Bounce-out Solved! I just purchased a second TZ as an upgrade and it has the lock bounce-out problem. The ball never bounces out of the lock on my first machine.

The previous owner of my first machine claimed to be a TZ whisperer and said he made many functional improvements.

I can see he made a complex bend to the metal deflector, probably when the game was torn down.

I think the key is he raised the lowest point at which the ball hits the deflector by bending the flat section (after the angled section) up.

TZ1 Back (resized).jpg

He also lowered the angled section of the deflector but this wasn't necessary on my second game. You can see how the front edge is just above the ball guide.

TZ1 Front (resized).jpg

After removing the red plastic piece that covers the deflector plate (first removed the clock), I could only get enough leverage with my fingers pushing from the bottom and pulling on the rear edge of the angled section. This raised the the flat section of the deflector adding about a 1/4" of space between the back of the deflector plate and the ball guide. The inclination of the angled section may have increased slightly in the process. I was unable get enough leverage to lower the front of the deflector and still maintain the added height in the flat section, but results were good without it.

TZ2 Back (resized).jpg

Results:
Before - Most well hit balls bounced out.
After - Zero bounce-outs from well hit regular or power ball.