Hey all! Just joined the club a few weeks ago; really loving the creature, although the one I got needed a shop job, bad.

I tried to install a super-bright LED for the hologram but it apparently either doesn't work at all, or is somehow the wrong voltage.

Anyhow - right now I am working on the hologram motor - BOTH the mirror and the holo motor were working yesterday, then both suddenly stopped working simultaneously. I turned it on yesterday afternoon and suddenly neither worked.

I checked the F111 fuse which I believe is the common fuse for those, but it appears good. There's no way both motors burned out at the same time... any other ideas on what to check? Could it be something on the board?

thanks

Also.. I am looking for the snack bar mod and / or the speaker panel mod if anyone has them (for less than $400 like at PB Decals! )

This happened to me a week or so ago, and the machine had been working PERFECTLY before that. I had had a long conversation with another pinsider about how it is "never, ever ever 'just a fuse'." Well, it was. It was a couple of fuses, to be exact, but I replaced one (I can't remember which, one of the solenoid fuses), and everything sprang back to life. I couldn't believe it. Cost me maybe 8 bucks after I replaced *all* the fuses.

Quick question for the other owners -

In our Creature, when I activate Unlimited Millions, then go up the left ramp... is the game supposed to do something? I get no points, nothing changes, and eventually the mode times out. The ramp switches appear to function in test mode and I get 100,000 points for hitting the left ramp during normal play... any ideas? I know it's Unlimited Millions since it appears on the DMD

Also, I've noticed the wrong lamps are lighting on the mode cards - e.g. Mega Millions lights when it's Creature Feature, and none of them seem to be correct. This points to a wiring mismatch somewhere (no clue to to start on THAT one), but not sure if it's related to the above.

My game is a re-import, if that makes any difference.

That topper is OUT-Standing! I assume you made it/had it made? The topper looks like that halloween 'grave walker', but where did the background come from?

Rock and roll! I never would have thought of that. It wouldn't be the first thing that's flipped in this game. I'll try it!

I was looking for one a few months ago, and the only source I could find was some Brasilian website - motor was $100... Make sure you exhaust all your options first!

Creature fans -

I just replaced the tiny light bulbs in my ramp and the swamp bowl with LEDs, and I am noticing that several of the sockets are not lit. I know it is not the bulbs, as they work in other sockets, but I'm curious if anybody has an idea of how to clean or re-set those sockets so the damn things work. I do not believe this is an issue of weak solder, as they are well connected the board... before I disassemble anything, is there an easy way to clean those things; maybe they're just corroded?

TIA

Yep - that's what I was doing when testing. I'll try it again though - thanks scott

How do you all actually level the bowl? Just with washers or something? It doesn't look to me like the bowl is set up to just sit on the screws themselves. I've gotta be missing something.

Nothing in the manual either.

^^ That looks great - I always thought of the WOZ crystal ball as sort of a successor to the creature in a way. Would be awesome to get a mod together that... oh wait..

The snack bar mod made by swinks is a really really good upgrade - looks a million times better in the game and is just all class in terms of being well made and visually appealing.

There aren't a ton of great mods for the creature though - I added the drive-in movie sign mod which looks good from afar but IMO isn't very well made. You can add a shooter rod if you like..

Another huge improvement is adding the proper LEDs around the ramps. Makes the game pop even more than usual

Sure:

http://cointaker.com/products/86-led

I did the paint thing for a while - it looks cool for sure, but boy did replacing those bulbs get OLD. I switched to the LEDs and haven't had to replace on in a long long time...

I did my ramp in green and the bowl in purple - have others tried different combos?

I really wish I could somehow make the ramp flash green during normal gameplay but switch to purple for multi ball!

That. Is. Amazing.

I can't tell exactly - but aren't those the stock decals?

Good luck, Jim! Soon you'll be swearing at the GD 2-ball multiball like the rest of us!!

In pre-DCS games, the audio quality of the clips was extremely low resolution, which is actually jarring in a different way; they are noticeably crappier than the music/SFX. thewool chose to re-record them to avoid that. I do VO work too, and definitely prefer the old announcer style callouts ("Shocking! Amazing!") but these sound way better in terms of quality.

thewool: don't forget to post this mix to the PinSound forums!

Mine has a couple like that too. First you have to make sure they are -truly- not lighting at all, watch the light show in multi ball because some of the sockets light at different times.

I thought I had a whole bunch out, but after looking closely it's only 2, and the rest light when they are supposed To. I have one light in the bowl that I can't figure out why it doesn't light well, occasionally it pops on but mostly it's off. I have one on the ramp that won't light but it is in the back so I've never bothered to fix it.

Confirm - it's supposed to be like a loop

I started to get resets once I added the ColorDMD, and I don't have a PinSound in there as well.

if you have an original hologram light in there, you may consider upgrading to the Halogen kit, AND getting a replacement LED bulb which fits. This will lower the overall pull on the game and you hopefully won't get the resets.

Rob Kahr's daughterboard is helpful in this case, too, in the event you are drawing too much power overall. It will pull some voltage from the 12V if the 5V is dipping - The ColorDMD does pull a lot of power.

Creature is one of the toughest games to add a lot of mods to because of the two under-playfield motors, when those and the light come on, it pulls a *lot* of power all at once.

I love how you guys keep improving on the design even though the DMD tech itself is basically the same. Dammit that reminds me I need to order a new display for my doctor who!!

I don't know if that's the same mix but there is on posted on the PinSound forum that sound very similar. Good luck finding the taillight mod (I assume you mean for the speaker area?)... this has been super hard to find for a few years now. I believe pinball decals has it for $400, but the quality is reportedly not that good. You may check the thread "warning! This thread may cost you money" about a possible solution down the road, maybe as soon as Allentown.

answered your own question:

I am not saying that - although that mod is now impossible to find. I have seen it sold for $1000 out of a machine. Anyway, prices jump up like that - when one very very nice machine is sold for a high price, you always see a bunch of other ... possibly less quality machines that all of a sudden have their prices jacked up.

IMO Creature is an *awesome* machine - it still gets the most plays in my collection, and I have a TZ, MB and Doctor Who. It's not a 'quest' machine like LOTR or TH but I still think it's fun when the pressure is on with the multiball. But 6K? man even I can't agree with that.

Also there's a new mod in the works- you should check that other thread

Keep your eyes peeled, one will come available for 4500 eventually. Also watch this thread: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/hologram-mod-for-creature-from-pinballsp-is-under-development

That's the exact same set of mods mine has. I quite like the drive in billboard mod but honestly it doesn't add much to the game - still a cool add on though! My favorite mod is the lit pop bumpers - hardest one I did but it really makes the game look great, especially in that dead unit area near the lanes. I never quite bought into the "he's supposed to be in the trunk so it should be dark" argument.. I am changing mine out to the teal Color though - the orange is a little overwhelming

If you replace the skirts, then you have to completely disassemble everything, including unsoldering the lights. I installed mine with leads from the lightning bolts, which makes them flash when the bolts flash and are easy to remove. But if you just replace the top of the bumper then yes that's pretty straight forward, just removing the ramps is kind of a pain

Pinsound is AWESOME, the wool's mix is really great. Color dmd is a must on this game. Other than that... there is the drive in movie sign and car mod that lights when "move your car" starts. And swinks' snack bar mod is a requirement.

The lit speaker panel is very very hard to find, as is Mike's tv mod

I saw there's a thread around about it - it's $400 for a bunch of wood and wires.. I seem to recall it basically did what the original mod did, but wasn't put together super well and didn't quite match up in terms of effect.

Yep it just plays the once after a agame

Twilight zone does this to me when I leave it on and the ball drain music plays out of nowhere!

Did Dan post pics of the CFTBL mod yet?

Wow how did I miss that? Those look great!

This also happened to me on the "F". Do check if there is a crack in the solder. You can probably just hold an iron against it and get it to re flow. It's less work than fixing a a coil

You can apparently also level the Bowl itself (though I do not understand exactly how - spacer, I suppose)

Also, many Creature fans have replaced the switch with a magnetic reed switch, which has no moving parts and causes no friction. Or you can nudge the game to keep it swirling

Was just about to post its right ramp that triggers it (6 times I think) but you obviously figured it out...

Seconded - those reed switches have been hard to find...

Thanks - I just found this:

https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10601

Says it's heavier duty than most but not sure if it would work?

That's like half the shots in the game

There's a fat white plastic washer that should sit underneath it. do you have that?

You can buy that from Marco and (I think PBL) and im sure from other pinball stores. It is called a "tapered rubber" and comes in yellow or black. CFTBL shipped with yellow.

There is also a white plastic spacer you should have as well - it goes on top of the rubber, which Alex has installed upside down

that is the correct installation

Probably leaving the club on Monday... with extreme mixed feelings. I need to take some pictures before she goes!

Perfect! Hey it's your game! Mine goes SDTM if you miss as well

Yep that looks right

HOW is that in any way the same ? Two reprehensible things that we should all learn from and move on from? Actually, I guess you're right!

Good on you. One game I really miss from the lineup. Had no idea how great it was at the time

Get the reed switch!

Yep. Same with TZ. They look pretty nice but they are so dark you have to go nuts re-LEDing your backbox with super brights

Sorry to say this is what Mirco has apparently been producing lately, even for the big manufacturers. The clear (apparently) does not adhere properly to the ink on the wood, and it interferes with the curing process. It may be worth it to wait a month or two before doing anything further

Didn’t know these existed- who made them?

Reseat your ribbon cable

Swinks’ snack bar mod. All Cliffy protectors.
Full stop. That’s really the major ones.

There’s also a supposed video screen under the lagoon which can replace the creature hologram, but it’s been “coming out” for 2 years And still not available so who knows.

that book is EXPENSIVE, damn. I also stumbled onto John Landis' book "MONSTERS in the movies" the other day. Pretty damn good - has interviews with Joe Dante, John Carpenter, a host of other directors. Each chapter is a different type of monster (e.g. robots, aliens, vampires, werewolves, etc) He has comments about many of the movies good and bad. The comments are usually hilarious. Sort of similar in structure to Ted's books. Hey! spfxted where's my Volume 4!

On the hunt for the Creature again... let me if know if anyone’s looking to exit the club..

May not be Universal that’s causing the problem.

On the other hand, they just scrapped their new Dark Universe plan (WHY they didn’t call me I have no idea) so they may want to be laying low for now.

Definitely a game I regret selling... sold to another great Pinsider, maybe one day I can buy it back!

I think it's more because you'd never see it since it's under the apron

That figure isn’t out quite yet - supposed to be in First quarter next year

KwikWood should be totally fine for this - it is super strong as long as you let it cure for a few days without messing with it. Looks like you're in good shape. It does sand, but it is kind of a pain yes.

It is REALLY hard to find that motor, yes. Swinks may be still doing the snack bar mod, which far more than the others, is a must-have.

Also check out Compy86's mod for the Twilight zone backboard. Even if he doesn't plan on making one for CFTBL (I bet he is, but he has not said so), it could be easily adapted to the game, with almost trivial changes to the code.

Temporarily

I’m still having a hard time understanding why one would get this mod which doesn’t sync with gameplay, when the Pinballsp mod *does* sync up, and for about the same price. …And that Compy86 may be coming out with a mod as well

Whoa! Well, we are
Building a Star Wars themed gameroom, and I’ve been researching how to do a Princess Leia hologram with my R2D2 (mostly done with him). I have a holo fan, and was looking into an acrylic pyramid.

This wasn’t quite what I had in mind but it will do the trick nicely! R2 will stay in the game room, I only remove him very occasionally, (he’s heavy as hell) so I can just mount this to a location in the room. Done!

What monitor and bracket did you end up using?

Crap, $23? buy it ASAP

Where did you get the light baffles in the backbox? I thought those were unobtanium?

Look fantastic BTW. I so regret selling this game.

Mine came with legs like that - they were mismatched heights. I could never figure out why it wouldn’t level, until I measured…

I am sure this is as amazing as your other colour projects. HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended!!

I'm not sure what color2dmd is, but if you mean Pin2DMD, it is more or less a homebrew solution you can order at VPUniverse (there is a link up above). It is more complicated than installing a ColorDMD, more steps, but it has the capability to surpass it. The new CFTBL uses a huge array of colors you can't get on a ColorDMD job, as nice as those are. However, it's a lot more steps to get there. Hit up VPUniverse (which is mainly for virtual pinball emulation, but you're in the right place) and read about it there.

Here’s a Pinside thread with a LOT of
Info:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/pin2dmd-led-color-dmd-user-colorization-projects

lucky1 is THE. MAN. In terms of Pin2DMD. Dude is on fire

one of the things I love most about this game is the way the game stops for a few seconds when you start multiball. The movie starting and the music is just so captivating

Never knew the ink was UV sensitive either! Wow

If you can find one that's a "very nice example with no fade" they've been trending in the $7s lately. It's crazy. And no, there's no fix for the blue hologram. You can TRY to get a colored bulb, but it doesn't work all that well. One thing that does work is finding a very strong LED bulb which fits in the halogen socket. It will add more white light to the image and not make the blue quite so prominent

I think he backed off a bit since the other solution seemed to be happening, and focused on other things

That would be great; the twilight zone solution is around $400, and is almost identical to what CFTBL would need. I’ll ask Jimmy

This is consistent with my experience with the TZ glass. Looks very nice WAY up close and in person (and while off). Kind of hard to tell the difference when it's on. The CFTBL looks better IMO. Ugh I miss this frickin game

https://www.integraf.com/resources/articles/a-using-your-own-laser-to-make-holograms

It's funny, when I bought a replacement plastic for my Monster Bash lagoon, it actually DID come with a (rubber, I think) gasket in the shape of the lagoon. So a larger one for CFTBL / Congo doesn't seem too much harder

swinks makes these:
https://www.shapeways.com/marketplace?type=product&q=swinkscftbl

The parts (and a lot more) are reflected on that page. PM him for details

aah, sorry, I was looking at the wrong mod/photo. I meant this: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/cftbl-creature-movie-poster-mod

The lit Starlight sign with the arrow does look like a LightedPinballMods mod

Came here to post this. Thanks for beating me to it.. AWESOME, very nice guy. spfxted introduced us at a horror convention a few years ago. Got him to sign some posters for me, and I know Ted got a killer interview with him. Sad to see him go, he was the last living star from that film. Ricou played the Creature in all the underwater scenes, and a different actor, Ben Chapman played him on land.

I mean, try the other mod. Or design (or pay someone) a different frame which doesn't require masking, and 3d print it!