I do have the red IDC connectors and the Z connectors if anyone would want them, but I do not have the other parts, the Y tail and micro connectors that Mt_Tantrum is using..

Or you can download them all yourself for free from here: http://pinsound-community.org/forum/index.php?/files/file/58-attack_from_mars_ost_mars_attacks_by_pinheadzip

You can use fre:ac to convert the ogg files to wav files quickly and easily: https://www.freac.org

Here is a transcript of all the callouts: http://hem.bredband.net/b257182/afmquotes.html

I’m getting the Dirty Pool call out and the main saucer blowing when I hit the lock shot on my SE. It has happened twice so far. I thought Dirty Pool was only supposed to happen when you got a ball locked behind the targets during multiball and managed to blow the saucer with the targets up. Should I be looking to adjust something?

I’m confused on how to get dirty pool. I have the saucer opened up and start a multiball, bash it until the next shot destroys it, drop target down, and try to cradle both balls. I shoot one ball up to destroy the saucer and when I try to shoot the second ball up before the bank target raises it just goes in the hole too. Once you destroy the saucer should the drop target raise or do I just have to hit the side targets so it ricochets and doesn’t drop in the hole with the first ball?

Just sounds like a timing issue with your shots to me. Personally, I've yet to achieve it.

"A useful trick while in multiball is to try and get a ball trapped behind the forcefield. Then when another ball hits the front of the forcefield the trapped ball will (usually) bounce straight up into the hole behind the drop target. This awards you the points for the next city and displays the words "Dirty Pool" on the DMD."

http://pinball.org/rules/attackfrommars3.html

With my new coin reject button inserts I wanted to brighten things up some (the OEM bulbs are a little dim to me). So, I put some 4 SMD Comets in, and wow what a difference. I was going to take a pic of old vs. new to post here so I went to pull one of the Comets out and nearly burned off my fingerprints. Only then did I realize that these are 12v bulbs and not the standard 6v ones.

Lesson learned | DO NOT PUT STANDARD LED BULBS IN THE COIN SLOTS!

I have a message into Comet to see what their brightest 12v wedge bulbs are, and next time I need to order anything I'll pick up a couple and see if they make a difference.
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Since my last posting of installing all 4 red-eyed Mick's Pinball Martians, I've had a few inquiries regarding exactly how I did it. This will be a little repetitive of some previous posts, but I hope to specify all parts needed and wiring technique that I utilized.

Here is parts list required for installation of both 2 and 4 Mick's Pinball red-eyed Martians. As a note, I recommend the brightness adjuster since by default the red eyes are blindingly bright (a good thing). The brightness adjuster even set to it's highest setting tones the brightness down perfectly for what I like.

COMMON
- You will need a soldering iron, solder, and some basic soldering skills to adapt the provided Marian wiring to a female Matrix connector
- 1 x 4 Pin .100 IDC Assembly | https://mezelmods.com/collections/under20/products/4-pin-100-idc-assembly
- 1 x Comet Matrix Brightness Adjuster | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/brightness-adjusters?variant=12493660618796
- Approximately 4" of 5/64" or similarly sized heat shrink tubing
- Approximately 2" of 5/32" or similarly sized heat shrink tubing

2 MARTIAN INSTALL
- 1 x Comet Matrix Female to Female Gender Changer (you will cut in half to make 2 connectors) | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/matrix-gender-connection?variant=12493662224428
- 1 x Comet Matrix 2-Way Splitter | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/matrix-splitter-wires?variant=12493662355500

4 MARTIAN INSTALL
- 2 x Comet Matrix Female to Female Gender Changer (you will cut in half to make 4 connectors) | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/matrix-gender-connection?variant=12493662224428
- 1 x Comet Matrix 2-Way Splitter | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/matrix-splitter-wires?variant=12493662355500
- 1 x Comet Matrix 3-Way Splitter | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/matrix-splitter-wires?variant=12493662388268

OPTIONAL IF YOU WANT TO COLOR LIKE MINE
- 1 x Silver Metallic Sharpie (coloring of exposed muscles) | https://www.amazon.com/Sharpie-39108PP-Metallic-Permanent-Blister/dp/B00009RAX4/ref=sr_1_6
- 1 x Red Sharpie (coloring around eyes) | https://www.amazon.com/Sharpie-Permanent-Markers-2-Pack-1765450/dp/B004YHU1KO/ref=sr_1_3

INSTALLATION PROCEDURE

1| If desired, use the Sharpie pens to color around the eyes red and the nails and exposed muscles silver.
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2| Strip the ends of the wires on each of the Martians about 1/4", twist each wire, and tin each with solder. Repeat the process for all Martians.

3| Cut the Comet Matrix Female-to-Female Gender changer in half with scissors, split the wires fully, strip the ends on each wire about 1/4", twist each wire, and tin with solder. Repeat the process for as many ends as Martians you will be installing.
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4| Place about 3/4" of the thinner heat shrink over each wire of a Martian, then about 1" of the larger heat shrink over BOTH red and black wires. Move the tubing up the wire so that it is not in the way when soldering.

5| Solder the Comet Matrix wires to the Martian wires (red to red, and black to black), and repeat for all Martians.

6| Move the smaller heat shrink tube over the solder joints of each wire one at a time and shrink using the heat from solder iron or heat gun. Then, move the larger heat shrink tube over both smaller ones and shrink, then repeat for all Martians. This completes all soldering and the Martians are ready to install.
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7| Turn off game, remove glass, lift/rest playfield on lockbar support, remove all 4 balls, and fully lift playfield resting against backbox.

8| Loosen about half way (do not remove) the 4 screws on each of the brackets where you will be installing Martians
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9| Lower playfield and feed end of wiring through the opening where the shaft that the Martian is mounted to comes up through the playfield. Even with the bracket loosened the gap may still be too small for the white connector. If this is the case, using care you may remove the 2 leads from the connector by pulling them straight out one at a time. Make note of which pin goes into which hole. Feed the connector through, lifting the playfield if necessary to pull out all of the slack. If you removed the white connector, now re-insert the two wire leads back into the correct holes (look at another connector if you need to for proper orientation). If you like, zip tie the wire to the top of the shaft/rod that supports the Martian bracket.

10| Lift playfield again and rest against backbox. Then tighten all 4 screws on each of the brackets you previously loosened in order to feed the wires through.

11| Remove the connector to the GI light on the left side of the playfield and attach the .100 IDC Assembly harness (this is the bulb that is about 4" below the white PCB board at the leftmost edge of the playfield). Plug the end of the assembly onto the bulb and plug the power feed (the connector previously removed from the bulb) onto the z-connector of the assembly.
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12| Plug the brightness controller onto the small white 2 wire end of the assembly harness.

-a| If installing 2 Martians, plug the 2-way splitter into the brightness controller, then plug each of the Martians into the 2-way splitter.

-b| If installing 4 Martians, plug the 3-way splitter into the brightness controller, plug each of the 2 lower/side Martians into the 2-way splitter, then plug the female end of the two way splitter into the 3-way splitter along with each of the upper/center Martians.
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13| Using the existing wiring harnesses, secure all wires as neatly as possible. Position the brightness controller so that it is accessible from the side when the playfield is lowered and resting on the lockbar support, then lower the playfield and rest on support.

14| Turn the pin on to see if all eyes are lit. Then use a small phillips screwdriver to rotate the screw on the brightness controller and set position to desired brightness. When set as desired, turn off pin.
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15| Lower playfield, put balls back in, put glass on, install lockbar, power on pin, play a game and enjoy your new beady red-eyed Martians!
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Great write up!
Thank you so much for all you do for the AFM community.

Extra Jiggly Martians - interesting. Extra Jiggly Women could be good too if there was a spot in the game for them. Ha Ha

I think The Sopranos pin has a spot for such a thing.

Not really something I'd have in my personal collection due to the non-family friendly theme. Recently, I was even approached by a Pinsider to see if I could come up with a replacement mod for the pole dancers. He really liked the game's theme, but thought the dancers would be a deal breaker for his family. Can't remember what I suggested, but I think his opportunity fell through so he moved on.
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Thanks. I don't really know if or how many other like what I do, but I figure if I go to the effort to figure something out then I might as well share with everyone so others can learn from my efforts.

I have two small kids, and they love the sopranos machine because it has “mommy dancing in the back”.

Hi all. This is my first post on Pinside. I've been a longtime reader but recently joined (and made a donation to the site) after I purchased an AfMr SE machine NIB this summer.

My machine (#1547 I believe) worked beautifully out of the box, but then over time developed the problematic behavior with the left popper. Specifically, sometimes it would fail to launch the ball on the first try. Usually it would work on the 2nd but occasionally it would take 3 or more times. I found the video from CGC (posted on this thread, thanks!!) about bending it a bit underneath and gave it a shot. Now the popper (so far) pops the ball out on the first try every time. Seems to be a great fix, and if it happens again I'll bend it back again I assume. For some context about me and my knowledge I am a software engineer by trade and a longtime electronics hobbyist-- think modding game consoles and building custom game controllers. So I'm solid with electronics, soldering, etc. but a bit light on my knowledge of the terminology and hardware fixes/modifications common to owning a pinball machine.

On to my question. One other behavior that has recently started with my AfM machine is that the ball launcher will occasionally miss when either launching balls for multiball or via ball save. I've noticed that when it misses, I hear a bit of a metallic clack sound. And also sometimes when balls are launching it sounds like metal on metal. That doesn't seem good as I'm afraid it could damage the balls so I've stopped playing for the moment.

I looked underneath the playfield and the launcher mechanism seems to be tight, undamaged and not bent. The chute where the balls sit waiting to be launched looks flawless with tight screws as well.

Can someone help me guess what might be wrong? Is it possible that there is a soft part on the tip of the launcher that hits the ball and it is damaged or worn out? I just closed the machine back up but didn't think to check for that. For context my machine is at about 600 games right now. Any help folks could provide would be great.

This machine has been here the longest of any in my home. People message me all the time wanting to buy my LE it’s crazy!

Check if things are tight, brackets not loose. Pointing straight up the shooter lane striking center of the ball, not a glancing blow.

Inspect tip, see if it is worn, or broken off.

LTG : )

Anybody know where to get an AFM key fob?

We have some, pm sent.

I make double-sided AFM keychains: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/attack-from-mars-remake-afmr-owners-club/page/149#post-5234141

I also make the same type of keychains for any pin title - either my design or yours.

Isn’t that a copyright issue for pps?

Regarding those folks that might have an issue with tapping into the original factory wiring with my LED Martian kit, I am now offering an adapter kit to eliminate that concern.

Here is a picture showing what I will include if wanted...

Website updated to reflect this option and minimal cost.

https://www.mickspinball.com/big-o-jiggly-martian-add-on

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Well, since nobody replied I took a gamble and ordered 2 green HEPP coin return button assemblies from PBL. I also ordered some 12V bulbs from Comet to replace the dim OEM ones in the coin door. Write up and pics to come when I receive everything.

Looking forward to seeing your results. If they are not Happ and are the Williams type, you could always order the clear ones and use a green bulb.

I’m trying to install the mirror blades and just wondering how the back part of the blade should look around the hinge bolt. The hole in blade is bigger than the bolt so I’m not sure how this holds it in place other than the 3 screws or sticky tape that attach the whole blade. Should this hole be centered on the hinge bolt or slightly catching an edge to hold it in place? If it’s centered the blade will be right below the glass surface barely.

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I used only the three screws along the bottom, plus some double sided tape on one side (after one saw I did not need the tape and did not use on the other side). That is about the position of the back box hinge nut on mine as well.

If it's like the original AFM, there are two metal L brackets on the front of the backboard that attach it to the top of the playfield you have to unscrew and then you have to remove the screws from the bottom that go through the bottom of the playfield and up through the bottom edge of the back board and it comes off.

RM

I looked at it closely the other day, and it looks like 4 screws/bolts hold the backboard on (2 brackets with 2 screws each - lower left and lower right). The bad thing is that the brackets are on the topside of the playfield and the screws are inserted from the playfield side, so some major teardown has to occur to get to them from what I can tell.

Not sure if/when I'll take the time and effort to make the change.

They are definitely not the Williams type (I put clears on my Getaway, so I know what those look like). I don't own a Stern, but from what I recall seeing they are the same as those, so I'm 99% confident that the HAPPs are correct. I ordered both green and cool white 12V 8SMD bulbs to try to see what looks best with the green reject buttons. I'll be sure to post pics of both and old vs. new setup so others can see what everything looks like in case they want to do the same.

BTW, had several friends over for New Years Eve party (none of them pinball junkies), and AFM was a huge hit for all ages. This game just seems to draw people to it for a wide variety of reasons. Since I discovered AFM 3 or so years ago (I'm a relative pinball newbie), it has been my dream pin. I've been to TPF each of the last three years since I've been in the hobby, and each year I found myself playing AFM over and over and over. I'm so pleased and thankful that I actually get to own one myself and share it with friends and family.

Hey guys/gals,

Happy New Year!

QQ-

The holes where the flippers align should NOT be visible correct?

Currently, I can see them when playing and I feel like that wasn’t always the case.

I didn’t make any adjustments to the flippers when the machine arrived or ever so maybe they are just a touch loose?

Thanks!

It’s the only game of mine that put a smile on the face of both my 2.5 year old son and 91 year old grandmother.

They are visible from the Williams days on.

LTG : )

I'm sure it depends on your viewing angle. However, if your flipper bats have moved a little over time then you can always adjust them back. While different people will tell you different ways to "properly" align flipper bats, there are two basic considerations:

1) Vertical Position | You need to ensure you have the proper gap set above the playfield. Here is a good explanation from vid: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/vids-guide-to-upgradingrebuilding-flippers#post-284684

2) Angle | What many say is "proper" is to loosen the bat shaft, then place a toothpick between the rubber and plastic on the bottom edge of the flipper bat, then slide the toothpick into the alignment hole, then tighten shaft. I've also seen others use straight edges to align with the ball return guide. Others say that some games should have alternate droopy alignments, or that they bats should be in the position they were when the game was delivered. To each their own, but I choose to use the holes for alignment using the toothpick method.

I also don't like when my bats are not symmetrically aligned. What I mean by this is after you use your preferred method of alignment then hold both bats by hand into their highest position. The tips of the bats should reach the same position up the playfield (i.e. one doesn't extend higher than the other), and you can even put a straight edge across the tips to check that they are level. Not sure if this is "proper" or if some games are designed to have asymmetrical positioning, but just the way I like to do it.

You're doing it exactly right.

I appreciate the very in-depth response and I couldn't agree with you more.

The flippers on my Black Pearl ship on JJP POTC were not symmetrically aligned and it drove me ABSOLUTELY. CRAZY.
LTG can attest to this. =D

So, I received my Comet 12v 8SMD bulbs today (cool white & green), and even though I don't have my new green coin rejects yet I wanted to show the results. For reference, here are the bulbs I purchased: https://www.cometpinball.com/products/mini-8smd?variant=29411773907046

At first, I plugged one in and could immediately tell with the coin door open that they are significantly brighter than the OEM bulbs. However, when I closed the coin door I was surprisingly disappointed. I could barely tell the difference between the OEM and the Comet. I opened the door again to make sure my eyes weren't deceiving me, and the Comet is indeed brighter. Then I realized that the default mounting position of the bulb is rather far away and also has to go through the translucent red trigger piece. Since the plastic bulb mounts just clip onto the metal fin, I decided to relocate the mount and orient the bulbs so that they point down onto the top of the return button housing. This made all the difference in the world, and now the Comet bulb shines (pun intended) compared to the original.

Original test (OEM on left, Comet on right) - right look slightly brighter
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Repositioning of bulbs (OEM on left light when looking from outside of door, Comet on right)
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View from outside of coin door with bulbs mounted in new position (OEM on left, Comet on right)
IMG_3247.JPG

Cliffys and plastic protectors now installed. Updated the side Martians with KG’s metallic silver sharpie trick. Waiting on parts to make the lighting plug in power harness for The 2 large jiggly Martians with LED lights That I bought from Mick.

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I still need to order cliffys for my game. Under 500 plays currently. How many cliffys does this game have and how long did it take you to install them?

I installed the SOL, mothership, target bank, and shooter lane cliffys, and it took be about 1.5 hours. However I was doing other things at the time ( rubbers and plastic protectors ) so my playfield was already broken down.

Definitely set aside 2-3 hours for the project of installing Cliffy's on this pin. While you can add additional options, the standard AFMr is $110 and includes the following:

- Mothership
- 3 bank target
- 2 piece SOL scoop
- outhole drain
- diverter lock edge
- shooter eject

See top of page here for details: http://www.passionforpinball.com/AFM-thin/afm_thin.htm

Mr_Tantrum Would you come and do mine please I have the set but after looking through the thread at all the install instructions I decided it's just out of my scope for a noob like me.

Its really not hard at all. Lol

It's not that hard. Just allocate enough time where you are not rushing, and stay organized and take pics of things before taking them apart.

Two quick questions

1) is there a setting to increase how frequently the topper jiggles?

2) is there a setting to increase the brightness of strobe multi ball?

I made the TERRIBLE mistake of selling my AFM R LE

Fortunately I wisened up and bought another one. The topper jiggles much less often and the strobe multi ball is much less bright

Those settings are in the manual.

Happily if you were in the neighborhood. Not a difficult job, just takes some patience. I suggest taking pics of all the areas first and Understand what is required. Take it easy and do the simple ones first, and maybe not even do them all in one session. Protect the playfield from tools and parts you will be using, and make sure you have really good lighting.

Well, I received my new coin reject assemblies from PBL today, but unfortunately they aren't green. The ones I received are clearly teal, but they don't even show teal on their website as an option. PBL is closed for the day, but I'm sure I'll get it taken care of soon enough. Unfortunately, I won't be able to post pics with green coin reject buttons for now.

UPDATE: Well bummer. I just was informed that the green have been discontinued and are no longer available according to PBL. I also just confirmed the same with Marco's. Even though the pics on these sites reflect a true green, the newer color is actually more of a teal and just isn't what I was looking for as a match to AFM.

I can't seem to find clear ones either that I could use with green bulbs, so looks like I'm stuck with the amber/orange. I guess I could buy red ones, but not really worth it to me since I'm more into the green for this pin at this time.

Discontinued old green (what is shown on most sites)
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New green/teal (what everyone is actually selling)
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Oh no... just thought you guys would like a good laugh

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Page 1-10 in the manual. OR :

LTG : )

So, here is the latest with my coin reject saga. I've come to realize that pure green rejects just don't exist anymore, and the closest thing is the teal color which they call "green". I was all ready to send them back, but as a last thought I decided to see what they looked like when lit. When lit with a white bulb, the color is still clearly teal. However, when lit with a green bulb they look very green. I decided that I like it enough to keep them knowing that when the pin is on they will show green, but when off they will be teal.

So, here is what I ended up with:
2 x HAPP green coin reject assemblies #42-0517-03 | you can get from Pinball Life or Marco Specialties
2 x Come 8SMD Minis 12v bulbs | https://www.cometpinball.com/products/mini-8smd?variant=12387014967340

Pin off with "green" insert on left
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Pin on with "green" insert on left and cool white LEDs
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Pin on with "green" insert on left and green LEDs
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Pin off with both "green" inserts installed

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So I messed something up somehow when I put everything back together on the coin door. There was nothing electrical done when replacing the coin return buttons, but for some reason my bulbs will barely glow now. I tested both with the original bulbs and the Comets and they both do the same thing. Instead of being nice and bright when you turn the pin on, they bulbs barely illuminate (you cannot tell with the coin door closed but with it open you can see that the bulbs have faint light).

I've switched out bulbs, wiggled wires, checked connections, repowered the pin, but I still can't get them to illuminate correctly. Does anyone have any idea what my issue may be? The only thing that I can tell is impacted is the two coin door bulbs.