I believe the one that sold for around 1k was a nos one ...

whysnow youre a complete bellend,
just go away

I just watched one sell 3-4 months ago on ebay, it sold for $450 and that was the highest ive ever seen.

that one was on ebay about a year ago (give or take a few months)

They are insanely tough to find it seems.

This is a very needed item.

ok, check.

Based on this my advice is to set it as high as you can. You can always step the price down 6 months later to find out where buyers like PinDelaPin are willing to jump in. I have to think anyone willing to buy a poorly done sticker and bust out the stripper glitter for arts and crafts, would love to buy the real deal

I am just happy to see someone appears to finally be figuring this all out!

Again for someone who doesnt even own the game i really fail to understand your relevancy here. Thats right arts and crafts hour did take place all for a whopping cost of bout $45. Nowhere near the $1000 you have so eloquently stated for an original. Because Oh thats right I do actually own the game and have like others had to make do. After all the negative downvotes you get in every thread you partake one would think you would learn how to turn that trend around. I guess being a cynical busybody comes natural to you though. You have nothing positive to contribute wherever and whatever group you slither into. So keep trolling these groups of people trying to stay positive and Help other fellow pinheads out and you will continue to shine light on yourself for what you truly are. So keep clicking your pink pumps together and wishing for a new shiny white water with a brand new topper while the rest of us are enjoying ours with or without a $1000 topper.

not sure what you are talking about. I am rooting on this guy that is putting a bunch of effort into making a bunch of current and future Whitewater owners very happy!

Even if he sells for $500, he is basically allowing anyone missing a topper to add an instant $250 additional on top of that to the value of their current sans topper game. Seems like that would be a hell of a deal.

I did not realize I need to own the game to have an opinion on a topper. I would personally like to add a whitewater to the collection and assuming this turns out to be a success, then it sure is nice to open up the possibility of finding a game w/o a topper knowing that I could add in the reproduction.

Dennis was interviewed on Head to Head last year and remembered practically nothing about it, including who made it. He would be of no help.

It is, frankly, very strange that Dennis does not remember such a thing, because the printing process is one of a kind and only one company in the world could do it. It is the only company that has invented this printing process and the patent is theirs.

I'm contacting this company, these days, even to try to get the exact same print.
I hope that they listen to my requests, also because the big companies usually work only on large orders of number of pieces to be printed.

The type of industrial printing should be cheap, and the price could be very low for everyone.

Otherwise I would have to open a kickstarter project, but I would not like this idea, because right now there would be little time for it.
Unfortunately, between family and work, time is always short ....

I imagine that many would be curious to know other information. But if I said openly, as the waterfall does to move, based on what principle, what is called the type of print and who could print the topper, many would speculate on this information and my hard work to discover all these things.

But if I do not succeed, for one reason or another, in this venture, do not worry.

The main reason that pushed me to do it is to help you in this problem that concerns you for years.
Finally find a solution.
Then I remind you that everything was born as a game.

So, if I do not have to be satisfied with the result, one day on my blog I will publish detailed information on everything, with the explanation of this mixed topper, the name of the technique, detailed photos and how I made it all, information on who could print it , so that a company that works in the pinball industry can say to invest money to make this print.

I do not come from the pinball world, I also have other interests, so I would do this for you. I would never take this secret with me to the grave!

I love your dedication for perfection and you've never even played the game keep up the great work !

Whysnow i read your story in your profile.
You have a great passion for the pinball.
Pinball is your life and you are lucky because your family help you, every day, to make great this passion!

There's a thread on Pinside about a pinsider tracked down the vendor who made the effect and the plates (or whathaveyou) were lost.

Good luck to you Gibranx! I can't remember how many people have taken up the challenge but nobody has figured it out yet!

A good news and a bad news!

beginning with the bad news ..
They answered me from the company that uses the topper printing method. (In recent years, many companies have bought and sold this company, I believe on the verge of bankruptcy).

They told me that they had closed the business branch they had acquired, in short, nothing to do. I asked him if they knew another company that could use their printing method and are waiting for an answer.

The good news.
I got the lights and they work well!

But I had to do a micro test on another material because I did not get what I was hoping for.

Then I said to myself: now I do not have to give up.

I dug in the drawer of my desk, where I had a sample of a material not yet tested. It is in fact the best one for this technique, which idiots not to have arrived at this conclusion before. But you know, you have to make a lot of mistakes to learn!

Result of the small and fast test:
From 2 meters in height the waterfall moves, which gave me problems with the previous material. A huge problem solved!

Now, however, I have to redo from scratch a final test on this new material, hoping everything is ok.

If I do not see and touch with my hand, I am the first to not believe it!

Once you've done that, of course, I'll show you a video of how it's seen. I think I will have work between lighting and drawing of the design for about 2/3 weeks.

Cross your fingers

Update

they answered me.

They told me that they are sorry.
They have closed forever and no one can produce that kind of print.

Knowing the technique, I managed to replicate it manually. So nothing is lost.

Luckily!

Now I'm in touch with one of the greatest experts in Italy that maybe could help me, because it deals with a type of very similar prints.
Always for the speech to make them faster.

It is a pity that a historic company, which invented many years ago this innovative printing technique has closed. But I am sincere. I've been a graphic designer for 20 years, and neither my colleagues nor I knew this technique and this company.

Shame to be too late!

But nothing is lost, because there are my videos that show that you can get the same effect by doing everything by hand with hard work.

I haven't owned a WH2O in about 15 years but am watching this thread carefully. It would be a monumental achievement to be able to re-create this and certainly deserving of a 2019 TWIPY award if completed. Good luck.

Hello.

I am really glad that you are willing to reproduce the topper, as I see it from your posts it is a true project of passion. I have an extra topper so I can lend it to you to help you achieving your goal. I will also pay for shipping both ways. Time frame for project completion is not an issue for me.
Thank you for doing this for all Whitewater owners out there.

awesome gesture!!!

This is the demonstration that God exists!

Today I wanted to send a message asking if the pinside members could send me very close pictures and videos of the topper. As you well know, I do not have any type of pinball machine at home and the only friend I know who has an original wh2o topper is 800 km from home.

I can not say if and between how long I will complete the project. But Rygar, you will remain in history for helping me! Looking closely at the topper will make me discover many things, and maybe it will help me to improve my work!

Rygar unfortunately I live in Italy and I'm sorry for the shipping costs .... I do not know how to thank you .... when I finish it will be a pleasure to return the topper! The original will also be very useful to see how it behaves with my lights ...

I'm moved ... it's incredible all this, it's true, I always thought that it was not right that no one had managed to do a job like that. To me it involves many sacrifices, time that I can dedicate to my family, spending little money, I just hope to be able to do a good job, to get closer to the original topper.

I can not promise to be able to clone the original topper, because as you know, the only company that could try it has closed forever. But I promise you that I will do my best to try and do the best job possible.

Rygar thank you so much! God bless you!

Here is the topper (the one in front).

Wh2oTopper.jpg

Davi,
Thank you! I have equipment to see strong enlargements, but if I need it, I will gladly contact you!

I'm making new tests. Compared to the previous ones there is a noticeable improvement, as the animation of the water is visible from any angle.

The kit of lights that my friend Enzo has made me are perfect, and I can not wait to test them on the original topper that the great Rygar is sending me.

I am also experimenting with a new pattern of water movement to get a better movement in the effect of falling water.

work in progess

https://vimeo.com/312273354

I publish these images/video according to the law in force in Italy
Legge 22 aprile 1941 n. 633 art. 70 - 1 bis

Id call that, "Success!" Nice work!

Amazing, but like Art said above I’d call that a success rather than a work in progress

This is starting to really look promising. Nicely done.

Molto bene signore!

Excellent work mate...does look fantastic

Wow, that looks great. I no longer own a WW but I'd probably buy one of the toppers just to support your efforts!

Bravo! Muy bien! Molto buona! Muito bom! Отлично! Great job!

wow, think that might look better than my original.

Thank you all guys!
Now I'm adding bubbles under the waterfall.
Maybe I'm doing another test from scratch, after this, because I still want to improve the movement of the waterfall in the middle.
As soon as I get the original that the mythical Rygar kindly sent me, I will be able to make some serious and precise comparisons, and understand more.

I think I created a movement of water in the central part thicker and dense than the original. This is why I would like to see if I can do even better.

Then I wanted to win a challenge against myself, to do it without ever having seen and touched the original!

I do not think my waterfall is better than the original, seriously! Is not that by chance someone has burnt out some lightbulbs and it does not work well?

I used 12v 3w bulbs. I know perfectly that the originals are from 14v. For a mistake they sent them to 12v and so now it works like this. If it does not go well I will have to make myself realize from scratch, from my friend Enzo, a card for that electric voltage.

Everything is still being tested, as you well see.
I saw that in the past "someone" took money in advance without ever showing a real movie of his work.
This is an incorrect way of working.

I am glad that there is a lot of enthusiasm on your part about my challenge to be able to recreate this legendary and impossible topper!

Maybe for many it is something done now, but not for me!
Maybe you will not believe it, but I'm still not sure I've done a good job..this why I miss the comparison with the original pinball.

Rygar, that I can never thank him enough, with his contribution in lending me an original topper, (I hope to return it soon when it arrives) will allow me to see if I really did a good job.

Unfortunately I just received the answer from an Italian expert I had contacted that perhaps could help me to mechanically make prints for the topper.
He can not help me, he told me.

Bad luck, now I'm doomed to make every hand-made topper!
It has now become an artistic work for me. In the sense that if I make two topper, they will never be identical, just because they are made by hand.

However the topper will do the same!

20190120_222350 (resized).jpg

I publish these images according to the law in force in Italy
Legge 22 aprile 1941 n. 633 art. 70 - 1 bis

If your end up being able to pull this off and it's certainly looking like you have a strong shot of doing it then you certainly will be ranked number 1 in the pinball hall of fame. Im sure I speak for all here when I say we are all pulling for you to succeed.

Its like he found Bigfoot!....Wait!

Your perseverance is exceptional!

Haven't owned a WH2O in over a decade but this thread fascinates me. The only thing that worries me is that PPS is no doubt also following this thread...

The topper package is on the way to Gibranx and should arrive before the weekend. In the meantime there are some close up pics of the topper.

IMG_5658.JPG

IMG_5660.JPG

IMG_5661.JPG

IMG_5662.JPG

IMG_5663.JPG

IMG_5664.JPG

IMG_5665.JPG

It's such a beautiful topper!

Thanks Rygar!

Beautiful photos!

A friend of mine in Italy, Nik, showed me some very similar pictures. But seeing and doing tests and comparisons with a real topper surely my work will improve, it's a mathematical fact!

As for the PPS talk, I can only say that, as far as I'm concerned, I'm doing an artistic work, as it is my hands and my brain that, manually and very slowly, are making this topper.
The reference is for the part of the animated waterfall.

To make a topper it takes many days of work, considering that I do it in my spare time.
So, if I wanted to make a topper to the maximum of my ability, doing a super precise job, increasing the detail even more, surely I could achieve maximum 2 per month, not more.

Then maybe one day I also find a solution not to do them by hand and save time, but to find this solution I should do other experiments and block everything to experiment with a different production technique. I would have a half idea, but I do not know if it works and then, I think, it would take me at least 6 months or 1 year, without knowing if it works.

For now I continue manually.
Even in the original technique there was a manual process, as it is not a job that can be done on the computer.
And this has been said by those who until recently were the inventors of this unique printing process.

The last topper that Twisted Pins produced and was approved by pps was a piece of shite.....

Should have never been allowed for sale to the public!!!!!

I better sell my original for $1k before this hits the market.

its true.
the original is the original.

for us, in Italy, ancient things have a much higher value than new ones. The originals are always better than reproductions.
If then maybe I can make it identical, or (maybe!) Better .... who knows!
For me this adventure continues every day, for you all!

That’s what people said about MM & AFM before CGC brought the remakes to the market.

Gibranx work is amazing and is looking closer to the original, I can see him making this as good as, if not better than the original toppers

It will be very difficult already to make it identical to the original, it will perhaps be impossible to do it better!

When Rygar's original topper arrives, I'll find out what you can do and improve.

I am a very fussy person and I am still not satisfied with the result, because I think I can push myself even further with the work, I can do even better, but working more slowly.

When I have studied the original topper and done my best I will tell you: this is the best I could do, do you like it? Can it be good for you?
That's all!

We are all appreciative of your enduring effort to help all of us topperless wh20 owners. Looking forward to seeing whatever it is your hard work produces.

What you have done already is amazing if you can make it better, which I’m confident you will I can’t see why you can’t match or better the original, either way though I think you have cemented yourself in the pinball hall of fame with this

The topper has already arrived to Italy (not delivered to Gibranx yet) according to the post tracking number info.

So let me get this straight. We do massive calculations and build spacecraft to send a man to the moon but we can't reproduce a sticker? Hmmm... If you can solve this dilemma Gibranx i'm sure you will be on the board of directors at NASA. When you get this problem solved we should send 1 to twisted pins also.

Screenshot_20190124-045918_Gallery (resized).jpg

it appears imminent...

you may have missed the boat on that one?