1952 Gottlieb Chinatown trap hole pinball machine repair: Day one

1952 Gottlieb Chinatown pinball

Day 1

Being more or less stuck at home for the moment, might as well take on some project I've kept on the back burner for a few years... Chinatown

Here are a couple of pictures when I first got the machine in June 2018

The first task was to get the machine out... easier said than done. I set the cabinet on my pinball dolly for greater ease.

The machine was a mess. It has some obvious water damage from being abandoned in an old semi trailer with a leaky roof. Fortunately or unfortunately, the mechanics of the machine are in superb condition. The machine was owned by a coin operator until I bought it. I'm probably the second owner. It looks like it was briefly operated and then put away and remained untouched until now,

The cabinet needed re-glue and clamp in one corner. I let it cure for 24 hours before removing the clamps

Added a wood corner for strength

I took out the score motor panel, which allowed me to work work on it with greater ease. Burnished all the points on the relays and score motor switches.

Took apart the score motor to access the actual motor felts to re-oil.

The transformer was replaced at one point. It looked dodgy and it didn't even have a line fuse. I replaced the Hammond transformer with a more recent Gottlieb transformer.  Replaced the line cord also, the old one was dry and fell apart to touch.

Once the cabinet was empty. I vacuumed the inside.

Gratuitous shot of the tilt bob.