I just brought home a Congo in pretty good shape. It is my third and newest game. I'll be going over it and correcting a few issues in the next several weeks.

many of the cheap plastic sockets in the back box are broken. where does one get replacements?

Thanks JawJaw I am very appreciative of such tips and points of attention. I'll be doing a full shop job. I was told by the former owner about the broken bracket under the mini play field. he jury rigged it but it may be a problem later.

I am only 1/3 of the way through old posts and will have more questions as I dig later.

That looks like a good fix. I hate wedge bulbs and am considering to do something like this but with bayonet sockets. has any one else done this, I thought I saw a previous post....

I always prefer to keep my games stock but this is a sucky problem that has better options

That tub plastic is so crappy, mine is in good shape for now but I worry about drilling holes (for sockets) in that brittle stuff Mine has a bunch of tape holding broken sockets.

That is a good idea using strips. Any fix I do will not be stock. strip lights are mostly more resilient than sockets in this case. I use LED tape for other applications that could work here if I can find 6v tape.

I need to rebuild the C-O-N-G-O switches in my mini playfield. The target faces are fine but I was wondering if anyone can recommend a suitable switch that I can restack to work for this?

pinsider indypinhead offers them for sale

I replaced the cpu rom on my Congo with the version 2.1 I don't notice too much difference but one thing that happens is that I don't get multiple balls when I hit multiball under mystery award. I get multiple balls in the valcano multiball but not mystery

I am wondering if my ball trough optos are the problem. would I have this issue if the ball count is messed up?

I remember seeing a post where someone offered a link to a large collection of teardown/shop out pictures I just went through the whole thread and could not find it. Can anybody help steer me?

Thanks Wickerman, that's what I was looking for. I discovered a few things missing from my machine.

I cut a piece of lexan to fit between pop bumpers and used some hex posts to stand off. My piece rests on the pop bumper caps. The hippo is attached with tiny #3 screws. I have no palm trees, that would be too much clutter for me.

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I just finished a complete shop out on Congo including a flipper rebuild. I can hardly catch and cradle the ball now. Do I have the bats set too low? I might try different coil stops to get more travel.

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My label says install 4 balls

There are indeed five balls, but one is captured and rarely leaves the machine. The Install sticker is for the operator when they set up or do maintenance on a machine. At which point they reinstall 4 balls. Just say'n

I printed my own with the files that were posted earlier in this Congo thread. I used Papilio vinyl in my inkjet printer. It took a few trial runs to get the scale just right. I think I may used a clear mylar over them.

please explain the Trudeau flipper gap....

and no center post? how cruel.

Yes it goes to the C It is the common to all of the CONGO letters Right now the C is the only one that will register.

As long as there is only one button they both go at the same time. I have no idea how it could be different?

Congo is my first and only WPC game and I never knew about staging. my game never has...

You guys have me curious now. What games of this era "stage"?

I can't imagine how it would help the play in Congo....

man, that was a dirty game. I suspect it looks better now.

I think Clay did a nice tutorial on reassembling that mech. You have to donate to access but it is well worth it.

http://www.pinballninja.com/

My machine was a re-import and all of the plastics looked like they had been cleaned with a brillo pad. A couple bottom side screws had penetrated the topside of the playfield. The lower playfield had to be rebuilt pretty much from scratch. Shortly after I got it working the DMD crapped out. Had I known this all I would not have driven to North Dakota to buy and pick it up, maybe not such a fair deal. She has a good home now and gets the respect she deserves.

I have to say that this machine plays so well and everyone enjoys it. No regrets.

I really do enjoy rehabbing games

so my GRAY mode has stopped working. the G R A Y letters register and lower playfield ape throws the ball on each letter as usual but once all four are completed and the ball in play is held up by the upper left post, nothing happens down below. The lower playfield is just dead, after a short time the ball is released and play continues. I can troubleshoot a faulty switch or coil but I have no idea which components initiate or control the mode.

Can anybody off me any direction?

Sorry, no but that sounds like a great mod. Congo is never leaving here.

For my volcano lighting I got some harnesses from comet and added a few more red and yellow flashers and tapped off of the flasher under the volcano. It flashes nicely when locking a ball and other times.

I had a slightly different problem that I traced to the actuator on the switch just before the pop-up post. It was totally broken off, I built a new one with a paper clip.

The pinball center seems to have a lot of Congo parts. I wonder if it was because so many machines were shipped over seas? My game was a beat-up re-import now nicely fixed up. But I could use a new volcano. Pinball Center I believe does not ship to the states. Maybe some of us could pool our needs and have a European comrade send us a bulk order?

around our meager house hold we see the Video only once every 20-30 games. It is a really hard mode and disappointing to loose.

I love my color DMD

I think I want to add some art side blades. What are others using?

Of the options out there I think I like them the best.

My machine is a reimport that had a lot of shoddy repairs. The upper flipper bracket was replaced and never modified and resulted in gouging the left side pretty badly. Time to cover it up.

Thanks for the responses.

I’m not much for buying frivolous stuff for others at Xmas. Instead I buy frivolous stuff for myself.

Congo got a new toy. I’ll post pics once I figure out the mounting.

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no it's cast steel, I've just always wanted to replace the plastic plane

I got my DC3 model installed in Congo

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It is the Air Lingus DC-3 model made by Herpa. They make a few other DC-3 models also. The Scale is 1/200. They make a 1/144 scale but I felt that would be too big.

After cutting the plastic I drilled a few holes and used monofilament line to attach. You can not see it in the pics.

I did the hippo a few years ago.

The screws that attach the window over the mini PF have rubber gaskets that allow you to adjust the depth. I replaced the rubber at some point for more pliability.

I did a light strip and a couple fire bulbs also which helped a lot to bring it to life. I believe Comet sold those, their matrix system is plug and play, very easy

A shaker would be cool for the volcano. Never tried to fit one but that game might be worth it

I so much love my Congo, it is a forever game