Pinball Update: Meeting My Match

I'm nearing the end of the odyssey of bringing the Royal Flush pinball machine back to life. Right now, I'd say it's running at 98%. Every so often a problem I thought I fixed rears its ugly head, but I'd say I've accomplished my goal.

It is sooo much fun to play, but it is a bit rough.

A previous owner had intentions of repainting the cabinet, but they didn't. My machine had sides that were painted with primer. Rather than follow through with their plans, I used Goof Off and a toothbrush to remove the primer. I was lucky that I had an old can of Goof Off in the garage. Apparently new cans contain harsher materials and will remove all the layers of paint instead of just the top layer.

Here's my first test spot.

Okay, let's try a bit more.

Not bad. It's not pristine, but it looks a lot better than that grey.

I lost a bit of the red and black in the crown, but that can be easily touched up. I think the results look more authentic.

Title story:

To test all four score reels, I played four games at one time. I've done this a bunch of times, but this was a first.

I didn't notice the scores at first, but they all ended with a 70.

Then the match unit ended on a 70.

The knocker sounded like a machine gun!

Four free games! If that had happened when four players were playing this machine in the 70's, it would have been considered a miracle!

But in my basement it just makes me happy that I really did fix the match unit.

Still, can you pick 70 as your Powerball number?