Oh hmmm - when did the Met switchover happen...I wouldn't be surprised if it was around the time they were making WWE. I seem to remember WWE being the first new title that had this problem.

That could be...the first I remember was a MET, but I didn't pay much attention to that WWE turd at all so it could have been first.

I just remember WWE LE kept having one thing after another. Decals peeling. Hulk's autograph rubbing off. The game generally being terrible.

These are the exact screws I used for my Mata Hari.

IMG_1723 (resized).JPG

Maybe I'm jaded, but I consider peeling head decals on the head to be fairly minor. Stern will send you out a new set. Most people don't even take the time to put them on (they should). It's nothing compared to a split cab.

While I agree Dave it is still an issue that shouldn't be happening on NIB games, even my kids Pritt-Sticks would hold the backbox decals longer than that batch of glue Stern was using.

The decals aren't peeling off my $60 Nintendo Switch games. Just sayin'

So. What happens when cabs crack under warranty?

I think Stern evaluates each one on a case by case basis. Then replaces them or not at their discretion.

I noticed a small cabinet crack on one of my newest machines today, can you guess the title...

IMG_2174 (resized).JPG

Hint, it's not a Stern machine, but the cabinet joints are cut exactly like the ones on a Stern cabinet.

That looks more like the decal ripped. It's possible the cabinet is not separating at all. This is the reason on newer Sterns they no longer wrap decals around the corners.

Oh no is that an AFMR?

Yeah looks like afmr

Oh crap. It looked manlike the old games just went up in value

Old games were silkscreened right on the cabs.

No way they could tear.

Decals are crap, always.

Agreed ...i love silkscreen cabs.....

My ST Pro and Mustang Pro still looks perfect.

I also loved the old silkscreen cabinets, the cabinet condition was the primary factory I was looking for when purchasing my ST:TNG even above whether or not it booted; the fact that the one I found had all original cards that were never been worked on was a bonus.

Yes, it's an AFMR with roughly 3 hours of playtime.

Couldn't agree with you fellas more...decal cabs = crap and problems. I can't count the number of WCS's and MB's I've encountered over the years with decals totally damaged or crinkled under the legs.

During my tenure with LOP, we took in 4 MB's on trade, and had to redo the cab decals on every one of them. Same thing for WCS. And MB's are an upper tier game with awesome artwork that deserved to be screened. And for anybody that's redone cab decals (the right way), it is a huge pain in the ass and a lot of work.

Whoever has the first run of WOZ pins with the screened cabs are definitely going to be able to fetch a better price in the future compared to those which have decals.

Whether it's cost-effectiveness, production or resource time consumption or any other reason, the crossover from screened or airbrushed cabs to decals is a change that shouldn't have happened. Just my opinion.

I had 2 terminator2 pins that were crackd at front right. Maby people hit the gun with there hip, while walking by at the pin places. Odd that both times it was T2

What kind of leg brackets are cgc putting inside the cabs?

IMG_6498 (resized).JPG

IMG_6500 (resized).JPG

That's what was in my last stern

And the amount of people who destroy beautiful silk screened cabs because they have a bit of fade on them, so they can make them 'mint' with horrible thin stickers.....

This is a large thread, sorry if I overlooked the answer(s).

Appears I'm in this party now w/my Aerosmith. I've caught it super early so life is good I suppose. Thanks Pinside!

To those of you affected, did you contact Stern or your distro?

If so, what did they do to resolve your issues?

Despite the negative press that Stern has been getting about these cabinets, I honestly believe the cabinet itself is structurally sound; admittedly, this thread did cause me a little concerned over making a purchase from Stern but in the end I purchased an Aerosmith and I'm very glad I did as its a fantastic game.

I could be mistaken, but from what it appears to me is one of the main issue with this separation is that the cabinet maker is cutting the channel for the side rail trim all the way through, rather than ending the channel a couple inches before the end of the side panel, this is leaving nearly no bonding area at the top edge.

IMG_2191b (resized).jpg
IMG_2189 (resized).JPG

Stern then compounded this weakness by tightly wrapping decals around the corners, leaving them no possibility for movement meaning they are going to tear. Fortunately Stern is appears to no longer wrapping decals in this manner but are cutting them short of the edge; theoretically, the decal will not tear even if there is some movement of the wood at the corner.

IMG_2184b (resized).jpg

Knowing of this potential issue, the one thing I did was filled this gap with Elmer's wood glue and used a toothpick to help in getting it to flow into the corner (it did flow down through the seam. I then cut a small block of wood and glued it in the gap at the corners to give them more bonding area. So far (knock on wood) I don't see any issues.

IMG_2244 (resized).JPG
IMG_2245 (resized).JPG

Is it actually splitting (corner separation occurring, gaps in the joint), or just a stress tear in the decal like in the AFMr pic a few posts up? The former is a big problem, the latter not as much imo.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/cgc-pinball-production-update/page/15#post-3870172

In either case, always contact your distro first with any concerns, that is what they are there for. My guess is if you try contacting Stern they will just tell you to talk to your distro anyway.

Pin_Guy

Stern has a problem.

My distro said I'm the 2nd w/cab issues that (last) week.

I had issues right out of the box.

A front seam flexes for sure. I can see the start of a crack that I can pry apart with just my hands.

The corner triangle piece of wood inside the cabinet that connects the cabinet sides is hollow/broken. They used broken wood to join my cabinet!

The leg bolt bracket is sinking into that broken hollow triangle too.

There is a section of the cabinet wall where the plywood layers are separating as well.

Someone @ the factory torqued down the backbox bolt into the wood without a washer, took it out, strapped up the game & sent it out. Why?

I cant make this shit up. I gain nothing by it. The issues are real. This thread is legit.

Paul

Good advice indeed.

I already spoke w/my distro & they said I was the 2nd cabinet issue that week. I was CC'd on an email Thursday to Patrick but heard nothing since.

It seems like this thread is full of stories where owners notified Stern & heard nothing. That isn't "waiting" for a reply. Thats "ignored".

Reminds me of the KPG fiasco w/his PF. Stern ignored him intentionally until the attorney general called. According to Pinside of course. How accurate that is I dont know. That's why I'm asking for the experince of others.

I'm not gonna lose sleep over this. It's just a cabinet. But I do want to see how Stern handles it & how others were treated too.

Know what I mean?

I hope you get things worked out with Stern & I believe they will do right by you. But I don't understand why people come on here and blast away without letting them try & take care of things. I've had issues in the past and always let them take care of things without bitching & moaning on a forum before they even have a chance to take care of the issue.

I guess there are different ways to approach these issues.

Hmmmm I wonder why they ignored him at 1st????

I bought a GB and AS within 3 weeks of each other. 'Had one cracked corner on each. No reply from Stern at all so I fixed it myself. Not too big a deal but I would have liked at least an acknowledgement.

I contacted Stern via their webpage and my distributor by phone. When they responded by email I cc'ed my distributor and kept him on the chain. Stern was nice and professional, but I really credit my distributor (little shop of games) with getting me squared away. Stern shipped me a new cabinet and I give them credit for standing behind their product.

Serious question here.

Do I seem like I'm blasting Stern?

My intent is to share my NIB experience & update folks on how Stern handles things. So far I think I'm fairly relaxed about it.

I know shit happens. Things slip through QC. That's fine. As long as its fixed & I receive prompt communication.

You dont have to look far however to see why folks start bash threads to warn others. Look @ this thread. Has anyone here received a reply from Stern? I can see 1 on this page but thats it so far. Big thread tho.

How long do I wait for a simple email on my troubled high dollar item? 1 day? 2 days? 1 week? When does it become obvious someone received the email & did not reply? There's no reason I cant get a next day reply IMO.

This guy posting minutes after us hasn't heard a reply yet either (see below)

Sorry I didn't mean to imply that you were "bashing" Stern. My point was maybe its best to work with your distributor to resolve these issues before taking it to a public forum. If you don't like how things work then by all means put them on full blast. It took me 5-6 weeks to get a replacement Cabinet for my ASLE but it arrived and was a pretty simple swap. Every major issue I've ever had i've had resolved working with my distributor & with Stern without the need to take it to a public forum. Just my 2 cents.

Did you contact your distributor?

Its all good man.

So should I lie?

Lots of folks knew I had a NIB on the way.

They asked if all was well in 2 other threads.

I replied no.

They asked for pics & video.

I replied no, gonna give Stern a chance.

In the meantime I'm here in this thread to see what it takes to fix this issue & guage the success of others in my shoes.

I cant do that privately, well not efficiently at least.

I like that story.

That is exactly what I wanted to hear.

Hopefully we share a similar experience.

Aerosmith is a great game. Stern killed it with this one IMO. If they make the rumored Elvira or Pulp Fiction as beautiful & robust as Aerosmith then I'm gonna spend some more scratch for sure.

Guys, my collection is 100% Stern. I'm a fan. With a problem on a NIB game. That's all, not trolling or losing my shit.

I'm bummed you had OOTB problems but you're handling it well

Most companies will deal reasonably with reasonable people.

Nope...handled the problem myself thanks to some great Pinsiders. Stern doesn't care which is why this happened in the first place. Sorry you're in the split cabinet club. Some B/W leg braces and minimal time and you'll be good to go! Here's my repair on my BM66 from earlier in this thread. Including wood glue I squirted in the top joints.

cec504e85fd920fe39a5c861948f48185e7d909a (resized).jpg

0b4d6a8dc9cff467e0d650300b4bb1392933a196 (1) (resized).jpg

5b2f2b51197621314efd6aaf7d05f2d5f994d109 (resized).jpg

I don't feel like you are bashing Stern, it seems like you have a legitimate grievance and are letting folks know what you have experienced, this information is a benefit to the community, please also let us know how your distributor and Stern deal with this issue; how they deal with the problem is actually more significant than the problem itself.

Some of you must have so much money that it doesn't bother you to get a a game that is falling part out of the box in exchange for your $8000. Shit, that could buy 2 cars for me to put on my lot to sell if I got a good deals. It means a lot to me. I would be screaming loud enough for them to hear me without a phone. I just can't wrap my head around why you would even give them your money much less not riding their ass like a tight skirt till they made it right.

I contacted my Distro (JJ @ Game Exchange) and let him go to bat with Stern for me. My GB was cracking on the left side. It took a week or so for them to get back to me but they asked for pics of the crated Pin from when I received it (my theory was to prove it wasnt shipping damage). Luckily, when It first arrived I took tons of pics of it crated up on my porch so I could post here that I got it, haha.

Long story short, they agreed it was enough of a problem to warrant a swap.

They were supposed to send me a "mostly populated" cab (brackets, ground braid, buttons, speaker, etc, all there, only to have to swap the coin door, node board, head and PF) but what I got instead was a completely bare lower cab (where I would have had to move EVERYTHING). They agreed it was a mistake.

I politely made my case that this was unacceptable and they agreed and 100% made it right, they had a local stern authorized repair company come out, pick up my game, do the swap for me and bring it back. (the company even put on the beefier Williams/Bally style leg brackets for me)

Very happy how it turned out in the end.

I assume this will not be everyone's experience, so YMMV.

How much glue went down, a tablespoon....?

From a newbies perspective, looking potentially to get a NIB game this really seems scary. I feel like one of the reasons old machines are fetching such high prices is that they were well built furniture and used discreet components ( and robust power supplies?) that could be diagnosed and replaced even by people without much expertise.

I understand the new modular approach to the electronics but cheap cabinetry is unacceptable. CNC machining and computer analysis in the audio world has made even cheap speaker cabinets perform much better and remove resonances.

No I didn't - I fixed the problem myself and moved on. I really only wanted them to know of the problem to take corrective action on future games. I don't think I'd wanted to take the time to swap cabinets even if it was offered. Good advice is to contact distributor though.

I was really glad this topic had died for a while - I thought they'd fixed it. All it would take is some glue and B/W corner supports.

But back to Stern. I haven't had a single problem (other than the corners) on either GB or AS. So all in all I'm a happy camper.

I just picked up a Jackbot which is a European reimport and guess what, it has the HD leg braces on all 4 corners and they look stock. Anyone else's reimport have this?

My star wars pro has a signed QC stamp on the bottom of it by the coin door. Is this something new?

But that's just about 1/4 out of a joint that is 50x bigger than that. That should only be risking chipping of the panel at the depth of the groove, not the side splitting. 1/4" out of the total joint isn't going to make a difference.

Wood glue is too thick to flow well, I would say I filled that small opening to the top twice and could shove a toothpick in an inch deep to help it flow into the seam. I don't know if I really did anything, but if it splits I'll know it didn't help.

My distro called.

I was busy @ the time so it went to voicemail but he says after reviewing the video & pics Stern has agreed to replace my cabinet.

Tomorrow I will call him back to get an ETA & the details of how this works.

I'm reluctant to call this resolved, you know, since its not yet done, but I'm happy to report Stern's reply.