Creature From The Black Lagoon: Lighted Speaker Panel Mod
About a year ago I put my name in for a lighted speaker panel mod that was being done by Jeff Thompson on Pinside. This is the same mod I mentioned in a previous post in which I talked about the pinball machines I owned, including the Creature. The mod features the tail lights of the cars, the moon, and the Starlight sign being lighted instead of just a printed graphic. At the time I wrote that post, there were only two ways to get this mod: get on a waiting list at Pinbits (which announced plans to make it but never produced the mod) or following a blog post that detailed creating the mod yourself, and some of that was far over my head.
When Thompson decided to tackle this project, he received a boatload of interest and decided to mass produce a run of them. I was able to get my name in for a second run; as of this writing, no third run has been planned or announced. The price was a very reasonable $170, and when combined with the PinballMikeD video mod, some LEDs under the inserts, and a color DMD, makes Creature the most beautiful machine in pinball.
It was only after I was told a few months ago that payment was due that I discovered I didn't have the deluxe panel that already has a special screen for the plastic front that allows the light to pass through. And it just so happens that this panel is sold out everywhere, with no plans to re-stock it. That means that I had to order a special light screen from Thompson for use on my original panel, peeling off the black mask that was installed to block off light, and requiring dealing with a sticky adhesive. I was a little apprehensive about this, as working with decals and glues are definitely not my specialty, and the mod would not be reversible. Fortunately Credit Dot has a great post detailing his experiences with the project, which you can read about here:
Credit Dot's Speaker Panel Installation
I'll be tackling this mod in the near future and detailing my experience...
When Thompson decided to tackle this project, he received a boatload of interest and decided to mass produce a run of them. I was able to get my name in for a second run; as of this writing, no third run has been planned or announced. The price was a very reasonable $170, and when combined with the PinballMikeD video mod, some LEDs under the inserts, and a color DMD, makes Creature the most beautiful machine in pinball.
It was only after I was told a few months ago that payment was due that I discovered I didn't have the deluxe panel that already has a special screen for the plastic front that allows the light to pass through. And it just so happens that this panel is sold out everywhere, with no plans to re-stock it. That means that I had to order a special light screen from Thompson for use on my original panel, peeling off the black mask that was installed to block off light, and requiring dealing with a sticky adhesive. I was a little apprehensive about this, as working with decals and glues are definitely not my specialty, and the mod would not be reversible. Fortunately Credit Dot has a great post detailing his experiences with the project, which you can read about here:
Credit Dot's Speaker Panel Installation
I'll be tackling this mod in the near future and detailing my experience...
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