Appreciate the time line...She told me 6 months when I put my deposit down early April, but I told my wife it would probably be more like a year and it looks like I am right. Yours was basically a year from deposit to ship.....Only 6 more months to wait! haha! I'll probably give her a call in a couple months if I don't hear anything from her by then.

I actually like it this way. Makes for a different experience than other games. Just part of the uniqueness of this awesome machine.

RE: Weak flippers. Make sure you have appropriate vertical gap, and make sure "2 stage flippers" is set to OFF. I had intermittent inactive right flippers and changing this setting to off resolved it.

Seemed like more than that to me but I never checked.

Sorry for posting so many notes about my Xenomorph tongue action yesterday, it was just such a pain in the butt so frequently have the ball not fully retracting into the mouth and then playing the remaining balls and having to then wait for ball search to give the ball back.

I had made comment that the switch was fine and the xenomorph test could be calibrated, but the calibration wouldn't really last.
I had made note about that small little set screw on the round aspect of the rod that comes out of the stepper motor and how it should be more appropriately *flat side* of that rod.
I made comment on how hard it was to get that little black set screw off and ended up having to use one of my machinist buddies to get it out and finally get the screw set on the correct *flat* side of that stepper motor rod ....and then once that was completed and the mech reinstalled, I played some games and all was well.

Sometimes, when we make a move on our machines it works great for a little while and we're super stoked, and then issues pop up again....ah, the lovely world of Pinball, lol... but I'm posting today to just say that I played about 10 games back to back immediately after the fix, and then another 10 games today and every single time the ball did exactly what it should have done (i.e. the pf magnet caught the ball, the tongue extended, grabbed the ball, retracted the ball into the mouth and the ball went down the hatch without hitch every time with a big gulp!

So, I bring this up to just comment to others who have dealt with this. While sure, it may be a switch issue, alternatively the most likely scenario very well may be that the little black set screw there at the stepper motor rod may be on the round side and not the appropriate *flat* side.

Sure, it is a little bit of a PIA to get the mech off as you really have to remove the scoop underneath to allow to get access to the front left bolt, but certainly doable and really only takes an extra a minute or two. Taking a look at that back of that xeno mech and confirming that the little black set bolt is on the appropriate *flat* side of that stepper motor arm really does seem to be a very durable fix.

When I talked to my machining buddy and I told him about this issue, it was no surprise to him, and he is not a pinball guy. I asked him "does it make sense to you that it would not function correctly/durably when this is set on the round side as opposed to the flat side?" He responded quite plainly and quickly "no, it needs to be on the flat side....that's the way this type of mechanism is designed."

So, for anybody experiencing issues with the tongue not fully retracting/holding balls in the mouth and not dropping the ball until ball search/biting the ball, etc etc etc... this issue above is probably the deal.

Anyway, just a follow up to say that this has thus far proven durable now for over 20 games without issue.

Sorry for the long post, but I know this is an annoying issue for others and I wanted to take this time to mention this fix, my interactions with a local machinist friend and comment that this move does very much appear durable (and appropriate).

Thanks

I had to change around some lighting styles, adding an RGB controlled strip around the circumference of the back box behind the main translite (which I did via USB on top of the monitor in blue/purple) and increased the distance from the back of the backbox for the back picture, and added a 12 volt white strip with a diffuser behind the back picture hooked to a power adapter....and now, man o man, am I in love with this new translite from Kurt.

I thought initially it wasn't really going to go with what I was working with, I had the lighting all wrong and I was really frustrated, but with the above moves, this thing is just setting it off.

Excellent work, Kurt!! This thing is just gorgeous.
And is mentioned previously, the shipping packaging was absolutely top notch.
Thank you man!

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Hi guys. Closing off on this run for the translite sets this weekend as I have the minimum of 5 people to do a run now. Doing any more will depend on costs this end moving forward. It's a big job to coordinate it all my end. Cheers from down under, Kurt.

If you mean these , it’s Colywobbles

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Loving those insert decals! Did you make those yourself?? They look great!

Has anyone like Cliffy made any protectors for the star post areas (at the bases) by the left ramp, right upper flipper, etc that take a beating? Just wondering if it would prudent to try to prevent any wear or delamination of playfield artwork over time. Also, any recommendations for Mylar or something around the magnet areas for protection?

Raise your hand if you have successfully ran an led strip for the 2D translite out of the USB connection in the head without issue. Or scream at me for considering to attempt it,

I've had 2 - 3 meter ones plugged into the USB in the PC in my backbox since I got it. No issues. I use the 5-6v ones, not the 12v ones (which are what people using other sources tend to be using).

I have 4 strips running out of mine for months with no issue

I think this game is my girlfriend now.

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Well there’s half the population relieved then….

Has anyone come up with a mod to turn off the blades during Ambush?

The rest of the game turns off except those and I think it would be more immersive if they did as well.

Sorry to clutter the thread with al these pics, but chatted with a few fellow Pinsiders for some lighting recs and was just excited to show off the new lighting scheme (extending the lights across the top and down the full sides to show off more side art).
Really liked how it turned out, I'm stoked about it

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Nice work, it’d be cool to see a short video to see the depth effect a bit too!
Btw, were you the one selling your translite a day or two ago? Hoping you were able to make it work, even though I was going to reach out.

You can see the effect here a bit at the end of this clip. There was post a while back with an interactive led setup...looked very cool..

So here are some pictures of the light strip for the backglass. I just put 2,but you can also use 1 if long enough. Mine are powered by an independent powerstrip I added just after the switch. All is USB 5v. I also 3d printed some mounts for the second tranlite so I can swapp easily. I detached the original ledstrip behind it. Also printed some plates to make all black inside, but you could use black paper for that.

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Interesting idea. I actually painted all the unfinished wood in mine flat black.

One thing I was made aware of today is that not all games PC have USB ports on the bottom of the monitor. And..interestingly, your top ports are configured completely different as well.

Thanks for posting that picture of your back box lighting! I like how your LED strip also goes across the bottom to show off those eggs...great idea! I will probably follow suit!
If you don't mind me asking, did you run a separate strip behind your queen picture, or with that lighting alone, did you feel as though things were lit up enough?
Great idea on printing those black sheets to cover over that raw wood on top of the speakers!

That backglass is spectacular.

Since that picture, I added an additional white LED strip at the very bottom of the back box to highlight the eggs at the bottom. I will probably not be able to help myself but clutter the thread with one more picture to show that off, but it really sets those eggs off.
I bothered a fair amount of Pinsiders via PM yesterday to get thoughts, advice and opinions on lighting and would also just like to take a moment to thank all those who communicated with me....I really appreciate it!

I'm tapping into the power supply to connect a separate arcade power supply after the on/off switch and the wires inside are aluminum??

Can I solder in my copper wire to those and get a good connection?

Thx for any advice

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The connection will be fine. However, I would suggest crimping a fork lug on and connecting it directly to the power supply instead of splicing it there.

A++ advice here. There is no reason to be splicing any wires in there.

Will do.
I'll resplice the wire I cut.
I'll connect straight to power supply terminals.
Thx.

I did the same. Added a powerstrip with 2 usb ports. Use these to run almost all my mods.

Any advice of dialing in the APC drops? Mine come half way up on reset. Feels like the plunger is binding in the coil almost. Anyone else have this issue?

Update: I can see where the reset bracket is rubbing against the housing bracket. Seems like the should have machined these a bit different to leave some room for movement

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Pic 2 you can see that the plunger coil and bracket are not in a straight line. I rebuilt it and did some bending and it’s better…but still not great.
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I had a couple binding parts from their metal on metal designs. A very light coat of carnauba wax where the metal parts slide against each other helped me fix my drops and my hypersleep lock.

SMH! A pinball landed on top of the screws during multiball.

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I'm really enjoying this backbox mod. I finally took a video of it in action:

For those of you wanting to improve magnet grab functionality there might be a cheap fix. If you go to pinball life website and search game specific parts, the Alice Coopers Nightmare castle magnet discs fit perfectly on the magnets for Alien.

Ever since I tried one of these discs on the magna-save fix for Alice Cooper I bought a bunch of the sticky plastic discs and put them in all my machines. Just loosen the big nut under the playfield, take a big flathead and turn the magnet core counterclockwise to lower the magnet about 1/8”, stick the disc on and adjust the core until the top of disc sits flat on the playfield, retighten the big nut while holding the core in place with the screwdriver and you’re done.

There’s a paper backing for the adhesive and a thin clear protective peel off layer on the top side of the discs. If the disc isn’t clear then the top plastic needs to be peeled off.

Not only do they improve magnet performance but protects the metal from getting dented up over time. You’re welcome in advance.

They did -

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Interesting idea. I remember this small PETG plastic disc totally helping the function in my Alice Cooper.... Have you actually given it a try in the alien yet to see if it objectively helps? If so, man, that'll be $0.95 well spent.

Anyone else having intermittent issues as when the machine boots, sometimes no buttons work like the start or menu buttons.

It’s quite strange as reboot sometimes fixes.

Trying to figure out what the science is behind this solution. Adding plastic between the magnet and the ball does nothing regarding the magnet tension?
And I have a playfield protector installed, is that the same then, as this also puts a layer between the magnet core and the ball?

Dammit..you're going to make me change my simple solution to a complicated solution. lol I guess winter is coming...

Whenever things like this are happening I always suggest a system rebuild, they are even suggesting it for black screen issue now. Then install the 3.0 update (or whatever version you want)

https://pinballbrothers.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/80001043005--how-to-rebuild-machine-black-screen-issue

I performed this rebuild Friday night and I haven't had a single black screen since.

Who sells the mod that directs the ball from the pops to the upper right flipper?

applejuice

3.0 code installed. Running a tournament and the switches stopped working. This fucking game...

Can I buy your Alien for the 90k listed prices please and thank you

My father always said to me “shoot for the moon son! Don’t let the price police get you down!”

If I had to guess, and it would be nothing more than that. Having the magnet lowered slightly beneath the surface would increase its effective lateral range. I believe the magnetism radiates out from the end in a conical shape and would help grab the ball off center easier. Also when the magnet turns off the ball releases more consistently, any residual magnetism in the ball itself will be broken by the thin plastic.

I’m not sure what thickness a playfield protector is. If it’s as thick as a all the other plastics in the game then it should have a similar effect.

Have you got a wiring diagram for what you did?

How is your Xeno grab with the playfield protector?