Reoccurance of Ball Swirl Marks after ME Treatment?

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First off, thanks to everyone for your comments on "Proper EM Playfield
Cleaning Sequence?" posting.

That ME has worked great so far...nothing else would get rid of the
dirt and grim like this stuff does.

Now, my question. Many posts suggest that if a PF is NOT clearcoated
after ME treatment then the swirl marks will reappear....that simply a
good coating of Carnuba wax will work its way into the cracks and start
the process again.

Has anyone actually seen this occur? If I ME the entire PF, then give
it 2-3 good coats of Carnuba...will I have just wasted my time.

Also, can you brush on lacquer, yes lacquer, instead of spraying,
instead of autoclearing or Varathaning the PF.

Thanks again guys!

Mike

 

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Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

Thanks Ray! Great info...thanks for taking the time to post it!

Mike

 

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Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

"NJ Mike" wrote:
> Now, my question. Many posts suggest that if a PF is NOT clearcoated
> after ME treatment then the swirl marks will reappear....that simply a
> good coating of Carnuba wax will work its way into the cracks and start
> the process again.
>
> Has anyone actually seen this occur? If I ME the entire PF, then give
> it 2-3 good coats of Carnuba...will I have just wasted my time.

I haven't seen something like this occur as yet. The ME is basically
cleaning out the years of microscopic dirt/grime that gets into the "swirl
marks" (cracks in the playfield's finish). I honestly don't know exactly
how the ME works- whether it's a chemical cleaning (such as bleaching the
dirt so it's not visible) or if it's a physical cleaning or grinding down of
the playfield surface. I would probably bet on the latter, as I've
carnauba'd playfields after using ME and have NOT had the wax dry white in
the old swirl marks (but I have seen it dry white in some other playfield
cracks (crazing, etc) or other spots/blemishes in the surface.

So if wax isn't getting into the swirl marks, then they're either physically
gone or the wax is too big to get in there.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. Wax away to keep the field polished
and protected, and I think with regular upkeep, your game will no doubt be
fine.

Also, any subsequent going-over with the ME would no doubt be a light one- I
think most of us, when using an ME for the first time on a game, are working
on taking away years of grime/dirt left there from neglect by previous
owner(s). If the game was kept up, we wouldn't see that or have to use the
ME at all. I think in most cases, it's a "one time" treatment.

> Also, can you brush on lacquer, yes lacquer, instead of spraying,
> instead of autoclearing or Varathaning the PF.

You can do anything you want, but spraying a material will give a better,
smoother, even finish/thickness to it. I would never "brush" on a clearcoat
material on a playfield- just like I would never "brush" paint on my car to
repaint it. I've never seen a "brush" treatment on a playfield (or car)
that looked real good- you'll always see some unevenness to the finish and
the tell-tale brush strokes.

If you're doing low-level work like this on your game, it's not the time to
cut corners or try to save a buck- my advice is to do it right or don't do
it at all. Hire someone qualified to coat the field for you- such as a
local auto body shop or one of the people in the pinball field who do it.
Use a professional material- such as an auto-body catalyzed clearcoat. No
point skimping on anything with this kind of work- you'll usually get what
you pay for and can easily end up regretting it....

Good luck!

Ray J.

--
Action Pinball & Amusement, LLC
Salt Lake City, Utah USA
Web: www.actionpinball.com

We're serious about pinball. Anything else is just for fun!

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

Ray,

If I use ME on the entire PF, do I have to clearcoat or can I just use
multipe layers of carnuba afterwards?

Thanks,
Mike