On lighting my new LOTR Random KG added trough lighting like Lermods recommended. We removed those black rubbers off the bolts of the bulb connectors that were acting like washers under the playfield to raise the LED's 1/8 inch higher above the play field to spread out more lighting. Added led strip by the plastic down from the Path of the Dead upper playfield to brighten left side up. Spot light bulbs won't come out so I will order whole new spotlights. Did some Einstein glue mine in?

Fixed a switch that went out day one and got 63 million my third game in. I have no idea what the rules are, but like the shots and modes!

Thought I was a speed and flow guy, but ST left and a HUO LOTR came in. No regrets!

Pics?

The rules aren't too bad to learn and I thought they made sense for the most part. I agree that the modes are fun, but the freaking Witch King, I've never killed that bastard. I feel like I'll reach Valinor before I ever kill that damn Witch King.

530-5332-03 for left and right sides.
530-5012-02 for the rear one.

Better double check with pics and manual.

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Thank you so much. I had it down to a couple of possibilities and you have sorted that out for me. Smashing.

You and me both, my friend. Sometimes I just time out that mode, due to the difficulty. I've beaten RotK MB, TABA, and DTR many times, but I've never beaten the Witch King.

Witch King is the toughest mode by far. I've completed it only twice. The animations/sounds are the best!

Just started and restarted a bunch of games with Witch King mode and zero success. That is a good one to start before a multiball and hope it works out.

Stack gollum MB with witch king.

Has anyone clearcoated their cabinet? I wouldn't mind protecting and making the machine great with that sheen

Anyone have an insight into the coil sleeve list

If anyone is ever looking I put together the rubber list from the manual. Haven't checked it with the actual game yet...seems like some are way more than I would think this game took...

Plus flipper rubber and shooter. Leave those up to your choice.

three http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=281

five http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=932

eleven http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=69

two http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=443

one http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=446

one http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=447

four http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=86

twelve http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=84

thirty-seven http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=50

one http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=49

I hear ya, and that is probably the best way to do it, and I feel like it is kind of a waste of a multiball stack. You stack any other mode with TTT or ROTK (and Gollum too), and you have a good shot at finishing the mode by keeping the multiball going. I've never pulled that off with Witch King running. I probably need to get better at hitting the right ramp anyway

I joined the club today!! Can I add a shaker?

If you don't have the "LotR LE" aka "gold edition", you have to jump through some hoops.

Details here:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/how-to-install-shaker-motor-in-lotr-standard-edition

Thanks for the help

You can thank my cell phone and overall inexperience with Pinside for the less-than-stellar quality pictures, but count me in the club, too.

Extremely amazing game overall, and one of my absolute favorite pinball machines of all time. It really does play out like some huge fantasy adventure quest, what with the long and perilous journey you must take to reach Valinor.

A "keeper" for me.

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Nice to see one that hasn't been color-bombed. Slap a ColorDMD in it and enjoy, great game!

Congrats!

I overlooked and underestimated how good LOTR was. Thought I was cool just liking Borg/Ritchie games, but this pin really opens up a whole new world for me.

I consider myself a "value" guy also and for the high rankings, quality of rules and play and how much there is on the playfield LOTR's is a bargain compared to many other Sterns.

I cannot believe how much I love this game. If, for arguments sake, you call WoZ a masterpiece of modern pinball manufacturing, put next to my LOTR it certainly is NOT chalk and cheese, and the casual visitor to my game room considers them pretty much the same thing. I constantly get lost for hours in my LOTR and it is ageing like a fine wine and actually getting better and better as time goes on and other machines come and go. I cannot get tired of it.

I've had mine for 6 months and really enjoy it. I just played a few games and wondered that before each new ball the display say "U K skill shot".
Is that normal and does it reference the UPPER KICKER? (not sure what that would be) or the country?

I'm not entirely sure, but perhaps that's referring to the Orthanc (left tower to Paths of the Dead) skill shot? Or maybe the United Kingdom All-Skill post between the flippers (which probably isn't on your game).

I've never seen that on the display on mine. Weird...

Disable the UK Skill post in the menus.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/lotr-what-is-uk-skill-only-pinball

Thanks I had to first turn it on and then turn it off but it worked.

I've heard it's pretty common, but the Palantir target on my LOTR is bent to the side from repeated hits. I can bend it back to center no problem, but it won't last a couple of games before it's bent to the side again. Anything I can put on the target to keep it still?

Mezel mods sells a target splint that really helped mine.

I have the same problem and it got bent bad enough that it started eating into the wood. I am planning on adding a small piece of L steel bar in the back. If the fit isn't great, I will looking into the TZ reinforced target http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-18530-6R as a starting point.

I used to worry about this, straightening mine a couple of times, but I now think having it leaning slightly to the left makes it a little easier to hit the Gimli VUK shot instead of just passing straight through to the Boromir pop bumpers. If you intentionally hit the right side of the target, especially back-handing from the right flipper, it kills some of the momentum, limiting pass-throughs.

On mine the wood looks like it's doing that in the back a little, though you can't really see it from the player's perspective and the target blocks it anyway, so it doesn't bother me. I'll be sure to get the splint, though. No problem.

Anybody have Cliffy protectors installed on their LOTR? I bought them but I haven't installed them yet. My machine's a HUO and I try to clean and wax the playfield frequently. I did put a plastic protector from Pinbits on the Gimli saucer and the Shire VUK area.

They really do seem to be a pain to install -- at least for me because I haven't removed much off my playfield before (only unscrewed the ramp and the plastic shield above the left outlane to install the Arwen protector.

I've got 4 Cliffy protectors on mine: Gimli, Orthanc, Shire, and under the Blue Nub of Death (Cliffy's newest). They're not too hard to install. If you need any installation help, I can guide you.

Edit: Link to more info on the latest LOTR Cliffy protector... https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/lotr-thanks-for-the-fix-cliffy

I've had mixed results with the Mezel target splints. I put one on the target just below the Quorra shot on Tron and it worked wonders. Tried one on the "I" target next to the SOL on AFM and it didn't really seem to help. Same thing with the pick target next to the snake on Met. For some reason, the Palantir target hasn't really bothered me, but it does lean a fair amount.

Just out of curiosity, which one did you get? The large 2-piece splint, or the small 1-piece splint?

http://mezelmods.com/products/stern-target-splints?variant=923513721

Note: There is a "Store Owner" comment below the very bottom user review that says, "A quick clarification on this post- the Stern splints do not currently work with the Palintir LOTR targets. We have this one on our to do list!"

It's been a while ago, but I'm pretty sure it was the one piece splint. They are a slight PITA to install!

FYI, I just ran across an official LOTR Playfield Shot Map. I don't recall seeing it before, so I thought I should share it here, in case any fellow owners haven't seen it.

There's not any new information here. Most LOTR owners probably know this stuff by heart. Nevertheless, it is a good graphical reference, and it might be helpful to new owners.

Click each PDF attachment for clear, full-size views.

Stern_The_Lord_of_the_Rings_755-5180-00-SM1.pdf
Stern_The_Lord_of_the_Rings_755-5180-00-SM2.pdf

I have just taken the Cliffy out of my Orthanc Tower hole. Far too many rejected shots.

It's definitely the two piece splint. The one piece only fits the thin standup targets which LOTR doesn't have.

Store Owner comment is accurate... I did a workaround using just one of the two pieces and a zip tie. Classy!

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I've re-discovered my LOTR LE lately and just read (scrolled to look at pictures) through this whole thread.

Mods I don't have I've that look cool:
Ring flasher mod tied to red light in backbox behind the eye.
Ring bright red LED flasher
Red Speaker lights tied to ring flasher
Sword tip cover decal

Stuff I have that looks / works good:
Mirror blades
Brass lollipop side rails
Plastic protectors
Large Arwen plastic protector
Shire sticker
Cliffys
Ball guide replacement for sneeze guard (not installed now).
POTD with illuminated figures
Gandalf with Shadowfax (Lighted staff)
Ring shooter
Ring speaker covers
Color DMD
Frosted LEDs in GI

I also have upgraded flipper child's but nothing to compare it against. It came that way when I got it.
All this stuff reads a bit silly, but it looks pretty much like it would have come this way if you just walk up and play it.

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My thoughts are that some Cliffys are an absolute must on scoops with a lot of activity like AFM, RBION, XMEN and Tron. Lot of wear can easily build up on these particular ones.

But my LOTR hasn't seen really any wear yet, despite owning it for a few years now. Not a big fan of the metal protector covering a little bit of the artwork but they are effective, that's for sure, if not causing more rejected shots.

Looks awesome! Have you considered getting the other action figures for the playfield (like the Hobbits and Gollum on the slingshots)?

That Gandalf on Shadowfax figure has been getting harder and harder to find, but looks great installed IMO.

This is my current favorite..

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I agree. I would say that the clear plastic for the Sam hole is a must though.

I've got that on mine. The Arwen protector's also really necessary too if you want to protect that plastic from damage.

I'm getting a coil malfunction on coil #21 that drops the white post that holds the balls on the sword. Coil works but when you get two or three balls up there it gets stuck and won't release unless you nudge the game to take pressure off that plunger. Any ideas or adjustments to fix this?

It turns out that I do have the backbox flasher kit. It's not really bright I need a better bulb.

If the coil itself is malfunctioning, you may need to replace it, but let me step back and ask another diagnostic question first. Have you visually confirmed that the coil is not dropping the post, or are you just assuming this because the ball is not releasing?

Sometimes a ball held in the sword ramp ball lock won't release because it's magnetized and sticking to the ball behind it. Some pinballs are prone to magnetization, and being held by the ring magnet for minutes at a time during Destroy The Ring can magnetize them. The problem often manifests itself at the sword ramp ball lock when more than one ball is locked. If the balls are magnetized, replace them with new ones specifically made for use in games with magnets.

Check the spring under it. That spring has a tendency to get caught up into the coil and can cause it to act funky. I think there is an eclip or something holding it in place.

Yes it is a slight magnetism of the balls. Thank you very much. Anybody know where to get some that won't magnatize?

Search Pinball Life for Oooh Shiny. Their website is down for summer break though at the moment.

Thank you everyone

These are the ones you want to buy (c/o the Internet Archive Wayback Machine):

-- Premium Ultra-Gloss Pinball (Product ID : ooohhh_shiiiiny) -- $1.50 ea.

http://web.archive.org/web/20160420230854/http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=1325

Like TimeBandit said, the regular website it down, so you'll have to wait until Terry and Margaret return from their summer vacation before you can place an order.

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Buy some new ones as listed above but in the meanwhile you could try dropping the balls onto a smooth concrete surface. I have never tried this but some say it works. Alternatively find a local engineering shop and ask them to demagnetise them for you.