No Good Gofers
Williams, 1997Well, I think it's time somebody started a No Good Gofers Club. So here it is!
I'll start off with something that I've wondered about.
Ever since I did a flipper rebuild on my NGG I've had trouble hitting the hole-in-one shot.
The balls usually fly over it and I only score with a bounce off something else.
Should I increase the angle of the play field?
The slope of the play field is as they say in the manual. There is still plenty of power to make all long shots so I could
try a little steeper for a while.
Has anyone modded the area around the hole-in-one hole to make more shots drop?
Not sure I would want to but was considering it. The gofers already accuse me of cheating 
I used to have ngg prototype gofers. One was red the other was all brown. Sold them on eBay a while back. Cool parts
Quoted from lllvjr:I used to have ngg prototype gofers. One was red the other was all brown.
That's cool. Do you have any pictures of them left? Mine need to have their teeth brushed, they're all black.
I need to find the time to clean the whole machine, hopefully this fall/ winter.
Aaaah, finally fixed it! I was having a problem with the up kicker that shoots the ball
into the pop bumper area. It would often need 5 or more tries to get the ball up and
sometimes it would completely get stuck down there.
Turned out that the coil was a bit loose and the wrong coil sleeve was installed.
It's now working great!
Next up is a rebuild of the upper flipper so I can make the jackpot shot a little easier.
By the way, does anyone know where a new backglass can be acquired? I saw one on Ebay the other day and should have bid much more. Mine isn't completely busted but it's got some issues. Hoping someone reproduces them someday because they really are great.
Quoted from Marten:Aaaah, finally fixed it! I was having a problem with the up kicker that shoots the ball
into the pop bumper area. It would often need 5 or more tries to get the ball up and
sometimes it would completely get stuck down there.
Turned out that the coil was a bit loose and the wrong coil sleeve was installed.
It's now working great!
Next up is a rebuild of the upper flipper so I can make the jackpot shot a little easier.
I had a problem with the same up kicker. The rubber grommet at the bottom of the coil fell off. Once I replaced it, the up kicker worked normally again, oh the simplest things! NGG was my first pin and will NEVER leave!
image.jpg
Quoted from Pigjes:Reminds me of 2 sweet twin guinea pigs I had, who looked like Buzz and Bud!
It looks like they would give you a lot less trouble than Buzz and Bud.
I would like to share a story that I am not sure I believe myself.
I had never played No Good Gofers. But Clay Harrell's awesome VFW pinball show last May included a No Good Gofers and I stepped up, excited to play my first game. I plunged the ball and my very first flip on my very first ball on NGG was ... a hole in one.
No one else saw it.
I never did play the rest of the game. I let the remaining balls drain and walked away.
Quoted from nosro:I plunged the ball and my very first flip on my very first ball on NGG was ... a hole in one.
No one else saw it.
I never did play the rest of the game. I let the remaining balls drain and walked away.
Then you never will know how much fun this game is ... 
Quoted from Pigjes:Installed the ramps and targets decal set. Looks neat! Did coat the decals extra with PU
Looks awesome! It's neat to see them installed, thanks for sharing. We laminated these bad boys before sending them out to flash, I will be curious how the second layer holds up, dissimilar materials often separate over time. I would like to compare, I also considered a second layer of laminate here at the shop, but the durability of 1 layer is pretty significant. So hearing your input 6 months from now would pretty cool!
Funny how I haven't even put mine one yet....and I'm the guy you made them LOL. I swear trying to reassemble an NGG is a real nightmare. I have a feeling reassembling any other machine is going to be a piece of cake after this one.
Quoted from flashinstinct:I swear trying to reassemble an NGG is a real nightmare.
What makes the NGG so difficult? I haven't started taking mine apart yet but I thought it looked
easier than say CFTBL. The play field is pretty empty. Anything I have to look out for?
The damn gopher mechs have a million pieces and spring... do yourself a favour and take about 100 photos of those parts. The entire playfield has around 26 coils. Just a lot of parts crammed in a small amount of space.
I love NGG and it's my girlfriend's favorite game!
I was fortunate enough to buy my HUO NGG from Marty Ingels, the voice of Pac-Man in the 80's cartoon! He had an arcade in his house for the kids & grandkids...but everyone was grown up and no one played the games anymore, so he was selling them all. It's clear they didn't play NGG more than 100 times or so since '98. No slam ramp wear, no shooter lane wear, no gopher wear. HOLE IN ONE! 
He also had a HUO Pac-Man that he autographed...I really wanted that too - but he wanted way too much for it. I love Pac-Man but not for $5k
Quoted from flashinstinct:Yeah I got mine from a guy that said he had just gotten it shopped. Just to show you this is what I got when it was delivered.
That was the least of my problems. The gopher catch plates were none existent. There was dirt everywhere.
sleeve.jpg 92 KB
I'm not exactly sure what that is, but it doesn't look stock
Quoted from alveolus:I'm not exactly sure what that is, but it doesn't look stock
It's a metal coil sleeve. One of many things that didn't belong in there. The company that did the shop job threatened to sue me with slander if I ever spoke about it. And the paper towel was the second pass.
Quoted from ovfdfireman:I will be curious how the second layer holds up, dissimilar materials often separate over time.
Being a chemist (among other geeky stuff, lol), I am in complete awe of PU. I have always added an extra layer of PU on many different pinball items, besides rubber. I have never seen a layer come off in 10 years, but then I clean the area first with a cloth with soapy water and let that dry well, even after drying it with another cloth. Works like a charm for me.
Quoted from Pigjes:Installed the ramps and targets decal set. Looks neat! Did coat the decals extra with PU.
Let us know how these hold up
decals (1).JPG 293 KB
decals (2).JPG 281 KB
decals (3).JPG 210 KB
Quoted from flashinstinct:what is PU? Sounds stinky to me LOL. But for real what is it?
PU is polyurethane and has an amazing range of uses. Stinky indeed, hazardous till it's dry and needs a well ventilated area to work with.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyurethane
I will keep you informed on how the decals hold up, plus how the PU handles it.
Quoted from flashinstinct:Just a lot of parts crammed in a small amount of space.
Try working on a safecracker and you will feel like gofers has miles of space!
Quoted from tilt-master:Try working on a safecracker and you will feel like gofers has miles of space!
Yeah I don't want to even attempt that one.
I hated this game for years, not sure why, never really put much time on it. Just the theme, and I hate golf as it is, everything just said blah to me.
Me and a buddy were at a local bar a couple months back and there was one there, nice shape, no GI. He wanted to play, I did not. We played, and wow, it's an awesome game - I love the shots. I contacted the operator, and threw all kinds of figures around, as the condition was nice, but got the feeling $20k wouldn't even drag it out of his hands (some of these guys would rather collect the $20 a month instead of cash in still, they must know something I don't...).
I think back now (like most games I come around on) to all the chances I have had offered at one of these and cringe. Oh well, gives me something to look forward to in the future.
Quoted from flashinstinct:The company that did the shop job threatened to sue me with slander if I ever spoke about it. And the paper towel was the second pass.
hahah I'd take that bet. Truth is not slander, and in Canada, they'd be the ones flipping for any legal costs if they pursued. Tell me this wasn't Chris from Kingston?
Oh well, I buy based on condition, and figure in that I have to shop/clean/replace everything. Buy based on that and you are never disappointed in what you paid.
Quoted from tilt-master:Try working on a safecracker and you will feel like gofers has miles of space!
I'll one up you and call a RS to this!
You have to pretty much strip the entire back upper and lower PF to get at just ted's head alone. When I shopped that machine, I spent two nights alone per head! They're all pretty bad in their own ways.
my upper play field has marks from where the ball hits when going for the hole in one. can I sand that and polish it? (with what?) . anyone know where I can get a new one after I screw this one up? lol
I always say I am selling mine. It is in great shape (except for those spots on the upper play field!). I go to play it before I put it on the market and never pull the 4 sale trigger. I have made it to 16 holes and once I had 7 holes in one! just a very solid , very fun game.
I have mine and most would say it's an 8 out of a 10 but I am about to pull the trigger and make it a 10. Restoring this nice machine into a work of art. Excited to get started.
Quoted from yoshootme:my upper play field has marks from where the ball hits when going for the hole in one. can I sand that and polish it? (with what?) . anyone know where I can get a new one after I screw this one up?
I bought new plastics for mine not to long ago and that plastic to but I can't remember where I got it. If I can find it you can to. It was pricey if I remember correctly. Good luck!
Quoted from tilt-master:Try working on a safecracker and you will feel like gofers has miles of space!
We have one, the entire pinball space and the way parts are installed are a serious pain in the "lower regions". Must be the worst one to work on indeed. Ouch.
We purchased a NGG pin a few weeks ago and have been enjoying it! Since we've been playing it , we've come across an issue that has happened a few times. A ball will drop off the upper play field and become trapped up on the slam ramp mechanism, and then will jam there when the ramp goes up and down. Sometimes it gets free, but I usually pull the glass to get it out of there. I see where Williams had a "Ball Hang-up Repair Kit" that addressed this issue along with others. My machine was not modded with this and I haven't been able to come across any pictures on what the pieces may have looked like. Any info others may have on this problem is appreciated! Or maybe I just need to zip tie a Caddyshack cart next to the slam ramp!! Thanks.
Hmmm, That's weird. I've only had that happen once. The machine does seem to have a lot of places
for the ball to get stuck though. I guess that was bound to happen when you design a game that has
so many balls flying through the air. The previous owner of my NGG stuck a lot of rubber nubbins
where the ball can get stuck.
You people are the luckiest people as this is a TRUE masterpiece of pinball.
ORIGINAL, FUNNY, what else could you ask for?
DMS consistently has this available, once in a while he posts it on eBay for a bit cheaper:
http://dmspinballs.com/nggparts.html
I consider this a 'must buy' for a NGG
I have an extra kit on hand in case I find a NGG for my brother
Thanks for all the info, guys! I've ordered a kit to stop the issue (of course it hasn't happened again since I put up this post!), some new rubber, bulbs, and cleaning supplies. Hopefully she should be spotless and in tip-top shape in another week or so!
Quoted from BlueIrocGuy:Thanks for all the info, guys! I've ordered a kit to stop the issue (of course it hasn't happened again since I put up this post!), some new rubber, bulbs, and cleaning supplies. Hopefully she should be spotless and in tip-top shape in another week or so!
Ugh, that reminds me I still have to shop mine. It plays fine but it's pretty dirty.
Does anyone know how to reset the "Hole in One Champion' score and initials? I swapped in a 1.3 ver ROM chip awhile ago and had that reset everything back to factory specs. I've since put the settings were I want them, but I have not seen a way to reset or erase the 'Hole' display. Looking through all the adjustment pages on the machine or manual didn't reveal anything that would seem to do the trick. Thanks for the help!
Quoted from BlueIrocGuy:Does anyone know how to reset the "Hole in One Champion' score and initials? I swapped in a 1.3 ver ROM chip awhile ago and had that reset everything back to factory specs. I've since put the settings were I want them, but I have not seen a way to reset or erase the 'Hole' display. Looking through all the adjustment pages on the machine or manual didn't reveal anything that would seem to do the trick. Thanks for the help!
Hmmm, never seen it either but I guess you could take the batteries out while the game is off.
You'll have to do the setting again though.
Been playing mine more last couple weeks. I am starting to go for bonus multipliers and playing the holes; which then can be big bonus's after the multipliers. Otherwise, this game just doesn't like to give points out to me.
Not strictly NGG: Plus I realized I have some serious nudge problems that I need to unlearn.. I suck at all aspects of pinball but I was paying attention to nudging lately and realized I always will nudge the ball in the direction of travel.. so like if I see it's coming from back-right towards SDTM I will actually nudge the right side of the game.. vs the Left.. which I can presume actually helps it tip off the right flipper vs what I seem to be doing is sending it *more* SDTM. I don't know where/when i picked this up but .. it's going to be hard to unlearn as it's instinct 
Any Gofers fans know what this part # or description is.. I don''t see it any where in the manual or listed at any parts suppliers around the globe. Its the white bushing that supports the shaft for the back gofers lift ramp flaps. Anyone know please let me know. Thanks
mysterious ramp lift bushing 045.JPG
mysterious ramp lift bushing 044.JPGQuoted from Marten:Hmmm, never seen it either but I guess you could take the batteries out while the game is off.
You'll have to do the setting again though.
I got around to doing the reset of the batteries and found out I still have the same display of '3 LFT' for the HIOC score, which must be the factory default setting (I guess LFT is the initials for someone on the production team?). Anyways, it was worth a shot and now I get to set some new high scores again!!
Quoted from flipper_nutz:Any Gofers fans know what this part # or description is.. I don''t see it any where in the manual or listed at any parts suppliers around the globe. Its the white bushing that supports the shaft for the back gofers lift ramp flaps. Anyone know please let me know. Thanks
Part# 03-9847 bushing-lift ramp (2)
Quoted from BlueIrocGuy:(I guess LFT is the initials for someone on the production team?)
It's "Lefty", the alter-ego of LFS who bricks every shot (and can never enter his initials correctly).
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Redisham
Ann Arbor, MI
Orleans, ON
Gilligan's Island