I have mirror blades on almost all my games. Some fit tighter than others. Never had a problem getting scratched but you do need to be careful working on your machine and or raising the playfield.

where did you get those from? Is it possible to "buff" out mirror blades?

They were already installed on the one we have since the initial owner got them, but they are very cool. Definitely recommend.

You can get them here: https://www.pingraffix.com/

Those are sweet. If I didn't already have the stock mirrors on mine, I would have those on for sure. If my mirrors ever get scratched up, I'll pull them off to add those.

I bought these:

https://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=4575

The cabinet fits so close to the Playfield since the cabinets a tiny bit narrow.

There's no room for felt on the edge of the Playfield it will rub.

In fact these protector blades barely fit but with these you will never scratch your mirror blades just be sure to use them each time you raise the Playfield.

They also fit a little bit tight do you have to manage them a little bit cuz they can hang up.

butt it's okay.

without them I would have ruined my mirror blades already.

Nice find. I never realized these existed. I will be a set for sure.

I bought a set of these about a month ago. They are awesome. You'll never mess up your blades when you use these. Get a set, they are pretty cheep when you compare them to all the crazy expensive mod shit we buy.

Here's the link.

https://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=4575

QSS

My biggest problem with blades is they are a “mod” and mods should be fully reversible. Have you ever seen how it looks when you try to remove blades? Ruins the cabinet........WORST mod ever.

It doesn't get better than mirrors. Can't disagree more

Maybe if it just leaves glue behind, goo gone would work?

I love mirrored blades...have had zero issues with scratching on mine...makes all my games pop...

If they are factory installed like mine on AFMr le and houdini are they mods?

Finally finished my move from Colorado to Texas. My AFMr spent a month in storage in a POD and no problems at all.

I just started getting a credit dot for a 'Check L. Gate Stuck Closed' in test....where is that?

Please check page 1-57 and 1-58 in the manual. It's a few things that need to happen or you get the error.

Your left gate isn't likely stuck closed, it is near the top center of the playfield where there is a left gate and right gate above the lanes that feed down to the pop bumpers.

LTG : )

Lloyd, you are a gentleman and a scholar! Solved the problem straight away, thanks!

what PF angle are you guys running?

6.6 default flipper settings.
Slings set to min

Emulation medium
Led brightness -3

Red Super Bands from Pinball Life

I have a four month love/hate relationship with my LE. I've got all the scores that you can enter initials for save one, TEX is still ruling the universe. Last night after about the 30th time having 5 of the 6 blue lights, and all the cities lit, and two of the saucer shield lights, I bounced oddly off the T martian and SDTM. Getting a new champ score of 12.9B was a slight consolation for having TEX mock me yet again. Curse you TEX!

Quick question, is there an easy fix to why sometimes the plunger is weak delivering the ball all the way thru the gate while holding the left flipper for a Super Skill Shot? Mine seem to be about 50/50 at making it thru lately.

Yes. Contact Chicago Gaming and ask for the updated metal ball guide around the pop bumper to fully resolve the issue.

Finally had it with the droopy factory set flippers. We did like Josh Sharpe did and raised each one a touch so it is now even with the lane guide and now looks like every other pinball.
So much easier to trap up now and all the shots are still makeable.
Just about 1/8 of an inch or two was all it took.
Still can't figure out why the sent the games out the door like that.
Loving it.

Curious, can you elaborate a little? What adjustment are you talking about and what did it fix?

On AFM the flippers are set to droop a little so they are not inline with the lane guides.

One can if they wish, align the flippers with the lane guides and eliminate the slight droop.

Some people have a hard time adjusting to the angle of the flippers, so they straighten them.

This in turn could make the game play similar to other games. Maybe a little easier.

Personally I like the factory setup it makes for a challenging game and it's easier to hit the side Martian targets.

Leaving the flippers on the factory setting makes the game play like an AFM other than something else.

I like it that way.

But really, to each his own...

I have played a lot of Bally AFM's. None had droopy flippers. (now I will admit that all of them by now have had many flipper replacements by now so none are factory anymore). But I feel relatively safe saying that Bally did not send games out the door with droopy flippers on purpose.
I also have no problems hitting the side martians at all.
But I do agree that if you like the droop style. Leave it.

You can loosen the nut under the flipper that holds the flipper shaft. This will allow you to raise/turn the flipper up about 1/8" higher then the workers at CGC decided to ship the game out at.
I have been restoring and playing pinball for over 30 years, so the droopy style really bothers me.
It just makes all my shots be off enough to piss me off. lol

I have too, but the factory/Game designer's setup is a slight droop.
I think during maintenance they get adjusted improperly over 23 years in a lot of cases.

Funny. I just edited my post while you were typing that. lol
But I do not agree that it is improper.
I have owned tons of Bally Williams games, even one brand new in the box and it did not have this issue.

It's part of the charm.

The adjustment holes in the playfield if used, make the flippers droop slightly:

20180615_222344 (resized).jpg

20180615_222348 (resized).jpg

To setup flippers, place a toothpick or a suitable drill bit under the rubber and into the hole while tightening the nut on the pawl.

The hole is there to help with assembly and consistancy.

I wouldn't do that. Stick with a tooth pick.

Anything goes wrong, and the drill bit breaks or pops out of the hole and drags across the playfield, you can damage the playfield in a very noticeable spot. Drill bits have sharp edges.

LTG : )

I have to agree that the small drill bit is very sharp and could scratch things up if not careful.

But I still have some of the metal adjustment pins from when they were included in the goodie bags way back when.

I use the drill bit or toothpick when I cant find my old adjustment pins.
I can be kinda lazy sometimes....

Maybe we could make up some out of bent piano wire, sell them for $8.99 and get RICH!

And they work fine for experienced pinball people. Usually.

Considering new pinball people read this. I tend to not advise risky things to the inexperienced. They are more likely to have problems.

LTG : )

I absolutely agree.

I can see a scenario that if a sharp pin wasnt pulled out it would wreak havoc and ruin the clear!

Words of wisdom. Thanks Lloyd!

I'm trying to install my SOL Cliffy and the post will not budge. The nut was removed from the bottom and it's stuck. Any advice?

IMG_5466 (resized).jpg

Twist up and out. Gently tap from below.

LTG : )

Gently tap with a mallet (or a small hammer) from below as you twist with a pair of pliers from above.

Thanks for the assist; I got it out with a little tap and twist as suggested. Given I bought this NIB I was hesitant to start pounding away at it.

I installed the rest of the set, but ended up removing the drain protector. It wouldn't sit flat and had to go.

Do you know what the difference is? We have been patiently waiting for this issue to resolve itself.

Small metal ball guide by the pops was incorrectly curved more than spec. It was slight and I could barely notice it on the game I upgraded. But it was enough to be in the path of the ball sometimes on launch and take the inertia away. Was a small number I games and is now corrected (has been for months). If you’re still having the issue, contact support for a new ball guide.

I think I need to get mine replaced too. Is it an easy swap? and do you think cgc will support second hand owners?

Thankyou very much for the info. I will have a good look at our game when I get home tonight. I did notice that MMr ball guide is different and MMr has no issues in the same spot. MMr ball makes it around every time.

Curious to know what the adjustment pins look like.

I've always wondered if they have something in the factory that holds firm and makes flipper alignment quicker and more accurate.

With a toothpick, there is some movement of the toothpick in the hole, so getting it perfectly in line is very difficult. Very easy for it to lean up or down as you tighten.

Contact CGC and ask for help. Costs nothing to ask.

It was somewhere between easy and medium. Take off a couple of ramps and then it’s easy. Hardest part for me was to get the wood screws off that hold down the ramp flap. Thankfully they send you new ramp screws since they’re easy to strip on the way up — use a really good driver to back them out.

The rest was very straightforward. Solved my friends game instantly.

Different games; very different shot geometry in that spot.

They are sending out replacement ball guides now? The last I heard they just sent the PDF out with instructions on how to bend the existing guide to make it work...if they are indeed sending out new ones I'll contact them for one.

For a small number of people, bending didn’t work.

Basically it's a bent wire tool much like an Allen wrench but round instead of hex.

A lot of guys actually just use an Allen wrench small enough to fit snugly in the hole.

I just use a worn out drill bit that's dull enough it doesn't cut the flipper rubber and goes deeply into the hole so it doesn't move.

I put the plain non sharpened end into the hole.

But be careful please as Lloyd advised.

I reached out to CGC a couple days ago, opened a support ticket, and got this notification today....man that was fast!

Email:
There have been a small number of games that were shipped with an incorrect bend in the upper right-hand Jet Bumper Ball Guide. This incorrect bend resulted in balls ricocheting as they came out of the shooter lane entering in to the Top Orbiter Lane. Balls as a result were not properly traveling around the Top Orbiter Lane. Not all game required this update
I will go ahead and send you the Metal ball guide.

Thank you for your patience,