Action Pinball Logo Signature Series Restorations

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Phone: (801) 272-0221 - Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
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Signature Series
Classic Game Restorations
only by Action Pinball.
Page Contents:
About our Signature Series Restorations:

Our Signature Series pinball restorations are reserved for special classic games that come through our shop, where in addition to our standard full restoration, we also perform some "over the top" restoration work, some or all of which may include cabinet repaint, cabinet decal installation, NOS playfield installation, NOS/repro/mint backglass or translite installation, and other "above and beyond" parts replacement and restoration work not normally found on most reconditioned games.

NOTE: As with all games we restore (normal or Signature Series), complete restoration work is always limited to games in our own inventory only, which we restore and sell through our showroom and website. We do not do any restoration work on any "outside" games that are not owned and sold by us. If you have a game that needs general repair or service, we can help, but we do not do any full restorations on any "outside" games.

Some pinball games that we have done Signature Series restorations on in the past include such classics as: Beat Time, Black Hole, Blackout, Capt. Fantastic, Dogies, Eight Ball, Eight Ball Deluxe, Firepower, Flash, Flicker, Gorgar, Indiana Jones, KISS, Medusa, Monster Bash, Playboy, Pokerino, Road Kings, Six Million Dollar Man, Twilight Zone, and Xenon.

We have even done Signature Series restorations on a few select vintage arcade video games such as Centipede, Ms. Pac-Man, and Pole Position.

For cabinet restoration on later-model classic games, we use only the highest-quality cabinet artwork decals (many out there are poor quality, which we avoid). On older games, we do an actual full paint job on a prepped and refinished bare cabinet, using hand-made stencils, reproduced exactly like the factory originally did. Our goal is to preserve, and restore, the originality of the game.

The entire process often consists of easily over 100 hours per game, on the average, and can take several weeks of solid work to complete, depending on exactly what is done and the detail and extent of the work that is required- it can vary from game to game. We're lucky if we can squeeze out one or two Signature Series restorations per year, as they are very demanding on time and resources, but always worth the effort when we see the finished product! We hope you'll agree.

Here is a VERY brief overview of the process:
Cabinet stencils are made from the original artwork. One set of stencils is required for each side of the game, and for each color used on each side. The stencil-making process takes anywhere from 15 to 30 hours depending on the complexity of the design, and number of colors used on the game.


Cabinet is stripped of all hardware, wiring, and other parts, and original paint finish is removed. Bare wood cabinet is re-finished and sealed so it has a fresh clean surface for the new paint work.


New paint job is applied one side at a time, one color at a time. Colors are professionally matched to duplicate original shade and tint. We've paid as much as $92 just to have one color matched for one game! When you do this much work, it has to be just right!


Cabinet is reassembled with all hardware, wiring, etc. All components that are re-installed on the game are cleaned and reconditioned, or replaced, as required. No point in putting any dirty or worn out parts back on a game with this much work and time invested in it!


Playfield clearcoated (when used). Most of our Signature restorations will have a brand new (NOS) or excellent condition used playfield clearcoated before being reassembled and installed in the game. Clearcoating (as used on modern pinball playfields) adds protection and a mirror-finish shine to the playfield that will preserve the looks and wear capabilities of the playfield.

We use only high-quality commercial automotive clearcoat products which are catalyzed and cure harder for a longer lifespan and better wear and protection properties. These are similar in quality to the coatings used by Bally/Williams in the 1990's and Stern Pinball on their modern pinball games.


Playfield swap/reassembly. On new playfield installations, parts from the old playfield are "swapped over" to the new playfield, starting with the wiring and lamp sockets, switches, etc. All parts are restored by hand as we go- one at a time. This process takes 2 to 5 days on the average, depending on the complexity of the playfield/game.


The finished product, weeks later, is a machine that more or less looks like it just came through a "time machine" right from the factory! You just can't beat the look and quality when a game has had this much work done to it. It's always a lot of work, but it's always worth it when we're done.


Signature Series Featured Games:

Flicker 1975 Bally Flicker
Firepower 1980 Williams Firepower
Medusa 1981 Bally Medusa     Prototype game- first Medusa produced- serial # 1001.
Indiana Jones 1994 Williams Indiana Jones
Monster Bash 1998 Williams Monster Bash
Twilight Zone 1993 Bally Twilight Zone
Firepower 1980 Williams Firepower (Yes, TWO of them!)
Firepower 1980 Williams Firepower (Yes, THREE of them!)
Dogies 1968 Bally Dogies
Black Hole 1981 Gottlieb Black Hole
Six Million Dollar Man 1978 Bally Six Million Dollar Man
Playboy 1978 Bally Playboy
Ms. Pac-Man 1982 Bally/Midway Ms. Pac-Man

For a list of games currently available for sale, see our Pinball Machines page, or our Video & Other Games page.



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