Looks like woodgrain to me in the video. Less apparent what it is in the stills. Stern's been doing this thin clear for like....at least a decade. My Tron had raised areas like you're seeing around the Turtle Power insert. I would be surprised if they do much of anything in response to your email. If you want a thicker clear that will look like glass (until you play on it), then you're going to have to pull the playfield, strip it, and send it off to a professional clearcoater. Be prepared to twiddle your thumbs for a good long while, as it takes time to shoot the clear, wait for it to cure, sand it back to flat, clean it, shoot another coat, etc...

*Edit* others with more experience with more recent Sterns may have a more knowledgeable and/or relevant response for you.

Contact your distributor and Stern direct, they’ll probably end up giving you an unpopulated playfield, although there has been cases where they have given populated playfields. Don’t come off like a jerk, it usually works out much better that way.

Seems like nothing wrong to me?

Pretty common these days. I would not expect anything. Play it and enjoy it.

What does the warranty say about playfields?

Speaking of warranty, what is this blurb about perchlorate? I've never noticed it before.
"PERCHLORATE MATERIAL - Special handling may apply.
See www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate "

Yup. The new printing process is very thin. No where near what it used to be.

About half the new Sterns I see are like this

I had some woodgrain stuff (similar to that, but I don't remember swirls, more slight ridges everywhere) on a beatles playfield that I thought looked pretty bad. Stern decided to replace it, but not because of that. There were some tears in the artwork that the apron edge cut into (that honestly didn't bother me). Worked out though, they sent me a populated playfield that looked really nice. Doesn't hurt to try and ask, I wouldn't expect anything though.

Unless it causes air balls, I doubt they are going to do anything. It’s probably within spec. These are never going to be as shiny and smooth as one that comes from a professional restorer spraying clear. Play a few thousand games then sell it if it really bugs you.

After about 50 games it'll be dimpled so badly you won't be able to see it anymore. Play it and have fun.

This was from my AC/DC Pro Vault almost 4.5 years ago. You could see the wood grain through almost all of the playfield. Four and a half years later, you can still see it, along with some dimples of course. Overall it’s holding up perfectly. I’ve had bad playfields before, and had to have them replaced. Honestly I never notice this one anymore. I’ve cleaned it a couple of times (never a full tear down though).

I doubt Stern would do anything for yours. They tend to only replace the really bad ones.

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Note: These pics are 4.5 years old. I didn’t bother taking them again.

What’s the build date on the back of the game? This “planking” effect was VERY common on all Sterns around 2019, but the clear has been thicker in the last year or so.

The thinner clear playfields from that era are less prone to dimpling though and seem to hold up really well.

That is a sad statement ... can't expect much for 6-8K

It’s really around the lighting but if it’s that concerning then sell to someone for what you think it’s appropriate.

Many sterns have shown that in the right light

I bought a stern pirates last year that has the same ribbing. The machine is from 2006. Playfield is beautiful otherwise with not even a dimple. Then I bought a nib guardians that had the exact same thing. Looked identical as if the same machine sprayed the playfield. My distributor said it sometimes happens and stern won't warranty that but I never tried to contact them. Interested to hear what they say to you.

My LOTR has the ribbing. Bought a NOS LOTR playfield to clearcoat it because we love the game and it will probably never leave. It also had the ribbing. Scuffed the factory clear, added 3 coats of clear, sanded it flat, then added 3 more coats of clear. It's been curing for about 4 months...

Hate to give the OP sad news, but even our newer games have the ribbing. But no worries, the dimpling that's coming will flatten all the ridges you see.

Just play it and have fun. It doesn't look like ANY games by ANY manufacturer are losing value these days, with any flaws they may or may not have.

I think pinside helps set some unreal expectations of what playfield should be like, and that is half the problem. If you look at CPR reproduction playfields, they have these same issues. I don't think any mass produced playfield has its clear coat sanded and buffed out. CPR told me they do not. The way you get them is how they came off the gun for the final coat.

Good thinking... dump it on someone else ?

My NIB BM66 has the ribbing also, it's the new normal apparently.
BM66 dimples are very noticeable, think its the low light that shows them more.
I was very disappointing initially but to be honest, you get over it.

Just play it, could be worse...... chipping on the other hand is a real sh^t show!

If it bothers people enough they can always pivot to AP, and Spooky. Those companies seem to know the "secret sauce" when it comes to good clearcoats. CGC isn't too shabby either from the ones I've seen. Not sure why the decline in quality from Stern, and JJP has always seemed to struggle.

So the wood swelling up from the clear? I've seen this on a few pinside posts and finally one that I received, but it seems pretty rare... or maybe it happens in batches idk. like the OP said most playfield issue threads seem to be aimed around pooling, tearing and dimpling.

here were the pics of mine had to dig em up.

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I have the same issues on a stranger things. This is a NIB came like this.

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Like I said, pretty common if it isn't sanded between coats, which only high end restorers do. Here is a brand new Meteor playfield from CPR. You can see the wood grain in the reflections. Looks fine under glass, and plays amazing.

Capture (resized).PNG

I saw a similar effect once in a cpr repro playfield (PF). The surface looked fine when I received it, but then I put is aside in a climate controlled room for 5 months to make sure the clear was hardened. When I pulled it out again, the finish had more ridges than a Ruffles potato chip. It looked like the original clear was sinking irregularly into the grain of the wood or that someone had dragged a thick bristle brush over the clear when it was still tacky. The manufacturer told me sorry, but that is normal and there is always variation with wood products.

Search out the Kruzman monthly PF thread and see post #624 for pics of what my PF looked like 5 months after receiving it.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/kruzman-monthly-playfield-thread/page/13

Good luck negotiating. Be polite and tactful.

I for one am very happy to see this thread. I had a feeling that this "ribbed effect" that I've noticed on some of the newer sterns was just par for the course, but I'd always wondered quietly if some of my playfields had come from a rushed batch or something of that ilk.
Seems as though this is rather commonplace, so for those who have chimed in on this thread, I appreciate it as it gives me closure on that, so my sincere thanks again.

Welcome to the NIB lottery!

TLDR - some Sterns are like this out of the box... and unless it's to the point of coming apart... that's just what it is..

Another reason to buy HUO games, not NIB.

That really is true. For example, look at the pictures an unrestored NOS CFTBL on Ron's own site, and you can see the same thing, so it's not just Stern or CPR.
https://pinballplayfieldskruzman.com/2021/03/16/creature-from-the-black-lagoon-bally-williams-nos-price-tbd/

It's not something that will affect game play or your score in any way, and after enough games, it probably isn't anything noticeable. If you can't live with it, then you have to go the route of sending it off to have it clear coated (perhaps to Ron, he does amazing work).

Realize, it will cost you many hundreds of dollars, and your new machine will be out of service for many months. To me it isn't worth it for this issue. I would rather spend time playing games, and money buying more games, but to each their own.

Yes to sum up, it's not normal to have a "ribbed" play field but since it happens so often with Sterns, it's now normal.

What, no joke about the playfield being “ribbed” for your pleasure?!?

Sorry to revive an old thread but just wanted to show the new "normal" Stern playfield with ribbing, unfortunately. I'll reach out and see if anything can be done.

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I’ve seen new cpr playfields come out like that. That’s how a lot of them come out as an “off the gun” clear coat. They don’t cut and buff these, so they will never look like the professional restoration jobs shown here on Pinside.

I’m sure it’s not what you want to hear, but it’ll be considered a reasonably minor cosmetic issue, and since it’ll still play just fine, I doubt you will get a replacement. Give it a few hundred games and it’ll be so dimpled up and you won’t notice.

My Mando Pro looks like this too. My SW Pro does not. Both have dimples. It's wood. Wood is an imperfect substance. Tis what it tis. Maybe it's because I have owned 30 games and only recently have bought 2 NIB games...but these minor issues are nothing compared to what I have seen and dealt with on all my used pins! As long as I don't get any chipping I'm good.

There is a Godzilla premium on route around here that has way worse ribbing than that one. I've never seen the ribbing so bad. Funny thing was the pro that was sitting next to it was smooth as glass.

My guardians had it pretty bad as well. Similar to yours and my distributor said it was normal and stern would do nothing about it. My avengers premium that arrived in Sept didn't originally have any ribbing as I checked it close but has developed very minor ribbing as the air got dryer the last few months

What you are calling ribbing is most likely caused by "dieback". The clear coat continues to shrink as it cures, for weeks after it was applied. What you end up seeing is the slightest hints of the wood grain texture coming through. You probably can't even feel it, but because it is so glossy when new, the light catches the slight ripple with the glass off and it is visible.

The only way to get around this in manufacturing would be to spray the playfield, then wait 6-8 weeks for it to fully cure before sanding it back and shooting another layer of clear coat, then wait another 6-8 weeks to cut and buff to a mirror finish. Obviously no manufacturer is going to go to this length to produce a finish that is going to be dimpled and worn over the first few hundred plays. The clear coat is really there to help protect the artwork from the ball rolling over it millions of times over its life.

My Guardians was routed at a laundromat in Tampa for a few years before I got it. The balls were all rusty, the playfield was never cleaned, was really grimey, and you couldn't even see sections of the artwork. I was amazed how well it cleaned up with some novis 2, and how the playfield looks like it could have been a home use only machine. While we may not always be happy with the finish out of the box, the clear coat on these does seem to hold up really well to abuse.

Just saw this on Facebook. Apparently it has been happening for quite a while...

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This is nothing new to Stern playfields. I’ve seen this on LOTR and TSPPs and Spideys that are HUO as well. It bothered me at first when I thought it was something bad but honestly when you show me one after many many plays it still looks great. It almost seems to me like the ones with this texture seem to show less dimples over time.

So with all the new games shipping how are the new playfields? This thread has aged 24 days but I feel it is worth bumping back up top.

And.......how are all the newest ones arriving?

The same as the previous ones. Some are going to have that ribbing. Some won’t. It’s historically a playfield defect stern doesn’t replace. Unfortunately.

There are a number of new machines on location around here and every single one of them has some level of the ribbing. 2 Avengers Pre that I've seen, Rush Pre and a Pro, Godzilla pre. The worst one I have seen is the godzilla premium. Most of them you have to really look for it.

Update:
I reached out to the distributer who contacted Stern. Stern agreed to send a new playfield based on my pictures. I did not hear of any push back which is what I was expecting. It took a few months to arrive and the distributor installed it. It was a fully populated playfield, too...apron and all...and a pleasant surprise. No ribbing on the new one and it looks so much better. The old playfield had to be sent back to Stern. Awesome support all around. And, yes, I do feel very fortunate in how this turned out.

Congratulations, My distributor told me to go away lol. Glad you got a good resolution. I am a bit shocked they warrantied that with a fully populated playfield. Chips in the playfield on my AIQ Premium only got me an unpopulated playfield I'll have to swap over at some point. Not looking forward to that.