What is the quick procedure for installing a playfield protector on a brand new playfield?

I assume:

1) Novus 1 on the playfield.
2) Wax the playfield.
3) Install the protector Novus 1 on the protector and wax or not wax the protector depending on preference.

I have a NOS clear coated playfield that was cc'd over the mylar. Not sure why this was done, but I feel better about having the playfield protector for the raised cc along the mylar edges, small raise though.

Do NOT wax the playfield !!!

Yes clean it but not wax it. The wax is known to leave white residue over time under the protector.

Polyurethane clear is compatible with the mylar rings and such. Pulling mylar can be a risk. I would, and have pulled the mylar from a couple of my play fields. but I don't think I would want the risk of pulling the mylar on your play fields.

I recently received two protectors from Germany, one for Pinbot and one for Space Invaders. Just noticed that each one had a little lip all along the edge around the entire protector. Can anyone who has has one of these installed in their non-clearcoated pin long-term, have you noticed the edge digging into your playfield at all? This lip worries me, the protector may prevent all ball-caused wear, but if the lip digs into the playfield over time, that's going to be just as damaging.

Can you post a photo?

Get a small jeweler's file or some 400 or 600 grit sandpaper and run it along the edges to remove the lip. Or you can contact the producer and see what happens.

Took several photos but I can't get the camera to focus well on that area, no matter what I do. This one below shows it a little, if you look at the reflection right above the "W" on the coating, and at the pointy part on the right side, that's light reflecting off the lip. These things are supposed to be perfectly flat from edge to edge, correct? The lip runs all around mine, and around every circle/void inside it, and on both sides.

The whole point of buying these pre-made was so that I wouldn't have to do any work to it, I might as well have cut my own. Plus there's no way running a file or sandpaper around the edge isn't going to damage it or keep the "clear" look to it. There's enough of a lip, on both sides of the protector, that not only do I do I catch my fingernail on it, but I can't even catch the edge of the protective plastic coating to peel it back so I can see exactly how bad the lip is. Will try getting in touch with the mfr. and see what they say.
protector pic (resized).jpg

Hence, my suggestion to contact the manufacturer. I have made several of my own protectors. It sounds like you still have the protective film still on. You can take file and run it along the edge at a 45 degree angle and removed the lip. A PIA? Yes. But it can be done.

You have 2 options. File it away. Or call the maker.

Yeah, sorry, that came off as a little curt. Just kinda pissed as I have to mothball my games again for a while before repopulating the playfields. Emailing them right now.

Hi,
who ever bought playfield protector from pinball universe? what about the quality?
thanks

I have them on 2 machines. Nice quality, only issue I have is that you really need to clean them and the playfield very well before laying down. The playfield protector can ' stick' to the playfield, resulting in what looks like wet spots.
So make sure all is cleaned very well, I use Naphta for that.

well, my pin is nib so the playfield was very clean.
the issue you are mentionning is the same for any playfield protector i think. i got some from Playfield Protector and it is the same.
the one from PU is thicker than the one of PP, i hope i will not occur some issues with ball (stuck, detection or anything else). the game is AIQ
thanks

I have one for ToM on the way. Has anyone done a ToM? Any results/install tips to share?
A few on this thread have mentioned micro scratches. Looks like the manufacturer strongly recommends against using a microfiber cloth to clean the protectors because they will result in those scratches.

I bought a protector for my bad cats back in March from coin taker, it came rolled up in a box ( maybe 8 x 8 ) since I had the play field stripped I laid it on top of play field and waited it down to take the memory out of it, but after all this time it still has memory, I did not remove the protective coating. Is it normal for these to be shipped rolled up? Do I need to remove the protective film to get it to lay flat? Do I head to heat it?
Thanks
Jim

Had a protector on Dialed In and removed it because it was getting dirty and I was thinking it might be affecting the scoop shot. It wasn't... but I did learn it was impacting the magnets in the game.

Iv had mine on T2 for about 5 months, and other than more airballs it plays fine. I have one on my JM and no real difference in play. I put them on because I have slightly raised inserts on both games, and wanted to try and keep them from chipping clear or paint. I don't have the skills yet to fix the inserts, so a protector was my best option.

Never heard of them rolled up. The ones I buy from Germany are shipped flat between cardboard. They would be far too stiff to be rolled up. Sounds like you bought an alternate product?

both of mine came flat from germany as well

I bought a sheet of plastic, prob 8' x 4' from a local company for $50 and made 4 of them.

I make mine from rolled up material. Lay it out with the rolled side down so it is humped up in the middle. Hair dryer heat should help a little. An industrial heat gun will help more but you can make damage if you are not careful. A couple of hours in the hot sun on a large table will work. You do NOT need to remove the protective film.

Thanks everyone for your replies, I contacted Melissa and she did not even hesitate to replace it. Hats off to Cointaker !

I like my protector from Beehive/thrillhouse.

I have one on my ToM. The magnets were not as strong initially, but I just needed to adjust the drain eddys and now it works just as well as it did before protector install.

How did this work out for you?
I just noticed I have the same issue with my two protectors I bought during black friday. Also from Germany.

one thing I've learned about certain plastic products, is if you get them rolled in shipping your screwed pretty much. I got some protectors a long time ago from a dude and they still don't sit flat after years. you could heat it like mentioned about, but its risky.
if they do come rolled lay them flat as soon as possible and you might stand a chance.

Frank, the representative who emailed me back from Playfield Protectors, was very prompt and helpful in replying to me, and I was sent replacement protectors for the two originals that were lipped (Pinbot and Space Invaders). So kudos to him for good customer service. However, both replacements had the same lip problem, so I'm back to square one. I'm really not relishing the idea of trying to remove the lip from the entire perimeter and every inner hole and cutout of two protectors; when I made my own for my Terminator 2, it literally took several weeks of work off-and-on to design, measure, cut, and smooth it. The results were fantastic but I never want to do it again, especially having paid $$ not to have to do it again.

I have heard from other buyers who say their protectors are perfectly flat, so I don't know what the problem was. I would love to use them for all of my games but not at the risk of damaging the playfield, just in a different way. My Space Invaders playfield is the worse of the two so I'm thinking I may lay down that one and just check every so often to see if the lip is cutting into it anywhere.

I just installed a pf protector on my Dolly Parton that I purchased from Cointaker earlier this week. Free shipping and very fast delivery. It came in a flat cardboard container and the protector was taped down to keep it from rolling up in the corners.

Quick installation on the classic pin. I removed the spinner, flippers, bumper caps, the shooter lane gate that prevents weak spinner shots from returning back to the shooter and the playfield plastics. The protector fit perfectly and the edges and cutout areas are nice and smooth, no raised residual plastic flashing whatsoever.

Time will tell, but for now, I am very happy with the results. My playfield has alot of cupped inserts and unevenness due to touch ups and wear on the 40 year old original pf. The ball roll is way more predictable now, speed is about the same as before. Yes, its quieter but you can still hear the ball roll.

The only issue I had was the inverted "V" cut where the protector starts from the shooter lane was angled a little bit to the left so the ball was smacking the post on the non return gate near the spinner. I opened the cut a little bit on the right so it was even with the shooter lane groove and I also put down a piece of mylar to make a smoother transition between the ball groove and the protector.

I'll post an update if anything changes but for now I'm happy that I went this route for a quick and reasonably priced solution to my uneven classic playfield woes.

Dimpling on Sterns can be really really bad especially on new playfield. To the point valleys are created and inserts launch balls in the air.

I have the protector installed on my AIQ and was thinking about removing it because of the flying balls but I'm not sure...how are the new stern boards doing now? should i leave it or remove it?

I have made several of my own protectors. The reasons for me doing with is because of cupped inserts or a really blown play field.

Protectors make for a smooth surface. An extremely fast surface. I don't see "ugly" at all; Especially when playing. I have had one protector on for 4 years now and the pin is still playing strong.

This is for my 40 year old solid states.

For my Ghostbusters, with the factory cleared play field, I have no protector on, but the play field does have lots of dimples.

It's like protected sex vs unprotected. You tell me?!!? Not a fan at all.

I love protectors and they can keep games with uneven inserts fun, and keep further wood damage from happening. HOWEVER, they suck on certain machines and would make certain games unviable in a commercial location. Namely games with dead end shots where the ball can get stuck under the protector on the way back. There was a Cosmic Gunfight at the York show that had the ball repeatedly get stuck under the protector, requiring glass removal.

With that said I've installed maybe 3 or 4 protectors for home use.

Anyone experienced this kind of Newton Rings -phenomenon, where the playfield with protector looks like its suffering from smallpox or something similar?
I got my game from a seller that claims to have installed the playfield protector before any games where played. To me the game looks like it suffers from dimpling and a playfield protector has just been installed on top of the dimples and that's why it now looks quite bad - like its having a smallpox...
I felt the playfield protector with hand and it seems flat to me, so I don't thing the blotches come from any possible irregularities on the protector. On the other hand, after the playfield protector is in place, there should not be any new dimpling after that on the playfield, right?

Any other explanation for this or do you agree that dimples are the reason for this phenomenon? Is there any way to get rid of the blotches?

Any help from you is much appreciated, thanks!

IMG_4931 (resized).jpg

I have the same on my T2 repro-playfield.

What I have been told is that this happens to new playfields and playfields with "new" clearcoat. What you see is gassing from the clear coat and perfectly normal.

If you clean the playfield with naphtha prior to installing the protector this happens a lot less.

For the rest nothing to worry about, just doesn’t look nice

I wonder if it would help, if I put some microfiber cloth with naphtha to a long ruler and tried to wipe the playfield with it? Anyone tried this?

Nope. You need to remove the protector and give the play field a good wipe down. Sorry.

The protector needs to be cut with this in mind. If you mean dead end shots like the ball running into a stand up target and reversing itself, it is all on how the protector is trimmed. I made one for a Williams Laser Cue that has 3 stand up targets. They and the protector were not a problem.

I just finished my TZ restoration. Playfiled was cleared one year ago and highly polished. To protect it I installed a German playfield protector. Immediately I had to cut the portion in the auto shooter lane because I only had airballs not clearing the gate. After that I noticed a lot of wet spots. The protector sticks to the polished playfield and create this horrible newton rings. I'm hating this and I will remove it completely. Dimples are not that bad after all

IMG_20230729_112256 (resized).jpg

IMG_20230729_112305 (resized).jpg

I have made 6 protectors of my own. Your problem has been discussed before but I have never experienced it. Can you reach under there in any way and feel if these spots are wet?

I don't think he means the spots are ACTUALLY wet, but you can see from the picture that the protector adhered differently in some areas versus others... giving the same appearance that a drop of water between the two materials might create. It's so hard to get a complete adhesion from the protector to the (uneven) surface of any playfield... Inserts are notoriusly uneven relative to the surounding surface, and over time that difference magnifies even more. Even the thickness of artwork paint is causing some of those problems shown.

Time to remove that protector, slowly....

I've had a playfield protector on my Mando since day 1, now 2 years. I experienced the same and decided not to worry about it. Don't even notice it with the machine lit up and have not even thought about it a year, until I read this. It seems less of an issue as well with boat load of plays on the protector. My advice is, you can always take the protector off. Play it for a long while and see if it improves enough for your satisfaction or becomes trivial like mine did. Changing your mind and having to put it back on, yikes, that's a ton of work.

What is the best source to get protectors today? Looking at one for White Water. Has anyone dared use Cliffy’s AND a protector? Ha

Yes. Mando LE. Although the Cliffy's are ramp side protectors and not ON the playfield. Also used them in the shooter lane and outhole.

I have had one one Tron and Mando, and Dreed for over a year each. I got a bit of the wet spot look at the beginning but after awhile it went away. I did blow some air under each. I find with these the playfield needs to be as clean as possible. Do not wax before putting one on.

There is not supposed to be any adhesion at all. The plastic floats over the playfield… held in place by fitment and usually some key hardware spots. They should only -lay- on the pf surface.

This kind of ‘wet’ spots happens when there is clinging between the protector and the surface under it after direct contact. Usually due to something under the surface of the protector.

Which is why people have said to use naptha wiping the pf first - naptha is a solvent that acts to strip any oils or other substances without leaving any residue.

I’ve also seen static clinging cause this kind of look because the protector gets stuck down.

I found out with the protectors I made that no matter how I hard I tried to remove all of the swarf left on the edges post cutting, that I could never manage to clean off every last piece.

Eventually, with game play these small hangnail pieces of swarf would migrate under the play field. And even if you think you got it all clean in the GI lighting areas, you always miss some of it; Always. And the tiniest of pieces can make a noticeable difference in ball acton.

On every protector (7 ea) I made, I had to remove it and do one last thorough cleaning and after that, just play and enjoy the game.

Playfield-protectors.com suggests blowing air under the protector to remove "wet spots" - has anyone tried this and what kind of experiences do you have?

https://www.playfield-protectors.com/docs/PP_QuickTip_Wet_Spots.pdf

I've played games standing next to each with protector v.s. no protector.
The difference is minor, but noticeable.
For ex. I think it's a bigger difference between a jut cleaned pf v.s a tad dirty.
There's a ten fold bigger difference after you just cleaned the rubbers.

If i only played pf-prot machines i wouldnt notice it after a short while, similar to changing stick in hockey or tennisrackets.

Ed: if i was worried about anything in regards to pf-prots, it would probably be, that they block humidity to dissapate, but that shouldn't really be different from the varnish allready there?