Last
Update 12-11-2022
~
Here are a few notes on how to clean and properly care for your Playfield ~
Spiked
07-10-2005, 10:39 AM
Hi Danny. I am a Wedgehead by heart, but I just got my
first Bingo and I want to make sure I treat her nice. I use Novus for the
initial 1st cleaning on
my wedgeheads, then pure carnuba. I just got a United's
Singapore that needs a cleaning and want to make sure Novus won't damage the
PF.
I posted on RGP and got a mixed response. It seems that
its OK to use lightly and do a test spot first. Please let me know your
thoughts.
Thanks in advance.
Advice
07-11-2005, 10:53 PM
Hi Danny, I do not like the new products, mostly because
they contain modern chemicals and some abrasives. For example, even the Novus
products
have some grit, to a varying degree. I use Johnson's Paste Wax. It contains
some mild cleaners but is mostly wax. I have never(!) found
a paint or finish that it attacks, but as recommended, I
strongly urge you to test your chemical of choice in a hidden
area to make sure it is not going to do bad things.
Tim Arnold, the keeper of the pinball flame in Las Vegas went to the store
about a year ago to get some Johnson's Paste Wax and found
it missing. He checked with the management and they told him it was being
discontinued. He immediately found another source and
bought up a huge supply. I heard about it and did the
same. Come to find out, the graphics on the tin were being changed and
it is still available, and hopefully will be for some
time.
I use it to wax the polished bright work on the game as well, and find it keeps
it from dulling quite so rapidly.
”The Pre-War Pinball Group is a wonderful source for these kind of
concerns – These really know the Dos & Do Nots”
Stay
Tuned – I am just getting ready to do my Surf Club and it’s a wreck
– I’ll post some before-and-after pictures. What I didn’t
tell
Grant (Spiked) was that I first clean the field using cloth-baby-diapers and
vinegar. Alcohol (I caught my buddy doing his with
vodka)
is an absolute no-no, it quickly leeches through to the wood, dehydrates, and
takes some pretty good life out of what little
is
left of these old boys. Replacing the balls and all rubber is the next best
thing you can do to the fields while you’re in there….
Windex
- etc, are all man-made synthetics and equally as bad – You want to use
as natural a product as possible – Innocuous!
…from Pat Reese
I would never
use Wildcat or Millwax on any of my pinballs. Read the instructions about using
on plastics.. they contains petroleum distillates and sometimes even silicones
(silicone should never be used on a PF in my opinion, if you've ever tried to
touch up a PF with silicone used on it you would know what I mean). For my
money I would use naptha for initial cleaning, on stubborn dirt melamine foam
(magic eraser) with naptha as the wetting agent (the trick is not to rub hard
but to gently polish in a circular motion it is abrasive! Don't be aggressive).
Novus 2 is also a fine abrasive and is a fine polish, I've used it on
plexiglass jukebox domes and a lot more.. with any abrasive even a polish as
fine as Novus 2 pick a test spot, practice, change your cloth area to clean
frequently so as not to grind the dirt back in. Finish with a nice carnauba wax
(pure) not auto waxes with additives. I never really saw the need for Novus 1
or 3 with a playfield, 1 is more for cleaning clear plastics? and 3 is far too
aggressive.
,,,from Joe Marquez
Novus is
a polish available as Novus 1, 2, and 3. It’s easily found at most Auto
Parts and Hardware stores. Novus 1 is the least abrasive and can be sprayed
like a window cleaner. Novus 2 is more abrasive and has the consistency of
liquid wax. Novus 3 is very abrasive and in my opinion should never be used on
playfields. It just cuts too fast and artwork can be damaged. Use the lowest
rated abrasive that will do the job. This will depend heavily on the condition
of your particular project. I often use Novus 2 followed by Novus 1 and then
coat with a pure Carnuba car wax that has no additives.
…from
Koji Sato
For older machines.. I clean with naptha, and try to get all the dirt out.
Sometimes alcohol is ok, but it does react with some clearcoats.
Novus 2 is a polish, so I use it after the dirt has been removed...
Otherwise you are just working the dirt into your playfield.
…from
Ronnie Williams
We used to use a product called Lemonite.. It was a product used for the restoration of antiques. Its consistency is like Goop hand cleaner. It is now known as Kotten Klenser. They also make a polish which is lemon oil and beeswax. The accepted cleaner used today is Wildcat 125 Playfield cleaner. https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/W125
…from
Steve Smith
"GoJo"
cream hand cleaner, followed up with "Gel-Gloss" or Novus2
Newsgroups: rec.games.pinball
From: "Pat Shanahan" <pshana...@pappageorgehaymes.com>
Date: 22 May 2006 10:46:40 -0700
Local: Mon, May 22 2006 9:46 am
Subject: Re: Lacquer Removal from Playfield
I had a similar (almost identical) problem on my bingo. Someone applied a finish right over the old
playfield dirt and after a few decades it was all yellowed and cracking. I
tried everything imaginable to get it off but had no luck. One night I just
thought screw it, I’m going to try every chemical we have in the house
(really scientific, eh?), figuring i couldn't make it any worse than it already
was.
What worked for me was my
wife's nail polish remover, I wet a rag with it and scrubbed in little sections
and it came right off. The paint below was perfect. Of course, with anything,
rub too much and the paint will come off too.
Acetone is the main ingredient
in the remover but for some reason acetone directly from the can didn't work
nearly as well as polish remover.
Good luck!
Pat Shanahan
Chicago
Ari Sovijarvi
talks a bit about the plastic playfields in Belgium
http://danny.cdyn.com/Magic%20Game%20Internals.htm
Bingo-Style
Pinballs,
Like any
machine you want to keep working
…Maintenance 1st
_
Excellent`…Thanks Guys _
~