Yeah, PBL seems pretty cool. They sent my order for art blade protectors really quick!

Definitely going to order that Blitz 1000! Looks like the preferred wax for sure.

Thanks again everyone!

Yeah, I'm definitely going to order again from PBL. They shipped my art blade protectors really quickly!

Gonna grab some of that Blitz 1000 for sure. Definitely seems the preferred brand by a good margin.

Thanks again everyone for the helpful tips!

Only blitz 1000 or p21s as far as I know are correct:

https://www.amazon.com/P21S-12701W-100-Carnauba-Wax/dp/B016XVD8D0/ref=mp_s_a_1_7

https://www.pinballlife.com/blitz-carnauba-paste-wax-12-ounce-jar.html

Mothers is just a solvent filled cleaner wax.

What I meant was plastic protectors, not playfield protector. Didn't mean to stir up this thread but around Pinside it seems to happen all the time. I have my machines to play as they are intended & would never consider installing a playfield protector to take away the genuine gameplay.

Ritchie is enslaved to Stern now. He has to push their agenda and hold his tongue when they butcher his game designs AFTER RELEASE by not fixing errors that complete break modes, then stand by as Stern disables the modes when they decide not to fix the hardware to correct THEIR error.

Stern is using crappier playfield blanks now. Fact. They seem to have multiple suppliers because some runs of machines are fine, while others have gigantic craters rather than acceptable, usual, divots in a short period of time. As a result, you have only to compare Stern to JJP and AP playfields to see that Steve's speech is irrelevant and easily disproven now as it's gotten progressively worse at Stern with the cost-cutting. I understand WHY he had to do it, it's just embarrassing that Stern has that kind of power over him.

Lord - I am gonna need therapy real soon. So, now that I am no longer worried about dimpling since this appears to be pretty insubstantial and normal, I now worry that the one time I used Millwax on the playfield is going to lead to the artwork melting away or having it burst into flames :-0

If I understand this thread and the others I looked at subsequently, Millwax is silicone rather than wax. I've used it on pinballs for over 20 years without issue [as far as I can tell], but this is the first clear coat pinball I have owned, so faux pax number two for old Mark with the new Houdini.

Am I correct in concluding that I need not worry too much about the Millwax since I will never add or re-clear coat this game [I'll be long gone before that will come up, and I can let my kids worry about that one] and to just add the Blitz 1000 as described above? I'm hoping I don't have to smuggle lighter fluid or other noxious compounds into California and engage in deep cleaning to prep the game - ugh...

On the positive side, Still enjoying the game tremendously.

Millwax doesn't ruin games dont worry about it.

It's just that pure carnauba is way better, offers better protection and lasts longer.

People worry too much.

Just stop using it.

Just wax it with blitz 1000, you will be fine.

My flipper coils are very hot after 20 min play. Much hotter than any of my other machines. Almost uncomfortable to touch. Flipper strength is as recommended. Flippers work fine but do seem to get slightly weaker after playing for a while. Has anybody else touched their flipper coils? Is this normal with Houdini?

Doesn't sound normal. I'd be sure your flippers have a tiny bit of up and down play ( not back and forth ) to be sure the pawl isn't binding on the nylon bushing below the playfield the flipper shaft rides in.

If that is good, then I'd remove the plunger assembly and be sure the plunger/plastic link/pawl moves freely.

LTG : )

Have you installed the upgraded power supply?

It should fix this.

Can someone with magic glass confirm this is the etching on yours? I just got a piece and it doesn't say magic glass or anything that would indicate it is. Just want to make sure this looks right

20181106_160742 (resized).jpg

Thanks. Checked all those things. No issue there. Could it be that not having an EOS switch the holding current is too high making the coil gay too hot?

The bigger question is which side goes up?

Can you explain why?
Forgot to say I'm in Australia at 240V we don't need the upgraded power supply (I was told).

No, but higher wattage power will make it easier to flip the ball and have less thermal residue.

The device works more sufficiently.

As with everything electrical, low power or brown out conditions cause heat buildup.

The upgraded power supply is 750 watt. The original is near half that.

Your 240v service does not give you more power. Just less power is used from the wall. So internally the power used is the same.

Upgrading the internal power supply fixes many issues, like weak flippers.

EOS switches let the game know when a flipper is knocked down so it can automatically raise it or keep it up.

I recommend EOS and the new power supply.

Sorry to necro this post, but I'm planning on picking up the new power supply pretty soon, and had a question.

Is largely an issue with having many machines in one room, or just fluctuating power in your home in general? What voltage do I want, and do I use a multimeter to test somewhere? I have basically zero experience in this aspect of home ownership, so any tips would be appreciated.

Is the catapult/trunk shot now largely 100% consistent for those that have installed this?

Some flippers were installed without coil sheaths, so you might check yours

anything that can make the voltage coming from your outlet not be consistent. So that can be many machines on at the same time, on the same circuit. I can get mine to miss by running a dehumidifier from the same outlet. You can also have power coming into your house that fluctuates - typically this is if you live far away from a major urban area (e.g. I live 2 miles from Washington DC so my power is pretty stable).

Anyway the power upgrade basically eliminated it. My catapult has not missed once since I installed it. And really it didn't miss all that much before, but when I turned on that dehumidifier OR I had my other games being played (or both), it would consistently under-throw. It usually didn't miss left or right; that's a different issue.

Does it matter? I thought you can put glass on either side?

I hate to be the Ohm's law police but I'm going to be for the sake of clarity and to hopefully not confuse any newbies. The amount of Power consumed (in Watts) will be the same (some negligible differences may occur due to wire sizes but not really at the levels consumed by a pinball machine) regardless of the outlet voltage supplied. The amount of current (in amps) will be different but that's not the same thing as power. I*E (or V if you prefer)=P

That would be my 1st choice. I don't have EOS installed, I will try to remember to check mine this weekend (I'll forget).

BTW, I don't think a coil being gay has anything to do with it, they are all happy.

Yes. Mine never misses.

Ditto on bob's power comment. Double the voltage (i.e. 120V vs. 240V), the pin would draw 1/2 the current. If a pin draws, say 500W, it should be 500W regardless of 120 vs. 240V.

The non-glare coating goes on the inside. This avoids scratches to it.

It's not on both sides, much like expensive singlasses for you game.

Yes. Devices draw what they were designed to regardless of the source being higher.

However they can run hot during low or insufficient power sessions, like during a brown out.

Wes,

Just a quick FYI to help you out.

The new power supply is a buck-boost design. If the line voltage is low, it 'boosts' it's output voltage to maintain the desired 48V. If the line voltage is high, it 'bucks' the voltage to still maintain the desired voltage of 48V. Of course, there's limits on the input voltage, but looking at the data sheet briefly (below), the input voltage range is VERY wide. The old power supply was unregulated, it's output would vary w/respect to the input voltage.

Using a multimeter to measure line voltage let's you see the average voltage but it doesn't catch the transients (i.e. your humidifier starts up, your AC turns on, and old EM using a lot of power) which can cause variation in the line voltage...that would zip right by the multimeter. But let's say everyone is using their AC on a hot day, then your average voltage could be lower. Getting back to the power supply - there is a time constant associated with how fast it can regulate back to the desire 48V, it doesn't happen instantly. But it should be very fast as far as playing pinball is concerned and for all practical purposes, the 48V will always be 48V.

Even without the power supply upgrade, my trunk shot was almost always very close to being spot on. Can't remember it being short/long or smacking the trunk. I just didn't want to ever worry about it, and I got the upgrade anyways. After the install it's 100%. It was before, but the potential for the problem was there, so no reason not upgrade.
rsp-750-48 (resized).PNG

Well, here's mine...but it's on the other side.

It could be the same number as tempered (the coating just being applied to the normal glass).

BTW, be careful what glass cleaner you use on the glass, it can damage the coating. There's a discussion in this thread somewhere about it.

mg1 (resized).jpg

No they dont get hot for me. Super hot flipper coils are a sign of trouble in the flipper mech.

Finally, something I know a little bit about. This glass is very similar to the museum glass people use for framing. I do a ton of framing. The way you can tell if it is the magic glass or regular glass is the way the light reflects. If you have to two pinball machines next to each other one with and one without the magic glass and a light source shining above, you can tell almost immediately. Look at the two pictures. The AFM has plain old glass, the Houdini has Magic glass. The light source in the photo is the same, but the magic glass reflects a more violet hue. Depending on the kind of bulb, you will get different hues, but regardless, the magic glass will look different than the standard glass. It’s very noticeable with Fluorescent tubing. So, that’s a telltale sign to look for. If you don’t have two pinballs, just shining a light on your Houdini, and the coffee table, or some other piece of plain old glass. It should reflect differently.

And yes the treated side goes on the inside. On my machine, there is a “ proudly made in the USA“ sticker. The sticker is on the outside facing up, obviously. The other way to tell is that with the glass out, they treated side will have an almost iridescent sheen to it. The other side will look just like normal glass.

19A2B943-CD04-48D5-9B84-36AAA378F22D (resized).jpeg

9E6A0D27-FAA7-4E50-81F0-97EE24E5CBC2 (resized).jpeg

On my game I turned the glass around and put the tempered stamp under the lockdown bar

Thanks for confirming it matches mine. Never owned this kind of glass before. Appreciate it and the lesson about what side to put it on!

Thanks Great Tip.
Ordering Magic Glass soon.
Knocker on its way!

Hmm, my game supposedly came with magic glass but there is no stamp. I've never owned this type of playfield glass either. Maybe not really magic? It has a purple tint to it when outside the game.

Magic glass has a slight tint, so you are good to go.

Hi!

How long does American Pinball support usually take to answer? I have submitted a question about my catapult: with 27 setting it shoots too low and with 28 it shoots right and misses the trunk.

Meanwhile, when waiting an answer from them - was there any luck with adding washers to the throw arm?
Would there be any help in adjusting the game's slope and what would be the sweetspot?
And did this matter get resolved with the new power supply? And finally, is the new power supply available for EU-customers yet?

Thanks for any info!

All those answers to your questions are in this thread -

Pretty much everyone who has installed the power supply has reported very consistent catapult behaviour. I strongly recommend it for a variety of reasons. There are also a few other suggested fixes to the catapult, including cleaning it and making minor adjustments to the position from under the play field. Mine personally has not needed ANY adjustment after installing the power upgrade.

No washers needed, it seems to me they would bend the mech out of alignment. I’d say wait for the power supply or try cleaning, slightly adjusting the position! Good luck!

Thank you for your answers and yes, I know, I know, I was avoiding some reading by asking the questions.

My game has a bit over 100 games on it, I did clean the catapult mech as instructed in the API guide, but as one would guess, it was not dirty at all.
I could try adjusting the throw arm, but as I remember, there was not much room for adjusting.
It would be good to know if the power supply is available for customers in the EU though.

Did anyone ever figure out how to use the $150 rebate code?

I just typed the handwritten code that was included with the power supply into the "code" area of the API website (when checking out) and it deducted the price of the knocker. I still had to kick in a few bucks for shipping to complete the transaction.

As doyle has said, read the posts earlier and adjust it.

It's pretty easy to adjust and there is plenty of room for adjustment.

One thing that came up was that several catapults were crooked in the cutout. It's simple enough to open the mounting holes of the mech and turn it until its straight.

Check this first.

Also you can tilt the catapult by putting a couple washers under one side until you get it right. This works good too.

You can just drop a ball into it with power on and it will fire.
I'm confident now that I can get any of them to shoot straight in about 15 mins.

Get the new power supply. If you possibly can.
Get the EOS kit.
It fixes many things.

Guess I will have to call support, my number is invalid.

Thanks for the input everyone! I'm definitely grabbing the power supply as soon as I register my game tomorrow or the next day!

Curious, what's the EOS kit do?

And I've got two cats, albeit older, and wanted to cover the playfield with a material when I'm not using it, just in case one of them hops onto the glass. Are there any recommendations for non scratch material or while I'm at UV proof? Would fleece work okay?

Get the EOS kit as well as the power supply, you need it.

Anything will work as a cover. Fleece blankets work great.

There are a couple services that print them custom with your images. Quite cool actually

also you can get cheap covers off Ebay, but they are a hassle to use unless for long term.

My cat always liked to lay on the glass. Bally's were his favorite since there wasn't too much slope but I think Houdini would be a bit too steep for proper cat sleeping. Unfortunately, he's not around anymore for me to ask.

Ike_on_pinball (resized).jpg

Had a look at my catapult. It seems not to be perfectly straight in the cut-out. Seems like no wonder it would shoot to the right being like this. I think I will first try to adjust the mech direction by loosening the screws holding the mech to the playfield and seeing if there is any play in that. I read that many had opened up the mounting holes of the mech with a dremel to get the catapult straight. I may have to try that too.

Crooked (resized).JPG

Beautiful cat! Sorry for your loss.

But yeah, proper cat beds are the top backbones of earlier games. Nice and warm.

Yes, that's exactly what to do first.

The mech is in a super easy location. Tons of room.

10 min fix even if you have to dremel the mech.

While you got the game open, move the seance c target left 3/16" if you haven't already. Dremel out its mount too.

It's like night and day

Mine doesn't work and you just reminded me that BarryJ never answered my e-mail about it, the nerve of him! I'll try bugging Nirmal about it next.

Thanks again for the advice! I had no clue what EOS was about, and watched a few videos elaborating on them. I guess that explains the hot coils one user mentioned earlier? Were these not installed on Houdini at some point? Are these a fairly easy installation?

Seems like a pretty cool kitty. Glad he enjoyed his time chilling in a pretty cool spot.