If the ball drains out the right with enough speed, it will go past the drain and into the subway scoop on the left. From there, the game will kick it into the trough but, since it didn’t register a drain, it will give the ball back.

All of these are very good ideas, I'll have to look closer at what's happening, as it seems to happen beyond all the circumstances ya'll have mentioned.

Yeah, I've been wondering why ball save sometimes happens during any part of play. A lot. It doesn't seem to be tied to a particular mode so it must be the Shark kick out, I'll pay more attention. Maybe this is something that Chad can tweak in his code? I sent him a message about it.

I just wish there was an indicator of when the shark kick out ball save is active but it's always a pleasant surprise when I drain and get the free ball save.

I know shark kick out happens but it's happening to me a LOT off the right drain, kind of kills it for me. I'll try to track it more as well and maybe we can harass Chad about it.

I don't have any issues like that. So if there is something weird happening, it's likely machine specific and not a problem with Chad's code itself.

I agree. I get the ball saves but only as a result of Shark kick outs or Laser Kick that drain almost immediately.
I’d check all the switches carefully , maybe something flaky going on in the switch matrix.

Sounds good, thanks for the feedback all!

Chad says, "If I recall correctly, there is a ball save associated with the Laser Kick on the lower left. That was always there but was slightly increased with my update from like 2 seconds to 3 seconds. "

If the consensus is that the increased timer on the Laser Kick is too long, I can fix this and return it to its original timing.

But...

I'd like to do more! Over the years I have gotten many suggestions for further improvements and bug fixes for Baywatch that I would like to implement.

However, here is the problem... I do not own this game and like all code updates, I need to have the game in my possession.

Does anyone have a fully working Baywatch they can lend me? I am in Carpentersville, IL. Bonus points if you can drop it off at my house.

Your game would be put into my nice finished basement during the code update process. I'd need it for several months.

Pinside creeping shows that Danimal551 , Cjenkin75 , gweempose , waldo34 , and RazerX have a Baywatch in and around Chicago. Any of you up for it?! I'm a contributor toward's Chad's time if we can get him a game to work on and make Baywatch even better!

Why complain about randam ball saves? I need them, ya'll.

PLAY BETTER!

I would be happy to lend you mine if there is any way for transport to be arranged.

Well this sucks, i just sold my Baywatch at expo today. It would have been perfect too since i also live in carpentersville. If i can ever help in any other way, i would be happy to since we live close.

Happy to have just joined the club!
There are a few broken and a few missing plastics on mine. Does anybody have a spare ball launch cover plastic? Or better yet, is anybody hoarding one of the repro sets that were pressed a while back?

The boat plastic has been made. I can maybe look way back in my PM's to find the maker. It was like a one-off thing

EDIT - found it - https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1026-bright-lights-pinball/00421-baywatch-3-bank-drop-plastic-830-5475-10
Edit again - whoops that's the usually broken 3 drop target sailboat plastic

I believe he was also making the Boat launch plastic though.

Its not a sailboat.. its a schooner.

Ha! You dumb bastard!

Yeah I got in touch with Pinball Haus over eBay. Turns out shipping plastics to the states these days is prohibitively expensive for just one plastic. Been trying to figure out if it's worth getting a whole repro set from PinballCenter in Germany but their shipping scenarios seem funky.

If they don't ship to US, ship them to me, i'll forward them for you.

I bought that set a while back, it is not real bad but also not real good. The colors are of. Deeper blue. If you do not have other options then this is probably the best there is. But you can not do one plastic since then your color will be way off.

You're talking about the ones from "Pinball.Center" or the one boat launch plastic available on Pinside from Pinball Haus?

My understanding is that the one from Pinball.Center in Germany is just stock that was bought from RestoRefurbs when they did their full package of decals, alternative translites (which are all howlingly funny/grotesque) and plastic sets as they normally do but I could be wrong. I've heard generally speaking that their products are more often than not, darker than they should be, but hey, beggars can't be choosers or so they tell me.

PinballCenter don’t have a great reputation here for quality - colours and details often off.
If it’s the only option then ok but just be aware. I have had stuff from them over the years, some ok , some unacceptable.

I guess I got lucky last year. I had to get a new "schooner" plastic from Pinball Haus and it was a good match. I ended up buying some stickers to because why not. Shipping was surprisingly cheap. It did take awhile though.

This guy is what pinball should be all about!

I used to make these and was able to find one of my early test pieces. PM me if you are still looking.

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So I'm sure this has been addressed before, but how do you change out the 2 bulbs in the flashers above the playfield near the backbox?

Hey club members! Got a couple quick questions for the club. I’m borrowing a Baywatch for a week and I’m having trouble with 2 settings.

1. I can’t find a way to disable the ball save. Am I missing something or does this game actually not have a way to disable it?

2. In addition to the normal 5 seconds or so ball save, I’ve noticed a few times the game is giving my ball back. Is this a glitch?

3. Shark Flips setting. I’ve changed it several tiles but can’t dial it in. Is there a magic number to use for Shark Flips to be more accurate?

Note - running Chad’s custom code.

Baywatch owners- I am looking for a set of donor ramps to reproduce for this game if someone is interested in helping.

The donor would need to be located in the USA and send me their ramps with as much still attached to them as possible, but bare ramps can work also if you have some sitting around. Cracks are okay, but missing sections of plastic create problems for me if I don't know where the holes are.

Once I have the new ramps made, I send back a new set of ramps with all the original parts attached for fitting back in your machine. The key here is I need the donor to reinstall and give me feedback in a timely manner. I've had some projects delayed significantly when the donor disappears after I send them new parts for fitting.

If this is something of interest to you, please shoot me a PM.

Yea ball save is very generous. Ball save also activates out of shark kick out.

I disabled my shark flip because I couldn't get it to work (set delay to 99). Strange enough it did work before the code update.

I have mine set on 4, and it is successful about 60-70% of the time. That's about all you can hope for on a feature like this that is at the mercy of ball entry speed. The setting will vary from machine to machine mostly due to trigger switch gap and flipper condition, so a setting of 4 on my machine might be a good starting point for you, but you will have to dial in the perfect setting for yours. If you find that the shot is difficult to dial in or all over the map, I would do a total rebuild of the shark flipper.

Same here.

Agree. It’s no better or worse than Thing Flips on TAF. I don’t really see the point of either tbh just a bit of a gimmick

Shark flips should give the next shark award.

Right or wrong I was able to do it with the backbox folded down and squeezing my hands/tools through the square hole. Sorry I can’t remember better, make sure you have a magnetic wand for all the times you drop stuff into the cabinet.

Running Chad’s code as well, my Shark Flipper is set to 1 and is successful about 50% of the time. Like posted earlier…ball will affect the shots chance.

I understand the award , I meant that it’s so unreliable I’d rather flip myself Certainly on my TAF I could hit the swamp almost every time whereas Thing Flips was considerably less accurate.

I disabled shark flip, as it had a tendency to send the ball out of control after a missed shot and usually right down the outlane...

I'm running Chad's code as well, and it seemingly got worse after throwing in the new rom a couple years ago (NOT A KNOCK ON CHAD, IN ANY WAY...). Of course, that was AFTER probably a thousand or so games from it being thoroughly cleaned.

I'm due for a full shop again (as my skill shot gate is getting wonky, and I have yet to figure out how to get to the coil that controls it to give it a cleaning without pulling the ramps). As I recall, when I fully cleaned everything after initially getting the game, the shark flip worked roughly 80%. After I get around to shopping the game, I'll turn it back on and see if it's better.

Sent you a PM Jody.

Like others have mentioned, Shark Flip is a gimmick. Always has been, always will be. Consider yourself lucky if it makes the shot 50% of the time. I added the option to disable it for those who never liked it.

Also, if it helps, there are tips on how to adjust it at the bottom of the Baywatch Guide on my web page.

https://www.pinballcode.com/bw401

I have often referred to those who flip games for a huge profit as sharks.

Interesting, I've only ever played Baywatch with your code revision. I didn't realise that you added that adjustment. Well done!

And that option is HUGELY appreciated in this game! Before, I'd have to remember to hold the shark flipper up so it would (hopefully) roll over to the left flipper for a trap or dead bounce, instead of the game firing it wildly when it was a shark flip enabled event. Just having it OFF is so much better, especially for tournament play.

I posted a fix for this on page 80 of the thread

The next ramp set coming up is going to make a lot of folks happy! Sega Baywatch ramps are due to land in the middle of December. Pre-production photos shown. Sign up for stock notifications here:
https://rampomatic.com/products/sega-baywatch-large-ramp

And here:
https://rampomatic.com/products/sega-baywatch-small-ramp

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Now I can sell my Baywatch for a stupid amount of money!

Signed up to be notified as soon as they are available. Buying a set so I have them on hand just incase mine get any worse (I love my Baywatch), and to support you for being willing to make them for us. Now we need to find someone to make replica ramp decals. A replacement subway would be awesome some day when you can handle a mold that size Happy to donate mine when the time comes.
You are the best!
-Lb