Wanted to share my new chrome apron logo solution: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/finally-new-chrome-logo-solution-for-data-east-aprons#post-5810505

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Hello, LW3 owners. I wanted to give a personal update regarding the three piece ball deflector/plastic protector set that Willie68 and I have been developing. After a couple of iterations the shape of the pieces have been finalized, and are currently being tested for functionality and durability. To give everyone a little background if you are not familiar with me, for the last 5+ years I've been designing and selling pinball mods as a hobby. I openly offer many 3D printed mods for a variety of games, apron cards, decals, as well as a variety of custom projects. One of the services I offer are custom plastics, and I've been making these for the last couple of years.

Willie68 came to me a few weeks ago needing a set of ball deflectors/protectors for LW3, and we've finally connected and worked on the project together (he is local to me and owns a LW3). The result is a 3-piece laser cut acrylic set of protectors to prevent ball launches on the center and right target banks as well as a protector for the left stand-up target bank plastic. There is a falsehood out there that acrylic is not good for making pinball plastics. Actually, extruded acrylic is more durable that PETG that pinball plastics are made from, it is crystal clear and will never yellow, the material I use is thicker (3/32"), acrylic never warps due to heat generated by pinball lamps, and it can withstand ball impact even better than PETG plastics (also, nearly all plastic protector sets on the market are made from acrylic, not PETG). Over the last 3+ years I've been making and selling pinball plastics, and I've literally sold hundreds of pieces for a multitude of games without a single failure reported.

With all of that stated, I'm going to do a single run of the 3-piece LW3 protector set. The set will be $50 including US shipping, and I need anyone who is interested to please PM me to get on the list. At this time no payment will be required but once we sufficiently test performance over the next week or two, then I will set a cutoff date and provide payment information (will be via PayPal or personal check). If you miss getting in on the first run, I will not be making these on a one-off basis, so this may be your only opportunity.

As far as installation goes, the left and right protectors are designed to be mounted under the OEM plastic. The center will be mounted over the current plastic because otherwise it sits too low (i.e. interferes with the targets). You can use all of the existing hardware, except the right helicopter plastic will require two longer replacement screws. I believe these are #6, and I'm working on sourcing these so I can include with the set of plastics.

Please post if you have any questions, and I'll be happy to respond. Until then, don't forget to PM me if you want to get on the purchase list.
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Be default, all plastics are clear, but for an extra fee I can add customized laser etching.

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Left Target BankUMAC8874 (resized).JPG

Right Target BankMQGI0366 (resized).JPG

Typically, mirrored blades are highly polished metal so not they are not going to break (I have a set on my AFMr LE, and really like them). However, they do scratch rather easily and certainly can dent from ball impacts.

FYI, for those interested here are the shapes of the three plastics along with secure points (i.e. holes for screws). For the left piece it is designed to use existing screws on the blue dome which will stick through the holes but not actually grab (you can always replace the OEM wood screws with sheet metal screws and nuts on bottom side). For the right plastic, it uses the top post and the two helicopter posts. I will include 2 x 1/2" #6 screws since the OEM screws on these posts are too short to support any additional thickness to the plastic.

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BTW, I also make chrome vinyl DE center apron logos for those who have ratted out ones.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/finally-new-chrome-logo-solution-for-data-east-aprons

After 50+ games with protectors/deflectors installed, everything has performed perfectly and successfully addressed airballs coming off the targets. Therefore, I'm now officially taking orders for the 3-piece set as well as apron cards and chrome DE apron decals.

To order, please PM me and I will provide payment information:

- 3-piece plastic protector/deflector set with two replacement screws for helicopter posts | $50
- 2-piece custom LW3 apron cards | $12
- Chrome Vinyl apron DE logo | $12

CUTOFF FOR PAYMENT IS MONDAY, JUNE 5TH AT 8:00AM CENTRAL.

Again, if you miss the cutoff I will NOT be making one-off orders.

Here is current list of those who have confirmed interest:

willie68
pin_fandango
kba78
krentz
bozotheclown
sirgubster9

That is a good approach. I've torn up a couple of sets of decal blades since I installed those first before doing a ton of other mods/work. Lifting the playfield up and down dozens of times will certainly lead to at least one human error.

Saturday morning reminder that all orders for the 3-piece protector/deflector set closes at 8:00am Central on Monday, and there will be no exceptions.

Please PM me if you are interested in purchasing a set and/or my apron cards & DE chrome decal.

Thus far the following have placed orders:

BozoTheClown
kba78
Krentz
Sirgbster9
slizzap
Willie68

This will be my last alert before the 8:00AM Central cutoff tomorrow morning regarding ordering the 3-piece plastic protector/deflector set. As a reminder, the set is $50 including US shipping (international shipping extra).

Thank you to everyone who has purchased thus far, and I will be providing tracking info via PM when your package ships.