Ohhhh boy here we go again. No bueno. This is crazy for sure that it’s still happening.

Yeah, my SW does have more supportive corner brackets but they are not the traditional Williams style brackets, probably half or quarter of the size like below.metallics-everbilt-corner-braces-15442-64_1000 (resized).jpg

Yep they really need to use the better brackets....you cld feel the split bad...

cabinet issues before we even get to see the premium....waaa wa wahhhh.

If anyone is getting a new Stern or has a newer Stern made in the past 2 years I wouldn't recommend using rubber feet casters as they will result in more stress on the corners of the game. Better to allow the game to slide slightly due to the way the cabinets are now being manufactured.

9k US and you get cheap filler wood instead of plywood? Seriously? I guess I was out of the loop. Is this one reason why my AS feels way lighter than say my Sopranos? Why Stern why? It's 9k US!

Damn. Thought this was fixed. At least I have the B/W brackets waiting. I would turn the shaker off in that machine bigd, or remove it.

That was shitty to see.

Which brackets should be used to replace with? Can someone provide a specific link.

What title did they start using crappier brackets with?

Marco sells the larger old school Bally Williams brackets. They are a must with all new Sterns.

Why oh why won't Stern spend some of their profits and put decent brackets inside cabinet

Cabinets definitely lighter now.

Not even got my Maiden yet and before I play -

Add cabinet brackets
Cliffy's
Metal leg protectors

Same SS but I only played at MGC. Where would Cliffys go? Is there a scoop in back can't see in pics, I mean there has to be right?

Are these the brackets to use? The inside leg brackets?

detail (resized).jpg

Maybe a Cliffy under the lift ramp the prevent pf damage when ramp slams down (similar to TWDLE) and on the edge of the scoop kickout in the LE? The Pro shouldn't need any Cliffys besides shooter lane protector and trough hole edge protector.

Thanks Mike.
Yep, Charles, those are the ones. Key is screw size. I can't remember off top of my head but there's an entire thread on it here.

I have bought Sheet Metal screws - Size 10 and 1/2 inch. It seemed to be what most people recommended.

These spike games are light as a feather and stress from regular nudging seem to quickly open up those corners. Unfortunately Ops now have to install them to protect their pros on location.

Tell that to apple

People keep saying it’s the Spyke system resulting in the game feeling lighter, but I’m 100% convinced they are using lighter less dense wood. It’s a bummer at these price points for sure but I’m going to look past it for this title.

Agree. My KISS is spike and it felt way heavier than my AS.

Trouble is that Maiden looks so darn good, that even with these kinds of QC issues ( and node boards ) , I just have to get this title as if you love pinball, it doesn't get much better than this game.

Thanks for the help you guys!

Shame we have to add these to bulletproof the cab of all things, but looks like its worth it for the long hual. Actually forget the long haul, but for the now, we shouldnt be seeing splits this early on at all!!!

Could be wrong, I believe newest spikes don’t have transformers anymore in the cabinet.
Either way, these things are
more frequently popping open like piñatas.

What can we do to help toughen up the cabinet? Has anyone posted a guide for installing better support brackets for the cab?

I think so the secondary lamps
Even turn off in the pro when you get some jackpots ! I’ll try it but will be a few weeks.

One of the biggest reasons why new Sterns feel lighter is the type of wood being used. I'm not looking to start a Stern vs JJP debate (own and enjoy games from both companies) but want to share this. For today's NIB prices Stern cabinets should be made better.

New Ghostbusters premium (mine), made last year. Filler / compressed wood is being used like on all new cabinets.
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My new Dialed In LE...no filler wood, high quality cabinet. No wonder it weighs 50-75lbs more then either my Star Wars LE or Ghostbusters Premium. Dialed In LE cost $9000 new but the $8000 standard comes with the same high quality cabinet which puts it $800 under Stern LE prices with cabinets made of filler / compressed wood. Doesn't make any sense.

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Here we go again.

The cabinet wood was cheapened sometime after KISS. You can FEEL the difference in the bite when you screw the leg plates into it.

Use real wood screws. Sheet metal screws will do in a pinch, but they have an inferior bite for wood.

A big reason for the lighter cabs are the use of the metal back box, no mechanical lock mech, smaller boards, plastic aprons, half the wiring, lock bar latches instead of the massive mechanical receiver and a few other thing that equate to a lighter pinball.

The cabinet wood is cheaper. You can FEEL it when you screw into it compared to something like KISS.

Just wanted to point out what i saw... not trying to start a shit storm. We really enjoyed maiden and will b looking to get a premium at some point. Just was concerned wirh these new pins pulled out for the show allready showing issues.

Way to go BigD

These are what I bought.

Size 10.

Good enough or look for others?

IMG_2937 (resized).jpg

Glad you did. Kick me in the pants a little to get the updated leg plates on it. I hadn't done it yet, and I should have. Your picture was just a reminder Stern cost cutting is still happening and our only protection is our will to preventatively protect the machines.

I would say no because there's not enough thread AT ALL. Most of the thread on that self-tapping screw will be used up going through the plate and what's actually sticking through the plate and into the wood won't be anything at all. You don't need self tapping, either. The wood is so soft now, it's like butter.

Just get the $6.95 100 pack of real wood screws at Amazon. You'll end up with a better job that will last longer, and definitely use the Titebond, too.

Thanks.

Do you mean to use the Titebond with the screws i.e put glue on them and then screw them in?

Yeah, just slather them with some titebond and screw them in. DO NOT drill pilot holes. The cabinet wood is plenty soft already.

Do you need to use Bally bolts with the B/W leg plates, or will the Stern bolts work?

Stern bolts work fine. I usually put some graphite dry lube (NOT regular WD-40, graphite dry lube spray) on them so they glide in. Don't want to cross-thread your new heavy-duty leg plates...

Back legs too or just the front?

When I'm in there, I usually do all 4, but the front two are the ones that take the most stress, so they're all that NEED to be done. For example, I happen to only have 2 more leg plates on hand, so I'm going over to do the Iron Maiden on location today and will only be doing the front two legs. If I had 4 plates on hand, I'd do all 4, but that's pretty overkill, and I can't materialize two more leg plates today, anyway.

Since im ordering mine as well do the backs too. Thanks and thanks for the writeup on what to use and how!

Thanks for posting the links Vireland. Kinda sad for the money we spend, but it is what it is. Preventative maintenance is always a good thing anyway.

The right screws were the hardest thing to find when I initially started looking around Ghostbusters time. But yeah, happy to save everyone else the trial and error.

My problem is that why should us as consumers have to pay for and install quality braces on these cabinets. If stern is using cheap wood why the hell are they not installing heavy duty braces from the factory so the consumer doesn’t have to deal with this. I have said many times I love stern games but their sacrifices in materials and quality are amazing given the prices of games now days. I was currently looking to buy a new stern but finding out these kinds of problems are still going on is just ridiculous as stern has known about this issue for how long now. Needless to say I will wait it out although that could be years until
They figure out how to fix the quality of these games. As long as people continue to buy them and deal/ pay for these after market fixes I guess stern will just continue to use cheaper materials

Venom, yer 1000% correct. But, and this is a big butt, I'm not going to punish myself by not buying a machine I love, over $5 in preventative maintenance. Literally. We by all means, should NOT have to be doing this. But I will grit my teeth, cuss, and do it. Then I will smile, have a cold beer, and play the fuck outta my Maiden. Sucks, but it's better than a sharp stick in the eye.

Just played the LE at Tilt (first time I've played Maiden). It's pretty awesome! However it was down for maintenance a lot... a couple of games in, the ball got stuck in the Pharoah lock (from the ramp). Later, I saw some other guys get the ball stuck too. Eventually they disabled the physical lock.

That said it still played great and was a ton of fun. I also got my name in 2nd - roughly 270m or so - so if you see my initials when you beat my score, let me know!

I was just at Tilt and played the LE, it needs some fixin to say the least.
Ball was auto plunging, upper left flipper barely worked. Bottom right flipper went up a few times when not pressing the button so some leaf switch adjustments needed.
Ball gets stuck in the pharaohs tomb on the switch and wouldn’t come out even in ball search. Sarcophagus wouldn’t recognize when a ball was loaded causing ball search and left ramp shot not being recognized. Red GI lighting had been taken out of the game, I guess because it looks like crap.
Really looking forward to playing when it’s all tuned up, should be awsome when it’s playing correctly.
I’m planning on ordering a premium and almost did yesterday but my distributor had the day off, guess it was for the best. Gonna wait till I play one that works correctly.

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The Pro didn't play any better (without issues)?