Yes...Cointaker will have one of the Proto's at Allentown.....

Just got this from Barry...finishing up lighting

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right here....I can only update you guys with information I have....

Not confirming or denying any numbers....but rest assured, this baby is getting built.

yes...Allentown this weekend...

Just found out....all of Liam's and Larry's call outs have been approved and will be used in the game.

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Just trying to be of service....
getting pretty excited here just like the rest of us.....

That would be very cool...especially after scoring a strike or "turkey" in the bowling alley....

No man....no lines, thats why I could verify approval....

My understanding is its not about whether they will be able to use clips and audio, just a matter of which ones.

Yes he is.

Quick follow up regarding music....

Music for the game has already been approved as noted in a previous NSN.

They are working on the option (not finalized yet) where you can change the song from the approved music (that is installed with the game) to another track of the approved music so you won't have to hear "looking out my back door" every time you start your first ball.

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Duderino....(like the name)....I wouldn't worry too much about tools and such right now...just relax and get ready for the party to start. We should be seeing an update in the next couple of weeks...and yes, you may explode.

Hey Guys....

No protectors on the ramps....from testing, there are no ball hits that strike the front of the ramp.

Fasteners will be both....but to be clear, Flipper assemblies and wear out parts will be off the shelf Imperial. Any of the fasteners that are metric will be easily available at a hardware store.

Yes...hopefully next week, they are working on it now...

I know the guys are working out the details regarding US delivery. The distributors would be the ones to make a "white glove" type of delivery available and I am sure we will see communication regarding that when the time comes.

Hey Genex, hope you are doing well. Hey man, I have not been told (officially) who will be distributing the early achiever machines, but my understanding is delivery and type of delivery will be handled by that distributor. I am sure there will be some sort of delivery options.

I'm getting pretty stoked about our next NSN, hopefully it won't be long now....

Very.................

check your mail

The 900 pound palate of parts from Scott are in Rotterdam, so they should be at the factory this week.

Rotterdam is about about a 1.5 hour drive from Aalten....so I would think it would be there. I'm talking with Barry later today so I will ask him...

Box is set up to be slid under the door by the tenth. Held up a few days in customs...

A picture is coming of a pile of playfields....
stay tuned....

Love me a robot....

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I think its set for 5pm on Thursday night

and some (of those who dropped out) had no money down at all.....

Fishbeadtwo...send me a PM with your e-mail address and I will forward it over to you...

I think they have a list going with people that are interested in ordering when games are available. I am almost certain they are not taking deposits from the people on the list.

Lebowski Bar to open in San Antonio.....Cointaker may want to contact these guys....I know if I owned the Bar, there would be one if not two TBL's there....

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/local/article/Big-Lebowski-themed-bar-sauntering-into-San-6538976.php

Wish I could...but I really don't have any info to share....

It already is.......

Yes...these are the engineering samples, built to production standards and are now being street tested at DPO. These machines are completely new and running code/hardware as the game will ship. (or relatively close)

I don't know...PDX Monkey is there so we will know when he reports back....or Rens jumps in. I think Geert Koop is heading over there now so we might hear from him as well.

Hey Guys....regarding Code I was wrong....I just got a note from Koen....this is what he said regarding code....sorry for the miscommunication...I suck.

"Code is about the same as Expo but tweaked for the Engineering Sample machines. New since Expo are a simple implementation for the rug modes (think White Water rafts), a super jackpot in multiball, the new Music and various tweaks of graphics and code. I would still call this alpha code - so early days!"

I will now sit on the sidelines and let those that are there give us the straight scoop....

check your e-mail....

Like the look of the back box light panel...
and I don't remember seeing the BOWLING sign on the proto's

back_box.jpg

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No more pre-orders are being accepted by DP. Best bet would be to contact Tommy up at Nitro if you are interested in a TBL in Canada

check your mail gentlemen...

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So I was digging into Rens Video (thanks again Rens) from the VIP party at ARA and found this....

Congo?

edit...just talked to Monkey and he mentioned the playfield window. I forget about Congo using the same window. Always think about it as the Creature window...

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congrats with Mees.....a new young achiever...

Glad to see you back Hensbrooker!

If you want to see what going on with engineering sample 5 check it out. This game is at Cafe FF, in the wild, in the Netherlands.

http://www.dutchpinball.com/tbl/live/es5

Actually...there is a feed where you can see the animations and scoring from the LCD in real time when the game is online. Earlier it was online and you could see it....check back from time to time...its still early for the bar to get crowded but I bet in a few hours we will be seeing some play.

here is a screen shot of what it will look like when it comes back online. The LCD opens up at the top of the screen. this pic was captured from here just now:
http://www.dutchpinball.com/bop2/live/GMBOP

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I believe so. On Sunday at TPF no one was fiddling around with profiles when starting a game.

So engineering sample 5 is on location in the Netherlands....here's a screen shot of balls and games played on the machine.
I am sure we are close...but in the meantime, I take comfort in these numbers....

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Maybe "dispatcha says theres something wrong with dana coble?"

congrats guys!!!!!.....going to be some late night abiding going on!

I would think it could be done (now or eventually) through wifi....

And singing along with game.....

I want Rens to do the voice over....

Just glad they're not 8 year olds Dude....

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Was playing a Kiss this weekend and noticed a number of ball saves activated for very short periods on specific shots, (bigtime sdtm from the ball shooting out of the mouth.) a quick ball save, 1-2 seconds may be a solution

It is

adding the pic for you Tom....things are getting ramped up

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I was going to ask Barry to enable the TBL live site.

Maybe DP's number 2 is Bubb Rubb and Lil Sis?

Got my note about shipping....now just waiting for the container to fill.

Just spoke with Barry and things are moving along. We can expect a Code update prior to our games being delivered.
Open the box, update the code.

I understood it that the Ship is stopping in Halifax and then heading to the port in NY....
CT would then pick up the games from the port in NY and bring them to their facility in Pa for distribution

I talked with Melissa over the weekend at ReplayFX.
I think she is ready to pick them up next week....but just because she is ready doesn't mean the games will be. We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed.

I don't think they will be testing the games (but I could be wrong). I think they will be just moving them through unless there is obvious damage to the box or the tip meter is registered.

edit...comment was more about customs

I'm thinking that either the boat is moving onto NY or the container may move to a different ship and head to NY.
I thought in the note from DP it was mentioned that the games are heading to the port in NY.

She is on her way to NY

I'm taking a drive to Pa tomorrow

F*ckin A!

Should be unboxing in about 2-3 hours....

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Hey guys....game is playing well right out of the box...was running .44 code and loaded .45 code. So far so good and will post some pics and more info tomorrow. BTW...I think Melissa is at a concert tonight so she will probably not get back to you until tomorrow.

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It was rolled up in the box so I have it upstairs laying out flat...

Man this is a fun game. Adjusted a sling switch and still working on the best playfield angle...So nice to experience/play the game where you can hear all the call outs, music, etc....rather than it being drowned out by other games at a show.

Well done DP!

will do for sure!

by the way, I noticed 1 dimple on the playfield....would you know anything about that?

Mine didn't freeze but it wouldn't take.....
I had to remove the existing USB and insert mine with the .45 code in the same slot that the existing (factory) USB was inserted

Barely 24 hours in the house and the mods start....
Game is playing well....Been messing with the power settings on some of the coils and pitch is dead on at 6.5

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I think there will be. Too many good ideas out there. I sent a note to Geert about his balls so hoping to talk with him in the next week or so.

As a matter of fact I was installing them the other night and was having a hell of a time removing the inside nuts to the backbox hing. Actually had the hammer out, but decided not to beat on it yet. On the old BW games, that nut just slid out after removing the carriage bolt. Will give it another shot this weekend.....

Here is a little taste of whats coming...this is only a few of the killer call outs in the game....these are triggered throughout the game but are also in attract mode.

mirror blades from Cointaker....but I never got to the point of installing, wanted to get that nut off first.
SDTOM...is today the day?

standard BW size.....
I expect them to be installed in about 20 minutes after I get those nuts off. I have installed about 6 sets of these in the past. The first thing I do is line up the blade with that nut/bolt, reinstall the bolt/nut and then use the screws along the bottom of the blades to finish the install. There is plenty of room between the cabinet and playfield.
I only tried to remove the nut on the right side....I will go in and see if the one on the left will come out.

yep...hex on the inside....outside is just the carriage bolt.

so this is the deal. You end up loosening up the hex on the inside...the carriage bolt then comes out. There is a spacer between the cabinet and the backbox metal plate. So now the carriage bolt and the spacer are out. But the hex nut is still inside the wall of the cabinet. You can move the hex nut about 1/4 inch out of the hole but it wont budge past that. I did use two screw drivers to see if prying it out would work, (put one screwdriver against the wall of the cabinet to protect the cabinet and used the other to pry the hex nut out), but no dice....

The carriage bolt and nut look to be standard BW type hardware so I am sure it will come out. I was just hesitant bringing out the hammer.

Good morning achievers.....it was hammer time!

As the dude says, "take it easy man"....you will have to hammer out that nut....take note and be careful. That nut has a small flanged end on it (nice to know it won't fall out). After getting it out, I just raped one of the BW ones from my Funhouse to slide back in.

I might suggest if you are ordering a set of blades, grab two new hing nuts (BW type) so you are not tearing things up trying to reinstall the old one. If using the old one, open that hole up just enough to allow the flanged end to slide back in.

One other thing I'll mention...the cabinet is beautiful as is. Rather than just painting the inside of the cabinet wood black, these cabinets have a very nice veneer.

tbl_blades_(resized).jpg

From the front..plenty of clearance on my game.....chipped some veneer when removing the nut on the right side (but the blades cover fine.) Also, on the second nut I just filed down the flange and reused.

That is a bummer Taz.

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Hey Gene...Cards come with it but just blank on the back

roll off the left flipper onto the right when coming down the inlane, then tap into the saucer from the right flipper....I think I make that shot about 1 in 10 times.

Another buyer mentioned that the game plays very Dude like and I would have to agree. Its not a drain monster and I am finding the ball times longer than my Met and much longer than BOP. DP has done a great job with the animations and how they are integrated. You can always skip the animations while playing if they get too repetitive for you. There are still several animations that make me laugh no matter how many games I have played.

There are some sweet animations in mark it zero. Each mark it zero has its own clip...and the clips get better as you get closer to completing them. Its worth taking the glass off and check it out.

I'm a big fan of the original music from the movie but Jules has done some great tracks for it and frankly I am just fine with how the music is coming along.

Going to pick up a set of illuminated flipper buttons from cointaker at the york show in 2 weeks. I'll document the install.

I was also going to play with a few CT bonus strips in the speaker holes on the back box. I am thinking of yellow or warm white behind the dp logo, always on, not interactive.

With current code...you can cancel the mb start if another feature is lit in the saucer. If the only thing lit in the saucer is character multiball, you can't cancel it

Just wishful thinking.

soon my brother...........soon

I think a number of us are having issues with the bowling alley and from what I understand they are working on a fix

I think its number of hits....

I talked with LSOG about making some sling protectors but still need to scan my slings for them.

I spent the weekend messing with my bowling alley. Its now working about 90% but still needs a little adjustment.

my understanding, (and I could be dead wrong) is...

The logic knows the ball is in the orange launcher. The launcher is going side to side with the ball in it. (In test mode, you can see it move across the screen either 1 swing, or in a loop.) When you hit the Ball launch button, the orange launcher stops, sending a signal of where that position is. The solenoid then pulls the ball stop down and the ball rolls towards the pins. The opto that runs across the alley tells the computer that the ball has passed and then tells the specific pins to pull up. Each pin has its own solenoid to pull the pins up.

Thats the only thing I am experiencing now, a stutter at the end of the right sweep of the bowling launcher. I think I may be off just a bit on my launcher adjustment on the motor shaft.

Ended up with a decent score this weekend. Looking forward to seeing TBL live become active

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I remember looking up and I think I was scoring 100k a hit on the car. Also, 3 balls collected bowling. So I was working the upper playfield as much as I could. played 1 dude multiball and 1 three character multiball, (left two characters flashing)

also snagged a 2x multiplier from the mystery scoop on one ball. Still can't figure out how to get the multiplier up. It may not have been written in the code yet. (if its in there, I can't find it).

edit: my tilt gives me 8 warnings.

anyone figured out where I can grab 12volts from the cabinet?
coin door board is a little unfamiliar...

Didn't want to bother Barry with that question. There is a mod connector under there but would rather run the line for lit flipper buttons to the cabinet rather than a wire hanging from under the playfield. Still need to figure out the pins on the mod connectors.

thats Vincent.

I would be (pleasantly and extremely) surprised if we see 1.0 at Expo.
I am hoping for live, some more tunes, and a few modes refined in our next update.

I am seeing Chris this weekend at York and will see what we can find on the proto they have.

update on code....

Just texted Barry and he confirmed that a code update is coming soon but it will not be version 1.0

This is fine with me...enjoying the ride of game development.

Gene...did your TBL run OK for the tournament?

I'm sure they are working on this....I see a lot of double warnings as well. Mine does the same on a tilt...thats why I set mine to 8 warnings. I don't move it around much more than I would any of my other games so haven't gotten past the warnings. I'll set it back down when this gets corrected.

yes....they will.