How Old Pinball Machines Are Professionally Restored | Restoration

[@justinfiorini3142]

Fish Tales is not a forgotten gem. It's still regarded as a classic.

[@edicspaz]

100%. I feel like anybody that has even basic knowledge of pinball knows fish tales.

[@JimHawkwind03411]

It’s also one of Mark Ritchie’s best games, and sold 13,640 units, his best selling game.

[@petercolquhoun2086]

I think they meant this particular example was forgotten somewhere.

[@justinfiorini3142]

@@petercolquhoun2086 That makes a lot more sense

[@PonysGarage]

Wanted to watch this. But I can hear the tiktok voice.

[@NathanOZlegend]

it's just a pleasure to see old artisans working on those beloved machines there been doing that long before is was born

[@PinBallReviewerRepairs]

This is exciting to see! As a pinball repairman myself I also get pinball machines working and I am also working on my LaserCue full restoration.

[@williamwigley8334]

Where does one get replacement graphics?

[@Dan.d649]

An amazing transformation here!! Nice job!! Everyone loves the Pinball machines. This brings back the nostalgia and one of our favorite "free time" pastimes.

[@kurtkelling1016]

Pinball machine restoration just became my favorite thing. I hope to see a lot more of this.

[@SkittleKicksPlays]

This is not technically restoration. New art, LEDs in place of incandescent lamps, solid state devices for efficiency is called rebuilding. Restoration is a very delicate technique in which you are just touching up and making minor repairs in order to keep the original look and feel. One must take not to devalue the item which happens a lot. Patina is the character of an aged item.

[@sepplee5812]

Great work. I was skeptical at first due to the guy throwing his tools on the wires like he wouldn’t care but as I saw that he checked every single wire and restored every bit of the machine, I was speechless. Perfect work!

[@panicfarm9874]

Great memories playing this as a young teenage kid, great work on the restoration

[@philipbrailey]

Yes, I agree.

[@Austeration]

*Wow what an incredible transformation. Amazing work. Well done*

[@dannraff]

What a fantastic renovation The artisan knows his job well thanks for sharing.

[@georgebrown8312]

That is beautiful. A lot of hard work and patience went into fixing up and restoring that pinball machine. Excellent work I must say.

[@markbutler7205]

Really really nice. It’s good to see the vibrant colors of the original brought back to life

[@markbounds6260]

That wiring harness was incredible!

[@shirleyannconfer9651]

I remember playing one of these machines! I love playing pinball.

[@wernerrunkel5378]

Tolle, sehr schöne Arbeit ! Die herrlichen, alten Flipperautomaten, zehnmal besser und authentischer als der ganze Elektronikkram !

[@coot1925]

I do love a pinball machine. My only criticism is that most of the commentary is inaccurate. Ie. When he says he's installing LEDs in the speaker when in fact he's putting LEDs in a bumper. I agree with previous comment, it's a rebuild not a restoration. Nevertheless, it's great and the LEDs will not need replacing in the same way as the old incandescent bulbs.

[@hendrikdebruin4012]

Instead of criticism we should educate as you did. I never played pinball machines - or computer games for that matter. But I do admire the beauty of the machines.

[@coot1925]

@@hendrikdebruin4012 yes, pinball is great because unlike computer games it's a physical machine that when you play it you can feel all the mechanism moving inside. I guess it's a bit like the difference between a driving game and a real car. You should definitely play one if you get the opportunity mate, but be warned, they can be very addictive. ✌❤🇬🇧

[@benjaminaburns]

yeah, 17:17 "the artisan modifies the boards removing batteries and replacing them with SRAM" uhhhh what? It's like saying "he modified the car. He removed the engine and replaced it with a mini fridge."

[@coot1925]

@@benjaminaburns 😂😂😂

[@shananmb127]

@@benjaminaburns Looked like he was replacing capacitors. So yeah, not even right on the batteries.

[@OVERKILL_PINBALL]

This is a LOT of work, well done!

[@refiii9499]

I had no idea how many pieces of electronics were inside a pinball machine! Wow that’s crazy

[@johnalexander7490]

What's scary is one of the Data East games of the era ... like Star Wars. EVERYthing has to work 100% or the game wigs out, causing a massive hive outbreak for the Tech. From head to toe!

[@rvbcabo0se]

wait until you see the inside of an EM pinball machine

[@BlakesBench]

Go watch technology connections and he goes into DETAIL in to a 1980’s I think pinball machine

[@DrVenture45]

I love the restoration of old or defunct things, but nothing generates the endorphins like superb attention to detail. Well done!!

[@TheKurtsPlaceChannel]

Very entertaining and fun to watch. Thanks for posting this.

[@kchastain3]

Nice acrylic crystal no-date Sub watch. Beauty from the ‘70s by the looks of it.

[@ronm3245]

1992

[@KirksCORNER1983]

​@@ronm3245I don't consider 1992 vintage

[@ReverendSoupbone]

Pinball was VERY important with my friends and I. Going to the local small town bowling alley with a slug of nickels was a good time!! Way before the Fish Tales machine. “Gapping” the flippers to catch the ball and hold it so you could line up the perfect shot, knowing where on the side of the machine to give a whack to get a “match” and win free games. It worked more often than not!! Great times.

[@silviofoj]

This kind of machine is a masterpiece. Love it!

[@drumboy256]

Thank you for this video, truly incredible!

[@hudsonball4702]

I 100% want to see that Star Trek TNG pinball machine get restored! My old Arcade haunt use to have one that I played on.

[@tru3sk1ll]

The final frontier!!!!!

[@rutikuiwa7133]

Master of pinball restoration 👍👍👍

[@alexanderleach3365]

I love pinball machines. Always so fun to play.

[@jkuebler89]

Any man who can look at that wire loom and not run in absolute terror is a wizard in my book. I would sit with it for hours frozen, not knowing where to start.

[@SlickOils]

I’ve ordered a terminator 2 machine which is now being refurbished, I hope to learn how to maintain and preserve it so I can pass it to my kids. It’s a part of pinball history and also my own.

[@darioesquivel611]

excelente maestro muy lindo quedo , saludos desde Argentina

[@DJELPSS]

"All existing metalwork, including the legs...are painstakingly taken off" Tech removes just a few allen screws lol

[@Oeli_Maurer]

But the AI used to generate the script doesn‘t know that!

[@roffels]

Yeah, so much time spent on that, so little time on playfield disassembly, cleaning of parts, rebuild mechs, and reassembly. I'm over here thinking "it takes me 30 minutes to rebuild a drop target bank"

[@rayinpau.s.a.6351]

Williams Pinball Machines are beautiful and so much fun to play . I have always wanted a TAXI Machine for my home .

[@DkViking1]

Oh yeah! TAXI is one of my all time favorites! Simple and fun, and with great music! 🎶

[@raziel3726]

Amazing Restoration 👍🏻👍🏽👍🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@donmorton7282]

Absolutely phenomenal

[@orange_automation]

My Fish Tales cabinet is faded the same. Looks so good to see the Red.

[@Rotterdam93]

Fantastic restoration

[@oneshotme]

It looks great and you did a wonderful job restoring it as well!!!! I enjoyed your video so I gave it a Thumbs Up

[@JLCra87]

I was wanting to see him put one of those old talking/singing fish as a replacement up top lol.

[@davedestefano9744]

I'd have to guess the ramps and plastics were in fair shape. The new screen looks amazing! Really well done!

[@deda146]

Thanks for rescueing.

[@AndreaMerchak]

WOW!!!! Great job! It's fantastic! ❤

[@2hrsweekly922]

I appreciate this video; I am looking to restore my Cactus Jack's, and this gives me a good idea of what the process will involve.

[@billchiasson2019]

Very cool!! That was an amazing restoration!!

[@daakrolb]

Righteous mission! Outstanding work! I would have liked more detail on how they restored the playfield.... & if any clear coat was applied to enhance protection.

[@25Tohmas]

Yeah, video would be 100% better if you just nix the narrator. Half the time the narrator is describing something that isn't happening on screen. The other half he's just...wrong.

[@Doug....]

Thats the joys of AI. Get used to it 😱

[@KirksCORNER1983]

And get an American to speak.

[@Doug....]

@@KirksCORNER1983 Trouble is Kirk. Thumbnails are created as clickbait by AI. As are the narrations on most vids. Its a growing trend and i despise it. I would never click like on these " masterpieces "

[@Mikeman3524]

Simple solution, just don't watch it

[@hikarustarr]

@@Mikeman3524 not so simple; don't watch it after watching it?!

[@steveaspeck2732]

Wow! Well done!!!! Just wow! Instant subscribe right here!

[@Nightenstaff]

Dude put on new side art and added a battery mod. Fish Tales is a deserving machine and the guy did awesome work, but it wasn't like he rescued a Joust pinball from a mineshaft.

[@samba2782]

Used to love this one when i was younger. Sure its no Addams family or Theater of Magic but i do love it!!

[@skozzy1968]

I must do this to all my machines one day

[@luizalbertorodrigues4560]

Great jop you the best master congratulations

[@toesandsoles]

this would of been good if there was no narrator and we just heard the tools and this man worked.

[@MIGHTYcbu]

Beautiful restauration and great upgrades. I understand nostalgia, but I think the original designers would've used the new components if they were available back then

[@travisshrewsbury7169]

Looks perfect to me.

[@strydr36]

Very well done sir.

[@altairdesouza9368]

Sou muito fã de Pinball. Parabéns pelo trabalho!!! um dia terei um só para mim 😁

[@fabianbourgeais5784]

Great Job !!!

[@super8ben]

Fish Tales is a great game, good to see it getting some tlc.

[@jclark2752]

This is the game they had at the campground we went to as kids! I was never any good, but it ate my quarters just the same! 😁

[@evilwarcow]

If it gobbled up your quarters like that, then it did its job, which the design and manufacturing firms created it to do. 😊

[@willie714]

Nothing like that free game KNOCK of a pinball machine

[@madmanmechanic8847]

I love the restoration I would of loved to find out how he diagnosed the control boards I wish they hadn't skipped that. I am sure would of had some kind of shop manual with specs on each board

[@ghostdog6974]

Great work!

[@SergioPena20]

The guy can afford a Rolex, but not a decent drill?

[@johnalexander7490]

A Rolex is such a huge waste of money. Get a Timex. :) (do they even still make those?)

[@evilwarcow]

A tool that has sentimental value to the user I guess.

[@evilwarcow]

​@@johnalexander7490or something made by the Swiss or German. Or a collaboration by both people. 😊

[@twowheelsintokyo7039]

I’d love a “Black Knight” pinball machine. Unfortunately, these are scarce here in Japan, and shipping one from the states would be a pain.

[@pfitz4881]

The end result looks great! Unfortunately the video showed little more than contact paper installation. I didn't learn a thing.

[@williamharris8367]

Personally, I watch these types of videos for entertainment purposes rather than to learn techniques.

[@petetomaszek4273]

The video would be a few years long if they described every aspect. Pins are insanely complex machines.

[@roffels]

@@petetomaszek4273 True, but it didn't even show parts most pinball owners deal with like working on the playfield. Instead we got 20 minutes of cleaning glass and removing sideart.

[@jons.4918]

Wow that is a lot of work especially with the electronics.

[@jd9875a]

The LED's are surely more reliable and brighter, but I think it loses something with the harsh white LED's they used rather than the warm glow of incandescent bulbs. At least they could have chosen an LED with a warmer colour temperature to better emulate the original look.

[@heru-deshet359]

I have a rare Dragonette wood rail pinball machine from the early 1950s in mint condition. Just need to have the wiring checked and the back glass is peeling.

[@edwardsimmons3721]

I would like to know where the decals came from. If I were to try a project like this knowing where I could get the components from would be helpful.

[@robertpollock8617]

Well done

[@carlosg1165]

❤❤awesome work 😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@georgeshelton6281]

Pinball machines have very complex features.

[@CH6P23]

This was great work , own a Creature from the black lagoon myself . How long from start to finish was it ?

[@VFRSTREETFIGHTER]

I own a Fish Tales, it's a great pin.

[@philipbrailey]

I love them.

[@Mo_Ketchups]

Yeah, watch without sound. Mark Ritchie’s *MASTERPIECE* gone to seed. That’s a crime against humanity. 🤦‍♂️ I just saw a HUO in mint condish w topper for $10.9k. Wish I coulda. 🤷‍♂️

[@andrew.l.5493]

Great video. Sadly people capable of restoring pinballs machines is getting less and less.

[@bluetarantulaproductions6179]

Love playing Fish Tales on Pinball FX3 and Pinball FX (Zen Studios) on both PS4 and my Nintendo Switch. I actually got the opportunity to play the real game itself along with "Black Rose" and Stern Pinballs "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" last year at the Yegpin Pinball expo in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada.

[@leptitloubard809]

I'm so jalous. Great work.

[@philgreco4196]

You are a wizard ⚡

[@samdiego1965]

With this much disassembly involved, it makes you wonder if the juice is worth the squeeze

[@ArtificialExperience]

When blasting your metal parts, did you use sand as the medium?

[@leonielson7138]

It's amazing to think that all those circuit boards taken out of the head can be replaced with a bramble of Raspberry Pi SBCs.

[@GraveKommander]

That's a lot more elctronic stuff in there than I thought

[@abysspegasusgaming]

Really since the late 70's/early 80's, nearly all pinball machines are entirely computer controlled and require MANY boards to function. Having so many control boards allows for interchangeability between tables if not flat out easy replacement if crucial non-serviceable/replaceable parts end up blown or malfunction due to any issue imaginable. Joe's Classic Arcade channel covers that quite a bit with his repair/demo videos.

[@RetroJack]

"Batteries replaced with SRAM" - Wouldn't that require a major redesign of not only the board, but the underlying code as well?

[@roffels]

The narrator didn't know what he was talking about. Games of this era used AA batteries to retain settings between power cycles, but alkaline batteries sometimes leak and destroy the logic board. It's a pretty common modification for folks to remove the battery board, desolder the existing ram chip, install a socket, and install NVRAM (non-volatile ram) that retains settings between power cycles. I just did it on a Taxi pinball machine this past week, and have installed it on other games in the past. The video in the narration didn't even show the logic board or this modification.

[@robertpollock8617]

Were the original pictures on the decals replacement? If so how did he get new decals?

[@l2bboc930]

How long did it take to fix and upgrade this table?

[@magilla9792]

Williams is and always have been best brand period. I never seen Fish Tales but it sure looks fun. My favorite was High Speed. Where would you get those vinyl graphics?

[@Pirsinglaff]

Great job!

[@totalpackage43]

passion project

[@robertmacdonald345]

Hello, Very Nice Re-Fresh, Just wondering. If you have the manual for the Machine does it tell you in it what the Elevation of the Back Legs in relation to the front legs should be, For intended Table Angle? And If Not is there a Default/Universal Elevation for all Pin Ball machines? I am sure when the Machine was designed, They had an Intended Difficulty of play and it would be this Elevation of Back to front legs that would create that difficulty?

[@gbedford]

For a general rule of thumb, use a slope of 6.5 degrees on the playfield. Many pins will have a bubble level with appropriate/approximate markings to make it easy to set up in field.

[@OutdoorTraveler]

"The artisan..."? I feel like you've missed the tone of what we are watching. I still watched but I chuckled several times.

[@CaptNRetro]

been doing pinball resto on my channel for 8 years..never cracked 1500 views on any of em..impressive!

[@jensw.8205]

Very Good job😊

[@jeffcarroll1990shock]

Great work.

[@toddhumphries1167]

Now I know good and well that guy has classic rock playing in his shop while he works

[@deafmonk24]

Fish Tales should've had a singing fish on the top for more interactive fun.

[@Aerospace_Education]

Would love to know where you can still get the vinyl for the cabinets. Assuming that is an aftermarket group for those? That made such a difference in and of itself.

[@mundy2120]

Lots of places online offering replacement decals, mine come from Australian but plenty of quality sellers. Google is your friend 👍

[@QuadDerrick]

my dad used to fix these machine, was almost like he was alive again for a moment... today's atms look like stone age inventions compared to the arcade machines like this =) both on outside and on inside bank atms got nothing compared to this =)

[@erueru2014]

I love how the narrator in these Masters Of Craft videos never has any clue what they are talking about and most likely haven't seen the video, it's a bit like a Steven Seagal movie, entertainingly bad :p Great restoration/rebuild btw.

[@69UM24OSU12]

A question: is the value of the machine greater than the cost of restoring it?

[@catoblepag]

With today's pinball prices, most certainly. When I started collecting pinball machines, almost 20 years ago, it was the opposite (Fish Tales is the cheapest one I've bought, 350 eur, and that's an absolute steal). That said, pinball parts are very expensive, and the overall cost of a serious restoration - new cabinet decals, new ramps and so on - can be easily above 1.500 bucks - if you do it yourself and don't pay a professional, of course.

[@thespinmaker3321]

I don't dislike the restoration. Just clicked the wrong icon.