(Topic ID: 67284)

First impression with Super-band flipper rubbers

By PinballHelp

10 years ago


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  • 24 posts
  • 19 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 10 years ago by vid1900
  • Topic is favorited by 1 Pinsider

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    #1 10 years ago

    I've recently gotten a few pairs of the JCS Super-band flipper rupbbers and thought I might share my impression on them. Feel free to comment and add yours.

    We ran an IFPA tournament this weekend with a Dr. Who and to switch things up I put a pair of these rubbers on the flippers.

    The jury is still out as to whether an average player would notice much difference between the SBs and regular flipper rubber. Appearance-wise they are brighter and shinier. They "feel" just a bit thicker than regular flipper rubber but that could be more of an illusion or how they stretch when they're put on the flipper bats. They do seem a little harder to put on initially than traditional rubber. But I love the idea they they can be wiped down and won't turn black - time will tell on that.

    My first impression was I didn't like them. At first I felt I had less ball control, but I think as they "warmed up" I began to see how they behave, and IMO they definitely behave a bit differently than traditional flipper rubber in a few specific areas. I think I'm going to like them, but they do have some slightly different ball effects IMO.

    While they claim to have the same "bounce" technically, I got the feel it takes a little more initial velocity to compress them than traditional rubber. So for fast balls on the flippers they really do seem to "stick" more and give you a sense of greater ball control. For maneuvers like bouncing the ball into the inlane post to stop it from rolling to the flipper they seem to work better than regular rubbers. I didn't notice much difference with dead catches. Not much with live catches, but drop catches might be a little easier due to the "ball spin" effect.

    Where I think these flipper rubbers differ from regular flipper rubber is when it comes to ball spin. Because their surface is more polished and shiny (i.e. less porous) they don't have as much an effect on stopping ball spin as regular flipper rubber has. This can result in some very unusual ball effects. Usually if a ball is spinning and you hit it with the flipper, you can stop or reverse the ball spin based on the intent of the flipper. But if the ball isn't hitting the flippers with enough velocity to compress and "grip" the ball, it will "slide" along the smooth side of the flipper and retain spin. And what happens there is weirdness that you don't expect.

    I don't know if after time this effect becomes less pronounced, but the most notable thing I found was if the ball isn't hitting the flipper hard, if it has spin, it will slide more across the flipper surface than you'd get with regular rubber.

    I'm looking forward to getting more time with the products and seeing if there's any significant advantage/disadvantage to that. In our tournament I don't think it mattered a whole lot, but I did find wide angle shots to be a little harder - the ball seemed to increase in speed on those shiny flipper rubbers the further it got down the flipper.

    #2 10 years ago

    What about at the flipper tips?
    Do you get enough grip to get the ball over to the other flipper or does it slide by and drain easier?

    #3 10 years ago
    Quoted from tracelifter:

    What about at the flipper tips?
    Do you get enough grip to get the ball over to the other flipper or does it slide by and drain easier?

    I think it was pretty grippy.. It really depends upon how much velocity the ball has. Normally it has enough but if the ball has a lot of spin on it and not a ton of momentum, it tends to slide more than it would on regular rubber.

    #4 10 years ago

    Nice, honest review. I'd agree about grippier too. Seems easier to manipulate flippers but like all who put them on, time will tell how well they work and last long term. I'm still impressed enough that I'll likely put them on all my machines when I need new ones.

    #5 10 years ago

    The ones I played I didn't like the dead bounces at all...it felt like there wasn't enough rebound.

    #6 10 years ago
    Quoted from EvanBingham:

    The ones I played I didn't like the dead bounces at all...it felt like there wasn't enough rebound.

    I put them on three of my machines, and played most of the machines at Expo that had them on. For the most part, I liked the added control I felt when the ball came through the inlanes and for drop catches.

    Dead bounces, as you say, were a lot deader. I still got a bounce to the other flipper every time, but it was a lot quicker. Just a learning curve to adjust to, I think. Long term, I can see these going on all my machines.

    #7 10 years ago

    I just put them on my Jackbot and I don't really like them either. I dead pass alot and they don't have the same bounce as standard red ones.

    I also find they "slide" more on slap saves, and react a little weird on tip saves sometimes...

    I'm taking them off my game....

    #8 10 years ago

    "Sticky" I think is the word that best describes them. Balls tend to come to nearly a dead stop sometimes when they hit the flipper. I put them on all three of my games and will try them out for a while. I was told that after some use, they would lose their stickiness and that they are a bit sticky when new (something to do with the manufacturing process).

    For me, they seemed to improve shot accuracy. I found that in BoP, for instance, I was able to hit the heartbeat ramp at will (even more so than normal). My daughter's previous high on that game was around 8 million. Last night, I saw her get several scores over 10 million (one of 25 million), and she was so excited to keep scoring the unlimited millions from the heartbeat ramp.

    I like the idea of a long-lasting, easy-to-clean flipper rubber, but if it gives me a false sense of being a better player, I don't know if I like that. Like I said, I'll leave them on and see how they react after they've gotten some use.

    #9 10 years ago

    I put them on my Creature and generally agree with the OPs review.

    I gave them a good stretching before trying to put them on. They sure are tough, but once on - no complaints.

    They have a good grip ... I was surprised to hit the right flipper as the ball came down the right inlane and have it solidly go up the right ramp.

    I'm interested to see how these hold up. Based on my initial impressions I expect great performance and longevity. And they look GREAT ... particular in green, on a Creature.

    #10 10 years ago

    All I can say is that after playing them at the expo I bought a set for all of my machines.

    #11 10 years ago

    I'm thinking... with the surface being more polished and less porus, the grippy-ness comes from when the ball hits the rubber, compresses and expands it, and there's perhaps some minute suction-action on the ball. This would explain the dead catch phenomenon and some of the "sticky" feeling. The question is, does this effect minimize over time? I would think it would as a result of the smoothness of the surface diminishing the more play it gets. The ball surface won't be 100% perfect so it will eventually scar the smoothness of the rubber surface as well. It will be interesting to see if, once these break in, they play nicer for longer periods of time.

    Anyone have a microscope? It would be interesting to get some comparisons of the rubber at high magnification.

    4 months later
    #12 10 years ago

    Anybody have any tips on installing these? I tried stretching fist but they're still extremely difficult to get on.

    #13 10 years ago
    Quoted from mac622:

    Anybody have any tips on installing these? I tried stretching fist but they're still extremely difficult to get on.

    I start by stretching them out the best I can (using a channel lock wrench). Then put loop over the big part of flipper and with a screw driver pull past the tip (making sure not to scratch the flipper) and with your finger slide the band over the tip. This is the easiest way I have found. Maybe I have weak fingers but for the life of me I cannot pull them over using only fingers.

    #14 10 years ago

    I've had them on a Scared Stiff for a while now and really like them!

    #15 10 years ago

    I just install them using my fingers. Loop one end over the fat side of the flipper and use my middle fingers to pull over the thin end of the flipper. Helps to brace your thigh and leg against the machine so that you're pulling the machine into you.

    #16 10 years ago

    Install one end of the Super-Band over the fat end of the flipper bat. From behind the flipper, push the Super-Band with your thumbs over the tip of the bat. Make sure the Super-Band is all the way down on the bat. Avoid using tools as this could damage your playfield.

    #17 10 years ago

    I think I may be going about this the hard way as trying to put them on out of the game. I'll try it installed and see if that's easier. Thanks

    #18 10 years ago

    Have them on all 8 of my games they look great and play just as good if not better than rubber.they will rip your nails off when you try to install them so give em a stretch beforehand

    #19 10 years ago
    Quoted from DrJoe:

    Install one end of the Super-Band over the fat end of the flipper bat. From behind the flipper, push the Super-Band with your thumbs over the tip of the bat. Make sure the Super-Band is all the way down on the bat. Avoid using tools as this could damage your playfield.

    This is indeed the easiest and gets easier the more you go it... you don't need to put your thumbs INTO the band as you push - just push it along the top of the flipper with both thumbs. If you can get it over the tip you're golden

    #20 10 years ago

    Yeah, these are tough to install for sure. I've installed them on about 30 games thus far and most of the feedback here is spot on.

    However, I have a few sets of metallic flippers that I need to install, and I'm nervous about getting the Super Bands on without flaking off the metallic coating since the easiest ways listed here involve sliding the band along the top. I've done it without the band touching the top of the flipper, but it is harder for sure.

    #21 10 years ago
    Quoted from mac622:

    I think I may be going about this the hard way as trying to put them on out of the game. I'll try it installed and see if that's easier. Thanks

    Before putting the bats back in the game I tried one more time last night using the stretching trick with Chanellocks and was able to get it done. They were still pretty stiff after 5 minutes of stretching but it did make a noticeable difference and was able to get it done (injury free!). As others did, I looped it around the fat end and pushed it down and over the skinny end using my thumbs. I had the skinny end of the bat resting on the top of my workbench for leverage so I was essentially pushing the elastic downwards into the workbench. It helped that I have 1/4" cork floor tile covering my benchtop which helped them from slipping and provided a little "give".

    #22 10 years ago

    If condoms were as hard as those flipper rubbers are to install we would have 3X the population in the world

    #23 10 years ago

    After having them on games for several months, I haven't noticed any significant change in the way they play. They are still noticeably different from regular rubber, but a nice change. I'll often switch to a game with them on not realizing they're SBs and then in short order, I notice the difference in how the ball reacts. I think they're not necessarily better or worse, but different.

    #24 10 years ago
    Quoted from pinballplusMN:

    If condoms were as hard as those flipper rubbers are to install we would have 3X the population in the world

    Or 3x less, if everyone died of AIDS.

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