And the award for douchtastic post of the week goes to ….

Lol!

Personally, I welcome pins that play a little different to the norm. I’m tired of all the Sterns, they all play much the same after a while. Now they’re all even looking much the same.

From the videos I’ve seen, there is good progress in making Halloween have some sort of suspense or tension - something that not many other pins have been successful in doing.

Vive la difference! Bring it on.

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Prayers?

Lol

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You know we will.

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Imagine Spookys legal liability if someone cut themselves on a really sharp knife they’d installed in the pin.

Wouldn’t end well!

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The whole “people are dumping Halloween” thing is so fucking ridiculous.

Currently there are 17 total preorders for sale. Out of 1250 spots.

= 1.36%

Compare with:

Mandolorian LE - currently 12 for sale out of 750.

= 1.6%

TMNT LE - currently 6 out of 500 for sale.

= 1.2%

Godzilla LE - currently 12 out of 1000 for sale.

= 1.2%

GNR LE - plenty for sale, hard to percentage as we don’t know how many they’ve made.

Numbers are totally in line with every other recently released machine.

As the figures above show, some people buy games on a whim, then flick them on. Sometimes for a profit. Sometimes not.

Remember those cheap Stranger Things and GOTG in the first six months of release? I got offered a near new ST Pro for $4500 at one stage. Nobody wanted them. Fast forward 18 mths, they’re not $4500 any more.

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^^^^

Revisiting that post, another thing to consider is that a lot of Stern games go overseas. Spookies not so much. I would guess less than 50 Halloweens are headed off shore.

And of course, Pinside ads are mostly US based.

So those Stern numbers are probably more like

Mandolorian LE - 12 out of estimated 500 US sales (250 exported)

= 2.4%. Could be more.

Etc etc.

Makes the Halloween claims even more dumb.

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Neither do the others.

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A think to note - Karl holds the ball a lot … more than 90% of players would ever do.

Im sure benheck will be able to adjust the coil pulse provided by his new system. That will make a big difference.

It’d be interesting to get his input on it.

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Spooky needs to mount those brackets back a little further … or bevel the sides on more of an angle so the ball will slide off.

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Just looking at the photo - is this a metal post with a rubber base around it, then the ring on top of that? (Data East style?)

If so, could you just remove that top ring? Bottom rubber should protect the ball well enough … would probably provide an extra few mm of clearance.

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I like how it rains so little in Texas your house doesn’t have rain gutters ….

My buddies houses in SoCals are the same.

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If that post was moved back a little, so that ring was on the edge of the guide, the gap would disappear. Problem solved.

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Who said that wasn’t happening?

Where does this stuff come from?

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Current listings update ... 18/1250 (of all models) up for sale. 1.4%

Look ... lots of people went full FOMOPIN (TM) when Halloween came out ... now they have 3 new pins to FOMOPIN over.

Its just natural that some will not want to wait and they'll bail to jump on the next hype train.

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Well, you’d think they’d list their games for sale if they wanted out. Ain’t gonna sell if it ain’t for sale!

Agree 100% with you here. Just never fails to amaze me how sheeple people are. Not just in this hobby, everywhere.

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What angle is your playfield at?

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Yes, I did notice that and also LOLd.

I do note that very often, the people complaining the loudest about “need more code” on certain machines are the people that can’t finish what’s there now.

Just an observation.

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Duuuudeee … just hang around on Pinside long enough and you’ll see.

The dudes that go on and on and on and on about code are generally not the guys getting to the end of the game.

One guy in the XMen thread (a big user here) kept going on and on and on for YEARS about how there should be a Wizard mode for completing both Heroes and Villains. (Which is pretty impossible to do, for most people). Then one day he let it slip that he’d only ever completed 2 of the 7 (?) villain modes!!

You see it all the time.

Need more content.

Need more modes.

Then you’ll see them post “wow just got my highest score! 80 million! Whooo!!”

Most of these games have got PLENTY of shit in them. The fact (like it or not) is that most people aren’t good enough players to see it all.

- COUNTERPOINT TO MY OWN ARGUMENT -
I can understand why they feel they need more content. Because if you only progress so far in a game, you only see the same 3-4 things all the time. That gets OLD. Fast.
Hence - they feel they need more code. Maybe some games need more user chooseable modes, this would give most people more variety. Some games that come to mind, R&M and JP and IM, they have no real mode selection. Unlike say GOTG or AS or AC/DC where you can choose a different mode every time.

Hey - my 10c.

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Karl is one of the best competitive pinball players on the planet.

He can finish most games in 20 mins.

Unless it’s Big Buck Hunter.

Let’s see if an average player can finish the game.

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You can’t choose it from a menu.

Pops/spinner change mode order on lots of games.

Not really what I was meaning. But I think you knew that.

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Nailed it.

I think we could even K.I.S.S and say “they want to see variety”

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Exactly. I thought it was a joke …. ?

Ya don’t say …

Lol

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Pinball in 2021 = dozens of Michaels

“He’s everywhere!!!”

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It’s the manufacturers fault that an air ball broke a plastic?

“It’s on them?”

Ok.

Cargument - so going along with you, it’s Fords problem when a stone flies up and smashes your windscreen? They should overnight you a free windscreen?

I’ve heard it all now.

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That carpet gives me Las Vegas flashbacks …

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Windows will sometimes add things to the file name when downloading - especially if there are 2x files of the same name. (Like add .01 at the end of the file name)

You just want to make sure the file is the correct name before putting it on the USB drive.

Same applies to all makes of machine.

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I’ll give you some reasons …

1/ the main reason - people are sheeple. A few people didn’t like it at launch, it became a thing. Sheeple always follow the herd. Most haven’t even played it. If they have - see #4.

2/ non generic-Stern layout. RZ is more like a 80s Gottlieb, with its exposed pops. Most NIB NEWBS wouldn’t know what a 80s Gottlieb is. Lol

3/ code was slow to develop, to be fair. It got better in the end.

4/ left orbit is very tight. Right orbit is crazy tight. You need to shoot the left orbit to start a mode - and half the people I’ve seen play RZ can’t shoot the left orbit to start a mode. If you can’t start a mode, you’re not going to enjoy the game very much. And of course, it’s not your fault you can’t shoot it - it’s the games fault.

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It’s tricky - if the shot is too easy, the game is “too easy” for decent players.

One way of handling it would be to have a mode selection at ball start - like Stern Star Trek. Then everyone at least gets a mode underway.

ACNC also has the same tough orbit mode start - but that can be bypassed by hitting the centre shot repeatedly. So at least it has a second start option.

The other thing that would put some off - unlike Sterns, if you don’t have a mode running on RZ or ACNC, you don’t get any/many points. Sterns, you get points for hitting everything all the time.

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Not having got my game yet - I’m only guessing …

But can you move the little playfield a little to the right? Any play with the mounting screws?

Or the ramp to the left?

I’m sure Luke will have an answer either way.

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I read this post as such.

“I took a photo of my machine”

“People copied it off the internet and are using it”

“I didn’t my get paid for it (because they didn’t buy it)”

I think I know the photo he means - where the Halloween pin is in a nicely horror theme decorated room. If it’s the one I’m thinking of, I have shared this photo around myself! I think Spooky did too which is where I would have got it from. It showcases the machine well and is a cool shot.

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I think their coders are great.

I don’t like the RULES.

(Two separate things)

Most of the games are MB after MB after MB. I get for a lot of people multiball is “cool” … but not for me. I find it tiresome.

Compare to Lymans TWD rule sheet .. yes there are a couple of multiballs but there’s big points (and great moments) in single ball play.

Horde is maybe one of the best modes in pinball ever - shoot the shots and get a ball added in. You really need to be a good single ball shooter, and you get rewarded. So good.

ACNC is like that - a couple of MBS, including the 2 ball crypt you can bring in if you want it (it’s helpful in a couple of the modes) but mainly it’s about single ball shot accuracy. Which is what pinball should be about. IMO.

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This.

Great to have people thinking outside the square.

Can’t wait for the NZ games to be made.

(Get onto it Luke!)

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If you’re a horror fan, this may tickle your fancy …

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Well written review.

Agree on the above - mode memory is always good.

Especially if the modes are challenging.

Maybe the 3 can be utilised better?

Maybe some separate “find Mike” modes?

Bit hard for me to come up with ideas because I haven’t got my pin yet …

I think a lot of people miss this - hey, you all bought the fancy version, but the base model is $6995 which is the same price as Led Zeppelin Pro.

That’s the best deal in NIB pinball today.

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I remember some Stern games were like that for the longest time.

“Insert Wizard mode name here!”
“50,000!”

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Check if one or two of your pinballs have become magnetic.

Pop them out, pop them on the glass/lockbar of the neighbouring machine. Move them left/right and see if any stick.

I’ve been getting a bunch of balls going magnetic recently. Stops them rolling down the trough. Very annoying.

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That still wouldn’t be enough for some people ….

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It’s near impossible for everyone.

Always a thrill when you hit it!

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I went back and made #2369 a Key Post.

Under “upper playfield adjustment video”

PS - no idea who made your post a key post, not me … maybe add a link to the post in your post too.

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Contact the aussie guys who import the container.

https://m.facebook.com/Spooky-Pinball-Australia-335698366444935/

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Being a new owner, if you’re not totally confident try and get some locals around to help out until you gain confidence.

Hopefully there’s some pinball scene in your area - bribe them with food and drink and get them around, you’ll learn a lot watching them.

A big part of pinball ownership is fixing them (they all break at some stage!) - it’ll take a while to gain confidence and knowledge.

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I had a thought on this - I see you had a similar thought reading your next few posts.

In a couple of Stern games (Tron LE and XMen LE) they had issues with LEDs flickering. There were some other issues too but I can’t remember …

The solution was to remove those wires from the loom where they were closely cable tied to other wires, which were causing RF interference. Enough to flash a LED bulb - so enough to jerk a servo motor as well.

Maybe they were too close to a coil wire or something, I can’t remember now. I do remember a couple of cable tied snipped fixed the issue.

I would give that a go …

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Windows 7 has known issues with formatting files.

I think it was Stern who had that in their code release notes?

Hopefully you know someone with W10 and you can get it on the USB.

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Of course.

Unless someone drops it or flexes it out of square.

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Where’s it say this?

It’s not “a thing” at all. Please don’t make it one.

Occasionally, a servo will break - as a coil will short, or a transistor will lock on, a bulb fails …. Shit happens.

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Lol! Who’d wanna be a pinball company?

Please take the time to read this post.

It’s all pretty straightforward.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/halloween-owners-threadhes-coming-home/page/90#post-6846864

Just wait till the export games go out soon with crazy high numbers. Your head will explode off its shoulders. Haha

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They’re not.

Who said that?

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Once something is posted on Pinside, right or wrong (and generally … it’s wrong …), it IMMEDIATELY becomes A FACT and is parroted over and over.

Export games are generally made after the first few batches of domestic games. This time around they’re a little later than usual, for one reason or another.

Keep up the pressure on your local guy, he needs to be proactive to get them into production.

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I got a free set of nice wire strippers inside my NIB Transformers.

Thanks Stern! I’m still using them today.

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That sucks. Because the glass is a PITA to get in and out.

I had them in my game. One night the glass got jammed up and I said F**K THIS and went to work with the hole saw.

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Indeed they do.

I think a box would make the sound a lot more immediate and punchy. Tubes would alter it again.

But at the end of the day, it’s a pinball machine, not a PA system or an audiophile device … so it’ll do the trick as it is just fine.

And most importantly the bloody glass doesn’t rattle any more!

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Just a suggestion …

Do the two “coin cards” again, but without all the text on there. Just “Halloween” and the background picture.

I think they’ll look really good - and honestly, nobody needs to know about Koris Barloff and his mates on a coin card. TMI.

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I don’t know why it became “a thing” to add all that info - someone did it years ago, then everyone did it.

I vote post them up here - no better place to post them than in the Owners thread.

I’ll mark them as a Key Post so people can find them down the track. (As I did with your ones above)

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Tighten the flipper bat in the pawl. Easy.

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Fair bit of that in this hobby.

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Did you cut the box around the damage to look inside?

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Two Halloweens!

That’s like me putting Sterns LZ next to my home built LZ. Although mine is much cooler.

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Opto testing - no paper required.

Just break the opto beam with your finger. Or anything.

The ball isn’t black paper and that generally works ok.

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Updated - small optos, obviously use something smaller than your finger. Like a small screwdriver.

Use a small screwdriver.

My point was you don’t need black paper to test optos.

No need for newbies to be scurrying down to the stationary store and buying a sheet of black paper.

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Exactly!

The plus side - now you can make some neat craft projects out of it instead.

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Do you reckon the ball is hitting the left edge of the ball guide there and going airborne?

Maybe get the old iPhone out and record the ball launch in slow motion. It’s amazing what you can’t see the ball doing with the naked eye. I’ve solved a heap of issues with the slo mo video.

Added bonus - the slo mo video makes very cool pinball clunking noises.

ADDED: I see a gap between the black centre rail and the launch ramp. If the centre rail was repositioned more to the right (so there was no gap) the ball would always launch away from the light board. Just a thought.

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I don’t know what the menu setup is on HW, but it’s standard to get a replay award (free game) at a certain score.

Generally you can change that in the menu to an extra ball instead, if you so desire.

Or if you want to - just change the amount of balls from 3 per game to 4 or 5. One of my buddies has all his games set to 5 balls so he can play them longer.

Again - haven’t used the HW menu but I would think all that stuff would be there.

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Check all the little connectors on the PROC boards. Personally I think multimorphic made a mistake going with -100 connectors rather than beefier -156 like WPC, Stern etc etc. Hey - just my opinion.

The only major issue we had here with a PROC Spooky was a flakey switch board. It’d be fine, then play up intermittently. (This was in an ACNC).

I got the guy to swap the two switch boards over (there are 2 next to each other) and sure enough, the problem moved with the board to another switch.

A new $30 (?) switch board and all was good with the world.

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Yeah, that’d be awesome.

Announcing - the Pinside Pinball Machine!!

CC96692B-0742-4027-853D-FA93721569E6 (resized).png

Except - with more kids toys glued onto it.

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Have you tried bending the levers up a little?

I presume they still use the roller type switches same as Sterns?

These do need adjustment from time to time. A tiny bend to the lever is usually all they need.

Put the machine into switch test and roll one ball down from the drain. The switches should show as the ball rolls over them. Load the rest in one at a time, and each switch with a ball on top of it should show as active.

Another issue with troughs is my oft-mentioned magnetic ball issue. One magnetic ball and it’ll stop the balls rolling down the trough and create issues.

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Banks in New Zealand stopped issuing checks 5 years ago. You can’t get one even if you want one. Nobody used them anymore.

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Open box

Check

Plug in

Enjoy

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Interested in why that is?

I’ve seen it used in a few tournaments (inc one last weekend) .. didn’t see any negative feedback about it.

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Ah ok. They’ll get sorted in time.

To clarify - it was not my tournament I saw it at, I believe it was Kickback in Pittsburgh (the old PAPA crew).

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Isn’t that the case with all modern pins these days though?

I mean, good luck to anyone playing someone like Escher on any of the new Stern pins - those guys know every nuance of the game.

Knuckleheads like me know how to start a Multiball and that’s about it!

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That’s quite amazing eh!

Yes, again amazing when you think about it.

Yes and no …. HW and UM was available at $6999. The same layout as the two more expensive “upspeced” models.

Nobody was more surprised than Spooky when almost everyone (like, 90%) decided to plonk down more money than that to buy fancier versions.

Except kiwis - we’re all tight asses so most of ours are standards.

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I think that was more down to Charlie making a call on the dude.

Sometimes when you’re a retailer, you get a customer who you just KNOW is gonna be a huge pain in the ass, and you have to cut them loose and cut your losses.

Even selling used games, sometimes you’ll get messages and you can just tell, this guy is gonna be a PITA - and move on to the next one.

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A lot less plugs than the 90s games!

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It was announced that Fawzma will be assigned to HW/UM code for the next 6-12 mths.

New animations etc aren’t far away.

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This. If the drop target itself is ok and not broken, generally a tweak of the spring will fix it.

Try pulling it down a little and hooking it through another loop on the spring (making it tighter)

See how that goes. Just do the affected target, leave the others if they’re ok. Should be able to stretch the spring while the assembly is in the game.

A few mm more spring tension could do the trick.

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Yes, the spring pulls them down.

It also holds them on the ledge.

The simplest way to show that is on the older drop banks - see how the spring is on an angle? It’s pulling it down and also forward. Otherwise when it goes up, it would 50/50 just come straight back down.

If the spring is too weak/too strong, the balance is upset and you get issues.

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Yes, there’s a hard short somewhere in the wiring chain making that transistor blow like that.

Transistors blowing has been part of pinball since 1977.

Surface mount components scare people because it does require a skill set to fix them. Almost anyone can replace an old style transistor.

I have a guy here who does surface mount stuff for me - he can fix Stern node boards no problems, even with their tiny components.

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You’ll definitely want to find the issue before installing a new board. Or it’ll just blow up again.

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Hey - it could be worse …. Here’s one from a Whirlwind I bought last year.

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92EE8B73-A8A2-4158-9931-D8AC8004AE7A (resized).jpeg

Whirlwind 2.0 !

Featuring these extras!

- interconnect board burnt in half!
- extensive smoke damage to the CPU board!
- flipper drag wear on the playfield!
- cabinet bottom half hacked with plywood!
- non working fan and spinners!
- displays up the wazzzoooo!
- cabinet well below average!

Have no fear! It is currently getting a full restoration and it will sit proudly next to this Taxi I just finished.

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Thanks! This is how that one started - water damaged!

It is rewarding to bring them back from the edge.

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I bought a 2012 Avengers Pro in Los Angeles last year … it had 98 plays on it. (Still on original code, never updated)

I think some people just like buying new shit to show off to their buddies.

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I’ve been analysing GZ and why it seems so successful/popular.

And that’s the conclusion I’ve come to.

There’s always something happening - voice wise, screen wise - even if you are sucking - very much like a slot machine. I watched a really good doco on slot machines recently which went into the psychological triggers they put into games to keep people playing them even though they’re losing money.

GZ does this also. Maybe not intentionally, but it’s doing the same thing, giving the same triggers. Quite interesting to get into.

What you say is correct … Spooky games are very “focused” in how they dish out points. I watched a decent player play ACNC for 5 minutes, he didn’t know the rules and didn’t start a mode - so he got virtually no points. On a Stern he would have had millions just batting the ball around.

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Sure thing ….

You should be able to track it down on line. It’s streaming free here on TVNZ (one of our TV networks)

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He gets it.

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Make sure the flipper bats move up/down (vertically) around 2mm. If they’re too tight on the bushing, you’ll see what you’re seeing.

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You know that new Sterns are about 6.5 degrees with all the levellers wound in, right?

Your machine will be like 10 degrees with the back legs right up!

No wonder you’re having flipper issues ….

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Yep. K.I.S.S.

I wouldn’t use any alcohol either. If you’ve got any old pins, you know what isopropyl alcohol does to the finish (hint: it removes it)

Simply wipe down with simple green to remove ball marks. I use a decent mix - probably 40% SG concentrate to 60% water. Spray it on - wipe it off. Easy.

If you really feel the need to shine it up, use some car type spray polish/wax. After all - they are coated in automotive clear coat. I have some Meguires stuff I use.

Novus - while I respect that it has been used for years, it is actually a plastic polish. Used for acrylic windscreens etc. Again, I use 3M car products. And I only use them when I do a full tear down. No need to do it all the time. Again - K.I.S.S.

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Sounds like you are on the right track.

Freeze spray generally works well. Just go slow. Either of those things are good with adhesive residue. As you say, you might need to leave Goo Gone on for 15 mins to let it do its thing. Slow and steady wins the race.

You want to be careful with mylar around inserts (shouldn’t be an issue in your case) because often you’ll pull off the print off the inserts.

Generally if I have a full mylared playfield, I’ll buff it up with 3M cutting compounds and it comes up super shiny. No need to remove mylar unless you have to.

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Well well what do we have here ….

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Wasn’t too bad ..

Better than the last one.

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Those stairs and black/white tiles are as famous as Treasure Coves garage door was back in the day!

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Thumbs up for your honesty!

We’ve all done dumb sh*t over the years … I did something dumb last week, my new TIP102 burst into flames as a result. I literally LOLd at my stupidity.

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I believe *everything* needs to be approved by a licensor. It’s their IP and their IP name on it, so they want to check it.

Some guys are easy going (Alice Cooper etc who are into it) … and some are not so easy.

I heard Disney is a pain - probably such a big machine it’s hard to get anything happening there.

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Everyone involved with licensing these days says that it has changed dramatically in the last few years.

In the old days (pinball wise) they’d pay a set fee for the licence then go for it.

These days, everyone is squeezing every last cent out of everything - all the music companies and actors and voices are all holding their hands out, and get bucks paid on every unit that rolls off the factory floor. And approval rights too.

Which is why you see half assed licences like Sterns Jurassic Park, where the only thing they buy is the name and the logo, they have to pay extra bucks for the theme song, and then they have to make everything else up themselves. Gomez even made up the Jeep … sorry, off road vehicle … sculpt so they didn’t have to pay any car companies.

Evidently the Jaws licence consists of the Jaws title fonts, the rights to use the shark, and that’s about it.

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That reminds me of the frequent pinsider who was always bellyaching about “no final Wizard mode!” in XMen - then one day let it slip he had only ever completed 2 of the 7 Villain modes (you’d need to complete all 7 villains and also all 8 hero modes plus both of the current massive mini Wizard modes to get to a final “I’ve done it all” Wizard mode)

One of the great days on Pinside when that came out.

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Yes I do. It was on my recommendation that they contacted Matt and ultimately took him on board.

Matt is a wiz with C++ and Csharp or whatever it is (I ain’t no coder lol) and is an avid pinballer, owning 5 pins currently and playing competitively at my NZ events. In fact, he just played for 3 days straight at last weekends Southern Hemisphere Champs at my place.

I have been working with Matt for a while on my own new pin down here. Hence I know his work and skills.

Danni and I will assist him down here with code testing and rules ideas for all the titles he does going forward. Including HW and UM.

So rest assured Spooky fans!

Your code is in good hands.

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