I'd suggest putting a second (or stronger) return spring on the upper flipper. It certainly helps smack the ball into the LAIR lane when you drop the flipper.

Ive thought about that too. The game being too hard for the theme. Then again these are the original turtles we had as kids in the 80s. So you could expect an older audience.

This game does kick my ass and I will admit Ive thought about finding a trade partner! I have AIQ premium coming as well so Ill probably hold off a decision until that comes.

The game imo just plays very fast and will punish you for bad shots. I don’t feel it’s hard as I’m able to progress and I’m not that great BUT it’s not an open shoot whatever you want pin. I really like that about this game and it works well with my collection. I’m really happy with how much of a 1 more game feel it has

I’m happy struggling to get to team up. If I get a few combos, 2-3 episodes, a level up and some of the jackpot achievements I’m quite happy. If I was getting to the final battle after a few weeks, then I would be shitty. This is definitely the fastest pin I own. But I don’t know. It’s ok to be frustrated with pinball sometimes. The lair shot is fine now I have superbands. I can hit it in without trying to trap.

I really think a pin like this needs about 1/2 year of ownership until I improve Enough to start getting close to 8 episodes. But it does have coop. And you can do final battle straight away.

It’s almost if this race to have the latest LE is making our last pin bought seem old quick.

Mine is not being played because my pizza is bent. Waiting on replacement from stern. Once it’s up and running again, maybe I’ll get to team up by myself. Maybe I won’t. But that’s not the pins fault. Still haven’t got to Mars on AFM. I’ve beaten Megakrakasaurus But no further in DP. Still trying to get to Horde in TWD. Hell the only pins I own that I have completed are WCS and NGG. It just depresses Me that a pin like this is being sold of so quickly for the next hit. Hopefully I will hold onto TMNT for many years.

Points can be great. Hit the spinner to build foot base value.

I read a lot of posts here about TMNT being too fast and too hard. I think some don't realize that all new pins are that way. Everything is super clean and super strong so the ball just flies at the speed of sound. Give the game a couple hundred plays and let it get a little dirty and it will settle down some.

Whenever I clean and wax Metallica or GOT for instance, the game is almost unplayable for a little while.

Did anyone ever get to cowabunga yet?

I know of at least one person that has.

Game is definitely difficult and frustrating at times. It's so fast and if u miss a shot the left outlane will suck it up lol.

Yea. Miss the right ramp? Bang to the left outlane. It hits the top of the right sling? To the left outlane! No soup for you!

The Pizza shop is nearly impossible for me to hit from the right flipper Though. Oddly enough, the lair shot is the one shot I can hit more consistently. I’m more comfortable hitting the lair shot than the ramps since I’m having issues with those too. I think it may be my pitch. Whats yours set to?

6.5

Yes... in 4-player Co-op mode.

Can someone please check something for me? I just finished putting things back together, and have one extra washer. The way I had things grouped, it looks like it should have come from right around this spot. Does the post on the left have a washer somewhere in the stack with the spacer?

IMG_20200728_171204 (resized).jpg

Mine is 6.5 now, slowed things down for me nicely.

I can consistently backhand the right ramp and I can usually backhand the left now with the lower pitch.

I also dialed down the auto plunge to 170, which for me is the easiest way to hit the inner loop and center ramp.

I havent progressed very far yet, still getting a feel for the shots. My kids (5 and 7) love it, theme is awesome and they are able to start either multiball fairly often.

This ones a keeper for now

All of a sudden, the Donatello and Raphael lights on the turtle select over the shooter lane are always on. Has anyone else had this problem? I don’t see anything touching externally that would make both LEDs have a constant connection, so I’m wondering if maybe it could be a software bug somehow?

My machine has also been restarting itself today, a few times, though I’m not able to reliably reproduce the steps yet. It seems to happen when I reset back to attract mode, try to start a fresh game, and then instead of being able to select a turtle, it just auto-chooses (I think Leo), the pizza spinner runs like crazy, then the game restarts itself.

Maybe related? Not sure how I could check for a software bug, outside of hoping Stern would reply? I don’t have an older version of the TMNT software, apparently, and Stern doesn’t offer archived versions as far as I could see (maybe upon request?), so I can’t do what I wanted to do to try and debug, which was the reload an older version of software and then come back to v1.21.

Re-image a *brand new, just taken from the package* SD card and try that. Stern uses the cheapest bulk SD cards and they fail more than they should.

I cleared my SD card, re-downloaded a fresh SD image from Stern for v1.21, put it on the SD card and reinstalled on the machine, and the issue of Donatello and Raphael being constantly lit is still present. Seems something I can't update from a simple reinstall, at least of the same version. Must be something that has to happen at the node level, which is more of a bummer. I don't know if reverting to an older version of code would even reformat the node boards; I imagine once they're updated with later firmware, they stay put. Perhaps it'll require another update to the node boards, or the ability to somehow wipe so that the latest can be reapplied?

Will reach out to Stern, I suppose =/

He meant a new card. Let get a different class 10 SD card and put the code on that.

Erasing the bad card still leaves you with...a bad card. Try a completely new one.

I have tried a fresh v1.21 image on both the stock Stern card, as well as one that I've purchased from the store and have been running on, and there is no difference.

What was the brand of the new SD card?

You could try swapping node boards 8 and 9 (while setting the dip switches appropriately) and see if the problem moves or disappears. The Turtle select lights are hooked into node 8

The brand of the SD card is the same as the stock Stern, incidentally, though it’s a larger card (16GB over the stock 8GB) - Adata brand.

Can you explain the swapping node boards and dip switches thing? I’m new to debugging pinball machines That said, I have taken a multimeter to the pins that correspond to Donnie and Raph’s turtle select LEDs on node 8, and verified that they are both indeed (obviously) receiving a constant 5-6v. I tried unplugging the Serial In plug from node 8, but that didn’t do anything either.

Node 8 and 9 are the same board. You just have to change the dip switches when you swap them so that the machine recognizes they've changed addresses. Just take a lot of pictures before you start unplugging things and you'll be fine. If the problem moves or goes away, you have identified the original node 8 board as the issue. If it doesn't, then it's one of the other boards.

folks who have really scored well in this game(50m plus). Whats your strategy? I got 45m with raph once but it was random. Is it just progressing episodes and doing training? Or is it timing the playfield multiplier(dunno how multiplier really works yet) with multiball?

I've had trouble getting the screws I wanted for one part of the Turtle Select bracket (it was supposed to be here early last week so I could start shipping these out, but the package has been on a tour of the US for going on the 3rd week and still not here). So, I just redesigned one of the pieces to take longer screws. It takes a little longer to print, but it has solved the problem with screws I have on hand and can easily restock.

So as the reprinted part comes off the line, I'll be getting out the backorders for this bracket kit that have stacked up. I think you'll really like it.

Tonight I took pictures of the bracket installed (no additional holes required) in an alternate location that I actually prefer. Here's what it looks like:
TMNT_Select_alternate_install_500x667.jpg

Forgive my ignorance, but that is still a bit of a foreign language to me I have located the dip switches on node boards 8 and 9, as well as found what their addresses are in the manual, but I’m still not sure what the “swapping” portion refers to. It sounds like a separate and larger act than flicking the switches on the dips to make 8 addressed as 9 and 9 addressed as 8, but without having taken part in this conversation before, I couldn’t say.

By “swapping” those nodes, do you mean to physically swap all connections from one board to the other? So, unplug all connections from both nodes, dismount both PCBs, mount node 8 where 9 was and vice versa, then reconnect everything but now on the other physical board, ie whatever was plugged into CN2 on node 8 will now plug into the CN2 spot on node 9, etc?

Clarification for an earlier post, after looking at the manual and getting another look under the table:

Here, I’m referring to having checked pins on CN3 of node extension board 8c corresponding to LED20 and LED19.

You physically unplug everything from node 8 and take the board out, then do the same for node 9. Then set the old node 8 to node 9 dip switch settings and install it at node 9 location and plug everthing back in, then do the opposide for the old node 9 - change the dip switches to node 8 settings and install it at node 8's old location.

Thank you for the clarification! Figured it would be prudent to make sure I understood the intention before doing all of that. I appreciate the help!

Take lots of pictures from different angles before you start unplugging so you have a reference to put it all back.

Anyone heard news on a topper reveal/release?

So you keeping your LE now?

Nope mates already got it at his, lives like 30 doors up from me which is ace, as I can pop and play it, but he’s curious about the topper as he likes the one on my BM66LE and he’s seen the one for Avengers.

Finally home in Oz!!!!

DA6BCA73-BDEE-42D5-9DC1-0C216F9A9484 (resized).jpeg

Hi guys,

don't know if it's already said.

For me the game was too fast and very frustrating. This morning I just changed the three flipper power in the feature adujstment. Put the three at 185.

It's an other pinball, now I can get pleasure to play it.

Seriously it tranforms the game.

Greetings from belgium,

Charly

Topper it moves ! Like r2

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/stern-tmnt-topper-thread

Looks nice, too bad it will probably be $1000 and I won't buy it on principle. It is odd they chose to put the logo 2 inches above the logo on the Translite. Why do you need a second smaller logo slightly higher than the one you can already read?

I absolutely hate when a logo gets put on top of the same logo! That topper logo blocks most of the Technodrome! Ditch it and let the Technodrome look bigger! It's also not going to confuse anyone on what game it belongs to because it will always be installed 4" above the translite logo. Ugh.

Finally got the rest of the above-playfield mods installed on my pro. Got the LER Krang, and the glider, radioactive canister, and lighted ramps from Mezel, along with a set of Mikonos metallic instruction cards.

1BC73AD0-8BDB-4A05-B00A-E9749B8B63A1 (resized).jpeg

Logo on the topper really brings it down. It's literally right above the translite logo!

I hope that topper isnt 1K. Id be in if its closer to the BKSOR topper price. There are not worth 1K for what they all do in my opinion.

yeah, that is a bummer. Doesnt make sense to have it there. Star Wars didnt or BKSOR and they seem to both be doing similar things

If Elvira is 1000 and R2D2 was 800 then I don't think it's a stretch to assume this will be high.

Who designs these toppers ? I guess they get a bonus the cheesier they make it.

TMNT logo on the topper looks to be a separate piece of plastic. I wonder if it can be removed.

Hungriest left Outlane I’ve ever experienced in pinball. I fixed it last night tho. 3rd game, 2 player co-op, got over 150m ! Look at the difference in right and left Outland drains. This is not normal.

Games growing on me, was super frustrating for a while.

8D21DB02-D8B2-47DC-8FA7-F50C1E128B29 (resized).jpeg

DCCBE7B7-5DE6-4C19-BCB4-AF306F77051F (resized).jpeg

Yeah I hope it’s sub $500 and you can remove the logo

I’m in if it’s under $500 depending on the movement if it’s just a piece of plastic no thanks!

The black night topper is under 500 and jar by far the coolest effect more of this please

I hate the flat plastic elements of this topper. The terrordome is cool with the moving eye. How much are they going to charge for this one $1500???