Usually when you see “grease” it’s not grease at all. It’s the fine black soot that all pinball coils generate sticking to oil, turning into thick black gunk. Hence why you never EVER lubricate coils/plungers. No wd-40 ever either.

Really? I don't have my Star Trek Pro anymore, but I really remember there being optos in the trough, and I'm almost positive that I had to reseat the connectors to them at one point. Are there connectors with boards at all?

Incorrect.
Metal on Metal parts get grease.
Nothing else does.

So the shaft of a diverter which is metal on metal gets grease.

My STLE has physical switches in the trough; IIRC. Pretty sure the pro does as well.

Yep, no doubt about it - switches. But it does appear like the trough VUK has an opto tho, with the remaining 3 spots in the trough being micro switches. So a mix of both.

I did reseat the connectors just for the heck of it. While checking the switches, I did notice the right ramp opto was firing spontaneously due to any vibration (flippers, VUK, etc.). Reflowed the solder connections and it seems OK now. Don't know if that anything to do with the problem, but it fixed the random points being awarded before even plunging the ball. Thinking about it...that might have made the pin think there was a ball in play even before plunging - messing up what it thought was player 1, player 2, etc.

Will give it a workout tonight.

Thanks for your help!
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Oh ok. So it’s a mix.

If a switch on the playfield is triggered, the game will think you are playing, so that could have something to do with it. Good luck!

A few months ago I installed a tournament button. It seems I'm missing something with regard to understanding how it works. I keep setting up a "tournament" for the benefit of my nine year-old and his buddies so they can have a chance to enter their initials on a high score list (they stand no chance of beating my lowest score). This works great for some seemingly random number of days and then inevitably one day I will turn the machine on and the tournament button will no longer be lit and the tournament will have stopped. This always happens well ahead of the scheduled stop time for the tournament (which I typically schedule to run until midnight of New Year's Eve). All tournament scores also seem to be gone.

What am I doing wrong?

This trough has both switches and optos, so check the solder connections on all the diodes for cracks, etc and test each diode. Luckily all the parts are cheap and the opto board set is available @ PBL.

https://www.pinballlife.com/opto-transmitter-and-receiver-board-set-for-data-eastsegastern.html

Thanks WT. This issue is somewhat sporadic. Once tonight the player 2 ball fired after right player 1 was done. I replaced the receiver opto in the right ramp that seems to give false triggers sometimes since I had some new spares. It's very sensitive, if I put my finger on the receiver, it will trigger a trip. The other optos don't seem to exhibit the same issue. I'll look at the opto board schematic and see if there's a pull-up or pull-down resistor that's gone south on me. I *think* the trough is OK, but I will double check it out regardless.

Hi,
I have a problem and do not know where to go from here. When I start the game the balls start firing. The first two fire and stay wherever they go. After the third ball the left ball popper ejects the ball and it goes to the drain. I checked and cleaned the opto under the play field. I removed them and tested the two I could get at. One wasnt working until after I cleaned it. Now all the opto's, in test mode are closed.
It is like the machine is trying to load balls to specific locations to start the game but it is not seeing something that it needs. If I let it go this re-firing will go on.
I had a return lane (left) which was not responding but it was an adjustment so I fixed that. Yesterday I removed the diverter assy and cleaned the shaft and linkage. Maybe I did something while I was in there but I cannot find what.
I have been in electronics for a long time and worked on electro-mechanical systems but I am new to pinball systems. Any help or pointers would be greatly appreciated.
Art

One of the 2 subway diverters isn’t working. The game needs to load all 3 VUKs before starting a game. The diverter to the right gun isn’t working, which causes too many balls to be on the left. The game then kicks it out and re-launches to try to load the right gun again. Or the left gun diverter isn’t working and you are loading to many balls in the left vuk. Rinse and repeat.

You can confirm which diverter is not working in solenoid test.

Thanks Mike I completed the solenoid test and it seemed every one was firing. I opened the play field and got off on a tangent of the Borg Lock. I could not find the target that fired the secondary lock release arm but it WAS firing so I went back to the diverter. The one I disassembled and cleaned yesterday was out of adjustment. The diverter arm was not completely clearing the lane. It must have moved from when I set it up. I re-adjusted and tightened the set screws tighter. Reset the game and it worked great.
Thank you very much for your help.
Art

The option I'm aware of is through a dealer; They can order the parts from stern.

From pages P2 & P3 of the LE manual.(44 & 45 of PDF)
802-5001-E5 - Cabinet and Back-box Decal Set (Premium)
802-5001-E6 - Cabinet and Back-box Decal Set (LE)

Hey Guys, I have a Star trek Pro. What ideas do you guys have for toppers?

Thanks, Brian

Dust bunnies.

IMHO; toppers get in the way. But then again; I'm at least twice a year packing for a Pin Event nearby.
I don't recall there being any good Toppers for Stern ST. When released; they were TOS knock offs that had the wrong ship on them.

I have a heating pipe approx an inch from the top of my ST, I went with the one that came with my house as opposed to the Stern heating pipe topper, which was $38,000 (+tax and shipping).

so my vengeance kickback plunger broke lol. I am trying to find the part from the manual to no avail.

manual part number says: Vengeance Kickback 500-6697-03-ND

anyone have any idea what part will work for it?
I think I would just need the plastic plunger barrel or whatever as it snapped off rather than the whole assembly.

I think i may just need this piece: https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-15370
if someone could confirm thatd be awesome

Thanks in advance for any help!

I just put a Pinovators Headphone kit with the sub-woofer add on into my STTNG. Its great having the sub hooked in and a volume control on the front. Its a lot better with my grandson sleeping too with the headphones. Glad I installed it. I also put some Pinstadium lights in. Had a little trouble with them staying affixed to the sides. Probably my installation expertise. I called Scott from Pinstadium and he shipped me some new magnet strips free of charge. Can't beat that! They are holding on great now. Thanks to Pinstadium and Pinovators my machine is coming along. Now onto cleaning, waxing, new rubbers and balls.

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I've been replacing the worn out rubbers in a Pro model with Titans. Seems to be a discrepancy in the owner's manual vs. what was in the pin. I don't think either are correct. So I installed what I think was intended. According to the manual, I need a single 3/4" rubber - I tried that but it doesn't let the ball roll thru.

Anybody got a pic of what's really installed in the pin?
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This is stock like the manual shows but I like your solution better.
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Mine is still stock on non vault model.

27B20C63-20BF-433A-B137-072A3EDC8275 (resized).jpeg

Hmmm...That's interesting DM and CCB - much appreciated.

I mentioned above, the ball wouldn't make it past the end of the opening, but I wonder if the Titan's might be a smidge wider than rubber when stretched. Also, if you look at the pic below, the lower rubber is a size bigger than than the top (per the manual). Maybe if I would have loosened up the screws, I could have shoved it to the right a bit. That might have made a diff.

Despite being a stickler for details and keeping things original, I think I like what I did since I can change out the lower 3/16" rubber w/o removing a bunch of parts. I've been cleaning this pin for 3 days, ugh! It was a mess.

Updated: Not sure if you spotted it, but DM's pin is per the manual, CCB's was like mine. They must have made a change at some point.

Thanks again!
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The manual picture looks strange going around the 3 posts. I checked my manual when I replaced the rubbers because I thought it was incorrect. Individual rings looks better but maybe the ball will roll past them differently. Whatever works is good!

I may change to 3 rings when my OCD kicks in.

I'm not fan going around 3 posts like the manual shows. I'm always afraid I'm going to snap the cheap plastic piece pulling the rubber taunt when I change it. Plus it can just be a PIA sometimes.

I agree. But the slings are 3 posts with one ring.

No doubt it is cheaper to do one than three. Gotta save 10 cents whenever possible!...

I just put in 3 new rings to replace the single. Quite a lot of stuff to remove for the center post. OCD.

I put 2 in the other side by the right pop where the manual shows 1 when I replaced the worn black rubbers years ago.

The 1.25 rubber by the Beta ramp is 1.5". No way to stretch the 1.25 on those posts!

Boy, the OCD did kick in! LOL. That is a LOT of work.

Since I just got this pin, it was my first time working on it. I had to take all three ramps out and a punch of other misc plastics just to clean and install the Titans. First time is always rough. A half bottle of Novus 1 later, it looks fantastic. Still needs a couple of plastics and some minor work on the ship.

I'm really liking this pin. Fast shooter, great sound (on a sub). At first I wasn't sure why it was rated so high, but after playing for a week...I'm starting to get it.

Now install the movie sound track update if you haven't already. Much more epic IMO.

Already did! Sounds great!

Anyone know where I can get a backbox side decal (not the entire kit)? One side is coming off. For some reason, can't seem to find one on Google. Might try to reattach.

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Super-77-Multipurpose-Spray-Adhesive/?N=5002385+3293242460&rt=rud

Thanks D-G

Hmmmm....I think I would have to spray on a foam brush then spread it around (if that's possible). One corner peeled a couple of inches, but the sides peeled off about 1/2 inch. Can't spray in there. I saw on the link gallons are available, I'll search around for a smaller container of liquid.

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Stern told me to use rubber glue to reattach way back when. It worked ok if I remember. Might be worth a shot.

It is always easier replacing stuff the second time. I may not play ST for a while but when I get back to it, it is great!
Multiball is intense.

I actually thought about that. I'll search some of vid's postings and see if he recommends anything for repair. Likely overthinking it. The 3M Super 77 sure seems like good stuff to use since it has some decent working time...if I can get it on w/o making a mess.

It happened on my Metallica. It started as a small curl in the corner. One day I walked into my game room, and it was 2/3 of the decal dropped and folded on itself. My solution ended up being getting new head decals from Stern.

Now before anyone freaks out, it isn’t as bad as it sounds. I know a lot of people seem to get them, and never put them on. If you go the replacement route, it’s all about 2 things. Surface preparation, and alignment. Prep is obvious. I went all the way to sanding with very fine grained sandpaper. Then cleaning, and then cleaning again (making sure there is no dust). Then I cleaned with alcohol, let it fully dry, and did that again. The surface which started shiny now had a nice key to grip the decal. For alignment, I used painters tape applied very lightly. Then I kept shifting it until I was happy with the alignment. Finally I used the fold over technique to apply it (left the bottom taped, peeled the very top, folded the backing under, and finally stuck the top very lightly), then rechecked the alignment, Took the tape off the bottom, reached under and started carefully pulling the backing out. Then I applied the pressure to seat it.

All that sounds involved, but it really isn’t. It’s just making sure it is keyed, clean, and straight. Totally worth it, because the curled one would never be 100% again, and the new one stuck perfectly. Well worth the effort.

I'm beginning to think Stern might be the best place to get one if I go that route. I watched John's Arcade doing his decal install using Rapid Tac to give him plenty of time to work the decal.

I shot Stern an e-mail, I'll see what they say.

Thanks for everyone's help!

You can spray it into a paper cup and then apply with a q tip or popsicle stick. I had heard that Super 77 is acidic so not recommended, though I can’t remember where I heard that. I seem to recall trying one side with that and another with rubber cement. I don’t think one worked better than the other. Both side decals on mine peeled at different times.

It was a long time ago, but all the buzz on pinside for a few months was the peeling decals on Stern pins. Apparently, they had quite a run of them. Seems minor now compared to some of the other issues that have occurred.

I should mention that I also PM’d Vid at the time to see what he would recommend, but he didn’t have a recommendation without knowing what type of original adhesive was used.

I was wondering if the supplier had a bad batch...I'll look for the thread.

To re glue decals ,side art or vinyl where the adhesive has let loose for small areas I use a foam/plastic safe contact cement which comes in a tube called UHU POR.
I usually buy it at Hobby King an on-line hobby store but they are out of stock right now but I have also bought it off Ebay.
ebay.com link: 2 x Uhu Por Adhesive Transparent Flexible Expanded Polystyrene Glue 40g 50ml
Here is one of my videos where I fix a small area of vinyl on my Star Wars cabinet.

Hi,
I have a STTNG, '93 by williams. When I bought it there was already an LED upgrade done. Now it seems there is always a couple of lights out. I open it up and check them and usually removing and replacing the lamps fixes the issue. Does anyone else have this type of problem? Anyone have any suggestions to fix it? I have thought about removing each LED and slightly bending the lamp socket contacts in a little and trying to clean them but that could develop more problems then I already have. I am just looking for some insight into how I should handle it.
The game has a lot of add on mods, A borg, lighted Klingon BOP, enterprise, Romulan War Bird and Borg Ships. They all have their respective wires and are alligator clipped to different locations. I was thinking about installing some terminal strips for this purpose. One for GL, one for Flashers, and one for special connections. This way I would have a central location for all the connections. Again, There are so many here with years of hard earned experience and would like your opinions and thoughts on these ideas before I venture in. I am sure there are ramifications I have not thought about.
Thank you very much for your help.

Thanks Sam! That does look like easy stuff to use. Does it dry hard or does it remain somewhat pliable? Looks like you have decent time to work out any air bubbles. We have a Hobby Lobby (not Hobby King) in town - but they don't carry it.

I fly the foamies too, so I'm familiar w/foam safe glues (at least the glue, not so much in the different varieties). Fly, crash (a lot), fix, fly 10 min later - then repeat. . And no fuel messes. Still have a couple of beat up GWS Slow Sticks.

And I do want to thank everyone for their inputs and help. Lots of ideas. Glad to be part of the ST crowd. Good group of helpful people in this thread.

If you are referring to the wedge-style 44/47 bulbs under the inserts then I recommend checking the little contact wires on them. I have found that some brands of LEDs need the wires adjusted/moved/bent toward the outside of the wedge in order to make proper contact with the twist-in wedge base style sockets. Here is the socket style I'm talking about and pics of how to I adjust the wires. Comet's LEDs have a wedge shape that keeps the wires in place and generally don't need the wires adjusted.

44/47 twist-in wedge base
wires in the middle, may not work wires on the outside, should work

Hey, thanks. That is exactly the type of sockets I have been having trouble with. When I get home I am going to take each one out and inspect it and align the contact wires like you suggest. That is likely the problem I am having. Thanks

Not an uncommon issue, tweaking the socket tabs for tighter grip is called for too.

Just a $50.00 eBay model. Looks good!
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Can someone please explain to me why there doesn't seem to be any really good ST topper? Even if Stern sold the one that came with the LE, that would be something. Not really impressed with the one from Laseriffic. My other pin is an MMr and I've been eyeing the new topper CGC is putting out with their updated models, which will be for sale separately. Like all their other toppers for AFMr/MBr, it is really something. I just don't want to have something like that, right next to a simple slab of acrylic. No offense to anyone who owns/likes the laseriffic or similar type toppers. I actually like some of the other games they've done.