IJ Restoration Progress
Apologies for adding to this monstrous thread, I'll probably split off future restores to separate threads as this one will soon get too big.
Anyway, made some more good progress on the IJ playfield.
I took a punt and ordered an overlay from PinballCenter as I would need to use a decal to fix Dr. Jones' shirt, which had suffered some flipper drag and a nasty touch-up. I was very reluctant to use the overlay, so my plan was in fact to cut out what I needed and ditch the rest, for fear of an imprecise fit on the playfield. The following issues presented themselves:
1. I'm not as good with a scalpel knife as I thought - there's no way I'll get accurate cuts if I try to salvage bits and pieces
2. These insert decals had white outlines, so replacing one meant replacing all for continuity's sake
3. The colour accuracy (especially the skin colour) on the decal was suboptimal, so I couldn't use bits and pieces of the decal without a distracting colour difference.
4. The decal was thicker than I thought. I'm hoping the clear coat will level it out, however I wasn't planning for as thick of a coat as I will end up needing.
All of this considered, I decided to take a punt and apply the decal whole, after sealing the playfield underneath with one coat of clear. Application was sweet and the fit was fine.
I then used the Darksoul KBS Diamond Clear method to roll on 2 coats over the decal (I will likely apply two more coats), thinned to 20% with solvent thinner. I won't go on about method since it has been documented elsewhere but am happy to elaborate if anyone is interested. A couple of things that I found:
- I had read that the clear coat can affect the decal, so I did a sample on a bit of decal off-cut before proceeding and didn't have any issues.
- The coating didn't go on as evenly or as thick as I had expected, it even looked like it left gaps where it went on too thin, but I figure better to go slow.
- I used a high density foam roller (100 or 160mm)
- I thinned to 20% to avoid solvent boil/bubbles during curing
- I applied hardly any pressure during rolling and tried not to over-roll
And.... we are at a point where the playfield is starting to look more 'alive'. It's a hundred times better than what I began with so I've got to be happy with that. Two more coats of clear before playfield reassembly.
Hopefully the next update will be a finished machine.
Also picked up a Pin2DMD from @Wiseold which will hopefully make this pop! Never had one before so looking forward to it.
Decal applied on top of clear coat:
After 2 coats of KBS (still wet):