Clean the translite carefully. I’ve had some with nicotine on them and I got them back to white again. Novus 1

I'm in the minority, but I hate the yellow look of incandescent, so I defer to cool vs warm.

I used cool and link them in both the backbox and playfield.

As we all know the colors certain(t)ly lend themselves more to cool.

When I have a discolored translite, I wipe down the white back side with a rag and simple green. Not sure that is the best method, but it takes off the discoloration and greasy fingerprints without any damage in my experience. (I use cool white in the back box.)

I recommend Ingo clock board. Highly reputable guy from Germany. Many of us in this forum use this board. Easy to install. I even did it and I am all thumbs..
http://www.german-pinball-modular.de/final-tz-clock-pcb-english.html

I know this is kind of a long shot, but does anyone have a clean shooter rod cover that they would be willing to sell? Or if you know anyone that is parting out a TZ?

I couldn't use warm (too yellow, like yours) or cool (too blue). I went with sunlight, which looked great.

I've been researching clock boards and that seems to be the way to go. There are cheaper alternatives but looks like the Ingo board will hold up better. Should I lube the gears when I take the clock apart? I read somewhere recommendations of which product to use. Mine is pretty loud on bootup but I don't mind that. Just don't know if that is an issue.

Yes Lube the gears. I used a tube of dry lube. Use sparingly. I am not home now and I can't remember the brand at the moment. I think it is in a green and blue tube.

I used Super Lube on my clock gears; worked out really well. It's a synthetic grease, so it's safe to use on plastic parts. My clock was really noisy when I first got my TZ; it was AMAZING the difference that this made.

If you have a Harbor Freight nearby, they have it:

https://www.harborfreight.com/85-gram-super-lube-grease-cartridge-93744.html

Or a smaller Super Lube 1/2oz

https://www.amazon.com/Super-Lube-21010-Grease/dp/B005R2NIIC/ref=sr_1_2

I believe you can also get this at Pinrestore, and (.possibly?) PBL

Cool

I use warm... while warmer than cool white they are cooler in color than incandescent.

So I’ve been thinking about this for a long time - I want to update the DMD to be just black & white. I know I can do this with a ColorDMD, and just set it to the sigma white mode - but that’s a lot of cash to drop and then never use the color features. Does anybody have any alternative ideas? Is there a way to get white color from a Dmd?

Pin2DMD is great if you want to go the DIY route. I built two of them and found it to be a pretty easy go.

shooter housing?? I had mine powder coated, looks like a million bux
maybe you could do the same, or are you missing it entirely?

Yeah the shooter housing. I’ve got mine but it’s gotta few flaking and rust spots. How did you manage to preserve the artwork on it?

Thanks Eric; I'm familiar with the thread. Do they have a 'kit' yet? I'm not going to have time to track down all the parts yet. Funny, I just built an array of these LED boards for my band. We're hooking them up to a webcam once I choose a donor laptop to victimize

Looking on their website it sounds like you can’t even get a PCB unless you send in the files to be manufactured yourself or go in with a group buy. Maybe someday I’ll find some time for that plus tracking down parts but there are too many other projects right now.

Yeah that's what it kinda looked like. All the threads say "oh the parts are only $100" and I know where to get LED panels and the Nucleo board, but you apparently also need a shield. I can build one I guess, but just don't have time for THAT too. I have to work to pay for all these pinballs!

EDIT: Found this: http://vpuniverse.com/forums/topic/2250-pin2dmd-order-thread-worldwide/

this looks fairly straight forward. Basic shield, unsoldered, $55. For $10 more you can get Wifi built in (no USB needed I guess )and pre-soldered. Total BOM is still only $110 with this panel:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Factory-price-2-5mm-pixel-full-color-SMD-led-module-indoor-1-32-scan-160X160mm-64X64/32508174150.html?spm=2114.search0104.3.1.HQofLn&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_4_10152_10151_10065_10344_10130_10068_10324_10342_10547_10325_10546_10343_10340_10548_10341_10545_10084_10083_10613_10615_10307_10614_10059_10314_10534_100031_10604_10103_10142,searchweb201603_25,ppcSwitch_5&algo_expid=be2ea9c0-ccdb-4d0c-9659-0d440b69f539-0&algo_pvid=be2ea9c0-ccdb-4d0c-9659-0d440b69f539&transAbTest=ae803_5&priceBeautifyAB=0

Nice! I’m guessing you also need the Nucleo-144 board since it’s a shield but maybe not if driving with an actual pin. Will go ahead and give it a shot.

I just put the frosted sunlight ones from Comet in my CFTBL and they look pretty great, bright but not unnatural and no hotspotting.

I’m going with these panels. They are less expensive and looks like others have had success with them and Pin2DMD:

http://s.aliexpress.com/6V7rEbqA

Also look like they would be a better fit.

Yes, you still need the Nucleo board.

The panel I linked to is a 64x64 board, which is made by connecting two 64x32s together. So you only need to buy ONE, then just unscrew the two panels and re-orient them. Saves you about $15. I found it in that VPUniverse thread I linked to. That's exactly what I did when we needed to buy 20 of these for our live video panel

Guess there is no definitive answer to this, but does anyone know how loud the clock is supposed to be?

Mine is fairly audible, especially when turning the machine on (though it could just be more noticeable then because I'm not yet playing), but I wouldn't say it was excessively loud. It doesn't sound "broken" loud, is what I mean.

I currently have the standard board in there with its OEM incandescents, the previous owner drilled a couple of holes in the top for cooling. It has been working fine but I've been toying with the idea of getting the Ingo board anyway, and if I can make the clock quieter that would tip me over the edge to pulling the trigger on it I think.

You can add some dry lube or a tiny bit of synthetic grease and it will quiet right down

Yup, I just don't know what I should expect I guess. My TZ is the first HUO pin I've owned, never seen it elsewhere in an environment where you could really get a sense of how loud it was, etc.

I think if I was going to take the clock apart to lube I'd do the whole Ingo board replacement at the same time. My clock is very slightly out of alignment too (the hour hand points more towards 11 than 12 when it's supposed to be 12) so thinking of killing several birds with one stone, so to speak.

The clock is pretty easy to take apart, just don’t use a whole lot of lube, it doesn’t need much at all. And don’t expect it to be totally -silent- you will still hear a little bit of noise but it will be considerably reduced. Good luck getting the hands aligned; it’s Bally, not Swiss craftsmanship

Looks like you found the parts! One other thing is to make sure to order the bezel that holds the LED panels.

Yeah, they have that for sale for $15 as well. Still, this is considerably less than a ColorDMD... no Different dot options unfortunately though. I like the scan lines setting. Oh well, that didn’t take long! May be a project for later in the year, I have to finish the Monster Bash..

Ah! Didn’t realize it could be broken down, good to know.

The clock is loud... especially at startup because there is no other noise. You never hear it it a loud environment but in a silent home you do. During a game play it doesn't really stand out.

The info board is worth it if you are led'ing the game or have a hacked or flakey clock. I had an all original clock and housing for 20 years in home use without ever a problem... but I put an ingo board in and a new clear housing just for athestics when I overhauled my game.

Do not lube your gears. They are not intended to be lubicrated and it is not necessary. Nylon gears do not need lube!

Sunlight White Comets for the win!

Thanks. You're the first person to say not to lube the gears

I don't have a problem with my clock currently, but it is bone stock (apart from the two ventilation holes that have been added by a previous owner) so I imagine it will fail at some point. My whole game with the exception of the flashers (and that is changing once my Comet order turns up) is LED, so there is probably an argument for doing it for completeness and "preemptive strike" sake.

I use a combination of led and incandescent plus the rbg strip for the door.

5EED9A2F-FE2E-426F-8751-484E7082A5B5 (resized).jpeg

F793AB1D-099F-4866-8B3D-AF21CA9E0E48 (resized).jpeg

Definatly get Ingo’s clockboard!!
Build like a tank, never broken clock anymore, components socketed, socketed LED’s whick are dimable to your liking.
Great service and a very nice guy to boot.
(You sensed it, i am a fan )

Can anyone tell me what bulbs are used on the mini playfield? I'm damned if I can find anything at all in the manual about it. Every other bulb seems to be listed, but the only bulb I can find that it mentions explicitly is the white flasher bulb. The two red ones and the yellow one might as well not exist.

I found a photo of the underside of the mini PF here: http://www.iobium.com/DSCN1529.JPG

Are they all #906 flashers?

Thanks in advance!

I believe they are 555 wedge base - 906 flasher in the middle circle 7FD17FF9-34B3-41D9-93CF-702F90ED46DF (resized).jpeg

Yep everything powerfield is wedge. Flashers/bulbs above & below.

Thanks both.

Parrots repeat what they heard, not necessarily what they know

The gearbox requires no protection against corrosion. Lubrication does not flush debris or wear bits in this case, or provide any form of cooling. That's normally what lube is for. Here it only does two things... 1) provide a means to COLLECT dirt and debris and 2) reduce chatter by 'filling' the voids. Most people will end up using lubricants that will harm the plastic more than help it. The clock gearing is so slow and infrequent it doesn't need it. In short... more people will screw it up than benefit.

Or you can listen to Clay... http://www.pinrepair.com/em/index1.htm#lube
"As a general rule, keep this in mind for EM moving parts: Metal to metal lube is OK. nylon to metal NO lube. Nylon to nylon NO lube. And NEVER EVER lubricate the moving metal plungers inside coils (even if the metal plunger is moving inside a metal coil sleeve). Also NEVER lubricate the gears of the score motor.

In regards to nylon, all reference I find from professional plastics companies speak of nylon as "no lubrication required." In fact they mention how nylon can be worn by various greases that collect dust and act as an abrasive paste. There is also a concern about nylon expanding when it it lubricated. This is just more evidence that you should not lubricate any nylon parts."

Yes, modern Synthetics will generally be safer to use with the plastic bits.. but there is no need to. You have more to lose than to gain. The clock gearing will run for DECADES dry.

The debate continues:

http://www.machinedesign.com/mechanical-drives/engineering-essentials-lubrication-tips-plastic-gears-and-more-part-2

The clock runs warm when ran for extended periods and in a stressful (warm) environment. In most Home Use scenarios... the deficiency in the design won't cause new problems.. but many have been stressed long before they moved into a home situation. The Optos are problematic and difficult to replace effectively. The stock lights are soldered and LED conversion is a bit messy. Most clock housings are quite aged. The thing is when the clock optos go.. the game is really hard to debug because of how the optos are on the switch matrix so weird things happen. Those are the fears about old clocks. But if your clock is stable, it will likely stay that way in a reasonable home use situation. Upgrades with the Indgo board are more about future proofing and LED conversion. Clock looks great with a fresh housing, decal, and LEDs

What's the consensus on clear (OEM) clock housing vs blue? I'm not totally sold on the blue & rainbow LEDs which most people seem to do, but at the same time the blue housing looks a lot clearer than the OEM "clear" (which is more like misted) housing. Thoughts?

I personally like clear with warm white LEDs. Maybe that’s boring to some but it’s the easiest to see the actual clock details when you need to and not distract the eye when you don’t.

Here is what consistent lighting looks like, more natural and lit evenly. This is lit with 12 white LED's. Looks like a clock should, no hot spots, and matches the clock on the backglass:

white_face01 (resized).jpg

There isn't a consensus.

Crystal clear casing is the usual upgrade... then the color variations