Restorer of the Month – January 2022
This month’s laborer of love is Stephen Prusa – located in Cleveland, OH. A recent addition into this side of the hobby, his love for delving into and restoring these classics back into their former beauty and glory is apparent and growing!
I’ve been playing for quite sometime, about 7 or 8 years and I started to become burned out on playing pinball, but I feel like a new flame has been lit after starting to work on games.
Q: When did you get into actually restoring machines?
“I started restoring machines the beginning of 2021. I’ve been playing for quite sometime, about 7 or 8 years and I started to become burned out on playing pinball, but I feel like a new flame has been lit after starting to work on games. It’s 2 different sides of the hobby and I have yet to feel burned out ever since working on games. I want to give a HUGE shoutout to someone who has mentored me this whole time in working on games, showed me how to solder, how to shop correctly and has given me the greatest help, Brian Johnson in Cleveland, OH. The amount of help he has given me in this hobby is unlike any other person in this hobby.”
Q: What is your current project?
A: My current project(s) I am working on is a Bally Cybernaut, Williams Gorgar, Williams Whirlwind, Stern Magic, and a Gottileb Dragon. Quite a few!
Q: Do you restore games to sell or to keep?
A: I tend to keep the games I work on, but on a rare occasion I will put it up for sale, and then buy more games from the money I receive. It goes right back into the hobby
The hardest game I’ve worked on so far has got to be the Dungeons and Dragons; summer of 2021. Only had a playfield and cabinet, needed EVERY electronic component in the backbox, including the transformer.
Q: What was the hardest restoration you worked on and which one were you most proud of?
A: The hardest game I’ve worked on so far has got to be the Dungeons and Dragons; summer of 2021. Only had a playfield and cabinet, needed EVERY electronic component in the backbox, including the transformer. The people of pinside helped me obtain what I needed for this game, and I don’t think it will ever leave my collection.
I think my Flash Gordon is the game I am most proud of, it was the first game that I worked on. Being super inexperienced, I had to dive into shopping a game head first. From what I have learned over the 2 years, I think I could have done a better job working on FG, but you have to give yourself at least SOME credit by jumping into something you don’t know and coming out the other side with a working game.
Q: Do you have any future projects planned?
A: Future projects consist of me working for some customers, such as playfield swap for a Paragon, shopping out a Jungle Lord, and I am looking to purchase a 9 ball extensive project in the months to come.
Q: If someone would like to contact you for restoration/maintenance service, where are you located, what areas do you service and what is your contact information?
A: I live in Middleburg Heights, OH, and I usually travel around a 2-3 hour radius from there to either pickup, purchase, or work on games. You can add me on Facebook if anyone is interested, as I post my work on my page, and we can go from there. Happy New Year and thanks for having me!
Have someone you want to nominate to for the Restoration/Restorer of the Month? E-mail [email protected]!
Tags: Pinball, pinball repair, prusa, restoration, restorer, stephen prusa