Ok getting it perfect is more time than it's worth. After doing this aside from the joy of 10,000 volt shocks (yes I grounded the anode but flicked the back of my hand off the board by accident)and knowing that you can do it, it definately isn't worth the time. Now having said that I would assume for me the next one would take half the time.

So I recapped the old board. Probably 15 bucks in caps.

Then I put it on again. Same mess. WTF

So I loosened the yolk and started wiggling it around and lo and behold the colours come in correctly in the corner... but the f'n convergence goes out.

So I pull the convergence ring completely. Set up the Yoke without the convergence rings on and then proceed to put it back together and work on relocating and setting up convergence.

So two things. 1 the yoke distance to the tube is vital for good focus and 2 the angle of the yoke is critical to colour at the edge of the tube. So the yoke needs to be aligned first without effects of the convergence collar.

$240 from Starburst is looking like a deal right now. WTF, it was fun.

It's not the destination, it the journey, right? *lol*
I'll probably still try and do one myself anyhow, I enjoy a good challenge.

Hey Necro, I love hearing about projects like this, I have never really got interested in Video Games, and part of the reason is exactly what you are going through. I have never had cause to understand how the Monitors work but I do know that BzzzzZZZzzt is very possible!! I am living vicariously through you on this one!!

Dave

You know what. Bringing any arcade machine back to life is satisfying. In fact I love the artwork and design on the Centipede cab. As I clean it up and go over the way it was put together I gain a greater appreciation for these machines.

Besides to have the original dedicated cab with the original CPO for a Centipede is fantastic to me. I feel the same way about my Stargate. You need the cab the way she came from day one. Besides these dedicated machines fire up and do exactly what they were meant to do so anyone who comes over knows right away what there in for. It really is the retro arcade experience and that to me is nostalgic which is what it is all about.

I am sure you could make a long list of games that just aren't the same without the cab, I can think of a few

Stargate
Robotron
Defender
Wacko
Centipede
Millipede

and I am sure there is a hundred more.

In fact my son was just in love with Mark's Dragon's Lair even though he has the disk to play it on a DVD player it has no play value to him. In that cab he was jumping around like a mad man and really into it.

About the Bzzzt. Well it no worse than an ignition coil on the car. No one wants to take the liability of telling you how to dissipate the charge in case you miss something and zap yourself. The main issue is the anode and it will dissipate in time but I have my booster cables hooked to a big a** screw driver taped to a wooden stick to poke in under the rubber cap and yes she sparks. But it isn't as impressive a spark as some would lead you to believe. There are no weapons of mass distruction in a monitor, just some high voltages you need to discharge. I found one guy that actually posted instructions. I will try and find the site. Any further comments to this I suggest this is a good forum to bring them up on.

Still breathing Necro.

I have a piece of wire with a 'gator clip on one end attached to a decent length screwdriver. Works great for discharging monitors.

Quoted from Grauwulf

I have a piece of wire with a 'gator clip on one end attached to a decent length screwdriver. Works great for discharging monitors.

This method might damage some diodes that are present in a few brands (forget which) of monitors within the flyback loop somewhere.  A high voltage probe is so much nicer to have when discharging.  Worth the investment.

Yeah I looked for one (briefly) where I should have found one and no joy. I guess it's off to Ebay and pay the bloody shipping if I want to do this.

For the record. You can ground the mess out of a G07 chassis with no ill effects.

I've watched a fellow collector from this area (who has since moved out east) discharge a monitor with nothing more than an insulated wire between his thumb and forefinger. He called it "farmer tech".

I was nervous the first time, but my fear of discharging monitors has since  dwindled significantly.

Quoted from cooke

Following my advice may lead to baldness, sterility or death.

I still crack up when I recall a previous topic on how playing with monitor voltages may have given you some baldness!  So funny.

Yes, but monitors can be dangerous so lets all be careful when discharging and touching some higher voltage caps, etc.

Quoted from edelgiud

I still crack up when I recall a previous topic on how playing with monitor voltages may have given you some baldness!  So funny.

Pffffffft. I'm quite certain my follicle challenges have far more to do with genetics than cranking the B+, but people can believe whatever they want to believe, I guess.   

Quoted from edelgiud

Yes, but monitors can be dangerous so lets all be careful when discharging and touching some higher voltage caps, etc.

Of course!

Bah people being scared of monitors is non-sense. I was once scared as well and I did a lot of reading and learnt which parts/areas are high voltage. Also some monitors if functioning properly discharge automatically i.e k7000 this doesnt mean however you shouldn't discharge them.

Quoted Text

I've watched a fellow collector from this area (who has since moved out east) discharge a monitor with nothing more than an insulated wire between his thumb and forefinger. He called it "farmer tech".

I was nervous the first time, but my fear of discharging monitors has since  dwindled significantly.

I remember this happening, I was standing next to you I think we both thought he was going to die.

"Some" is the point and how long it actually takes to occur is the other issue. I left the G07 overnight one time and there was nothing there. I shut it down and immediately discharged it and sure enough it had a charge. I would always discharge them just in case it does not work as advertised.

The high voltage probe is great because you can see when there is no voltage there. But after discharging with the home made probe I place the anode on the chassis several times to make sure.

You can reduce your chances of shock by standing on something other than concrete and putting on insulating gloves and rubber soled boots. Plus never work with both hands.