I just got my first pin, Star Trek Pro, and I couldn't be happier. I'm excited to start tinkering as I got it used and it needs some new rubber rings and a few lights.

About a month ago I purchased my ST Pro. It is my first pinball. This past weekend I did my major cleaning and upgrades. I installed a cliffy hanger on the left scoop. To access the mounting screws I had to take off the left cover, but to get to that I had to take off the left ramp, but to do that I had to take off the warp ramp, but to take that off I had to take off the right ramp! Does that seem normal to anyone else? When you take off your ramps do you leave the little red LEDs attached or do you pull the wires off the circuit board? I pulled mine from the board, but I don't think that was the easiest way to go. While everything was disassembled I put in new blue rubber rings from cointaker http://cointaker.com/products/star-trek-polyurethane-rubber-ring-kit-36-pcs. They look pretty sharp. Most went on smoothly but the rings for the (what do you call them?) gates above the the popups wear impossible to put on. The rings seemed too small but matched the manual's size indicator. My wife pried them apart with needlenose pliers while I used my snap ring tool to spread it over the post. How do you do this without so much effort? (Or just with one person?) I was thinking about getting a castration banding tool before I try this again! Everything is put back together and is working great and looks super clean. I used novus 2 on the playfield and on the deep grooves on the ramp and novus 1 on the rest of the plastics. The job took me one long 12 hour session. I hope I'm faster next time!

Oh no! I had to remove my laseriffic Star Trek flipper toppers! http://shop.laseriffic.com/collections/flipper-toppers/products/st-flipper-toppers. They looked so cool but I had one crack and then the other started to chip. I think it is due to those hard kickbacks from the Vengeance. Any other more hardy alternatives?

I was able to get the adhesive off the flippers easily with 'Goof Off'.

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They looked cutout to me. I just don't think there was enough 'innards' to hold the outer ring together.

I have a ST Pro and I was wondering if anyone has run into the issue where the ball drain is not detected? When the ball drains the pin 'searched' for the ball and eventually prints an error that there is a missing ball. I haven't researched it too much, but I do not recall seeing it mentioned in the forums. A point in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.

I found some tips for debugging the trough on an Indian Jones here: http://www.pinballrebel.com/game/pins/ij2/shop/Trough.htm

I took off the trough cover and tried to diagnose the switches. I pulled up the "Switch Test" maintenance display and all the switches were registering. All the solder looked healthy on the pressure switches. I checked the connections on the power supply to the optical sensors and sure enough, there was about a 1/8" of play in them. I reseated them and the put everything back together and it is working fine.

It was just a loose connection! Thanks jawjaw!

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Hey Bonanza,

I went with the poly rings from cointaker: http://cointaker.com/products/star-trek-polyurethane-rubber-ring-kit-36-pcs. I found them to be very active in bouncing the ball back on the posts. I went with all blue and I think it looks pretty sharp.

Regards,
Jay

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Is there a safe way to start the next mission in Star Trek Pro? I know some people can backhand the 'Away Mission' but I cannot seem to get close to hitting that shot even when barely skimming the sling. Is there a similar technique for the 'Mission Start'?

I cannot speak to your Star trek, but my Ghostbusters had issues with the drop target double firing. On mine, the drop targets have an optical switch (a little circuit board) that was bad and needed a replacement.

I have some chips and cracks in my Star Trek Pro Alpha Quadrant ramp. After searching around, I cannot seem to find a replacement ramp. Does anyone know of a source for a replacement?

I'll try contacting my local distributor as they have a parts department that works with Stern. I just wish they were open on the weekends. Anyone ever have any luck with PlastiFix https://www.amazon.com/Polyvance-PlastiFix-Kit-Clear/dp/B0007LTXVY ? I was curious to know how clear it dries or if it will be yellowish.

You can see the chip all the way around the screw.

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I bought my #star_trek third hand and feel that I got a pretty good deal. It was well loved, but not in bad shape. The alpha quadrant ramp had some chips from punishing shots, so I bought and installed the metal ramp protectors. As I was installing those protectors, I noticed cracks in the screw hole and that the screw was actually glued in. I put in a nut and bolt instead, but the additional stress of the bolt and the protector over time busted out the plastic as shown in the photo. I really wanted to try and fix it instead of buying a new ramp, so I bought the PlastiFix kit from here: https://www.amazon.com/Polyvance-PlastiFix-Kit-Clear/dp/B0007LTXVY

I extracted the alpha quadrant ramp (what a pain in the rear) and preformed the following:
1. I cleaned up the break with a metal file and then sandpaper and cleaned out the crack with Naptha
2. I took a mold of an unbroken ramp (oh yeah, I bought one anyway in case this turned out to be a giant debacle). The mold is super important and I probably could've created it from further up on the broken ramp instead of off of the new ramp.
3. The PlastiFix is a two part process. The first part is a dry powder that you put into the mold, the second is a chemical that you apply with a dropper or needle. That is where I learned my hard lessons. I should have tested the process somewhere else to get a feel for the materials. What I ended up doing was filling the mold with powder and using the pipette to deliver too much solvent. It ended up overflowing and washing away to where I didn't want it. I think I could've taken a slower approach and done the repair in layers and applied the fluid with the needle which delivers the fluid with a lot of precision and control. I'm not sure if the layering would work, but they give you enough product to figure it out. At the end I had a big blob of new plastic. The new plastic will yellow slightly over time.
4. I took a rasp to the plastic to get it in shape. Then I went to the metal files for the more accuracy. Then I wish I would've read the internet for polishing scratches out of plastic. I sanded from 120 grit up to 240. Then I wet sanded through 400, 800, and 1200. This left a lot of the surrounding plastic cloudy as I was trying to sand off the overflow. While the finish is smooth, it is cloudy. I read that you should finish with metal polish. The next time I tear down the game, I'll give it a try. I reinstalled everything and it seems to be holding up. Since the majority of repair is under the ramp protector there is only a couple of square inches of cloudy ramp.

I hope this helps (or encourages you to buy a replacement ramp). If you do buy a replacement ramp, remember to buy the stupid sticker that goes on it as I forgot to and I don't want to pay the extra shipping for a sticker.

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It is my understanding that the triangles are torpedoes. When fighting the Vengence you can launch them to reduce the number of shots to need to make to complete the mode.