(Topic ID: 251566)

New here, 1st post, just brought home my 1st game yesterday.

By misterman

4 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 48 posts
  • 40 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 4 years ago by mbaumle
  • Topic is favorited by 2 Pinsiders

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22
#1 4 years ago

So I've been wanting a pinball machine for awhile now, not much available near me in Iowa. Came across a Whirlwind locally and decided to jump on it. So the power cord has a spot for a ground but it's missing, I'm guessing I need to fix that? Also the score panel was missing some segments at first but it seems to have fixed itself. Also the ball lock will not lock, as soon as I get one down there it'll just kick it right out. Either way I'm excited, not scared to work on it. Any tips for a new guy, I'll listen. By the way I'm located in the Quad Cities in Iowa.

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33
#2 4 years ago

Welcome to the obsession! Tip 1 replace the power cord. Tip 2 replace some of those atrocious LEDs with less blues and reds

#3 4 years ago

Tip 3, see tip 2

#4 4 years ago

Welcome. great pic for your first game. I agree with the two above those leds got to go.

#5 4 years ago

Congratulations, looks like a nice Whirlwind.

ipdb.org if you need a copy of the machine manual
Make sure all the connectors in the cabinet and backbox are seated properly and not burnt, and take a good look at the soldered connections for any loose wires or other problems
pinrepair.com to help figure out issue with ball lock
pinballlife.com for new power cord and flipper rebuild kit (cheap and worth having even if they don't need it right now)
cometpinball.com for led's; 1 or 2 SMD frosted white bulbs would be way better for playfield and most of the backbox lighting
Make sure it's level and pitched properly - makes a big difference to game play
Start figuring out where you're going to put more machines

#6 4 years ago

Well, there's a good fucking start !
Enjoy the Addictoin

#7 4 years ago

Whirlwind was my first solid state and I still have her 13 years later

#8 4 years ago

Make friends locally; find out if there's a competitive scene around. You'll usually find a couple of super techs in that scene who you can befriend. They'll help you out when you need at a reasonable price.

Next: Move your game about 8" left. Put that dining room table on Craigslist and you'll have room for 1-3 more.

#9 4 years ago

If you see the plant shaking, it might just be nervous, that it will be replaced by a more colorful machine.

#10 4 years ago

Excellent choice for your first Pin!

Pretty soon it will get lonely and need friends...

#11 4 years ago
Quoted from ArcadiusMaximus:

Welcome to the obsession! Tip 1 replace the power cord. Tip 2 replace some of those atrocious LEDs with less blues and reds

Apparently, blinding purple, red, and blue leds make the playfield artwork “pop”. At least that’s what those people keep saying who throw that crap in a game.

#12 4 years ago

Congratz! Whirlwind is a great machine and will surely get you deeper and deeper in the hobby. Hope you've got space for more machines!

Also, like others already said, replace those leds with warm whites or something haha

#13 4 years ago

As long as the fan works you're in great shape.

#14 4 years ago

Congrats, Whirlwind is a great pin, wish I never got rid of the one I had a few years back.

#15 4 years ago

Welcome!! You picked a great first game.

#16 4 years ago

Great game
Now you got to collect all the system 11s

#17 4 years ago

Welcome. Congrats on your first pin!
Before long you will have a second then they multiply very quickly after that.

#18 4 years ago

Welcome and don't be afraid to work on it. Dive right in.

#19 4 years ago

Congrats! Have fun with that. Buddy of mine locally has had a whirlwind as his only pin for years. He still loves it.

#20 4 years ago

Read the manual. Then read the manual again. Most questions will be answered. If not then just ask for help. Someone will always help.

Playball!!

#21 4 years ago

Welcome to the addiction...errr hobby! Plenty of good advice so far, i will reiterate replacing the power cord or at least the plug on the end of it--we've had a few recent threads where people were reporting mild shocks coming from their games, and in each case the ground prong was missing from the plug. Beside that, here's a few good places to order parts from:

Http://www.marcospecialties.com
Http://www.pinballlife.com
Http://www.pbresource.com

Here's the link to the manual in case your game didn't come with one: https://www.ipdb.org/files/2765/Williams_1990_Whirlwind_Operations_Manual_Br_With_Schematics.pdf

My best advice for now is to just bask in the awesomeness of owning a pinball machine! Good first pick, btw!

#22 4 years ago
Quoted from frunch:

My best advice for now is to just bask in the awesomeness of owning a pinball machine! Good first pick, btw!

Nothing like that 1st pin feeling, only get to experience that once, don't get me wrong you will feel good about the next but, as the saying goes "you never forget the first time". My advice is to turn all the lights out, then fire your pin up and just sit back and bask in it's glow!

#23 4 years ago

Thanks for all the advice everyone! First project is the power cord. I'll be stopping by the hardware store today before work. And luckily I do have the manual it was buried way in the back under the playfield in a brown paper envelope with another manual and all sorts of little inserts ads and game rule cards etc...

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#24 4 years ago

Congratulations on your 1st game! Whirlwind is a great game. Enjoy!

#25 4 years ago
Quoted from misterman:

So I've been wanting a pinball machine for awhile now, not much available near me in Iowa. Came across a Whirlwind locally and decided to jump on it.

Everyone who lands their first pin
gets an 'Atta Boy!

#27 4 years ago

Might as well pick up a good soldering station for the job. This one is great:

https://www.amazon.com/Hakko-FX888D-23BY-Digital-Soldering-Station/dp/B00ANZRT4M/ref=zg_bs_13837391_3

#28 4 years ago

Congrats!

Interestingly, that game looks WAY better unlit than it does lit with that assortment of rainbow colored LEDs. I think others have given good advice on what to do.

Quoted from misterman:

Also the score panel was missing some segments at first but it seems to have fixed itself.

I like it when games fix themselves...they don't always seems to stay that way though.

#29 4 years ago

That's a horrible first machine to get. You're going to end up liking pinball even more and that will lead to more purchases.

#30 4 years ago

Repeat Tip 3 over and over until all color LED's are removed.

Have fun, Great machine.

Cheers

#31 4 years ago

https://www.pinside.com/pinball/machine/whirlwind/owners

zoom in on your location and see if anyone nearby owns one -- consider reaching out and making a new friend

859 owners of WW -- that's a LOT. Top-20 owned pin from the SS/DMD era.

#32 4 years ago

The thing no one can prepare you for, or has mentioned here.....

You will be humming the background music all day and you will randomly blurt out quotes from the machine.

"Well, loooky here"
"Now, get out!"

"The storm has ended, return to your homes"

Etc etc

#33 4 years ago

I like the colored LEDs. Do what you like. These guys will have you making black and white themes if they could lol haha

#34 4 years ago

To help with step 2, I'll give a plug for Comet Pinball. I would start out with some bulk packs of sunlight frosted LEDs.

https://www.cometpinball.com/products/2smd-bulbs

#35 4 years ago

That's a great machine to get started in this hobby. Welcome! Something that hasn't been mentioned yet, is the search function on this site. You can search for any (troubleshooting) topics that are specifically linked to Whirlwind, for instance. Happy reading, this site's an amazing resource of information.

#36 4 years ago
Quoted from lpeters82:

To help with step 2, I'll give a plug for Comet Pinball. I would start out with some bulk packs of sunlight frosted LEDs.
https://www.cometpinball.com/products/2smd-bulbs

I'll second that for the gi. Color match inserts with 1smd bulbs except for orange/yellow where warm white looks better. Finish with OCD LED board to keep the stock fade patterns. I have a friend that has a similar setup on his Whitewater and looks stunning. I don't mind some color in gi but that backbox is tragic. Artwork is blown out and colors just not right.

#37 4 years ago

All time fav.
Other than cosmetics, check head and secure board connections and take proper steps to get batteries off the board if not done already ASAP.
Plenty of help here - enjoy!

#38 4 years ago

Id hit up Cointaker for bulbs as my opinion... https://cointaker.com/

-3
#39 4 years ago

Hi Fellow Iowan! Welcome to the obsession.

I would probably remove the red LEDs in the backbox but if you like the look then keep it. Personally, I like a *little* color applied strategically. I might go with a Pinstadium to brighten up that playfield. Happy times ahead for you!

#44 4 years ago

Make space for number two... they seem to attract each other.

#45 4 years ago

Congrats on the whirlwind! I just picked one up a month ago. Totally love it!

#46 4 years ago

Welcome to the wonderful world of pinball my friend. You are in for an amazing ride !

LTG : )

#47 4 years ago

Congrats on your first pin!! Me being newer to the pin side (no pun intended) of arcade/pin collecting, I can definitely speak to the awesome group of people here on Pinside and the crazy amounts of info that you can find. And as for one turning into many more, that’s certainly true as well! Enjoy the hunt, the fixing, the playing, and more importantly all the great people you’ll meet along the way!

#48 4 years ago

You're going to be spoiled now since Whirlwind is your first game. An absolute classic, and one of the best, if not the best System 11 game!

That locking ball issue seems to be pretty common. There's a club group that has a good ongoing discussion about the game, you can find that here:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/whirlwind-club-members-only

Here are a few threads helping others troubleshoot a similar problem that you're having:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/whirlwind-multi-ball-sometimes-starts-before-the-third-ball-is-plunged
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/whirlwind-ball-lock-issue

As for the display with the segments out, that's usually just the nature of those gas plasma displays as they age. Like neon, they'll sorta fizzle in and out. I'm a firm believer in "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" so until the display becomes debilitating to gameplay, I say leave it in. As it warms up, those dead segments will come back to life.

But what is debilitating are those LEDs, holy cow. Rip those out ASAP. I mean, if you like them, keep them, but regular incandescents are going to be much easier on the eyes and really light up the artwork as the artist intended.

Most importantly, HAVE FUN! Lots of great people around here to offer their sage advice.

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