I've had this table for a few months now and it's grating on me I can't seem to be able to figure this one out. Now I don't have any pictures, and really if I took them there would be really no way to spot this as it's got to be something miniscule that's off doing this I think. The problem is simple, the solution is not. The vortex is not consistent, ever. Sometimes it fan fly so fast with the glass is off it'll pop off the vortex ramp, other times it'll barely hit the 100000 spot, or it'll kind of bang off before or as it hits the vortex. It's weird.

The observations I have so far basically are as follows:
- If I pull the plunger back and it makes the top with speed, it can fairly consistently do this but not totally consistent to trust it
- If I twist it say a quarter turn (more or less too) in another direction, it won't give the same distance
- I've pulled away the plastics and things, polished it up, it had no effect from wood up through the vortex
- Eyeballing the plunger arm it doesn't appear bent, but it also doesn't feel 100% flush, it has some slight wobble(very slight)
- The table depending where I use the Pinguy iOS app doesn't appear to be level in every single place, off by maybe 0.2?(nothing huge)
- There's no damage in the wood or the vortex plastics, and the plunger has a new rubber tip I installed shortly after getting the table

That's really about it. If someone reminds me of something else I'll throw it in, but that's about all I've got. I have no idea if maybe the plunger arm is off like .1 degrees with a bend or if something in the bracket is looser than needed causing some wobble to distort the ball being launched. The rubbers along the side from there up to the vortex don't appear to be protruding either as it gives a smooth ride. The balls are in fantastic shape so there's no issue there either. I'd rather not wash my hands of the table as I enjoy it when it doesn't feel like throwing a sadist game at me. Sadly today I racked up a high score of 5.7M, but the amount of times the vortex screwed me with the bonus going I think I should have been 1-1.5M higher (lost some 300-500k vortex shots.)

Well I hope to address it, because if I can't get it to where it's right I'm sadly going to let it go and trade it out for a T2 or Space Shuttle instead as they don't have bitchy vortex issues ruining the big point skill shots. I'd go for a Black Knight but I don't want another sadist ball eater as much as I like that one too. I think it's definitely an alignment problem, but I'll be damned if I can spot it.

IF worst comes to it I know a guy in town I can pay $75 (plus parts if needed) to screw with it and fix it hopefully but obviously nothing is a sure bet. He got my Gold Ball running like a champ last March.

Interesting. I had not thought about the plunger sleeve at all. I've never pulled it off. I'm not sure actually anyone ever has. I'm the third owner supposedly, only home use, and the last 2 owners didn't know squat about servicing let alone even cleaning it under the glass. The only work I'm aware of it having done was having a solenoid replaced on one flipper that went, and at the time the repair guy redid both the flippers with new sleeves and cleaning them up. I remember the old man telling me that the original metal sleeve was worn clean through entirely which is why the guy who repaired it just popped off both at the time and redid it (maybe 2 years ago.)

The plunger, the spring on it, everything is 1986 stock. When I do order parts I have only gone through Marco since that was brought up. Perhaps it's a messed up sleeve since I did note that there is a little bit of wobble to it, it's definitely not tight and snug as I can pull it a bit to the side (very slightly) which could cause it not to stick the shot repeatedly correctly. The tip though is seated right as I had to replace it and I made sure it was set correctly when I did it a few months ago.

Thanks for the link on the blue spring, if I looked up Pinbot on Marco would it also have a stock original plunger assembly too? I'd think while it's open doing the whole mess of things couldn't hurt.

EDIT: For the last hour I've messed with this thing a bit more. I went ahead and removed the entire plunger rod assembly from the machine. The wood itself is cherry, no cuts or any marks at all in that triangle shape cut they did when it was made. The rod from the eye seems straight as an arrow, plunger tip is all the way down flush to the metal, and the spring seems fine, but what can you really say about either of those being that old? With it removed I started to slide the various pieces out of the assembly while still being together (I don't have spare C-clips to snap back on there) and noticed some black gunk/sludge on the plunger sleeve. I used some 91% isopropyl alcohol on that with a paper towel and got it off and the light gray sleeve there appears to be in great shape with no signs of wear. It appears to be sliding a little nicer now.

I did notice it seemed a bit off center being in the down position (it was off to the right almost rubbing the metal sleeve on the ball lane) so I moved it. At first I found raising it took some backspin off (I painted a temp red line on the ball) which was a start. Then I found ultimately a better spot for it being pulled up by my hand as high as it could go and as left as well, then I screwed it in for all its worth. The roll is off it, not so sure about side spin but it's nothing like it was doing. At the moment it appears playing just one game to not be giving me the amount of garbage it was before as I was able to rack up a 3.5M score or so on it and around 8 balls on a 5 ball game. More testing is needed spinning the rod around to see if it behaves the same or not. I still strongly believe it lacks some thrust towards the top as it's not begging to go into that 20K spot with much fury if I pull it back all the way. Perhaps that blue spring would be the cure? Either I'm looking at replacing the full assembly or getting that blue spring. I'd rather not get rid of my williams branded chrome plate.

Klogg Thanks!

I've bookmarked this in the event I need to go that far with it. I haven't the time yet to play some more to see if my corrections and cleaning worked. I do not have any mean green, so I'm sure there's still some crap between the chrome base and the outer side of the nylon sleeve, but other than that I cleaned all that stuff down that exists there with the alcohol until the rag came away clean. The tip I have now is new as of 3mo~ ago and I have a new spare for it anyway so that's covered.

I just did a few non-serious games trying just to mess with the plunger. I think my cleaning did improve it some. I actually can finally feel a spot where the 100K shot rests (my eyeball says between the last 2 triangles in on that view window there.) It still feels like it catches a little bit somewhere depending where it (rod) is spun but nothing as horrid as before as I didn't hit it yet going BANG and missing the ramp or barely hitting 5K. The movement of the shooter assembly and the cleaning helped, but I know I could remove it again and clean it far better. I may have to do this, and if that fails, buy the parts. I mean it couldn't hurt getting a new shooter spring as it is 30 years old almost.

I didn't remove it, but I did work on twisting it a bit so it's slightly less lengthy, seemed to help a tidbit, but that's just a stupid band-aid at best. Ultimately I'll have to pull it apart and properly clean it and if that fails, order that generously helpful part listing from Marco.

Wow post explosion did not expect that.

I haven't reassembled it back into the machine yet. I tore it entirely to pieces, filled a bowl with 91% isopropul alcohol and I had a baby bottle mini wire brush meant for those things that is a perfect fit for the hole in the housing/sleeve. I submerged them as I saw some funk and I scrubbed it all out nice and pretty and got it very smooth now. I know it's not ideal, but I gave the big spring a little tug giving it a very slightly longer (more tense) shove as well.

I didn't test the rod, but it did get away from my on a table and rolled fine from the look of it. I doubt any of this has been pulled out of there or messed with in parts since it was originally assembled but it's very nice looking now. I don't feel any light scrape or tension as I spin the rod in the housing either which I felt it did slightly before, but of course this is me holding it, not in the machine yet. I hope I don't have to pull it apart again, I had to bend the C-clip back into place as I don't have a spare. :\ If it gets pulled apart again I'm going down that parts list and dumping all that for new parts and at that rate I'd give a fair test to the rod on my desk here.

I know I saw that on Marco. I only got into owning pinball machines instead of various other knockoffs (antiques) or plastic things just this year in late March when I got one, then this a couple months later. I've got a very small tool selection and next to no spare parts so I kind of work with what I have and when I need to order I do since the two is all I've got.

Anyway, it seems to have resolved itself I believe, 90% certain at least. I'll try and get my wife to play it as she like pinball sometimes. I had her pull it back and let it go, said she think it felt better. I just want second feel for it. The rod flies through and doesn't seem to feel a little rough or rubby in there at all. The cleaning clearly had some effect. I also took the advice there about the metal plate over the shooter rod, it was in fact crooked as the left side was maybe an 1/8" of an inch off from the other so I went back and forward leveling them out using a round led light I have with a flat face to it so I could use light and shadow to get it right. That did appear to some some of that horizontal english off the ball which is a plus. Also my dumb(or not) idea of giving the spring a little stretch appears to have toughened it up a bit. I think I said the other day it was between the last 2 diamonds on the shooter cover where it fairly well would make 100K shots, now it's up one between the next set, and going full pull on it gives it some big speed into the 20K I've not but rarely seen. I still feel it maybe a little catching or not, really just need time with it to be certain, but this is a huge improvement.

Thanks and I'll keep an eye on this and bookmarked as I may just swap the parts anyway to be safe about it. And that was a good call vid made there about the rod and tip and I had that in mind just didn't do the test on it officially is all. As was it emperer on the shooter gauge.