I joined the club a week ago. My machine worked fine for a week, but now it continuously launches balls. It's never ending. It's like the machine thinks the drain shield is enabled and we are in 6 ball multiball. I turn off the machine, turn it back on, choose regulation play (NOT supergame), then it starts doing this immediately. Any idea what could cause this?

Thanks guys. I had never seen that behavior before. I will look at that trough board pronto.

I bent my crane while lowering the playfield. I know it's very common but I didn't know at that time. I straightened the crane shaft the best I could and put it back. Everything seems normal but now I'm having a hard time adjusting the crane to pick up the balls. Is this repair supposed to work or the tolerances are such that my only hope is to buy a new crane shaft?

Good to hear.
My crane magnet is pretty weak compared to the videos I've seen. Is there anything I should be looking for to improve the magnet strength?

Thanks, I will keep that in mind.

I discovered the globe moves slowly whenever the magnet is on. The magnet is weak because it loses power to the globe motor. That's obviously a bad connection somewhere since my friend confirmed it does not happen on his machine. I will continue to look for the electric problem tonight.

Thanks for the advice. I now believe my crane is more affected by the globe that keeps moving than the weak magnet because the ball is no longer under the crane by the time it tries to pick it up.

If you change your mind, the ring is also available on pinballlife https://www.pinballlife.com/search.html?Search=dredd%20ring

If you just want to try it, a bit of cardboard and tape on each slit in the ring can do the job.

Are you talking about the crane? Yes, the crane searches for its position when the machine powers up. The only crane switch telling it exactly where it is is over the ring. Every other crane position is guessed with timers.

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Really? The toppers are still available from the original mold for a very reasonable fee. Shipping to Oz land might sour the deal though.

Your magnet is too weak. Check the voltage for the magnet. Maybe you have a poor connection at one of the connectors.

There is no adjustment for the crane timing. You can adjust the crane height, and the angle from left to right but not its amplitude. You can also adjust the disk under the globe that determines Position1 and Position2 but that is more work and should be the last thing to try. Like I said, it might be worth checking the voltage on that magnet to see if it is strong enough. That was the problem on mine.

For the drop targets, I would got in switch test mode when they start to go crazy. Don't forget to close the coin door.

Another common problem with the crane is an axle bent backwards because the crane got caught under the backbox when lowering the playfield. This breaks the crane plastic plus it makes the crane shorter and higher. The fix is to straighten the axle the best you can. This is unlikely your problem but is worth checking for.

If you need to adjust your crane from left to right, there is a set screw in the back to tie the crane to its axle. You can reach the set screw through a round hole about half an inch down the top of the crane.

It's easier to remove the ROM with an IC puller, for example https://www.amazon.com/Jonard-S-340-Insulated-Spring-Extractor/dp/B006C4BCAK
and be very careful not to bend the legs when pushing the ROM back in. Take your time.

...and be very careful with static electricity. You can easily fry a memory chip without ever noticing it. You should discharge any static electricity you may have on yourself by touching something grounded, like the side rails of a pinball machine, and only then start manipulating the chips. You always think this is paranoid BS until it happens to you personally...

Try removing the connector for the lamps (with machine off) and see what happens during play to remove that from the possibilities.

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Actually, all the lamps. You need to prove you don't have a short circuit somewhere. The lamps are off during test mode but on during game play. Just a thought, not saying this is the problem.

My left flipper starts strong when booting the machine but becomes too weak to make the right ramp within the first two games. I know the coil is the correct number because I replaced it. Is your left flipper strong enough? Is the recommended coil different than what the manual says?

On my Road Show which is very similar internally, it was the connector two boards away.

Try to clean your trough optos with a Q-tip dipped in alcool.

Check your trough optos. Dredd is very sensitive to flaky optos in the trough.

There is a set screw adjustment in the back of the crane near the top.
Also check that the shaft is straight. The crane can easily get caught under the backbox when lowering the playfield after lifting it up vertically, and that usually results in cracked plastics and a bent shaft.
Playing with the optos under the planet would be a last resort.

How did you fasten the figurine in place? I tried so many glues and nothing withstands the vibrations.

When the air raid light is on, shooting that ramp will deposit the ball in the left lane and the machine will wait for you to press the left fire button to aim at the rotating lit drop target.