(Topic ID: 75438)

Space Shuttle crew members' club - prepare for liftoff!

By E_N_3

10 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 4,473 posts
  • 319 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 21 hours ago by gutz
  • Topic is favorited by 149 Pinsiders

You

Linked Games

Topic Gallery

View topic image gallery

ball gate (resized).jpg
IMG_6608 (resized).jpeg
IMG_6612 (resized).jpeg
IMG_6615 (resized).jpeg
IMG_6618 (resized).jpeg
IMG_6616 (resized).jpeg
IMG_6617 (resized).jpeg
rails_paint (resized).jpg
rails (resized).jpg
p1020715 (resized).jpg
20240224_151150 (resized).jpg
20240224_151259 (resized).jpg
20240224_151254 (resized).jpg
20240224_151230 (resized).jpg
20240224_151220 (resized).jpg
20240224_151201 (resized).jpg

Topic index (key posts)

6 key posts have been marked in this topic (Show topic index)

There are 4,473 posts in this topic. You are on page 69 of 90.
#3401 3 years ago
Quoted from RCA1:

Something like this?

They are clear plastic. No luck finding them. My new plastic set has the topper but with no feet.

AA928F7D-EC1A-4C77-9E22-C39BD543722E (resized).jpegAA928F7D-EC1A-4C77-9E22-C39BD543722E (resized).jpeg
#3402 3 years ago
Quoted from Jenniebear:

They are clear plastic. No luck finding them. My new plastic set has the topper but with no feet.[quoted image]

Oh, yeah. The CPR set does not have those.
They could probably be cut from clear plexi.
I ended up using metal L brackets and small bolts.
I used an LED strip tied to the GI to backlight it.

20201225_083127 (resized).jpg20201225_083127 (resized).jpg20201225_083153 (resized).jpg20201225_083153 (resized).jpg20201225_083336 (resized).jpg20201225_083336 (resized).jpg
#3403 3 years ago
Quoted from RCA1:

Oh, yeah. The CPR set does not have those.
They could probably be cut from clear plexi.
I ended up using metal L brackets and small bolts.
I used an LED strip tied to the GI to backlight it.[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]

That topper looks nice and in my opinion there's no better pairing in pinball then space station and space shuttle side by side.well done.

#3404 3 years ago

Missing bottom left on alpha numerical for player # and match. Any suggestions. Circuit board looks sus on a couple traces.

58A7441C-F131-4760-A37E-AF94890731DE (resized).jpeg58A7441C-F131-4760-A37E-AF94890731DE (resized).jpeg8FABE745-0476-4A02-96F8-6E73E06EA160 (resized).jpeg8FABE745-0476-4A02-96F8-6E73E06EA160 (resized).jpeg
2 weeks later
#3405 3 years ago

I just had my mpu repaired to fix problems with my lamps. Specifically the U S A lanes at the top aren't working correctly, no light no lane light coordination. My 2x 3x 4x etc lamps don't work and on the back box, the game over , high score stop and score, the entire bottom array of lamps don't work. Column 1 in the matrix and col 4. Repair the Q15 Q23 Q24 Q26 IC U54 tested OK. TIP42 replaced. But those matrix issues are still there. I rechecked my J7 connector and it seems OK. Any thoughts?

#3406 3 years ago
Quoted from MinturnMiler:

I just had my mpu repaired to fix problems with my lamps. Specifically the U S A lanes at the top aren't working correctly, no light no lane light coordination. My 2x 3x 4x etc lamps don't work and on the back box, the game over , high score stop and score, the entire bottom array of lamps don't work. Column 1 in the matrix and col 4. Repair the Q15 Q23 Q24 Q26 IC U54 tested OK. TIP42 replaced. But those matrix issues are still there. I rechecked my J7 connector and it seems OK. Any thoughts?

Are you sure they're wired correctly? Like, really really sure? My high speed had matrix issues with both a column and a row and it turned out that a light was wired incorrectly. That said, it did 'work'.. but I would assume your issue is somewhere off the board, IE on the playfield, if your board repair guy is worth his salt.

#3407 3 years ago

Anyone have issues swapping to leds for the flashers? Normal bulbs work fine but leds are locked on

#3408 3 years ago

You have to remove the warming resistors to use leds.

#3409 3 years ago

The warming resistor is the ones that say 330 or just remove the ground from the flasher boards

#3410 3 years ago
Quoted from MinturnMiler:

I just had my mpu repaired to fix problems with my lamps. Specifically the U S A lanes at the top aren't working correctly, no light no lane light coordination. My 2x 3x 4x etc lamps don't work and on the back box, the game over , high score stop and score, the entire bottom array of lamps don't work. Column 1 in the matrix and col 4. Repair the Q15 Q23 Q24 Q26 IC U54 tested OK. TIP42 replaced. But those matrix issues are still there. I rechecked my J7 connector and it seems OK. Any thoughts?

My USA lights have been acting goofy recently too. The A wouldn’t light now the S doesn’t light sometimes but the A does now. Going to take a look to see if the wire is hitting the switch and making the connection. Will be watching for your solution incase I need to dive deeper

#3411 3 years ago
Quoted from Jenniebear:

The warming resistor is the ones that say 330 or just remove the ground from the flasher boards

And if there are two grounds, you need to wire nut them together

#3412 3 years ago

Snipping the 330s fixed it thank you for the replies!!!

#3413 3 years ago
Quoted from hockeymutt:

Snipping the 330s fixed it thank you for the replies!!!

Just make sure the leg you snipped is covered preventing it from touching anything

#3414 3 years ago
Quoted from Bax1:

Just make sure the leg you snipped is covered preventing it from touching anything

Completely removed it, for that exact reason

#3415 3 years ago

Quoted from @Sheprd (6 years ago):
The wire harness that goes up to the shuttle switch has some slack in it. This allowed the wire to dip down and put just enough pressure on the ball to keep it balanced on the rail if you put a soft shot up into that area. Move the wire, problem solved.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/space-shuttle-crew-members-club-prepare-for-liftoff/page/5#post-1615273

Thanks for the tip. We were occasionally having the same problem. Usually could get past the problem without tilting, but always the chance of a tilt.

I was able to reach that wire with the tip of my left middle finger, so I stuck a short piece of double-sided tape onto the end of my finger and, with a little poking around, was able to get the tape positioned to hold the wire up to the bottom of the ramp. Hopefully no more stuck balls.

#3416 3 years ago

The ipdb states that the "date of manufacture" for Space Shuttle is December, 1984. This date is supposed to be

This is the date the game began being manufactured and/or available to the public for purchase

However, the game I own has a label showing a date of manufacture of 84024, which I understand to mean the 24th day of 1984 - 01/24/1984. Furthermore, based on my serial number and other numbers in the ipsnd, over a thousand Space Shuttles were manufactured before mine.

I would have thought that the ipdb date would be based on well-established fact, but it seems like the ipdb date is wrong and the game was being manufactured and, presumably, installed out in the world in 1983, at least. Or am I missing something?

IMG_0972 (resized).JPGIMG_0972 (resized).JPG
#3417 3 years ago
Quoted from Kard:

The ipdb states that the "date of manufacture" for Space Shuttle is December, 1984. This date is supposed to be

However, the game I own has a label showing a date of manufacture of 84024, which I understand to mean the 24th day of 1984 - 01/24/1984. Furthermore, based on my serial number and other numbers in the ipsnd, over a thousand Space Shuttles were manufactured before mine.
I would have thought that the ipdb date would be based on well-established fact, but it seems like the ipdb date is wrong and the game was being manufactured and, presumably, installed out in the world in 1983, at least. Or am I missing something?
[quoted image]

In the electronics world 24 would be the 24th week not day.

#3418 3 years ago

Even if the 3 digits were week-of-the-year, "84024" would still be prior to December, 1984.

I looked through the other Space Shuttle entries in the ipsnd and found 2 others that included a photo with a legible date of manufacture, including the one below with date of manufacture = 85114. This, as well as the discussion below that I found on another web site, suggest that Williams' date-of-manufacture did indeed use a 3-digit day-of-the-year.

Clipboard02 (resized).jpgClipboard02 (resized).jpgClipboard03 (resized).jpgClipboard03 (resized).jpg
#3419 3 years ago
Quoted from Kard:

The ipdb states that the "date of manufacture" for Space Shuttle is December, 1984. This date is supposed to be

However, the game I own has a label showing a date of manufacture of 84024, which I understand to mean the 24th day of 1984 - 01/24/1984. Furthermore, based on my serial number and other numbers in the ipsnd, over a thousand Space Shuttles were manufactured before mine.
I would have thought that the ipdb date would be based on well-established fact, but it seems like the ipdb date is wrong and the game was being manufactured and, presumably, installed out in the world in 1983, at least. Or am I missing something?
[quoted image]

Hey Kard, if the back of your machine looks that pristine, how about showing us a picture of the front .

#3420 3 years ago

I’m replacing the shuttle on a pin, does anyone know where to get the rivets/bushing that the wire form rides in that are installed on the metal bracket at the nose of the ship?

Thank you,

#3421 3 years ago

I am looking for new boards for my friends game. I restored two space shuttle pins for him. One has all the boards and works fine, One cabinet has no boards or displays.

There used to be the rottendog system 9 MPU replacement board, but for some reason it does not seem to exist anymore. Have they been discontinued? Is there any other solutions?? Worst case, he will have a fully restored cabinet with new playfield installed etc waiting in the dark for a solution from somewhere.

Any help finding the MPU/sound boards will greatly be appreciated.

Thank you,

#3422 3 years ago

Keep eye out here, I think he is working on them.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/dumbass-test-and-reproduction-pcbs

#3423 3 years ago
Quoted from jetmechinnc:

I’m replacing the shuttle on a pin, does anyone know where to get the rivets/bushing that the wire form rides in that are installed on the metal bracket at the nose of the ship?
Thank you,

I used small bolts and nuts to hold the switch

#3424 3 years ago
Quoted from jetmechinnc:

I’m replacing the shuttle on a pin, does anyone know where to get the rivets/bushing that the wire form rides in that are installed on the metal bracket at the nose of the ship?
Thank you,

Check Marco's. I just replaced my shuttle and my buddy had the rivets. We were not able to use the press. We used a punch and had to hammer them down. Marco should have that wire form.

#3425 3 years ago
Quoted from jetmechinnc:

Any help finding the MPU/sound boards will greatly be appreciated.

I have a MPU listed in the marketplace. I have a power supply not listed. Can't help with the speech or flipper boards though.

https://pinside.com/pinball/market/classifieds/ad/108985

#3426 3 years ago
Quoted from polyacanthus:

I have a MPU listed in the marketplace. I have a power supply not listed. Can't help with the speech or flipper boards though.
https://pinside.com/pinball/market/classifieds/ad/108985

Sound and speech available from pinballpcb guys

#3427 3 years ago
Quoted from Bax1:

Check Marco's. I just replaced my shuttle and my buddy had the rivets. We were not able to use the press. We used a punch and had to hammer them down. Marco should have that wire form.

Quoted from ChrisPINk25:

I used small bolts and nuts to hold the switch

It’s not looking for the bolts/rivets to hold the switch that gets activated by the ball, I’m looking for the small eyelets that are on the metal U channel that the wire form rides in inside the shuttle. At least on the old shuttle , those eyelets went from outside of the shuttle to the inside of the U-channel so it was secured on the plastic. Plus one solid rivet so the bracket would not rotate.

#3428 3 years ago
Quoted from jetmechinnc:

It’s not looking for the bolts/rivets to hold the switch that gets activated by the ball, I’m looking for the small eyelets that are on the metal U channel that the wire form rides in inside the shuttle. At least on the old shuttle , those eyelets went from outside of the shuttle to the inside of the U-channel so it was secured on the plastic. Plus one solid rivet so the bracket would not rotate.

I cut a Couple of pieces From some small brass tubing stock and painted it white , Has held up for 20 years .

#3429 3 years ago
Quoted from Apinjunkie:

I cut a Couple of pieces From some small brass tubing stock and painted it white , Has held up for 20 years .

Great idea. I will have to keep a look out at the local hobby shops, and I will check amazon for something similar.

#3430 3 years ago
Quoted from Kard:

The ipdb states that the "date of manufacture" for Space Shuttle is December, 1984. This date is supposed to be

However, the game I own has a label showing a date of manufacture of 84024, which I understand to mean the 24th day of 1984 - 01/24/1984. Furthermore, based on my serial number and other numbers in the ipsnd, over a thousand Space Shuttles were manufactured before mine.
I would have thought that the ipdb date would be based on well-established fact, but it seems like the ipdb date is wrong and the game was being manufactured and, presumably, installed out in the world in 1983, at least. Or am I missing something?
[quoted image]

One thing that looks suspect to me is, how clean and clear those two labels are. The typeset looks too new and crisp, like they are repos. Compare to mine, which are more aged looking, especially the font and how deep it was printed. Also, the actual date of manufacture numbers are a different font and color.

Mine:
20210129_161042 (resized).jpg20210129_161042 (resized).jpg

Yours:

20210129_162907 (resized).jpg20210129_162907 (resized).jpg
#3431 3 years ago
Quoted from jetmechinnc:

Great idea. I will have to keep a look out at the local hobby shops, and I will check amazon for something similar.

Hobby Lobby is good for it , They also have Plastic tubing in the modeling aisle that would work .

#3432 3 years ago

Here's several pics: first of all, two pics of the front and side of the cabinet, then a couple pics of the circuit boards.

We purchased the game in August from a local dealer. (Our first and, so far, only pinball game.) They told us that they had performed a "high-end" restoration on it.

If I understand correctly: of the circuit boards, the one smaller board is original with a matching s/n; the main board (MPU, right?) and the speech board were apparently replaced at some point with boards from 540-series games, whichever that is.

It did occur to me that the date-of-manufacture label looks exceptionally good for a 37-year-old label, and that the print is much bolder than the other two samples that I got from the ipsnd. On the other hand, it seems odd that somebody would have bothered to print up and/or modify that label. (Of course, I've found problematic mods to the wiring that I can't imagine why somebody would have done that, so I guess you never know.)

This is why I posted the question here. First of all, I'm a newbie, so I don't want to be jumping to presumptuous conclusions. And I would have thought that the date-of-manufacture in the ipdb would be definitive. But the photo that @seeburg200 posted shows that game in the 30k-number series was manufactured in February 1985. Assuming (?) all the games in the 21k through 23k series were manufactured previously, wouldn't they have started more than 3 months before that? I have no idea at all how long it would have taken Williams to build that many.

IMG_0987s (resized).jpgIMG_0987s (resized).jpgIMG_0989s (resized).jpgIMG_0989s (resized).jpgIMG_0981s (resized).jpgIMG_0981s (resized).jpgIMG_0978s (resized).jpgIMG_0978s (resized).jpg
#3433 3 years ago

The 540 model is Comet, a game that 1st came out in in June of 1985.

As for your date of manufacture, my guess is that the 4 should be a 5, which would make your's January 24th, 1985. Since it appears to be a reproduction sticker, someone maybe misread that digit.

That would make roughly 2 months of production before yours was made.
Which would equate to 24 machines built per day for a 5 day work week.
I'm totally shooting from the hip here, so I have no idea how many machines Williams made per day, or how.many days a week they operated.

Regardless of all of this, your machine looks minty! Congrats! I'm on my 3rd one. I kicked myself twice before for selling, so this one I have is a keeper. It's still my kids' fav game and they are nearly 30 years old now.

As for the serial number groupings, it looks like they skipped between 23k and 30k; why I don't know. I don't think it's a matter of incomplete data.
20210130_084123 (resized).jpg20210130_084123 (resized).jpg

#3434 3 years ago

Just noticed there was a club for Space Shuttle!! This was the first pin I purchased about 15+ years ago. I did not know at the time about the "Pin that saved Pinball" thing or how fun it really is to play, it just looked really cool. I kept it for about 12-13 years until I found another one in better condition which I purchased and sold my original. I have many pins now in my collection, and some come and go, but the SS will never leave ( the wife's favorite one also). Great to know that SS has such a following, Ed.

PS....The Xenon is also a keeper...now if I can find a nice Black Hole....would be nice to go with the rest of my collection...lol!

20201231_123806 (1) (resized).jpg20201231_123806 (1) (resized).jpg
#3435 3 years ago
Quoted from Kard:

I've found problematic mods to the wiring that I can't imagine why somebody would have done that, so I guess you never know.

If you are referring to the wiring soldered onto the board in your last photo, someone just moved the batteries off of the board to prevent alkaline damage. This is a good mod to have.

#3436 3 years ago

If you are referring to the wiring soldered onto the board in your last photo, someone just moved the batteries off of the board to prevent alkaline damage. This is a good mod to have.

No, somebody had hacked the wiring at the "USA" lamps and also the "TLE" lamps. We played the game for a couple of weeks before it got familiar enough that I realized those lamps weren't working the way they should. I figured out what they had cross-wired, then undid that "fix" to put it back to the factory-spec wiring for those lamps. Suddenly they worked right! Imagine! I will forever wonder why somebody would do that, and what they could possibly have seen as a result that made them think they had "fixed" something.

On a separate subject, what's the technique everybody uses here for quoting from another post? I looked for help in the site's "posting tips" but found nothing.

Added over 3 years ago:

Please, ignore that question about quoting. I figured it out.

#3437 3 years ago

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/space-shuttle-sm-29-1000-coil-photo-needed-which-mounts-to-bell

Can someone please take a photo of the bell solenoid and diode orientation? The above link shows how my wiring/diode orientation looks. I'm not sure if it is right. Can someone post a photo of their wiring?

#3438 3 years ago
16121890133026076135530735321773 (resized).jpg16121890133026076135530735321773 (resized).jpg
#3439 3 years ago

Thanks for the pic iamdrunker

#3440 3 years ago

Looking for help with solenoid #1, the outhole kicker.

Wiring orientation is red wire to the bottom lug, grey to the top (as it sits in place).

It is not firing in test, nor does it fire when a ball actuates the switch.

The switch registers in test.

The voltage at the coil is good.

If I jumper from the coil @ the grey wire to a ground braid it fires.

Board was recently serviced by a professional.

I am left to assume I have a broken wire? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Edit: I have continuity from connector pin 1 @ end of wire (at connector) to the lug at the coil.

#3441 3 years ago

So, I recently got these decals from Ministry of Pinball. I was thinking installation would be a no-brainer, but now I'm second guessing myself. In all my years of pinball, I really haven't had to install playfield decals before. Can these just be stuck to the playfield, or does the surface need prepped beyond just cleaning? Do they need to be mylared or clearcoated over, or are they durable enough on their own?

img_4150_mop (resized).pngimg_4150_mop (resized).pngspace_shuttle_insert_decals_mop (resized).pngspace_shuttle_insert_decals_mop (resized).png
#3442 3 years ago
Quoted from Betelgeuse:

So, I recently got these decals from Ministry of Pinball. I was thinking installation would be a no-brainer, but now I'm second guessing myself. In all my years of pinball, I really haven't had to install playfield decals before. Can these just be stuck to the playfield, or does the surface need prepped beyond just cleaning? Do they need to be mylared or clearcoated over, or are they durable enough on their own?
[quoted image][quoted image]

So, I took a chance on these and used them on the bonus lights, shoot again, bonus hold, the red 'Space' and the red 'Shuttle'. The others I decided against. My bonus lights were pretty bad, what I did was use 60 -> 400 grit sand paper on the inserts being careful not to sand off the details that are in-between on the playfield. Then I cleaned thoroughly with Novus 1 & 2. Last, I carefully applied the decals. Lined up the tops and worked my way down. I've put maybe 500 plays on the machine since and they all still look great and haven't peeled.

I have the space shuttle logo and I kind of want to do that one but I'm holding off for now. I know with decals your mileage may vary but I've been happy with these.

Here are some pictures of the before and after. The after is with some new lighting and a good cleaning of the entire machine so it naturally looks a bit better overall.

1 (resized).png1 (resized).png2 (resized).png2 (resized).png
#3443 3 years ago
Quoted from Lithium:

So, I took a chance on these and used them on the bonus lights, shoot again, bonus hold, the red 'Space' and the red 'Shuttle'. The others I decided against. My bonus lights were pretty bad, what I did was use 60 -> 400 grit sand paper on the inserts being careful not to sand off the details that are in-between on the playfield. Then I cleaned thoroughly with Novus 1 & 2. Last, I carefully applied the decals. Lined up the tops and worked my way down. I've put maybe 500 plays on the machine since and they all still look great and haven't peeled.

I have the space shuttle logo and I kind of want to do that one but I'm holding off for now. I know with decals your mileage may vary but I've been happy with these.

Here are some pictures of the before and after. The after is with some new lighting and a good cleaning of the entire machine so it naturally looks a bit better overall.

That's great! It looks like a big improvement. My bonus inserts look about the same as yours did, but my logo is almost completely worn away. I appreciate all of the details. I was hoping these decals didn't need clear over them.

#3444 3 years ago

Any one sitting on a a hard top? About to buy one but figured I’d ask here first! Thanks!

#3445 3 years ago

I've Googled with no luck, but where does one buy the clear ramps for Space Shuttle? About to do a hard top, and figured I'd include that during the rebuild. If there's a combo for a new space shuttle toy even better!

#3446 3 years ago
Quoted from MDBradley:

I've Googled with no luck, but where does one buy the clear ramps for Space Shuttle? About to do a hard top, and figured I'd include that during the rebuild. If there's a combo for a new space shuttle toy even better!

Larry at Starship Fantasy sold them, but I think he is all out now.

#3447 3 years ago
Quoted from misterhare:

Larry at Starship Fantasy sold them, but I think he is all out now.

And he doesn’t have any plans on making more, I’d be in if he did

#3448 3 years ago

I reached out to Larry at Starship and he said it would be 1-2 years on new clear ramps.

#3449 3 years ago
Quoted from MDBradley:

I reached out to Larry at Starship and he said it would be 1-2 years on new clear ramps.

Patience is a virtue. It will be worth the wait. Someone may have bought an extra but I'm sure it would cost you more.

#3450 3 years ago
Quoted from MDBradley:

I reached out to Larry at Starship and he said it would be 1-2 years on new clear ramps.

Go figure, I'm finally ready to pull the trigger on one and now I'll have to wait. That was going to be this year's upgrade, looks like it's a pin shaker for the old girl now.

Promoted items from the Pinside Marketplace
From: $ 35.00
Cabinet - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
$ 129.00
Cabinet Parts
Bob's Pinball Stuff
Cabinet parts
$ 69.00
Gameroom - Decorations
Pinball Pimp
Decorations
$ 50.00
Cabinet - Toppers
Slipstream Mod Shop
Toppers
From: $ 1.25
Playfield - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
$ 33.95
Eproms
Pinballrom
Eproms
$ 44.99
Cabinet - Shooter Rods
Pinball Shark
Shooter rods
From: $ 33.00
Gameroom - Decorations
Rocket City Pinball
Decorations
$ 69.00
Gameroom - Decorations
Pinball Pimp
Decorations
$ 44.99
Cabinet - Shooter Rods
Pinball Shark
Shooter rods
$ 12.50
Lighting - Led
RoyGBev Pinball
Led
From: $ 1.00
Playfield - Other
Rocket City Pinball
Other
2,500
Machine - For Sale
Allentown, PA
2,500 (OBO)
Machine - For Sale
St Charles, IL
$ 18.95
Eproms
Pinballrom
Eproms
There are 4,473 posts in this topic. You are on page 69 of 90.

Reply

Wanna join the discussion? Please sign in to reply to this topic.

Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!

Donate to Pinside

Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!


This page was printed from https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/space-shuttle-crew-members-club-prepare-for-liftoff/page/69?hl=hockeymutt and we tried optimising it for printing. Some page elements may have been deliberately hidden.

Scan the QR code on the left to jump to the URL this document was printed from.