Hi, recently joined the club with a 2003 Pro. One thing I'm finding is that it's pretty tricky to hit the ring shot consistently from cradle. It feels like there's not enough power and I've seen this was a common concern in the history of the table. I've reread as much as I can but I'm not sure what to do. Here's the details:

1) upgraded LOTR coils in place
2) Playfield at 6.5
3) Has lightening flippers (shouldn't affect it i assume?)
4) was used in a tournament recently and had flippers rebuilt or at least confirmed

I'm not sure if I should mess with the Flipper Adj settings (increase setting 53) or if there's something else to try? Or if it's the old play better and make cleaner shots. I've read some stuff saying the magnet could be weak? I do know the magnet works as I can typically make the shot and it works around 1-2 times per game but I'm usually needing momentum or a bounce shot to make it.

Thanks!

Just was looking into the menus/diagnostics and when I run the dedicated Switch test my Left and Right flipper EOS come up. It's not clear if that means they are activated. Running the normal activated switch test doesn't seem to mention the EOS switches. Does that mean I should check to see that they are not already closed?

Nevermind I see that stern EOS are closed by default and that's normal behavior. For what it's worth the ramp and spinner look to be fine.

Ultimately I guess the question is how hard should this shot be? Does it need everything to be just right or should it hit the ring and work like 65%+ times you launch it off the ramp ?

Any other tips on power are appreciated - is it worth playing with the flipper adjustments #53?

Ok so I swapped out one (only had one spare) of the lightning flippers and also made sure there was a bit more up and down play. I think it's made a difference - more the slightly longer length just seems to give it a bit more force. Thanks for all the tips.

Next question, my Balrog was working, then stopped, I opened it up and jiggled the bulb and it seemed to work. (It's a replaced 5 SMD LED type #44) and I closed it up and it was great for like 1 game. Then it stopped again. I'm wanting to test with a different bulb to see if its the wires or the bulb but not sure if there's anything on LOTR that I can use to test as I think this is a special 12v LED where the others are lower power?

Ok seems to in fact be a bad bulb - I'm thinking of just trying these as the Balrog flasher as they would be cheaper than trying to ship to Canada from the US. Would these work? They look pretty damn close to what I think I have removed currently.

https://www.amazon.ca/Super-White-BA9S-Light-Bulbs/dp/B0756HGX65/ref=sr_1_35

New owner looking for some advice, my inner loop switch (#42 - gate switch) has stopped registering (it may not have ever registered since I got it). Wondering where to start or what to look for to fix this. Is there a loose connector I should check or some other technique? The switch appears to be mechanically sound - I haven't taken it all apart though (yet!).

Thanks!

Ok I've confirmed the switch for the inner loop is not working (swapped it temporarily beneath the playfield for another switch connection). Now I'm not sure how I can easily get at that switch. How much do I need to remove to get at it? Any tips on gaining access (order of part removal). This table has the white wizard with the blue LED mod which makes it awkward to see/get at.

Thanks!

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so I assume he's not glued in then? I didn't want to start pulling on it if it's just going to make a mess and I can't seem to find the details on installing him anywhere.

Looking for a little more help - I had posted previously regarding replacing the 5 SMD LED light for the Balrog flasher.

So I got the new LED bulbs finally and went to try but got nothing when I did the balrog flasher coil test. So i swapped the bulb for a Red 5 SMD LED I had in the GI lighting at the back panel and the red LED works just fine in the flash test. I then tried my new white bulb in the socket I had swapped the red LED from and it worked in that GI socket. So what am I missing? I think those back panel sockets are 6v and the Balrog flasher is 12v, regardless I would have expected both bulbs to work in both sockets. Why does the new white bulb not work in Balrog but work in the back socket?

Thanks for any tips or guidance!

Ok after a bunch of digging I think it's an LED polarity issue. Does that mean the socket is wired incorrectly or that the bulbs I got were bunk?

The right ramp gate on my LOTR doesn't seem to swing freely, but it looks like maybe its intended to be like that. It basically stays it position if it swings up then on a weak shot would swing down again. Is that normal?

I know this topic seems to beaten to death but I'm still trying to get my flippers more powerful. I played around with adjustment 53 and set to 30 (up from 20) and found it did seem to make a significant difference. Are there any downsides to just leaving this? Should I adjust my EOS away from the assembly so it triggers later and then reduce this again to 20?

Also in the guide it says default is 10, but I did a factory reset a while ago and it was set to 20 and I've never touched it since. Perhaps they increased the default in later revisions after the manual?

53 FLIPPER ADJ 1: Set between 05 to 40. Default is 10. This adjustment sets the minimum fire time for a flipper coil in milliseconds.
54 FLIPPER ADJ 2: Set between 40 to 60. Default is 50. This adjustment sets the maximum fire time for a flipper coil in milliseconds.
55 FLIPPER ADJ 3: Set between 0 to 10. Default is 3. This adjustment sets the amount of time to fire the coil after the EOS switch is seen in milliseconds.

One other quick question - when FOTR is lit, or gift from the elves is lit, If I hit the left orbit but it bricks out of the tower shot, or doesn;t make it (drops into pops) I don't get the reward. I assume I have to make the orbit and land it in the tower to count? Or is a switch in the orbit not working properly?

Thanks!

Looking for some tips on adjusting the ring spinner. Is this hanging ideally? Or should it be leaning forward more like "/"

To remove this and adjust the wire as it catches in one position on the microswitch do I just use pliers and bend the smaller section out? Was planning on using some oil on the metal arms to improve spin as well. Any other tips?

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Looking for some tips - I'm about to swap out the RAM for NVRAM but looking at the existing chip on the board I don't see any notch. Is it marked underneath at all? Any other way to determine which way round to install the new chip?

Also any general tips so I don't mess anything up? I was planning to try prying the old chip out with a flathead screwdriver against the socket.

Thanks!

It's strange cause on the docs its the only one without a notch it seems. I'll look when I get the chip out.

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Ok so I'd say that looks like notch down Thanks!

Looking for a bit of advice, I've rebuilt my flippers and they are usually nice and strong. However some times i feel it depends on how i press the flipper buttons (quick tap vs hard press etc). I'm wondering if the cab switches could be making a better consistent connection when pressed. They do look a bit rough and not smooth on the connector tabs (sorry I don't know the correct names). Can I file them down a bit with a metal file? Any other tips? Am I lookling in the wrong direction in terms of improving consistent flipper power?

I've got a nice LOTR that's starting to show some ball trails down the inlanes and outlanes. I'm still relatively new to the bobby but did a bunch of reading on Vid's threads but it's almost too much info. I tried a bit of Novus 1 on the ball trails but they don't really come off. So hoping to confirm here, a little Novus 2 to get rid of the ball trails and then wax. I picked up the P21S blue lid (apparently silver is better) but it's already in the mail. This is a LOTR owner approved course of action I hope? I don't want to do anything that could wreck this beauty

Also do you guys wax the ring ramp? Right ramp? Any other areas for wax recommended?

hey guys, would the magnet sloblo fuse affect the ability of the magnet's power (as in it sucks the ball in more consistently) if it's a 4amp? I have an original non-LE and i'm curious if it just makes it so it works or not, or if i replaced it would it improve the magnet's ability. Do fuses start to lose function/impact performance over time? Or is it more of a work/not work scenario?

Ran into some frustration this morning where my LOTR was resetting. It would do it during attract or in the game. The lights all seemed to stay on but it would just kill the flippers and the display would start at the Stern Lord of the Rings again. I looked at it and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I re-seated J16 based on some other posts but it did happen again. After leaving it on for some time it seemed to be fine and I've had a bunch of games today since this morning without issue. Is there anything to look at? Do pinball machines warm up at all which may have helped the resets stop occurring? I have got a NVRAM chip instead of batteries but that was done over a year ago and has been working well.

It seems that this can be somewhat common. The only change is that is a bit cooler these days! Any advice is appreciated.

Hi guys, looking for some advice, I recently swapped out the rubbers on the slingshots but on trying to re-tighten the right slingshot upper post I'm finding the T-nut not biting into the wood. Now I'm getting a tiny amount of up and down movement and if I try to tighten the bolt it just spins the T-nut. Any advice on how to get this fixed again without a ton of work removing parts?

Thanks!

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Thanks, I was able to get the T-nut off and the teeth were completely flattened. The wood still looks in pretty good shape so perhaps it had never really bit in. So now that I've got it out and looking to just replace the T-nut and the bolt. the local hardware store doesn't have stuff like this so I want to make sure I order the right parts. I think I need the following:

One of these T-nuts - https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/4406-01118-00

Can I just tap this in with a hammer gently?

The bolt head got a bit mangled trying to get it out so rather chancing it I'd rather replace it. I think it's a 6-32 2-3/4" machine screw correct? I can't seem to figure out a part number from the manual. Anyone know a part number or can confirm? (Again the hardware store didn't have anything to match).

This looks it?- https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/237-5906-00

Appreciate it!

Looking for any tips on tightening this post in the picture (middle post). I'm hoping I can do it somehow without removing the whole sword assembly and too many other pieces. I can't seem to figure out how to get at this easily. It screws into a T-Nut under the playfield and it's tight against the sword lock mechanism so not enough room to get at it and put a nut on it.

Thanks!

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I managed to do it, by removing the two nuts on the sword and the upper nut on the slingshot - then I was just able to get enough light flex on the sword and plastics to move it out of the way and get enough access to the post to successfully replace it. The T-nut had completely lost it's barrel and thread so that all got replaced. Wasn't too bad overall really.

I'm sure this has already been discussed - but off hand, when in DTR (2-ball) I find it's pretty tricky to actually knock the first ball loose once its in the magnet. It's do-able but multiple nice shots seem to have no effect! Is that typical? Is it really a special direct shot needed to finally destroy it?! Just curious...

Hopefully an easy question:

The sword lock post is normally in an up position and will fire the coil to let a ball roll by when lock is not lit correct?

I'm having a strange one where every now and again I'll hit the right ramp and a ball will bounce off the post momentarily and back up the sword to switch 2 and get slightly held up there and refire the post which typically sends it on its way. Sometimes this bounce triggers a ball lock when it's not really earned. Any tips on avoiding this bounce or tweaking? It's pretty rare so maybe just part of the fun....?

I did some more tests and it seems to be good to go from a right ramp shot or gimli hole VUK - post drops nicely timing it just prior to the balls arrival for a seamless shot.

The ring shot and wireform exit cause the bounce. It's like it's too quick when it comes down the wireform from the ring. I did recently put new balls in so perhaps they are just faster for now. I've got a 6.5 pitch on the machine so I'm not sure there's much to do unless I artificially slow down the ball somehow or look at flattening the sword angle. As I mentioned it's not all the time and the bounce isn't too disruptive except for the odd time when a sword lock is ready or it holds up for a second waiting on the second coil fire. Thanks for the tips as I was able to confirm the switches seem good to go.

What's the consensus on Adjustment #33 - Coil pulse power? Are you typically setting this to Hard? Or leaving it at the default of Normal?

Did anyone find a power improvement after replacing the cabinet switches? I've seen comments that Stern had issues in early run LOTR and Sopranos. Were these the ones used for replacement? https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/500-6889-01 . Is there a good way to diagnose to see if the current cabinet switches are in fact flaky? The switch test shows them functional 100% but not sure how reliable that is for game play impact.

It looks like they are shorter than stock switches, so what's the best technique to mount them?

Hey guys, still on the quest to perfect my flippers power. I ended up finding some obscure link https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.games.pinball/0sTHsIevz1w which references a code LLLLLR x 4 before a game which then shows you your flipper fire time in ms. It works! But now I'm trying to determine what's "normal". I find if I flip i'm often seeing pretty close to my min flipper time fire (Adj#53) and so this is narrowing it down for me to replacing the cabinet flipper switches.

Looking for anyone whos got some time (in this crazy time) to maybe try the code and let me know the average flipper time they see. In the link they reference low 30s which I don't typically see. Let me know what your Adj #53,54,55 are set to.

Also for any of the wizened pinball wizards out there, if I'm seeing lower numbers - I am correct in thinking replacing the cab switches could help as they may be registering release too early?

Thanks!

Looking for some suggestions on the best way to get at the post under the sword to replace the clear plastic post. I'm hoping there's an easier way than removing the whole sword but I can't see how. The bottom is just the thread coming out of the T-nut so it has to come out from above the playfield. Any advice?

Edit: got it sorted releasing all the nuts nearby (2 sword and on on the sling) I could get enough clearance to get it out.

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Quick question regarding Balrog - how high does he normally sit above the playfield? I just tightened the base plate of his mech under the playfield which was loose but I wanted to check to see what a normal height for him is above the playfield. I want to make sure he doesn't rub or scratch. If this is a little low any advice on how to tighten him so he sits higher? Everything feels pretty snug but I feel he's got a slight lean. Just wanted to check if this is looking normal.

Thanks!

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Thanks there was definitely some adjustment when I tightened up the base plate as the screws were significantly loose so I think that would account for the two lines of wear. I'll keep an eye on it but he does appear to be a similar height just with a little lean

Edit - added the old pic to show how he sat before (lined up a little differently as i was taking a pic of the blue nub)

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Any advice on replacing the microswitch in balrog? Can i do it easily with him still in the game?

Thanks I'll give it a whirl, I've opened him up and the switch "prongs" are lose within the switch so I think it just needs replacing. It's working intermittently so just a lose connection within the switch. Thanks for the tips

Just ordered the cliffy for under the ball guide blue nub - how hard is it to install? Any advice?

Did you have to remove POTD? It looks like the ball guide has a high side that is under POTD....

So in the middle of a multiball my game just reset and when it came back the right flipper was dead. I'm thinking it's just the fuse - but is there anything else I can check? I managed to crack the fuse on the removal so I couldn't confirm but it did not seem to have continuity on the MM. I was thinking of swapping left and right but I'm obv not very good at removing fuses and i need a new one regardless. Any tips before I put the new one back in?

After swapping the fuse still no flipper action. Took a look at that article and some of the others - here's my current state:

Checking resistance on the left and right flipper coils (at each of the lugs) I see 3.2 on the working flipper and a 0.2 on the broken flipper. So I think this means a short. I also checked the Q16 transistor which seemed to read differently that the Q15 but I will have to try again as it was awkward to get at it without some disassembly. However, given the low resistance on the coil, could that mean it's just the diode? just the coil? Or is it just the transistor? Or some combination? I'm a little green at my pinball electronic diagnosis so any help appreciated!

I'd say swapping the diode is the easiest thing I could likely do myself, coils and transistors would need ordering and possibly some hired help for the repair for the transistor.

Ok so I confirmed the Diode on my right flipper was not working. Once removed the coil gives a proper resistance of 3.2. Do I just need to replace the Diode now? Or is my transistor shot as well or did the fuse possibly save it?

When attaching the diode can I just solder it to the wire? (there's no real room to thread the holes in the lugs where i snipped the original diode from)

thanks

Just finished fixing my right flipper by replacing Q16 transistor - all went well.

However, upon powering it up I'm noticing Row2 and Row10 of my controlled lights are no longer working (fellowship lights, start button etc). I have a LED OCD board and if its connected in line, all lights are on all the time (so lights physically work). If I bypass it, I can see Row2 and Row10 lights appear dead during light test diagnostics. I've reseated the connectors but no luck. Any tips or advice? I'm not sure what could have caused two rows to fail as I think they are independent transistors Q32 and Q34 and I wasn't doing anything near them. Hoping it's not more board work...

Got it sorted - had to reseat the ribbon cable between the power driver board and the processor board.

My kid has figured out a hack or a glitch and i'm curious if others have it. He basically will start a game, get to ball two then while the ball is in play hold the start button. The game will restart into a new game and he immediately gets rewarded with 12million for whatever fellowship he gets, plus other points. Effectively he can jump to 45 million on ball one on the freshly started game in seconds. I'd like to disable this lol as it messes with our scoring obviously

Anyone seen this or can reproduce?