They're all "limited" anyway.....grateful some actually hatched and made it out....

Very true, and I don't think it's impossible that there are actually more LE's in existience than standards!! With the prevailing wisdom being that less than 200 Alien games exist period, and the fact that not all the standard editions are the same, ie: my early standard has the lit side panels, I think it's pretty safe to say that every Alien is a RE, (Rare Edition!!)

Construction of the bracket for the knocker assy is done.
Now I will ask my local workshop what should it cost to produce this bracket in 1 mm stainless steel.

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Shouldn't it be more like 2mm? ... 1mm SS plate is a bit flimsy. I think the thinnest I've seen knocker brackets would be 1/16" (about 1.5mm)

Just that 1mm sounds too thin to me?

You're right the original bracket is nearly 2 mm, the reproduced bracket will be made in 2 mm.

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Some news regarding shipping of the panels.
All parcels are held at customs in Rodgau and will be flown from Frankfurt Airport to the States tomorrow.
I've checked the tracking service and all information is complete.

Was playing some alien and the xeno mouth went crazy kept opening and closing even when the game
Was over anyone seen that before.

Appreciate you providing these....can't wait to see all the artwork!!!

Hoping I'm inspired enough by this to finally install my xenon flasher in the machine and get it off my bench. Triggers from Xeno tongue, and should look badass.

I won't sell them, but will provide a parts list for those that want to build their own. The only real effect that I believe is missing on the game....

that would be sick.

I wanted to point that this community has made this thread hit 25k+ posts and is still active, and that is impressive. Also, Alien is great.

I was in on an Alien with a preorder, played the game a few times, and really loved it. The layout, the multiple ways to approach the game, the immersion. I liked the Alien theme, but theme wasn't even the main draw. I've done my time in this thread, and consider myself a part of this community, even if I never got my Alien, so with that...

I recently got a chance to play the new Stern Jurassic Park, and while the layout is definitely different, JP2 has a very similar feel to the flow of Alien, almost like a spiritual successor... If Alien was condensed into a narrow body. Some shots echo one another, like the control room/"1" alien shot, or the ramp/loops. If you were hoping to get an Alien but couldn't, I recommend checking out the new Stern Jurassic Park to see if it will fill your fix. Has anyone else gotten a chance to play both, what do you think?

Only thing puts me off Sterns of the last handful of years is the apawling "cheap" feel/build quality/cut corners. Alien is a very solid game compared to stern effort. No comparison in my book.

"Oh they aren't plug and play"... well, name any pinball that had a prototype identical to the production?. Late run Alien are as reliable as anything else out of the box these days. Its just that the production never came into full swing. All we needed with the SE we had was the metal gear servo to be installed. Stellar game!

JP2 looks like a fun game though. Might even buy a premium for a fairer price in a couple of years, after the hype is passed.

Jp le ordered will see when I get it. But alien movie clips , cutscenes and shots are amazing. I mean it’s got Vasquez !

I'm in on JP too. Looks great.

Premium, LE, or pro?

Please put me down for two of these!

The idea with the Xeno flasher is not new, someone told me that heighway had planned a stroboscope effect for this.

This morning my local workshop told me that the cost for one bracket made of stainless steel will be 20 Euros.
The secured shipment to the Staates in the cheapest choice will be 12,89 Euros.
In my opinion it doesn't make sense because it's too expensive?

I could get my guy across the road to do them, for us in Oz. Obviously you have the dimensions recorded? ... I could strip and measure a local game, but if you've already done that...

Sure, here's the dimension sheet, but please consider it's all in millimeter!

ALIEN_Knocker_Bracket-B.pdf

Thanks! ... that's awesome

Metric is the standard here now, so all good! . BS and AF are more like redundant legacy here these days, only used for stuff like pinball, most tyres/industrial belts, and old industrial plant... historic stuff like cars etc as well. The fun of being in engineering in Oz, when doing stuff like screwcutting or other bespoke work on mismatching equipment, having to be apt and well practiced at converting between Metric and umpteen variations of Imperial! ... in your head on the fly Lol

We have lots of imperial history from both Brit and US, mix that with Metric now being standard = pita

I'm fully stoked it is in metric!

I was prem but now I'm floating the idea of going pro and using the extra cash for the DE JP bc I still think that game brings things this new one doesn't considering it truly is based right in the movie.

I've uploded an improved dimension sheet, there was a fault in there at the slot holes - now it's correct.

I believe that....It sure belongs in the game

Is there a video somewhere to show how it looks like?

I would like to see some pictures or a video in action of the stroboscope.

Just a white strobe effect sitting on my bench currently. I'll post a short video once I put it in the game. The flash rate is adjustable, and will trigger when the xeno tongue comes out and play field goes dark...Hint - we all know there is a spare leg on the tongue end-of-stroke switch...

I'm taking my Alien to a show next week and, after spending several hours replacing umpteen failed LEDs, I was hoping to get the xeno going (it's never worked properly) but so far the only solution for the gear slipping issue that I've found involves glueing the gear onto the shaft. I haven't been able to make that work... Has anyone got a different solution?

Clever

I should point out that there is a tendency on many games for the rod to slide outward on its own due to vibration. The game code will immediately pull back when it sees that switch go off when it isn't expected. So it is possible for your widget to see a brief switch pulse in this case. You may want to add some sort of short delay before triggering the strobe.

I have to review the dimension sheet because the small holder for the coil is special,too.
Standard parts from Williams and other manufacturer doesn't fit, either.
By the way the holder needs to be improved that the plunger will fit on perfectly.
The original holder is too small.

Good tip, and I've got a trigger delay feature on the relay that will hopefully address.

This would explain why on rare occasions, when game is initialized, tongue goes too far out, causing it to not cycle proper. I've simply powered off, pushed the tongue all the way back in to engage the switch, then all is good.

Wonder if a slight amount of pressure being applied to the tongue might eliminate this ( perhaps a spring which provides enough pull to keep it seated, yet enough travel for full extension)...Kind of fun getting granular on details, now that the other stuff has been sorted

I think pinball ownership has given me a degree of anxiety, lack of sleep and depression. I think Im going to slowly get out, starting with pins that I do not feel "satisfying shots".

Wait. What? Why????

No one said you cant learn how to fix or work on them yourself.

Oh I work on my pins all day long.. I think that is where the anxiety comes from. Like yesterday the Xeno jaw opened and closed crazily after a game and kept going until I turned off and on the pin. then it was fine ever since. But all day yesterday and night I kept asking myself.. why did it do that?? Why!? Then I didnt sleep. I can't handle this stuff anymore.

Looking at the dimensions of things it appears many are very Imperial-ish... I think DE#535-5203-03 measures up pretty close apart from the slotted hole spacing of 11.3mm (which I equate roughly to 7/16") on your bracket drawing, where the DE part is 3/8" (about 9.8mm). Maybe new brackets could use this slotted hole spacing so that this part could be used? . The plunger centre height seems about 0.3mm shorter than your drawn frame centre height, but this is rather close.

Also thinking, if the retainers crack down the track (as they can eventually on other games), does this mean there would be no bolt in replacment available for the launchers either? .... maybe it would be worth making some for both uses if the same part is not already available off the shelf. Curious if it isn't an off the shelf common item not directly associated with a specific manufacturer, like the DE/SEGA "homebrew" pop bumpers that the game uses?. Might just be something a little harder to sift out from the interweb?

Or, if the slots were made 0.6mm wider, towards each other on the inner sides, then both could fit.... ? hmmmm

Dont sell Alien or your other games. Take a break or do another hobby for a bit. Dont make an emotional decision that you may regret. Maybe the code got stuck in an endless loop.

Sleep on it. Hate to see you make a big decision like that on what may be a temporary feeling.

Then I have JP LE on the way, 3 weeks they said ! I mean my wife is going to kill me. I have no room, she was about to leave when Black Knight Le showed up.. what am I going to do! I think I will get it shipped to my parents house, store it there until I do have room. Then she wont know. And everything has to be damn limited edition. Limited edition this, collector edition that.. only 500 made of this, 100 of that.. Im tired of it! Im going to have a panic attack!

I should have just stuck with my MMR LE sitting in the corner all by itself.. but no... Alien LE with green trim, last of its kind.. oh la la la la.

I think I need a vacation.... away.

The only difference is the bracket and the coil holder, all other parts are standard parts.
This bracket will replace the shooter lane also.

• Grommet - Williams 23-6577
• Kickback Plunger - Williams A-6306-2
• Spring - Williams 10-135
• Knocker-Plate - Williams 01-7525

My intension is to reproduce the original bracket.
Of course you can use every complete WILLIAMS Knocker Assy but that's not what I want to have in my Alien.

regards
Averell

Why is that??

Best way for the xeno would be to plug the USB and get the log. That’s how I understood I got an infinite loop for the extra ball.

Also a factory reset to start would be wise.

What are you going to do: maybe......not buy games?

And why does everything have to be LE....?

Sorry, I am not trying to come across as condescending, but these are some insane 1st world problems. Some people in the world make less in a year than what we spend on a Pro tier pinball machine.

And going behind your wife's back hoping she wont find out doesnt help matters. I dunno, man. Maybe you have a problem with "when to say 'when'"...?

Just my thoughts. Sorry to derail the thread.

True is that.. true is that.

Yeah. I meantioned it two years ago. I thought it was the biggest oversight in the design of the game.

seems like you're on the LE target from manufacturer. That's also why I'm not a big fan of modern pin... I was more attached to the bar things with the pin played in the arcades and bars... everything now is about collectors...
everything has to be LE... why? is there a need to feel more unique? so many LE for sale after a while anyway... ok let's go back to Alien

Sounds like maybe some time with the wife is in order! I think most of us have been there at one time or another

My thought process is: just make sure I’m having fun doing this stuff. My family is having fun and so am I. When it is no longer fun for me and them, I’m out and won’t look back. Just move on to the next fun thing. Good luck with you!

It’s just pinball. Cut your collection in half and enjoy your life. Sell the games that are frustrating and require work. You’re not up for it man. Cut your losses and don’t look back.

Agree 100%. This is just pinball. Another dumb hobby. Relax man!