I had this problem on my em awhile back. I cleaned and polished the plunger and replaced the coil sleeve and the problem went away.

Well, then I'd have to guess that there is an alignment problem with the kicker and the trough. The ball must not be sitting in line with the kicker, or the kicker is making the ball bounce in the trough instead of making a smooth transition to the shooter lane.

Take the instruction cover off and watch what the ball does. It could be hitting the ball at an angle and making it rattle side to side which would slow it down enough to where it barely makes it to the plunger. Another cause would be the kicker hits the ball up making it hop, also slowing down momentum. I've seen both of these things and a little tweaking or replacing worn parts took care of them.

Steve

I don't think the instruction card will have a window behind it, just a 1" hole. You'll have to remove the 2 screws, then remove the instruction card holder/cover to get a good look at it.

Steve

Just remembered, gold Wings is a 2 ball multi-ball game. There should be a ball release coil, perhaps it's hanging up on the shaft.

Steve

Remove the Apron and watch what the ball is doing. That was a PITA on my Gold Wings too. Make sure to note how the one way gate is installed when you remove the apron and ensure it is installed correctly when you put the apron back on,

I had this problem many times. Problem is (unnecessarily !!! ) lubricate of ball RELEASE sys (" solenoid
that opens the channel" to shooter lane )
Just disassemble and clean it ( take care HOW to assemble it back ))

Greetings from Croatia

Ok, now I understand what's a problem Maybe is some "dents"on metal (ball's "storage line" )

(Just asking... left-right level is ok ? )

I just encountered this exact problem on my Hollywood Heat... I sanded the very slight "dent" on the lower metal guide in the trough smooth, and now it works every time.

Remove the apron and watch for why it doesn't work. I'm telling you that if it just sits there, you have a dent in your bottom metal guide. The "gate" only opens for about 2 seconds, then closes and does NOT attempt to reopen.

I'm late to the party here, but am seeing the same thing on a Gottlieb Force II. Seems like the gravity-fed ball feed is a pretty crap design. I'll inspect mine for physical issues preventing the ball from rolling into the shooter lane.