Hello all, picked up LE this game a few days ago, and am hooked. 2 days in and my high score is in to 200,000’s, and that was on a couple multiplied skilled shots when using Will (all happened in 20 seconds). Not sure I even completed any chapters. I have completed plenty of chapters but just not high score games. Is this game, on top of having massively complex Rules (in a good way) also hard as hell in just the pinball mechanics? I seem to be getting an excessive amount of drains (like out of the Jack / chapter start and Tartuga hole)? Maybe I need to adjust playfield angles (don’t have an inclinometer yet) but front/back is around 6.5 degrees. Or maybe it’s just pinball.

Anyway super excited about the purchase and completely hooked (to the extent we watched the movies tonight), but wondering if I’ll ever get to 7 figures scores.

With 300 pages in the forum topic, I guess I have a lot of reading to do.

nice, thanks for the tips guys. Link is amazing info. Found a couple of applicable posts.

This was the case on mine. Didn’t want to pull the pop bumper off so just tightened the screw I could get to and solved the issue (temporarily until I can get the bumper off).

So initially the deflector was loose, and I thought I fixed it. Then noticed I did for most, the ball was now mostly going to the left flipper vs the right and down the drain. Just had a drain in my high score game from the tartuga vuk on the last ball, thought I was going to put my fist through the glass.

Screws are tight with as much left angle On the deflector as possible. Interestingly, there is hardly (If any) a difference when I adjust the coil strength. Possible the assembly beneath the playfield could be loose, or maybe a coil (or sleeve) issue?

What should the expected behavior be? The same (Or close) every time? Left flipper? Or is it supposed to be dangerous and drain one out of three?

Thank you!

Great question. How would I know if it’s the updated plate, and is there a part number or where would I get it? Ended my attempt to get the high character score with Cotton tonight .

Thank you!

Yes thank you and done. I have the small one. Big one is free, on the way!

Hi all, playing a ton, finally getting some good games, but still don’t have that once in a lifetime game yet. For now just working on getting high scores for each Character and about halfway there. Wanted to ask, is there a scoring or strategy guide topic for this game? Also, is there a way to get The ball safely from the left flipper to the right flipper? It works vice versa hitting the flipper twice quickly. Thanks!

Ugh.... I was pretty excited about my 1.5M score. Clearly I have much to learn!!!

What I haven’t really figured out yet are the skull values / holds. Seem to default to 1000, and I’ve seen much more on some. When do these points apply? Every time I hit that skull lane again anytime? Or only when I hit the character after a chapter is started? How do I increase their value? I saw an increase in the Tartuga prize, can’t imagine that’s the only way. Also, how do I get a hold (I think I also saw in a Tartuga Prize)? And if one of the skulls is high, what’s the best way to take advantage of that high skull value? Thanks all!!!

Hoping I can get some feedback on what the flipper power should be (or how it is on your all’s in comparison). I think I’m fine but just curious. I have all coil settings to default.

Maelstrom - can make it up the ramp no issue from a hold on the right flipper.

Right ramp (leading to black pearl) - can not make it up the ramp from a left flipper hold. Makes it about halfway. Ball needs a pretty good run down one of the lanes.

Chest (when ready to lock) - can’t do it from the left flipper (can run it through when not in lock mode no issue). From the right flipper (even when just holding) it has to be a perfect shot (and I find myself pushing the flipper button harder lol). Get some rejects when it’s off just a hair or maybe the shot isn’t powerful enough.

Those are the only shots that really require power. Is this how it should be or do I need to up the flipper coil values and/or consider rebuilding (assuming not the case, machine was very well maintained before I got it).

Thanks!

I’ve got about a half a degree difference in the front and back, and I took the 6.5 in the middle so maybe a hair steep at the back. I did bump up the left flipper coil a few and it felt great.

Thanks for the advice.

I really appreciate some of the discussion on the rules. I was just trying to get the high score on each of the characters (my machine used to be on route), and down to the last few. I got to Scrum (I think I'm remembering that right, not looking at it), and got a 6X bonus, which is automatically held over by that character. Got my highest score ever of around 1.7M. So now I'm thinking the PIRATE lanes are really important. Which do you all find the most important to be able to score more? Love the Arrr Frenzy and of course the bonus multiplier was great (@6x), getting 150k after every ball.

Thanks!

I’m for putting a 5 second ball save on the chapter start / star map / jack little area After starting a chapter. Total nonsense to get a SDTM out of that. Rare, but annoying as hell! I’d say the same for the Tartuga drains but hoping the extended snubber bracket fixes that and it’s in the mail. Short vent over. Back to it.

That definitely works and it’s a rare problem (For me) but it sucks when on a good run and it happens. Tartuga drains are almost 33% of the time for me and it’s maddening. Have the new snubber bracket Coming but the mail couldn’t go any slower it seems.

Actually did this and it worked great, however got the updated bracket in the mail, installed and now it’s perfect. Firmly puts the ball on the left flipper every time. Either works but for consistency, I’d get the new bracket.

Longer one is the new/updated version. Ordered and received from JJP.

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I’d say you need it. Tartuga drains were driving me batshit. Other solutions are out there (Setting VUK coil strength to 6 so it trickles out) but for consistency I believe this is the best.

This may be more of a general pinball question but it relates to my Pirates game so I guess I’ll ask it here. What should the gap be on the slingshot switches? Somehow it’s super sensitive on the left side (like 1mm or less, to the point that the air can fire it occasionally, I know that’s not right) and way less sensitive on the right side (probably 2-3mm on both, ball has to hit it pretty good at a fairly right angle). I’ve got the tool to bend the leafs, but want to know how it’s supposed to be?

Thanks!

Went to pull the switches out to adjust, and realize it’s not the switches at all. My left slingshot rubber is pretty ripped up. It hardly has any integrity to it which makes the switch is much easier to trip on that side. Any suggestions on best rubber to buy for this game specifically the sling shot so that I can order? I did not see it on the jersey jack website so assuming it is a generic rubber part? Would love any thoughts so I can place an order, thanks!

I’ve got all but Cotton over 1 million. My high score is 2.7 million. These scores are nuts LOL.

Seems to have self corrected, but what sort of switch causes the most start post to come up, assuming an opto up there? For some reason tonight, and the beginning of my game it would start a mode (post would come up) as soon as I qualified one. Anybody had this happen?

This may be more of a generic pinball question, but going to start here as this is the machine that is applicable. I've got my flipper strength dialed up pretty high on my Pirates, as I need to, to be able to get up the ramp, chest, etc. It just plays much better. On all of my older machines, there are no flipper strength settings, so when they get weak, I just rebuild the flipper (sometimes all the way up to the bushing, the sleeves and coil stops are always junked, etc), and presto, new again. My Pirates was routed, so it has a lot of plays, and I'm assuming the flippers are just getting weaker, and I'm offsetting the fade with additional flipper strength in the settings. So I guess my question is, should I rebuild my Pirates flippers (as I would an old WPC) and dial back down the flipper settings to default levels? And if so, I've never rebuilt a JJ flipper, but it looks like all the others, is this a generic order or does it have to come from JJ?

I'm interest to understand what dialing the coil strength does in the settings, just adjust the amount of power going to the coil (which would then either be stronger or weaker?)

Thanks!

I changed out coil stops and sleeves, and did some cleaning and holy crap. I barely missed the right ramp and had reject airball bang the glass and back over the top of the left flipper. So I dialed them back to default and it’s perfect. Way more balls up the right ramp onto the Black Pearl. They just needed changing all back to normal (and I can start counting flips!).

If you go into the menu does it show any switch test errors? Wondering if your lock switches are stuck closed somehow? You’re supposed to have to hit each lock switch (on either side of the chest) to lock a ball.

The one that kills me the most is drops down, hits the gold targets, then goes straight down the left outline (the one that drains). Don’t have much SDTM.

Rebuild flippers! I had mine for 500 games before I realized I should be able to backhand the right ramp. Rebuilt my flippers and changed the game.

Is it just a 2032 battery on the main board? I hadn’t thought about it as I’m the second owner, but I guess I should be?

I posted my LE for sale for $20k a few weeks before everybody else did the same thing and got blasted by a couple of seemingly unhappy people who apparently missed economics class. You’re not losing if you can double or triple your money on anything, I wouldn’t feel bad about listing it for $30k. Needless to say, I took it down and decided to keep mine (even after $20k seems to be the target price for an LE).

Ditto.

I didn't want Davy Jones on my play field. The topper makes it worth it and now that I know better, I'd rather have a CE, but I like the LE aesthetics better (other than the topper).

Who cares what they think/say. Likely you have one and they don’t.

This

I had to take the ship off, but not the chest.