I just joined the club tonight!! I hadn't planned on it, but it sort of fell in my lap today. So we will see if it lasts or not.

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And my first reactions are: Hey this game is a blast! And, OMG does a normal DMD look bad in this game. Color DMD ordered for it this morning has already shipped. It's something you can't unsee. I've played enough MET with one that regular dots just won't do.

And THIS is why I'm reading the owners thread! I didn't know that was possible, but I'm sure going to check my game tonight. That would be an awesome way to hit the scoop easy!

And yummy! It should be a required upgrade.

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I don't have the shaker in it yet.

I could see how it would rattle depending on the installation of the color DMD though. They listed the 2 washers on the posts as optional, but then the spacers (the stock ones that you reuse) would be loose because the hex post would bottom out.

This is how I have the corners.

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It's the clear shield, the black 1/4" spacer, 2 washers, and the hex post. That all locks down nice and tight.

The two posts in the center of the old DMD have 1/4" spacers, and one of the original DMD nuts to lock them.

Finally, the speaker wire is attached tightly at all 3 points it was before on the bottom of the old DMD using the mount screw for the DMD driver board that I didn't need because it was already a 5v DMD.

So I didn't see anywhere I could get new rattles. But I'll let you know once I get the shaker I ordered.

I'm not on the fence at all. LCD, hands down. The LED display looks out of focus to me because each color is in a slightly different spot. So the light that comes out of it is too sharp, and I don't like the look. I've installed quite a few in other folks games, and I never like it.

The LCD rocks.

And I had it in my AC/DC VE. The microswitch activation arms were curved up so far that they stopped a slow moving ball from registering. A small tweak to bend the arms with a switch adjuster cured it quickly.

Zooming into the picture above shows the bend in the blade. And therefore the roller is too high and holding up the ball. Look right into the lower window shown here and you will see it.

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It's called "Ball 2". Comon Man, play it out. With IM you are never out of it until the last ball drains, and the comeback is a thrill.

Ugh. I just walked into my gameroom and noticed that the head decals on my MET LED have peeled off half way. Is there some better glue for that, or do I need to get in touch with Stern and buy new ones?

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June of 2016. Thanks for the advice. I contacted support on their website. Hopefully that's quick and easy.

It went about as I expected. I contacted Stern and they said the game is out of warranty, so they are not covered and that I should contact a distributor to buy them... So I contacted my distributor to buy a set. Hopefully they fixed their glue issue on the new ones because I'm obviously going to clean that mess up.

Correct, it curled under. It looks like two because it had peeled from the back a while ago. Then it started peeling from the top, and then the weight of the decal seems to have pulled it half way down the side. As soon as I know how much it will cost, I'll probably just peel it off the rest of the way and clean the sides with alcohol to get it prepped for new stickers.

Any advice from anyone that has replaced these would be appreciated. I'm planning on the normal prep to clean it, then peel the top of the new ones, lightly line up the top, and then peel the protective part out from under as I stick it down. Working my way down the side lightly, then heavier as I'm sure it is aligned.

And then it didn’t go as expected... Stern stepped back in and is going to send me a set of backbox decals. It was a very pleasant surprise. But I guess not a huge surprise. They have taken care of me a couple of times over the years.

So while this started with me saying “Ugh”, it will all be fine. I’ll show a picture once I get them and install them.

Well done Stern, and thanks.

Welcome to the club! It's a great game!

My opinion on mods in mine so far... Love the ColorDMD in it. I really like the florescent plastic protectors. The snake mouth decal (though I have a Pro, so it fits). The "skull thingy" (again, Pro). The green under Fuel, and the colors under the main inserts (cross, sparky, coffin, snake).

The only one I'm a little unsure about is the LED OCD. I just put one in a couple days ago. I have it in other games, and it is perfect. But I'm not sure if I miss the attack of the LEDs in MET. I put one into IMVE the same day and thought it rocked right away. So it might take a couple weeks for me to adjust. And if I don't, I might try adjusting the settings for it.

And I didn't look at it as a mod for MET, I looked at it that if I sold MET I'd put it in a different game. It make the $400 easier if I'm not going to sell it later. I'll probably always own games they fit in. The DMD from the game goes in a box and I'll toss it back in the game to sell it.

My new backbox decals arrived (Thanks Chas!). They come rolled up, so I uncurled them over the course of a couple hours, and now they are sitting between some cardboard to make sure they stay flat.

The backbox looks really interesting without decals right now, but I'll take care of it soon.

Same here. I own both, and I’m not even close to either.

It may not be unbiased, but MET is a much better game. Spider-Man is fine. But it doesn’t have the spark that MET has. MET is just great.

The hammer was my biggest reason to make the same choice. I have a Pro and love it.

Look at the playfield, and if it's chipped... it probably has a bad playfield.

I don't mean to be flippant. But if you are buying used, look at it before you buy it. If it is NIB, Stern is pretty good about fixing issues on NIB games.

Oh, and Welcome to the Club! MET is a great game!

This game is a freaking blast. When I bought it 5 months ago I really had no idea if it was going to last in my house. And I had put today (the day I’m driving to Pintastic) as the day I would have sold it if it wasn’t fitting in.

Now that I’ve had it for a bit, I can say it’s greatness comes completely from Crank It Up. Without CIU MET is fairly average. Hit X a bunch to start it’s mode, then hit X a bunch again to collect its points. There are already a bunch of games that do that. Plus a couple of minor side things to do. However, collect enough of everything and you get yourself to CIU. And CIU is all about risk vs reward. The more you build the jackpot, the higher the risk of draining. You want to double that jackpot? Make more shots. It constantly adds pressure to make dangerous shots or fail.

It takes shots to get there, it takes good shots to complete it, and it takes good shots to get out with a big jackpot. OR it ends with swearing and giving the machine the finger as you drain. Lyman programmed it to have that nugget right where it should be. I almost feel like the game really starts when you get to CIU. The rest is fun, but that’s when you need to really play well.

Obviously the game isn’t going anywhere today

I just put a set in a couple days ago. I like them a lot!

I think it’s worth... keeping

I know, stupid answer. But my MET has taken over almost all my playing time lately. I just added a playfield protector, Cliffy’s, a shaker, mirror blades, and a few smaller changes (already had color DMD and the green plastic protectors,and other mods). Great game.

Wow. That was the exact example I was thinking of. Freaky.

You need a deep socket to pull the playfield post that the Cliffy goes under and yes, watch out, because it has a nut on the bottom of it that needs to come out first. So take off the nut from the bottom of the playfield, and then unscrew the metal post.

But really it’s easy. You don’t need to take the scoop itself out or anything.

I think you are correct. If the snake isn't lit, it just spits out the ball. You need to hit a shot to re-light it and qualify collecting another letter.

I'm in the process of adding lights under my snake because I found it easy to miss seeing it lit with all the other lights in the game. Otherwise I'd just go confirm it 100% on my game.

It really depends on which backbox you have in your game. But really, it is a pretty straighforward install.

Oh, and you chose your wife wisely.

Along with the other suggestions, it is possible that your flippers are adjusted too high. On my game it’s tough to hit, but possible with a good shot. But if you’re finding it impossible from the very end of the flipper, I’d adjust them down a bit. It’s your game, and it should be possible (but tough) to hit the shots.

That also gives you double scoring So with that, and double scoring at FUEL, welcome to the “Jack F**king Pot” club! Best call out in the game.

And once it’s so hammered that you can’t stand it, the magnet core can be replaced easily.

Jack F’in Pot is the best callout in the game. Especially when I’m trying to get it with 4x scoring. It’s fine when it happens by accident. But when I’m attempting to get it, and do, bliss.

I can go test that...

Nope. There is no cancellation on the 2nd or 3rd Sparky multiball.

Well that was a bit of a saga. Chas had sent me decals, but they were the wrong ones (for the old style backbox). After the right ones were sent (thanks Chas!), I sort of dragged my feet. However my Metallica is going to a show this weekend, so I dug in and out on new backbox decals.

It wasn’t nearly as bad as I feared it would be. I cleaned the backbox with alcohol. Then did a very light sanding to give it a key. Then another good cleaning with alcohol and clean rags until I felt it was ready.

I started with painters tape getting it in position I was happy with while it still had the backing on it. When I was satisfied with the position, I pulled the backing off the top inch and folded it under. Then some careful placement, and I had a good starting point. I then checked everything again, and moved the tape to the top. Finally I reached under and started peeling the backing while working the decal down with a microfiber cloth. I kept checking my position along the way, and was really careful to not get air bubbles under it.

Overall I’m happy with it. And I really was tired of just seeing the black side of the head.

Pardon the crappy picture. The game is in my garage for loading tomorrow.

Prepped surface:

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The end result:

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Unfortunately when it let go from the side of the head it kind of rolled the glue side together. I tried to pull it flat, but it just tore. So it was trash.

I do have the wrong set still (old style), but it would be a shame to do anything with them, because eventually I’m sure I’ll run into someone with that style head that lost a decal. And then it will be their lucky day.

I had 2 CIUs in a single game once. Both of them were pathetic. I always get greedy and try to double it. I’ve also learned it’s the fastest way to lose your ball, yet I keep trying.

What an odd issue.

My up post near the lanes started catching the ball and not releasing it. Then a ball search would pop it loose. I figured it was hanging up on the playfield protector or something dumb. Tonight it just stopped working.

Upon pulling the mech out, the post was just stuck in the sleeve. So out it came. Come to find out, the roll pin had worked loose and was jamming against the sleeve. I had just never seen that particular issue before.

You can see the roll pin highlighted by my finger. Just that little bit was enough to jam it.

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Obviously all it took was a quick tap with a hammer and a punch to fix.

How long does the honeymoon last? I’ve only owned MET for about 8 months now, but I still love this game. I’m still altering strategies on it. Lately I’ve been on a kick of getting shots completed and collecting the hurryups from them so they remain lit ball to ball. When I do it, I seem to really start building up scores. I still get greedy trying to double CIU collects, and it keeps costing me.

The game just seems able to meet my mood. If I want to just bash, I can just play multiballs. If I want complexity with risk reward, CIU. It just seems to scratch so many different itches.

I put one on my MET, and I love it on this game.

I’ve done a few, but I found MET went pretty easy and quick. I don’t recall any switch adjustments, but I would have taken the 10 seconds to do it if there were.

I have Cliffys in the shooter lane, and the scoop. At the scoop, the protector just lays over the Cliffy.

It won’t eliminate what’s there. So you will still see the ribbed texture if your game has it. I’m not the first owner of my MET, so the other day updating code the glare of the fluorescent tube really showed the playfield divots from before the protector. But I don’t care. The reason I did the protector on MET is because it gets quite a few games in my house, and I wanted it to last forever. I’ve put on protectors, but then taken them back off games because it didn’t play right. But on my MET, it’s great. Plus I took it to Saratoga for the show there, and barely had to clean it when I got back.

finnflash is correct. You don’t remove the Mylar. And as he said, you need to raise the drop targets, and also the post in the back. There are adjustments built into the mechs to raise them.

If it is, it is. Just keep your hand on the power switch when you flip it back on. If anything locks on, snap it back off and diagnose.

And of course, before any of that, check and connectors being “off by one”, especially the ribbon cables. Most have keys to prevent it, but sometimes things get missed. I’ve had ribbon cables on Whitestar off by half the block which causes all kinds of fun. So check everything again. Take them all back off, and start fresh before applying power again.

What... The... Hell... Now my nightmares are fed for the next year.

Sorry for the delay. I’ve had my MET for a while, so I don’t check the thread as much anymore.

Here is the picture on a Pro, and it looks like you’re wired correctly.

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So that leads us to standard debugging of an opto. And the easiest spot to check first is fuses. So pop open the backbox, flip on the game, CLOSE THE DOOR, and look at the nice LEDs Stern provides. Are they all lit?

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These are 3 statements from a person that should NOT sell his Metallica. In fact, I can take that a step farther... these are 3 statements from a guy that will have to buy another MET later for more money... Heed my words (and your own)... these are not the sounds of someone ready to sell a game.

He just did the Pro version as well, and the thing is a fun change up for the holidays!

Highly recommended.

Like everyone else, I think ColorDMD is a “must have” in this game. I have the shaker as well, but ColorDMD is the big one for me. It’s a really good implementation and looks like it should be there. Without it, the dots look old (in my opinion).

In my game room Aerosmith is right between MET and AFM (original). They are all great games. Right now on MET I’m still running that Christmas mix someone did, because it’s so awesome. I was never a huge fan or Metallica’s music, but the game is so darn good I got over it. This mix just fixes that.

That all said, my AFM is still fairly new to my house (6 months ish), so I’m playing it a ton. I had played it a lot over the years, but it’s greatness comes out when you own it. I only learned about the cumulative Annihilation Jackpot about a month ago. And trying to intentionally set up dirty pool is a blast. But just trying to light everything to Rule the Universe (I haven’t), and destroying saucers is so rewarding.

I don’t have enough time on the new JP to make a real evaluation. I’ve enjoyed playing it, but I found the call outs a spec annoying. Hopefully in the future I can get enough games to really know it.

Hi Mike. I own both MET and IM, so I’ll give my opinion. First, the easy part, I love both games. But they are very different animals.

IM is a spectacular “quick hit”. You can play 3 games in 10 minutes and reach the depths and the heights of pinball satisfaction or anger. It is amazing how quickly it can suck you in, because it is just a fight. IM provides pinball satisfaction, but needs other games around it. It’s not a great standalone game. It’s shallow, but oh, so fun.

MET is a great “all around” game because it’s got a LOT to do. There are tons of different ways to play it. Some days I do “Sparky all day”. Other days it’s all about CIU. Sometimes it’s Snake Multiball, or Seek And Destroy, or Lady Justice. It’s got a lot going on. And the best part of that is that I can approach he game differently any time I want to. It’s a basher, it’s a shooter, it can play whatever type of thing your in the mood for.

So overall, I think MET is the better game. That’s not selling IM short, but MET has much more variety. I tend to follow a path on IM that is a bit too locked in. I’m qualifying drones, raising Monger, starting Warmachine, starting Monger. It’s wonderful to “do the thing”, and collecting DoD hurryup Right into Jericho is a blast. But if I could only have one of those two games, it would be MET. YMMV.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/metallica-owners-thread/page/280#post-4532255

I did this on my MET a while back. The biggest thing is the surface preparation before putting on the new one. And then the biggest thing is being very precise with placement. Make sure you have blue painters tape for the placement.

It’s pretty easy, but a bit nerve wracking. Just because it’s not something we commonly do. If you have any questions that my old post doesn’t answer, I’ll try to answer them.

In my local “for sale” thread there was a MET being offered and there was a comment on it this morning. It got me thinking about my MET.

MET might be one of the greatest games ever made. I’m making that statement after owning it for 3 years, so it’s no longer the honeymoon. The reason I bought MET was it fell into my lap for a great price. The price where I could own it for 6 months and get every dime back when I sold it. Those are my favorite kind of deals, almost like a free rental. So of course I did it.

Very quickly I liked the game. It was always fine (I had played it on location with older code), but the honeymoon was as good as you would expect. It would get a lot of play, and was pretty reliable. I added a few things, changed a bit of the lighting (green light strips under the snake look cool), ColorDMD, Cliffys, the usual stuff. I even took it to the Saratoga pinball show. Fun times.

And then the honeymoon waned. It just became another game in my collection. I always enjoyed playing it, just like all my games. But it lived right in the middle of the group. A really good game. It became one of my “end of the night” games. A game I’d play after hosting league, or if I got home from traveling and just wanted to play pinball.

There was one other change that others may not agree with, and that is the soundtrack I have on there. I wasn’t a huge Metallica fan, but really enjoyed the game. When the “Christmas Mix” version came out, I loaded it as a joke. I thought it would be fun for the season that year. Well I thought it was just awesome! So I ended up keeping it there through the year. This definitely falls into the category of “my game, my rules”. I always think people should set up their games how they like them, no matter what anyone else thinks. I really like that music on there.

And that brings us to today. Once in a while I do a “King of the collection” process with my games. It’s just a match play process of “which game would I sell”. And MET wins that competition. If I could only have one game, right now it would be MET.

It’s the variety in the game. I can play it different ways depending on my mood. That’s because of the different objectives in the game. I laugh now when people call it “wood choppy”, because yes, you have to make some shots to get rewards, welcome to pinball. I still have problems making the piston shot because I love hitting the combo right ramp to piston shots together. The multiballs are fun, and the Jack F$#&$* Pot call out still amuses me. Hitting the ramps back and forth leads to fun. Pretty much anything you do leads to fun. And you can focus in on individual ones, making it vary how you want to play. Overall it’s a great package. I think the game is going to be with me a long time. The first 3 years have worked out great!