Happy to have joined the club with a project Cyclone, which I have almost 100% working. I'm sure I'll be posting questions as I continue my troubleshooting, followed by a restoration. This title proves just how cool a one-ball game can be.

My first question: Are there optos for the ferris wheel, and where are they? I rigged up the proper rubber (not one intended for elsewhere) to run the wheel, and it runs smoothly, but sometimes upon booting the machine it runs backwards. Any explanation?

Look at the playfield just in front of (checking for insert cracks or wear) and very closely at the condition of the two major ramps (center and right). Unless the ramps have been replaced with repros, they are almost always cracked at the entrances or other joints. They're obtainable and easy enough to replace, but costly.

Figured out the answer to my own question by visiting an old pinside thread. The ferris wheel was sometimes turning backwards, and the apparent cause was a worn out gear restrictor within the motor. I installed a new motor from marco and now the wheel is always turning the correct direction.

I am considering covering my Cyclone playfield with one of the hardtops from http://www.outsideedgeproducts.com/store/p75/Pinball_Playfield_Hardtop.html, but I have never done so before. Two questions: (1) In case I elect a playfield swap instead, is anyone aware of repro playfields that are available? I'm finding them to be out of stock by the usual suppliers. (2) I have some cracked inserts, and once I install the hardtop will the original inserts still appear cracked even after sanding as part of my prep, or is the hardtop thickness such that the cracks won't be noticeable?

Thanks for any insights.

Thanks for the prompt and helpful replies from PDX_Pinball and Xenon75 as well as the PMs from another pinsider. I will try CPR as well, just in case. As much as a PF swap intimidates me, I have done those before, and because of the insert damage I'm thinking the hard top might not be any easier or achieve the results I want.

Thanks for the encouragement. That is now my plan--I just have to find a repro playfield. I also have a rotisserie, so that helps as well. The new element to me is dealing with the stapled-down braiding, but there isn't too much of that.

Again, thanks. Yes, I was just looking the game over and realizing that the swap--minus the braiding--would be not much harder than the AFM and CFTBL PF swaps that I've done.

Very cool. Looks great. Thanks for sharing!

My Cyclone backbox mystery wheel sometimes gives (that is, the clown points to) the correct award and sometimes not. Any insights?

Thanks. And I just found a related thread, so I'm reading that through. Will test tonight.

Good point. Again, thanks!

Resolved--loose coin door.

Nifty work. Congrats!

Can someone help me determine where the unsoldered end of the yellow wire goes? The other end is soldered to a lug on the EOS switch. The photo is of the right flipper. My lane change function is not working for the right flipper, so I assume the yellow wire is responsible. but I can't figure out where it broke off from.

Cyclone (resized).JPG

Thanks so much. You are right--a jumper it is. I soldered to the green-xx wire on the other flipper and the problem is solved.

The millions digit on my Cyclone flashes during game play sometimes, while the other digits roll. Does anyone know why? I thought perhaps it has something to do with achieving one of the ramp jackpots, but I'm not sure.

Cool. Makes sense. Thanks for confirming! Just reminds me of what a cool pin this is. My favorite one-ball game.

My Cyclone is routed so I don't have access to it until I check on it this weekend, but mine has the same issue with the same connector pins. I'm pretty sure that J1 relates to the GI in the backbox. In mine, the previous owner obviously (and effectively) bypassed that J1 connector by soldering the related wires together and shrinktubing them. All my lights work, so that fix was effective. I can trace where these "bypass" wires go to and from unless someone has a better answer. Meanwhile, see if all of your backbox lights work and, if so, see if perhaps a previous owner of your machine did the same fix as was done on mine.

Yup--same four wires. So as long as your GI lights are working you're good.

Handy advice and hardware as well. Thanks!

Just got a project Cyclone mostly restored and took it out for a spin. I like to take pins to community events when I find a good match, and in this case I took Cyclone out to a "Night to Shine" prom for special needs kids and adults. It was great to see so many people playing pinball for the first time, and for three hours the machine was never idle and no one was camera shy. A few photos below.

NTS1 (resized).JPG

NTS2 (resized).JPG

NTS3 (resized).JPG

NTS4 (resized).JPG

Thanks. I've taken pins on about 20 outings now, and even though I had a bit of trepidation about this one, it turned out to be the most gratifying of all.

Number 23 in the AD (adjustments) menu. Once you're there, use the Start button to change "No" to "Yes."

My favorite site for free play custom cards is below, in alphabetical order:

http://www.pinballrebel.com/game/pins/instruction/index.htm

Congrats. Great machine. Interestingly, I have previously routed RUSH and Led Zeppelin at a local pizza shop, each for a year. But since I started routing Cyclone there a few months ago, its monthly earnings have been double what either of the other Stern titles earned. There really is a nostalgia factor for this title. Enjoy!

Looks great. Nice work! And a powerball. LOL.