 5101's and lots of memory caps... so no need for the time being and a tad cheaper!

The memory tester is good for testing all these:
2101, 2114, 2016, 2018, 2125, 2147, 2148, 2149, 2465, 4016, 9114, 5101, 6514, 6116, 6264, 6810, 5189, 7489, 74189, W24257, W24257, M5M5189, 62256 and all variations of anyPin NVRAM

Also bought the PIA tester:
6532 RIOT, “Ram IO Timer”, as well as the 6520 & 6821 PIA “Peripheral Interface Adapter” ICs
 
I bought the same one myself and assembled, can't believe i didn't buy earlier..
 
On to stripping the playfield...

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Oh and gluing the missing inserts back in. Only the holey one to sort. Spot the residue marks left by the sellotape that was placed over the hole to allow the game to continue being played....

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My playfield cleaner of choice is normally Wypall but I'm totally out and thanks to COVID it's very hard to come by, so making do with tesco's finest, which actually works out a lot cheaper than the Wypall.

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Plastics laid out so easy to remember how they go back on.

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Likewise the metal work...

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Plastic and bolts/screws off to the ultrasonic cleaner...

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Kept screws and bolts (and their star posts) separate so I didn't need to worry about putting them back in the wrong place. It's also not unknown (Classic Stern) for different height and sizes of star posts hence keeping them separate.

Clean up...

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Annoyingly just the one problem removing the posts right at the end...

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Yep 3 sheared screws. :sad:
 
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