Quoted from mof:plastic pop rings? What do you like about them (I have no reference point)
-mof
Faster action due to less mass. Won’t nick/scratch the ball.
(Topic ID: 257665)
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Quoted from dothedoo:Faster action due to less mass
Cool.
Is it a form factor that only works for Stern? Are they still made?
Quoted from mof:Cool.
Is it a form factor that only works for Stern? Are they still made?
not sure if anyone else makes them
https://www.shapeways.com/product/9JVZLJGAY/b-695-3u-rod-ring-classic-stern?optionId=133490567&li=marketplace
Quoted from mof:Cool.
Is it a form factor that only works for Stern? Are they still made?
They fit like any other pop bumper ring assembly.
They started with Cheetah and ran to the end with Dragonfist.
PBR still shows them on his website with the Stern part numbers but they are obsolete.
But now shapeways make them live again.
Quoted from cottonm4:They fit like any other pop bumper ring assembly.
They started with Cheetah and ran to the end with Dragonfist.
PBR still shows them on his website with the Stern part numbers but they are obsolete.
But now shapeways make them live again.
Thanks to swinks !
I have them installed on all my Sterns and some Bally/Williams as well. The originals are just about indestructible - I've had more broken metal rings over the years vs. none of the plastic (although the plastic ones can warp).
You do have to sometimes change the way they're mounted, but it's pretty straightforward to do so. The extra speed they activate is the main reason I did it, just changing the metal ringed variety's coil to a strong one will get the down stroke faster, but the spring can only pop the heavier metal ones back up so fast for next time. They really do make the pop action very snappy.
Quoted from slochar:I have them installed on all my Sterns and some Bally/Williams as well. The originals are just about indestructible - I've had more broken metal rings over the years vs. none of the plastic (although the plastic ones can warp).
You do have to sometimes change the way they're mounted, but it's pretty straightforward to do so. The extra speed they activate is the main reason I did it, just changing the metal ringed variety's coil to a strong one will get the down stroke faster, but the spring can only pop the heavier metal ones back up so fast for next time. They really do make the pop action very snappy.
You are saying you installed a plastic version of this part?
bumper ring and rod assembly.jpg
I have never seen a plastic pop bell/ring. 
Quoted from razorsedge:You are saying you installed a plastic version of this part?
[quoted image]
I have never seen a plastic pop bell/ring.
Yep, as seen on Classic Sterns from Cheetah onwards. (Cheetah must have been the game they started on with it, because I had 2 cheetah playfields at one time and one had metal, the other plastic). Lots of people get games like flight 2000 in (me included, about 20 years ago) and it had one plastic and one metal - at the time, I said "what's this plastic crap doing in here" and changed it to metal..... that's before I knew the error of my ways, and I changed it back. Bought a whole bunch of the plastic mechs at expo ten years ago or so, just to get the rings.
The original Black Knight pop plays amazing with the plastic ring in it, it's quieter, for one thing, and you actually get some ping ponging pop action occasionally out of it (instead of it just being an obstacle to the lock shot)
Quoted from dothedoo:Faster action due to less mass. Won’t nick/scratch the ball.
This must be a plastic bell as well. I have never seen one.
Just the plastic bodies that DE used.
Quoted from slochar:Yep, as seen on Classic Sterns from Cheetah onwards. (Cheetah must have been the game they started on with it, because I had 2 cheetah playfields at one time and one had metal, the other plastic). Lots of people get games like flight 2000 in (me included, about 20 years ago) and it had one plastic and one metal - at the time, I said "what's this plastic crap doing in here" and changed it to metal..... that's before I knew the error of my ways, and I changed it back. Bought a whole bunch of the plastic mechs at expo ten years ago or so, just to get the rings.
The original Black Knight pop plays amazing with the plastic ring in it, it's quieter, for one thing, and you actually get some ping ponging pop action occasionally out of it (instead of it just being an obstacle to the lock shot)
I'm sure you are talking about the body, not the bell. ?
Quoted from razorsedge:I'm sure you are talking about the body, not the bell. ?
What's a bell?
Here's photos of a complete mech I bought (off a Wico Aftor, same pops as later sterns.) and a couple plastic rod and rings vs. the original metal
20200312_101453 (resized).jpg20200312_101534 (resized).jpg20200312_101551 (resized).jpgQuoted from slochar:What's a bell?
Here's photos of a complete mech I bought (off a Wico Aftor, same pops as later sterns.) and a couple plastic rod and rings vs. the original metal[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Wow ... learn something new every day. Huh.
Cheers! 
Quoted from slochar:I have them installed on all my Sterns and some Bally/Williams as well. The originals are just about indestructible - I've had more broken metal rings over the years vs. none of the plastic (although the plastic ones can warp).
Do you mean the rings warp or the rods warp? The rods will warp if the screws are over tightened. Screw them in and back them out a quarter turn and they’ll stay straight.
Quoted from slochar:What's a bell?
Here's photos of a complete mech I bought (off a Wico Aftor, same pops as later sterns.) and a couple plastic rod and rings vs. the original metal[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Whoa. Pinside shows there are 24 Dragonfist owners. You collection is private, but I see you are hoarding a Dragonfist in there.
Nice to meet you #25.
Quoted from cottonm4:Whoa. Pinside shows there are 24 Dragonfist owners. You collection is private, but I see you are hoarding a Dragonfist in there.
Nice to meet you #25.
Ummm I think I might have been the first to get one a long time ago.... even Maestro Classic_Stern didn't think too much of it at the time he shipped it to me.
It came from your neck of the woods in fact.... some one in KC emailed me out of the blue and got it for me and Bill shipped it to me..... he didn't think too much of the playfield at time but I see he's corrected himself since then. I know I inspired both Slam Tilt guys to get one (and other classic sterns since they both played the mpu200 collection when I most of them)
I used to have all but Iron Maiden and Ali of the mpu 200 series. Foolishly, I sold 1/2 of them before the crazy price hike happened. I don't really miss them, but I wouldn't have minded getting 8-15x what I'd paid for them, instead of selling them for close to what I paid.
I had to move the holes for the gate bracket back. The SEI brackets you can purchase now are longer than the original.
Just pop in three new holes, and I’m back in business.
Using kruzman kit makes quick work of getting through the clear without chipping.
5A703EA4-501E-4812-B6AA-2563E940DC90 (resized).jpegDE65DC43-B1D9-4495-94E3-64524E78F951 (resized).jpegHad to make another quick modification on the harness.
The fuse holder should have a yellow wire to one side, and ideally a blue/white to the other. The instructions referenced an additional strand of yellow to run to the blue/white on one of the flippers. But I went a different route:
Pull the blue/white wire back from the left flipper (the looped wire). You'll need to cut some zip ties to get it back far enough to get to the fuse holder. Once there, cut the blue/white wire to length.
Then cut the zip ties on the loose wire, so you have enough length to run back to flipper.
Solder the three blue/white wires to the fuse holder (yellow is already hooked to the other side)
And then run the wire back to the harness and clean everything up.
Quoted from djblouw:Had to make another quick modification on the harness.
The fuse holder should have a yellow wire to one side, and ideally a blue/white to the other. The instructions referenced an additional strand of yellow to run to the blue/white on one of the flippers. But I went a different route:
Pull the blue/white wire back from the left flipper (the looped wire). You'll need to cut some zip ties to get it back far enough to get to the fuse holder. Once there, cut the blue/white wire to length.
[quoted image]
Then cut the zip ties on the loose wire, so you have enough length to run back to flipper.
[quoted image]
Solder the three blue/white wires to the fuse holder (yellow is already hooked to the other side)
[quoted image]
And then run the wire back to the harness and clean everything up.
[quoted image]
I don't understand this. All of my Sterns have two yellow wires on one side of the slo blo fuse holder and two blue/white wire in the other side. The nice thing about this setup is if you need to isolate a faulty coil you can unsolder the yellow wire one side at a time.
I understand with wiring that there is no one right way to string up. E.G. My Star Gazer build will be strung up differently than all of the other builds. I will allow that the wiring diagrams on all of my Sterns show only one wire coming from each side of the fuse, but under the play field there are always 2 wires coming from each side of the fuse bus. So I am trying to understand why you went with 1 yellow wire and 3 blue/white wires.
I am no electrician but if all of the coils are on one long yellow wire, could that affect the voltages to the coils that are farthest from the fuse?
EDIT: Your build under play field looks very nice.
Quoted from cottonm4:I don't understand this. All of my Sterns have two yellow wires on one side of the slo blo fuse holder and two blue/white wire in the other side. The nice thing about this setup is if you need to isolate a faulty coil you can unsolder the yellow wire one side at a time.
I understand with wiring that there is no one right way to string up. E.G. My Star Gazer build will be strung up differently than all of the other builds. I will allow that the wiring diagrams on all of my Sterns show only one wire coming from each side of the fuse, but under the play field there are always 2 wires coming from each side of the fuse bus. So I am trying to understand why you went with 1 yellow wire and 3 blue/white wires.
I am no electrician but if all of the coils are on one long yellow wire, could that affect the voltages to the coils that are farthest from the fuse?
EDIT: Your build under play field looks very nice.
As it was explained to me:
Power comes down the blue/white wire, fed through the fuse to the yellow wire, which is daisy-chained to all the other pf coils. This is the reason that if the under pf fuse blows, you still have flippers, but no other coils--the power on the blue/white is already connected to the coils before the fuse.
So, the single yellow coming from the fuse goes to the coils. In the original harness, it was a double wire, as it was daisy-chained. But in the new harness, it runs to the next coil, and then starts daisy-chaining (two wires on one lug).
Moe
Quoted from Pinballer73:Great work so far. Looks nice.
Quoted from Flynnyfalcon:Looks amazing. Kudos!
Thank you mates!
Cabinet is being worked on now. It's been "less than fun" but oh well. With a bunch of free time on the horizon, I might get it knocked out quicker than expected.
Looking great! I'm just starting on the controlled lamp/solenoid wiring on mine, just a couple weeks behind you
Test fitting the backglass in the head. The glass would not fit in with any of the plastic trim on it. I ensured everything was fully seated, but it was still too tight. So I took all the trim off, and just left the lift bar. Still a tight fit, but it worked.
Finishing up the new backbox lamp board is next.
Quoted from djblouw:Test fitting the backglass in the head. The glass would not fit in with any of the plastic trim on it. I ensured everything was fully seated, but it was still too tight. So I took all the trim off, and just left the lift bar. Still a tight fit, but it worked.
Finishing up the new backbox lamp board is next.
[quoted image]
which thickness did the repro backglass come on? 1/8"?
Quoted from hisokajp:which thickness did the repro backglass come on? 1/8"?
I had a CPR Flash reproduction backglass that didn't fit in the head; the glass was just a bit bigger than the original. I used a Dremel tool to take out a little bit of wood in the top and bottom channel of the head so it would fit.
Quoted from hisokajp:which thickness did the repro backglass come on? 1/8"?
Yes, 1/8”.
It’s not tight in the slot. It’s just too wide and tall to have the plastic trim on it.
Quoted from djblouw:Yes, 1/8”.
It’s not tight in the slot. It’s just too wide and tall to have the plastic trim on it.
Measure the width. I'll measure one of my BG Resto's. If it is too wide, maybe you can get a replacement.
I don't know how much or little that you can get into the backbox. If it is just a little too tight you might be able to sand the edges of your trim.
I had a similar problem with the used Stern cab I am using. The back glass with trim installed was near impossible to get installed for the last inch. It turned out that a factory flaw was my problem. I don't know how, but the gap up top where you lock the glass in at was too shallow to allow the glass to slide all the way up. It took a Dremel and a cutoff wheel to get in there and deepen the gap/groove to allow full movement of the back glass.
Sidebar: I had replaced the two trapezoid pieces one the sides of the back box and instead of gluing my homemade replacements on, I screwed them on. If I had of glued them on, I would have had to chop them off to get in and what I did. Chopping them off would have destroyed my paint job and my Pinball Pimp stencil work .
Extra: I just measured my Dragonfist back glass I got from BG Resto. It measures 28 9/16" wide. With the lift rail installed and the top locker piece of metal on, it measures 25 5/8" tall. I'm guessing with out the left rail and the top locker on that it would measure 25 1/2" tall.
Quoted from cottonm4:Measure the width. I'll measure one of my BG Resto's. If it is too wide, maybe you can get a replacement.
I don't know how much or little that you can get into the backbox. If it is just a little too tight you might be able to sand the edges of your trim.
I had a similar problem with the used Stern cab I am using. The back glass with trim installed was near impossible to get installed for the last inch. It turned out that a factory flaw was my problem. I don't know how, but the gap up top where you lock the glass in at was too shallow to allow the glass to slide all the way up. It took a Dremel and a cutoff wheel to get in there and deepen the gap/groove to allow full movement of the back glass.
Sidebar: I had replaced the two trapezoid pieces one the sides of the back box and instead of gluing my homemade replacements on, I screwed them on. If I had of glued them on, I would have had to chop them off to get in and what I did. Chopping them off would have destroyed my paint job and my Pinball Pimp stencil work .
Extra: I just measured my Dragonfist back glass I got from BG Resto. It measures 28 9/16" wide. With the lift rail installed and the top locker piece of metal on, it measures 25 5/8" tall. I'm guessing with out the left rail and the top locker on that it would measure 25 1/2" tall.
It’s just a fuzz over 28 9/16. Probably 28 19/32.
Not much chance for sanding down the trim, as there just wouldn’t be any material left. Its not a big deal. You won’t be able to notice it missing. And since bgresto puts tape on all the edges of the glass they’re protected to some extent.
Quoted from djblouw:Light board cut and painted. Next up is light sockets and wiring.[quoted image]
Nice job!
Saskatoon, SK
Quoted from djblouw:Going to have to figure out how to repurpose part of the original harness from the backboard.
For anyone that is using a donor game, you might have to go through this slightly different. But here's my take:
The Third Coast harness included a section for the backbox lightboard. It piggybacks from the connector going to the lamp board at J2 (which is part of the main harness from Third Coast).
The harness from the donor game for everything in the backbox already had a connector at J2, that also piggybacked to the lamp board. But the original will not work, since the wire locations in the connector are different. However, you still need a portion of the old piggybacked connector wires to supply GI & controlled lighting power.
Here's the old harness (plugged in to J2). I've cut the wire ties away to separate what I need. The R, W, G, O, Blu wires on the left need to stay. All the other wires on right need to be removed (and the plug at J2 removed).
Need to do the same for the other side of the piggyback connector. Bottom wires will stay, top ones will be removed.
Now, we'll be able to solder both harness to the lightboard.
Quoted from djblouw:Backbox has all the hardware installed.
I’ve gotta do a couple checks on the driver board, and rectifier before installing those.[quoted image]
Where did you locate the big sheets of aluminum you are using for your ground plane?
Quoted from cottonm4:Where did you locate the big sheets of aluminum you are using for your ground plane?
That's the original. I scrubbed, cleaned, and polished it so it would shine.
Quoted from cottonm4:Where did you locate the big sheets of aluminum you are using for your ground plane?
People have used aluminum flashing (found at your local hardware store) or thin aluminum sheets from craft stores.
Here's another item that may have to be changed, based on what donor game you're using:
So you have a 6 digit display game. And you want to make it a 7 digit display. You need to add wiring for the 1M digit.
Start at MPU J1 pin 7. Add a wire here. Shown as WHITE in my picture (pin #1 is on the left)
String this wire through the harness, up to the display connector. Pin 11 (pin #1 is on the right)
Then daisy chain it to the other 3 score display connectors. You don't need to run one to the Credit/Match display, since it's only a 6 digit version.
And now, you've got a 7 digit display harness.
Here's a reference photo of a connector without the added wire:
Backbox is finished.
3E958D79-6243-47A9-B21D-FE3588BB5B90 (resized).jpeg
Donor harness re-routed and fastened down.
46878E27-C188-4230-B29A-7414A895A48E (resized).jpeg
New light shields installed on the front side. I had these custom printed, since no one makes the correct sizes. So if anyone wants a set, they’re $25 + shipping.
814C080C-66CB-439F-8352-62CFA7E17A2B (resized).jpeg
New Pinitech Uno displays assembled and installed.
The head is now ready to be placed on the cabinet.
28D69808-91DE-4607-B7EE-239B2C3BDD74 (resized).jpeg
Quoted from cottonm4:Looks nice.
Is that powder coat? Or paint?
Thanks.
It’s powder coat. My last project I used paint. Each has their advantages.
It really just comes down to how I want it to look overall.
Quoted from djblouw:Backbox is finished.
Good to see that the 16b-6 transformer actually fits in the head. I was wondering about that. I wonder why they moved all that stuff down to the cab in v2 games?
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