(Topic ID: 112137)
Linked Games
Lord of the Rings
Stern, 2003-
Lord of the Rings Limited Edition
Stern, 2009
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Quoted from Pinzap:Wait... what??
Yep, it was a trade-in from a local church who purchased it new. So, not quite HUO, but CUO....LOL!!
Showed up at our local gameroom supply store & arcade last Friday. Saw it Saturday, bought it today.
Playing my new-to-me LOTR some, doing some adjustments here and there. A Couple of Questions for the collective:
1) What would cause a Mode like Warg Battle just start on it's own without hitting the ring?? Seems like the modes just start on their own, especially after a quick 1-2 hit on both flippers (but not every time).
2) Does anybody have a spare red plastic that surrounds the right yellow flasher dome by the right flipper?? Mine is warped from a flasher bulb that overheated.....
Quoted from AUKraut:1) What would cause a Mode like Warg Battle just start on it's own without hitting the ring?? Seems like the modes just start on their own, especially after a quick 1-2 hit on both flippers (but not every time).
Quoted from LOTR_breath:1. Could be the optos at the ring entrance are flakey.
Confirmed: Switch 47 (Ring Made) is showing up intermittently during the switch test, especially when slapping the flippers/cabinet. I can see the red LED on the transmitter Opto stays constantly on without flickering, so I'm assuming it is the receiver opto. I've cleaned the lens with a q-tip & some alcohol with no luck. Also traced the wire back to the opto board behind the back panel and it looks fine. So I figure the next step is to uninstall the optos and reflow the solder, and if that doesn't work replace the optos.
Big question: looks like the easiest way to get to the optos to remove them is to remove the playfield from the cabinet to get at the back of the back panel. I'm open to suggestions from you LOTR owners who have done this before if there is an easier way.....
Quoted from AUKraut:Confirmed: Switch 47 (Ring Made) is showing up intermittently during the switch test, especially when slapping the flippers/cabinet. I can see the red LED on the transmitter Opto stays constantly on without flickering, so I'm assuming it is the receiver opto. I've cleaned the lens with a q-tip & some alcohol with no luck. Also traced the wire back to the opto board behind the back panel and it looks fine. So I figure the next step is to uninstall the optos and reflow the solder, and if that doesn't work replace the optos.
Big question: looks like the easiest way to get to the optos to remove them is to remove the playfield from the cabinet to get at the back of the back panel. I'm open to suggestions from you LOTR owners who have done this before if there is an easier way.....
For posterity purposes and to help the next person trying to figure out how to do this:
1. Power off the pin, remove the lockbar and playfield glass, and pull the playfield all the way forward.
2. Remove the 6 red mode screened plastic from the backpanel by removing the two locknuts.
3. Using a makeup mirror (or any small magnifying mirror on a stand) set the mirror in the back bottom of the cabinet
so you can see the ball trough on the back of the backpanel in the mirror.
4. Remove the rear ball trough by removing the two phillips pan screws on the top of the trough that attach it to the backpanel.
5. Hang ball trough out of way over the top of the panel.
6. Reposition mirror to see back of magnet and ring assembly.
7. Remove the two screws holding the two brass magnet brackets.
CAREFUL - Magnet can and will fall once brackets are removed. Unplug and set magnet aside.
8. Unplug the two opto wires from the opto PCB on the back of the backpanel, taking care to note where each opto plugged in.
9. Remove full ring assembly from front of backpanel.
You now have access to disassemble/assemble the whole ring, i.e. optos, funnel, and the gold ring itself. Reassemble in reverse order.
In my case the optos were good, the mounting screws on the black receiver opto had worked their way loose, so with any cabinet vibration the opto would start to flicker. Solved that issue by using some blue Loctite on the screw threads and remounted the optos.
1 week later
Quoted from libtech:My baby
libtech Where did you get those instruction cards? I've looked and found several online, but not those.....
Quoted from libtech:Dont really remember sorry, thats one thing I wish I was better with photoshop, as there are no cards that I love for this game.
Thanks, agree with you on the cards thing: found one good single card I liked, but no pair that was great....
Quoted from latenite04:You might have seen these but this is my favorite set so far. The quality is great and I think the colors fit well with the machine.
http://pinballboy.com/rulecards/lotr-v1?rq=lord%20of%20the%20rings
Like those, with one exception: I can do without the Pinball Boy logo........
Quoted from horseflesh:If you are card shopping, here are the ones I made.
Hmm, looks like the forum resizes the files... I can find another place to post them if anyone wants.
Nice!!! If you could post them original size or on a share site I'll give those a shot!
Quoted from Djsandoz:? The return of the king multiball does it last extra long ? Because even when the shoot again stops flashing it keep lunching balls and the whole time your playing rotk multiball you can hear the kicker trying to launch balls into play ? Only happens in rotk multiball
Are you hitting the Palantir while it's lit during the multi ball?? If so it does an add-a-ball.....
Quoted from pudealee:Nice! I'm In north Shelby. LOTR has been on my list for a while. I may go with. SW Premium if my search fails.
Cool, you ought to come join us at the Star Wars Pinball Party at Bumpernets tonight, it will give you a good taste of what a SWPrem may play like....
1 week later
Quoted from GorillaBiscuits:I have an LED OCD installed and a pinsound board on the way. It seems they go in the same place. Will let you know how it goes whenever it comes in. And in the meantime, if anybody has any creative mounting solutions I'm all ears
Please let us know, I was the one who originally asked the question in PinSound Whitestar thread where someone had installed Pinsound and was customizing the sound. I have LED OCD on the shelf waiting to be installed in a couple of weeks, and after seeing the Pinsound LOTR youtube videos it has moved onto my soon to be purchased list as well.....
could the clear funnel in ring be broken or have a piece of debris in it? have you felt the inside of the funnel to see if it is smooth? if not maybe the magnet is not turning off....
1 week later
Quoted from Gunnder:Joined the club last week. Game is a blast! But have encountered two issues so far:
1) The two flipper coils and the right tower coil, buzz like crazy. At first I though it was coming from the speaker, but it is def. coming from the coils themselves. I have taken out the coils, cleaned any residue on the coil and sleeves but still buzzing. I have read that early Whitestar games have this buzz, but it shouldn't be this loud should it? Turn up the volume and check out this video: » YouTube video2) The sound quality is very poor. When on the lower sound settings, a lot of crackling, static, and just plain old low quality sound. Again I read that due to the amount of voice and music in the game, they had to lower the sound quality for it to fit. Is there any way around this? Turn up the volume and check out this video: » YouTube video
Appreciate any input. This is the 2003 version (oddly enough manufactured October 2005, so probably near the end of the run)
1) Stern Whitestar pins flipper linkages and coilstops can cause a lot of buzzing when worn. Replace both, i.e. rebuild the flippers. Several threads on here about this.
2) Unfortunately perfectly normal for a stock LOTR. Good news that PinSound now supports Whitestar pins and that some LOTR fans are already working on PinSound files for LOTR, both stock and custom. Several threads on here about this.
Quoted from fnosm:Looking for the following ramps for my LOTR refurb.
If you are willing to part with one or more of these please let me know.Parts reference:515-7319-00-80
Parts reference:535-9344-00
Parts reference:515-7319-00-80
Good luck with that......mostly unobtainium last I heard, especially the ring ramp...
1 week later
I've been looking for the same plastic (-15) for a couple of months as well.....anyone please have an undamaged spare?? Used is fine......please pm me
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/wanted-lotr-plastic-15-needed
2 weeks later
Replaced the fluorescent tube in my backbox with an LED backboard using 3528 60 leds/m cool white & yellow LEDs, wired to the 12VDC accessory circuit near the coin box. Backbox looks so much better, more natural and even!!! My iPhone makes it much more blue looking than it is.
Quoted from Zippof15e:Looking at AUKraut's pictures above I couldn't help myself and had to order a speaker light kit, just looks so cool. Think I will stick with the incandescent bulbs for a while, and maybe slowly convert to led. I just really like the warm lighting of the incandescents. To each his own.
Thanks, the speaker lights and 3D ring does look great.
As for the LEDs, do them all at once. Either buy some serious non-ghosting premium LEDs or use regular LEDs with an LED OCD board. Regular LEDs by themselves in a LOTR will give one some serious headaches.....
Quoted from Lermods:Nice work! We have a version with RGBs and a flasher in the eye so that it goes off when the flasher in the tower goes off. The tube in the back is cheap crap, adding custom. LEDs makes the translight really pop. Lots of labor involved!
» YouTube video
Thanks, it did take most of a Saturday to complete, and the difference is dramatic in person!
Quoted from Zora:I would like installing LEDs in my army of the dead figures and connecting them with the green path of the dead lamps so that the LEDs will light together with the respective green lamp.
How do I connect the LEDs with the green lamp? The green lamps are connected with each other, which makes it even more difficult for me.
Has anybody installed this already? Any feedback is highly appreciated.
Regards
This will give you an idea on how the connections to the lights are achieved.
https://www.pinballbulbs.com/installs/lord-rings-army-dead-install
Quoted from pacman11:Great work!! I'd like to do this to all my Sterns games. Could you show wear the wires are attached too on the driverboard. Thanks!
Thanks! Actually did not pull power from the driver board, I'm pulling it from a splitter board that the 12V/5V connector to the right of the coin box is connected to. I do have a terminal strip and fuse holder installed as well, as the LED strips on the light board are pulling about 1.7 amps. I've installed a 3A FB fuse. I do have the Eye of Sauron flasher kit from PBL installed and that runs to the driverboard as designed.
1 week later
Quoted from BobC:What color should the light behind the Plantar ball be? red or blue?
Thanks!
BobC
Factory was a 44 with a red rubber sleeve on it. A 44/47 LED RGB Slow Color changer flex looks fantastic behind the factory globe, it is what I had until I finally got Jay's Palantir mod....
Quoted from BobC:I'm not familiar with the mod
Quoted from hawknole:Jay's palantir mod is one of the best mods for LOTR. He only makes a few in each batch and only makes a couple batches a year so they are hard to get. Jay is a good guy and a positive force for pinball in the greater Philly area and pinside.
It is a SWEET mod....here is the thread:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/lotr-projected-eye-palantir-mod
Quoted from fnosm:are there any good mods available for the naked bulb behind the Rider at the back right of the PF?
Quoted from DCFAN:I have not seen any mods for that but note that the bulb should be a red coated flasher bulb rather than a clear flasher.
I used a red LED 906 Flasher that I wrapped in black heatshrink....but yeah, a good mod idea for here is needed......
I just took a close look at that plastic that holds the red ring wraith flasher bulb. It doubles as the switch mount for the Aragorn ramp. Not much room there due to that, however if that bulb were a group of 2 or 3 mounted lower, more behind and hidden behind the ringwraith to light it up from behind instead of above that would look pretty good. Hides both the bulb(s) and lights up the figure better....
1 week later
Quoted from fnosm:In the Manual it calls out that the LOTR has (1) Groove Jewel Plastic Post what I call a star post.
I can't find one on my machine. Where does this go?
Quoted from DCFAN:I don't believe there is one unless it is under the apron or behind the backboard.
Agreed, just fully shopped my LOTR and did not find a single post like that.....
Quoted from BobC:Where do I get it? I looked on Pinballlife and couldn't find it
Mike @ RedShift LED makes & sells them. Great guy, shipping does take a few days longer as he is in Australia:
1 month later
Quoted from pipes:So I went into the menu and tried to run a ball clear and it wouldn’t let me. This is what I found. Switch 13 is not registering at all. I checked the connection where the trough connects to the harness with a multimeter and that seems okay. I’m guessing it might be where the harness connects to the board in the backbox? Any idea how i can figure out where exactly switch 13 runs from on the board?
Looks like stoptap pointed you to the correct wires and connectors in the back box. Also be sure to trace the wires underneath the playfield from the trough to the back rear edge of the playfield where it slides along the left rail. My LOTR had two wires that were cut when the wiring harness got snagged along the playfield sliding mechanism as the playfield was lifted and lowered in the cabinet. I stripped and soldered the broken wires, applied some heatshrink, and made sure the harness was better secured away from the slide mechanism to prevent it from happening again.
Quoted from pins4life33:Okay I will try this...
Yikes this is a little more extreme, You sure can get it up the ring ramp with these super coils thou you get a ton of rejections. Going to add lightning flippers and big fatties rubber on the right ramp and try the drop dead foam on the scoop and then re-evaluate.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
Lightning flippers???? YUCK!!!! Our local pinball place has them installed on an MMR and ST Pro....and they play like crap now compared to regular flippers......
Quoted from PinballTilt:Does anyone have any shopout or top side tear down pictures? This games been routed and I can tell they improvised in certain areas. If I can understand how items are supposed to be assembled I can fix mine. Ideally an album on Dropbox or something
Here are the ones from my top-down teardown about 6 weeks ago, they should be in order.....
Quoted from pins4life33:Ha, well just going to try them out my machines are all setup for competition play, just want to see if it hardens gameplay as my games tend to be very long even on three ball with extra as points and the machine jacked and outlines ripped out. Not saying that I will keep them on but if it serv a the purpose then with go with it.
LOTR_breath had his LOTR set up for a tournament that was held recently that made LOTR play NASTY without any actual playfield changes except the outlines being wide open!!!! It was a real challenge to get ANY multiball, all done by settings changes. Things like the KEEP lanes turning off when they were rolled over when lit.....Maybe he can share those settings with us????
Quoted from Gunnder:Hey guys out of the blue the ring shot just keeps triggering on its own. Just started happening. Basically as soon as you hit the start button one of the modes starts. Something to do with the ring magnet maybe? What should I look for when I look under the hood?
More than likely the opto transmitter or transceiver used to detect the ball going thru the ring, could also be the circuit board, but highly unlikely. I replaced the optos on mine and it solved the problem, ordered them from Marcos. I ordered the board as well, but didn’t need it:
520-5239-01 - Opto transmitter / receiver amplifier board
500-6775-01 - Opto transceiver assembly
500-6746-00 - LORD OF THE RINGS (Stern) Opto transmitter assembly
1 week later
Quoted from Neal_W:I used this. It is the kit from the Stern bulletin with second gen Balrog LED bulb and socket, and was cheaper than the bulb they used to stock. Now I have a spare socket.
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/502-5022-00
My LOTR had this bulb in it, but not half as bright as the Cointaker bulb. Cointaker bulb makes Balrog really light up!
Quoted from Rdoyle1978:I AM concerned about the plastics - it is really clear why so many were broken, this game has a million unprotected edges and plastics just out everywhere. This game also came with a paper-printed Arwen image in between 2 clear plastics.. I assume this is because the original broke.
Buy the Pinbits Plastic Protectors, those will protect those edges from here on. As for the Arwen plastic, also extremely common, with several different protectors and diverters for it out there to protect from the drop from the Path of the Dead. I recommend the protector made by Redshift in Australia, outstanding design that also protects the Shire Hole. Your best bet is to go thru this whole thread, you will find at least 3 other things you'll want to do to yours to improve it....I know I did!
1 week later
For solenoids the more coils/windings, the stronger the magnetic field it produces, therefore the stronger the movement of the plunger in that field.
.....and yes, I'm bonafide.....
Quoted from APB_Enterprises:Remove wire for a stronger coil. Decrease gauge for a stronger coil (IE 30 awg to 28 awg, 28 will be stronger.) There is a point of diminishing returns though, be careful.
The medium ones in specific we are selling now were tested in a few machines for months before we started selling them. LOTR is one of my favorites, so I enjoyed making something for it and testing them. I think we made 8 or so varieties before we found a happy medium. Different gauges and turns. I think the last set we made that we ended up using we were tweaking by around 25 turns or so.
Flipper power is a bit subjective to the user, and obviously the game as well... pitch and PWM settings. Not for everyone, but we have had a fair amount of positive feedback on this specific coil vs. the high power ones (which we also make.) I want people to like them, and welcome all feedback with the caveat about machine variables in mind.
Happy flipping!
Andrew
OK, you convinced me....ordering now!!! 
1 week later
Quoted from Morhaus:The magnet does not appear to be working, but I can't figure out why.
Is the spinner working??? It must work for the magnet to actuate.
Quoted from Morhaus:I think it's working. It registers spinner ring points...
OK, does the opto switch in the ring itself work? If you go into the switch test in the service menu under Diagnostics, Switch Menu, then Switch test, when you stick your finger thru the ring itself does switch 47 go off??
Quoted from Morhaus:switch works! I did find tonight that the 50V light is NOT on.....so fuse??
Check F20 on the Power Driver board, rated 4A SB. Specific fuse for the magnet only. If I remember right Stern did later recommend to upping this to a 5A SB.
Quoted from Morhaus:Have a set being delivered Tuesday!! Wish I could find locally!!
Some Autoparts stores may have some.
Quoted from PinballTilt:Has anyone experienced and fixed an issue in their game where the ring return wireform pops out of the sword ramp? I'm thinking about getting one of if those lock washers with the teeth that only allow movement one direction. The right bit pops out of the hole and wont let the balls freely roll down the sword
You are missing two small rubber rings to hold it in place, I believe they are 7/16" outer diameter rings. One per rail:
Quoted from PinballTilt:Nice, thanks. The rubber should do it unless I get an airball that hits it.
Should be fine, they came from the factory that way. Yours was probably forgotten about after a shop job:
Quoted from APB_Enterprises:Sorry about that, I am not on Pinside much.
We did not make a part number for this coil. If you want some, they are on our eBay store.
Pinside Shop Link: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1065-apb-enterprises/01414-new-stern-pinball-medium-power-coil-lord-of-the-rings-gnr
LE: ebay.com link
Regular: ebay.com link
Thank you for the business! I hope you liked them.
Andrew
I got around to installing these this afternoon....
Verdict: Perfect! Just the right amount of strength, does not overpower the flippers as other suggested LOTR coils will do. Best of all was when I got to Destroy the Ring there was no noticeable loss in power like you have with the factory stock coil. Seriously a must have for any LOTR owner!
1 week later
Either way, with or without a ColorDMD, you want the latest version of the ROMs in order to get all the intended features, modes, and bug fixes. When I got my LOTR it was on V6.0 and ran into several bugs. Upgrade to V10.0 and the improvement was noticeable and the new features were great!
Marco has the game ROM for $10 (http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/EPROM1871) and the display ROM for $10 (http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/EPROM1873). More than likely the sound ROMs on your machine are fine, but you can compare the version numbers of them to the Marco listings.
Quoted from wxforecaster:I just picked up an absolutely gorgeous HUO or VERY lightly used LOTR. The only problem I'm noticing is that with a few hits of the flipper button, ball in the shooter lane, the ring mode starts. In switch test mode, the ring opto seems to work perfectly. However, there doesn't seem to be a way to test switches with coils activated?? I'm curious if it's a vibration thing or what (although the flippers are an entire playfield length away from this switch).
I ordered a few IR LEDs to replace the opto LED pair if necessary, but has anyone else ever heard of this and is this the solution?
I had a similar problem on my LOTR when I first got it, but I can't remember off hand what all I did to fix it.
I did replace the ring optos on mine which I believed fixed my problem, but just in case the ring optos plug into a PCB board behind the playfield backboard.
I had an EOS wire on one of the flippers that was broken off, resoldered it.
I also had 3 wires broken on the main wiring harness on the back left under the playfield. They looked like they got caught on the slide rail when the playfield was lifted and slid forward/back.
The Balrog wiring harness on mine was broken, had to fix it (that one shouldn't be your issue).
1 week later
Quoted from C_S_S:I joined the club just before Expo with LOTR as my first pin. While I'm having an issue with the Shire switch, I wanted to ask something before I order the parts to replace that. I've been having an a nuisance issue where when the ball ejects into the shooter lane, the selected skill shot has been registering without my shooting the ball out of the lane, basically lanes, tower, frozen on flipper. It used to be every once in awhile but its pretty much every time now. Any help would be appreciated.
1) It could be the shooter lane switch is registering incorrectly. In that case it either needs adjustment or replacement.
2) It could also be the small shooter rod spring on the outside of the cabinet. Mine was broken when I got my LOTR, and it caused the shooter tip to stick out into the lane to far, causing false operation of the shooter lane switch.
Quoted from PinballTilt:Is it normal for the ring to make a loud buzzing noise when it grabs the ball and holds it? Mine does it and it's quite loud and distracting
Yep, that magnet is pulling some amps holding that ball like that.....
1 week later
Quoted from Da-Shaker:I have a question and it's probably been brought up before. My Balrog switch seems to be intermittent. A lot of times he doesn't register. I've replaced the switch and wiring, but no change. It activates in switch test. Also Balrog doesn't seem to go all the way back, when it's moving into position to cover the spinner and it's not getting hung up on the wiring. I'm not sure if this is what's causing it. I thought I'd ask before dipping into it to deeply.
I've also played other LOTR's and it seems like this is a common problem. So, maybe it's normal.
There's a relay PCB that Balrog plugs into under the playfield. Reflow all the solder on it. That should help with the position not registering correctly.
Quoted from Da-Shaker:Is this the relay PCB?
Quoted from Da-Shaker:Looks pretty good
That's the one, go ahead and reflow all those solder joints. It's the next step if you've already swapped out the wiring harness and switch on BalRog.
Quoted from Da-Shaker:Reflowed again and got it working. It's moving back and forth just fine, but Balrog isn't registering at all. Does the PCB control the switch at all?
You said originally you replaced the wire harness for Balrog, did you make your own, buy one, or fix the existing? Pinball Heaven (UK) sells a replacement on ebay.....
Quoted from Morhaus:Okay...now that my ring is fixed (it was the fuse), now my Sword Lock won't work. So, I can't get the Two Towers MB the traditional way.
Any guidance for me to know if it's the coil? Fuse? The 3 switches just prior to the "ball locker" work.
Help!!
Can you activate the coil for the Sword Lock in Test mode? Have you checked the switch gate at the bottom of the ramp?
Quoted from Morhaus:Not sure what the switch gate is....
During gameplay there are two ways a ball can get onto the Sword Ramp: The ramp shot itself or from the Gimli VUK. For the coil to activate correctly during game play the ramp shot switch gate has to register as well as one of the three rollover switches on the sword. If the ramp switch gate is not registering the pin will think the ball came from the Gimli VUK and will not lock a ball.
Quoted from Lermods:I just installed a color dmd and this was literally the first game on it. Amazing display, lcd on hires.
Too funny, installed a colorDMD in mine Monday, and the first game with it was fantastic as well.....amazing how much it improves the look & feel of the game!!
Set mine to scan, searching back thru pinside that seemed to be the consensus.
Quoted from Vyzer2:Not recommending this either way, but try playing with one ball through the ring instead of two, just to make sure it is working. There is a setting for this in the menu. I also had this problem, prior to installing a more powerful coil. By the time I got to DTR, my flippers were noticeably weaker and I could not generate enough flipper power to knock the first ball through. Flipper coils are another debatable issue for LOTR owners.
I concur, had the same problem with DTR, swapped to one ball with good results. As for the coils, I've recently swapped mine to the APB Medium Power coil and they are perfect. The stock coils couldn't hardly make the center ramp any more but the time DTR starts, and I had tried Pinballlife coils which were WAY to strong. You can buy the APB coils here on pinside.
I have not tried DTR with 2 balls and the new coils, will try that now and report back.....
Quoted from uncivil_engineer:Hmmm... this may mean I have to upgrade my ROM set from 5.01.
Seriously.....order V10 ROMs now!! They are a noticeable improvement over the V6 my machine had when I bought it, and you are on uneven older version. Ray J. at ActionPinball can get them for you.
2 weeks later
Quoted from parsonsaj:OK so I've only had my LOTR machine for less than a week. So far the only thing I've done to it is to install an NVRAM since I boneheadedly didn't check that the battery pack cable tie was in place and the dang thing fell off during transport. The NVRAM works great, and now I never have to worry about battery corrosion again! Is there any downside in using the NVRAM instead of the original battery design?
Second question... this machine seems to have 9.0 ROMs. Is it worth getting the 10.0 ROM instead? Seems to be a low-cost item, but not sure whether there are enough changes between the 2 versions to justify even the small cost of it.
Looks like there was a service bulletin with V9. I would read below and the service bulletin as well to check:
CPU Release 10.00
Date October 28, 2005
Game ROM 1M U210 $84FF 10.00 lotrcpua.A00
Game ROM 1M U210 $9DFF 10.00 lotrcpul.A00
- *** THIS CPU RELEASE REQUIRES DISPLAY VERSION 10.xx ***
- *** IMPORTANT INFORMATION ***
If your game shipped with version 9 software, then please read service
bulletin #157: http://www.sternpinball.com/SB/ServiceBulletin_157.html
If your game is affected, please update your sound OS before installing
this code update, or the problems will get worse.
- Fixed a bug with entering initials for Destroy the Ring Champion when it
was earned during a ToPS Tournament game.
- Cleaned up some hacks related to Sound OS problems (the 9.0x releases, not
in 9.00).
- Fixed a bug where Palantir might try to add-a-ball when all balls were
already on the playfield during multiball.
- Fixed a bug where the game would show the FOTR MB Lit display effect AFTER
you had already started it (this happened if Pippen was the last person to
be collected).
- Russian (& other country) coinage/tournament settings added.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DISPLAY Release 10.00
Date October 28, 2005
Display 4M Rom 0 $1669 10.00 lotrdspa.A00
Display 4M Rom 0 $B8CE 10.00 lotrdspf.A00
Display 4M Rom 0 $EDB4 10.00 lotrdspg.A00
Display 4M Rom 0 $57E7 10.00 lotrdspi.A00
Display 4M Rom 0 $3D2B 10.00 lotrdspl.A00
- *** THIS DISPLAY RELEASE REQUIRES CPU VERSION 10.xx ***
- New adjustment/display effect support added.
- Russian (& other country) coinage/tournament settings added
Quoted from parsonsaj:Thanks for the info! Do you know if there's anywhere else other than the Stern site to read that service bulletin? The link to Stern seems to be non-functional...
google brought up this: http://www.sternpinball.com/upload/downloads/sb157.pdf
1 week later
Quoted from OU182:Just replaced the three AA batteries on the circuit board, can't figure how to secure it. Cut the tywrap. Leveling the machine is a problem also. Still a great machine.
NVRAM it and lose the batteries. Never have to worry about them leaking or needing to be changed
Quoted from ryandimx:When you guys change out the coils are you just doing the flipper coils or the vuk and others too?
Usually flippers only during a rebuild, unless a problem exists on the coil in question.
Quoted from pipes:Thanks, I'll do that. I was hoping I didn't have to take the whole thing out.
Really nothing to it. One connector under the playfield, a couple of screws and spacers, and up he comes. Be sure to take plenty of pictures to remember which spacer/screw/nut goes where, otherwise you'll have Balrog scraping a divot in the playfield.
Other thing is it may not be a bad bulb inside him, it may be a broken wire inside the Balrog cable......
1 week later
Quoted from Morhaus:I'm running 3 LEDs for a Path of the Dead Mod. Going to wire to the 1-2-3-4 POTD lights.
LEDs are 3G 7" pre-wired - 12V applications.
The description says they have built-in resistors and says Input Voltage is 9-16 Vdc.
Do still need to use my own resistors even if the LEDs say "built-in resistors"? I have 100 Ohm Resistors, 1/4 W, 5% tolerance. Where do I attach these? + (red) or - (Black)?
Do I need to use Diodes? I have N4004 Diodes that are rated for 400V DC at 1A. And, do I attach to + (red) wires for each light?
thank you!!!
I used the following LED post lights for my Dead army without using resistors:
http://www.cometpinball.com/4-SMD-6-3V-LIGHTED-POST-LIGHT-p/mtxpost.htm
If you look at the installation instructions for this kit it should give you the basic idea of how and where to include the diodes:
https://www.pinballbulbs.com/installs/lord-rings-army-dead-install
The finishing touch: sillyoldelf's art blades for my LOTR!!
Here is the list of things done since the day I bought her last July 4th:
Repairs
Power Driver Board repair - Done
Ring Mode Opto - Done
Diverter adjustment - Done
Translite lift channel - Done
Replace Backbox lock - Done
Replace Ring plastic - Done
Replace Tiltbob - Done
Replace Palantir Target - Done
Flatten playfield plastic - Done
Replace yellow dome - Done
New Ball Trough - Done
Clean and polish playfield - Done
Refinish metal lane guides - Done
Mods
Cliffys Protectors - Done
Titan Silicone Rings -Done
LEDs - Done
LEDOCD - Done
LED GIZmo - Done
NVRAM - Done
Pinbits Plastic Protecters - Done
Arwen protector - Done
Path of the Dead Arwen Diverter - Done
Flipper Coil upgrade - Done
Ring cone plastic - Done
Ring Ramp Post Kit - Done
Army of the Dead - Done
Target Decals - Done
Sword Tip Decal - Done
Habitrail Guide Mod - Done
Missing Gimli, Legolas, Boromir - Done
Solid Lock bar and Lollipops - Done
Black T-Molding - Done
Palantir Mod - Done
ColorDMD - Done
Invisiglass - Done
Flipper Fidelity Speakers - Done
Speaker Ring and Lights - Done
Backbox LEDs - Done
Backbox Flasher - Done
Spare Driver Board - Done
Side blades - Done
Well, almost done, been thinking about Pinsound........LOL!!!
Quoted from hawknole:Looking good. Gimli, Legolas & Boromir were not included in any LOTR pin, they are mods. You may consider a Sauron figure in the back right. The Uruk Hai back there bothered me because they are not part of Barad Dur but rather Orthanc.
Correct, that's why I have them in the Mod list, since they were missing from the figures included by Stern...
Hadn't considered Sauron, may do that swap.....
Quoted from ryandimx:Add links and pin this to the top!
This post here is very close, with links:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/lotr-mods-2#post-2741667
Quoted from Morhaus:Just had the wires the wrong way. Needed to adjust the switch a bit so it would trigger better, but I believe I have it back to normal.....thanks to you all.
Now I have to figure out if I can replace inserts with LED without getting any ghosting...looking like no after I replaced 3 green ones (2 outer lanes) and the green lock light.
Quoted from Lermods:Lotr is bad with ghosting. Get an led ocd board and it will solve that problem.
LED OCD and GIZmo are a MUST if LED'ing a LOTR!!!! It will look fantastic when done!!
Quoted from Morhaus:I just ordered the OCD LED board..but what is gizmo?
Basically it's LED OCD for non-color changing GI on SAM/Whitestar systems: http://ledocd.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=19
Quoted from Morhaus:Is it okay with just the Ocd board?
I never tried GI LEDs without GIzmo, however just read the Club LED OCD thread for more detailed opinions on it. From what I remember is that it offers a subtle improvement, but some have gone without on some pins based upon how it
Quoted from dmieczko:I always thought the GI faded on this game. When I bought my 2nd LOTR it had a full LED conversion with no LED OCD board. The GI in-line near the shooter lane looked so horrible because it was supposed to fade in and out but really just flickered with LED's. I removed all the LED's in favor of incandescent bulbs and I truly love that look on LOTR. The warm glow of old-school bulbs is certainly my favorite for this particular game. I'm now on my 3rd, and it's all incadescent except for the backboard lighting and color-changers in "mode start" and behind the Palantir.
Quoted from northvibe:I agree. I led all my games, usually in a CT kit so it’s a nice clean look. Except lotr. Looks soooo damn good in incandescents.
IMO it looks just as good, if not better since it's a bit brighter, in LED Warm Whites with LED OCD for the inserts & GIzmo for the GI.....I really need to take some video of it in Attract mode. May do that tonight.....
Alright, here is a fresh video shot at 1080p60. Dark room, only lighting is from the pin. Stern playfield Invisiglass in place.
Details: Herg's LED OCD and GIzmo
Cointaker LEDs in Warm White and Color Matching Inserts except ORC lanes (Orange) and MB FotK (Green), TT(Red), RotK (Blue)
GIzmo is still hard to capture, but it helps when the GI gets dimmed as it allows a gradual increase/decrease that you can't get with only LEDs
Quoted from Neal_W:The 8 lamps along the shooter lane work with the insert lamps and not the GI, so the LED OCD would smooth them.
...and you can see in my video in the post above how well LED OCD does that!
1 week later
Quoted from HughesDForce:I've rebuilt the flippers and they're strong enough, so I don't think that's the issue--most of the ramp shots hit the Ring and bounce back. I think they're hitting high and right of the hole, which would be the opposite problem: the ramp aimed too high or the balls traveling too fast. The game is a re-import from Italy, and I've found lots of unusual stuff in it, so figure the ramp might be off somehow.
I'll definitely look at the spinner and the tip of the ramp. Those could both be adding variance
Which coils are on the flippers?? Coils too strong will overshoot the ring all day......
Quoted from HughesDForce:I'm using the "regular" coils. I had the PBL extra-hot ones for a while, and my plastics took a beating, so I went back to stock.
The playfield angle is 7.5 degrees right now--the middle of the bubble level. Raising it a bit higher might work, though I'm afraid that might make the left (Legolas) ramp too steep. We already see plenty of balls rolling partway up and then back down.
Thanks for chiming in, I appreciate it!
Middle of bubble would be 6.5 degrees. You should be able to go to 7 degrees, making it less floaty and reduce the velocity going up the ramp.
If you have a iPhone download the Pinguy app and check your readings with it.
3 weeks later
I cannot recommend the PBL LOTR coil, they are way to strong and will cause air balls galore. Others have experienced the same. The medium power coils sold here on Pinside shops are on my pin now and are perfect for the pin. Seriously, love PBL and their products, but their LOTR coils are not recommended.
For the Palantir target (or most any Stern target that takes a beating and gets bent backwards), order 535-9823-01 from PinballLife. It's a replacement back plate that will not bend backwards. Put it on my Palantir target and its been rock solid.
Quoted from Damien:My balrog doesn't register all hits. Any thoughts?
Most of the time it's the cable assembly, then the next likely culprit is the switch......
Quoted from Damien:Yup, searched this thread and seem the switch is often the issue. How do I access the switch? From the top or bottom of pf? Does Balrog need to be removed?
Page 87 of the manual, the switch is internal to Balrog. Yes, Balrog will need to be removed and disassembled. Remove the Kotter pin and remove from the top, you'll have to unplug the cable from underneath.
Quoted from Damien:Can anyone confirm if these are the same as the stock coils?
https://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=3747
And, like the factory coils, will these overheat/lose power during a long game?
There are the best coils for a LOTR, perfect strength and do not fade/overheat:
Quoted from Damien:Dammit!!!!!!!!
I had 5 gifts, 2 MBs completed, TABA started and failed, and I had a mode started with just fellowship mb to start. The inserts showed Frodo was the only one flashing, but I kept hitting it and nothing!
Does it need to pass through the ring to light Frodo?
Also, after completing fellowship, the inserts go blank (unlike flashing when game starts). Do I have to hit the shots more than once the second time around?
And is it fair to think that if I had started the fellowship MB, completed it, got the 6th gifts, and then started DTR, I would have been at Valinor?
From Keefer himself here on Pinside:
1. Win FOTR (9 Balrog bashes + 8 ramp shots - the 9th bash is the super jackpot/win).
2. Win TTT (survive 4 stages of assault, shoot 1 single super jackpot to qualify as won - yes it is possible to have super lit and drain out and not win it (yet))
3. Win ROTK (I'm pretty sure this is ("only") finish 6 sets of 4 jackpots, then level 7 should be supers - any one super counts as a win)
4. Play TABA (don't have to win it)
5. Collect the "secret" 7th Elf Gift (3 gifts will come from the multiballs, so you need to scrape up 4 more from DTR wins, mode wins, or 2+ multiball wins)
6. After 1-5 are complete, then your NEXT *SUCCESSFUL* DTR will start Valinor. Prior DTR wins/losses have no effect (other than the point bonus at the end)
Quoted from Damien:I bought a set of the medium strength ones sold here on Pinside, and hopefully they won't be as powerful but also won't lose power over lengthy games.
They won't, they are perfect for the game...
Quoted from Damien:Can I bug someone to take a photo of where there right orbit ball guide ends, so I can see how close it is to the rubber post.
Thanks!
From my shop job pics:
Quoted from Damien:Thank you so much!
And do you recall if the ball hits the slings anytime it comes down from that right orbit lane?
Sometimes it grazes it, but mostly not an issues, straight to the right flipper....
Quoted from PinballCharlie:I've received several requests for a video for the Mt. Doom mod. Please excuse the occasional blurry nature of the quick video I took last night; cameras have hella time trying to focus on constantly changing light
So far I've had a lot of requests for the mod. It's time to end that grainy picture of Mt. Doom! That is really the one eyesore (mostly - I'm looking at you cheap looking Orthanc) that needed better representation.
Just a little patience - I want to gather as much info from these first five to make sure a larger run or a Pinside Shop Item will be completely universal (this is really a custom fit on that wireform and I need to see about mfg tolerances from pin to pin).
Thanks for the awesome comments and interest so far!!
-Chuck
» YouTube video
It looks awesome, looking forward to testing this out for you!
1 week later
Quoted from WildRover:Again, thank you! As a teen I mainly played TAF and TZ religiously at the bowling alley so I partially love stop and go "aim" machines (which is making me consider TSPP).
Is LOTR too similar to a Steve Richie game in the opposite of a stop and go sense or does it have a little bit of both? Star Trek is my adrenaline/fast ramp game, need my aimer along side her. Wish there was only love for one of the two, or they were only like ten bucks.
It's a mix. While the Legolas & Sword ramps and outer loop can be fast, it has 3 VUKs, a bash target, a slow center ramp, the path of the dead, and a top kickout hole that really gives a good mix. The LOTR rules for it are superb, and I like that it's not an unfair layout, i.e. no cheap drains.
Got my Mt. Doom mod installed yesterday, nice enhancement that really adds to the look of the backboard. It was an easy install, took all of 5 minutes. Nice addition to my already fully modded LOTR.
Suggestion: What would really put this mod over the top is that if the red lighting randomly flickered at different points of the mod, giving it that flowing lava/fire look.
1 week later
Quoted from QuarterGrabber:Those look like the "Upgraded" coils i have in my lotr. They weren't a problem until i put in two new flipper rebuild kits. Now i call those coils the plastic breakers. I've replaced the inner ring plastic twice now since i did the rebuild.
Agreed, those are the upgraded ones from PinballLife. Had them in my machine for a day before I ordered the ones sold here on Pinside by APB. The PBL coils are way to powerful, the APB are pin the just right category: more power without being too powerful and they don't overheat under heavy use.
Here is the link: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1065-apb-enterprises/01414-new-stern-pinball-medium-power-coil-lord-of-the-rings-gnr
Quoted from Damien:I'm going to be doing a full LED treatment on my game. Do you suggest going warm or natural/cool white?
Check out this thread.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/led-and-rubber-maps-for-lord-of-the-rings
I followed all his suggestions with the following changes:
- Changed the three ORC rollover lights to orange
- Changed the three Multiball lights to Green (FOTK), Red (TTT), Blue, ROTK)
Here is how it looks, in person it is stunning.....
Quoted from ryandimx:Led OCD in last night. Amazing difference immediately. Does anyone make any changes to the settings or just load lotr in the program and leave it alone?
I left mine alone......it really is an amazing product!
Quoted from Damien:Frosted or not for the GI? How about the inserts?
I already posted this link to a detailed spreadsheet with all the bulb infos, including where to use Frosted in post 2953. Here it is again:
Check out this thread.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/led-and-rubber-maps-for-lord-of-the-rings
I followed all his suggestions with the following changes:
- Changed the three ORC rollover lights to orange
- Changed the three Multiball lights to Green (FOTK), Red (TTT), Blue, ROTK)
Quoted from Junglist: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.
As with any pin that you need to partially diassemble your cameraphone is your friend. Take tons of closeup pictures around that area, especially each fastener one at a time with you finger in the pic pointing to the screw/nut/fastener location that you are removing. Then once you can get at the switch and replace it you use those same pics you just took in reverse order as a guide to putting things back together.
Quoted from Damien:Hmmmmmm... Trying to figure out what to do with that strip of lights.
I'm doing warm LEDs for all clear insets and GI bulbs (frosted for GI) and then green LED for greeninserts, red for red, etc...
I did green over the PotD, Warm white in the middle, Red on the right.
Quoted from WildRover:HEYO - finally got my LOTR last night!
I want to update to the latest rom. Can someone help point me in the right direction of whats all needed and possibly where to get the stuff?
Actionpinball.com, Ray there is your guy for all the ROM needs, been serving the pinball community for decades.....
1 month later
Quoted from Pin_Guy:Not sure exactly what you are looking for, but these should help.
Those are of the Aragorn Sword ramp.......
1 week later
Quoted from Damien:Has anyone installed Flipper Fidelity or Pinball Pro speakers in their game? Just wondering if the upgrade is worthwhile.
I’ve put in the FF kit with 10” sub. I would do it again in a heartbeat, as the original cheap speakers are now 15 years old and never were great to start with.i would not do the 10” sub again, had to install it in the low setting as it is and it’s still just a hair too much. Stick with the cheaper 8” cabinet speaker kit.
2 weeks later
Quoted from jchybro:Going to troubleshoot next weekend: the eject from the trough to the shooter lane sometimes takes 2 to 4 times before the ball ends up coming out. Has anyone seen this? Seems like it's just going to be an adjustment to the coil angle unless i'm missing something??? Any guidance is appreciated.
Check the trough scoop cover, the welds crack on it over time and can definitely cause unreliable kick outs.
1 week later
Quoted from whisper:Hi guys looking for some help, i apologize if this question was answered in the thread earlier an i missed it, when i start a game my balrog is where his meant to be blocking the ring press start an he swings in to start playing, then later when he pops out in bash balrog after its over he remains out blocking the ring an does not swing in, can anyone help me on what the issue is an where to start looking please? Thanks in advance.
There is a small PCB with a relay mounted to it under the playfield near Balrog. Over time this PCB can develop cold/broken solder joints. Reflow the solder joints on that board and see if that helps.
1 week later
Quoted from jsyjay:I have a LOTR incoming, can't wait to join the club. It was on eBay and I put in my highest bid then forgot about it and surprisingly I won! Chatting with the guy selling he definitely isn't a pinball person and having a closer look at the pictures I noticed this. [quoted image]
To his defense, Stern's set up instructions say that the machine is factory set at 6.5 deg on the bubble with all the levelers screwed all the way in......
For me his replay score of 8 mil told me he isn't a pinball guy.......
Looks like a nice low play one........congrats!
Quoted from jsyjay:I didn't notice the replay score, good spot!
It is going to be interesting to see how many play it has, I'm guessing less than 500...
Thanks!
I'd also bet on original (old) ROMs........
Quoted from jsyjay:Thanks Pin_Guy, I played the LE at PHOF recently and was hooked after that!
I have loads of mods on order: Sillyoldelf art blades, lit Mt. Doom, ryan1234 habitrail mod, shire decal, target decals, gold flipper bats.
I have also ordered an LEDOCD which made a massive difference on my Spider-Man, can anyone share their settings?
It is a shame Jay isn't making the palantir mod any more...
I’d also highly recommend this Arwen plastic protector:
Quoted from Damien:Ok guys, now I have a big problem!
While I was trying to fix the leaf switch on Balrog today, I ended up breaking the bulb and the housing (see post above).
When I went to turn the game back on, I'm getting a loud humming sound from the cabinet speaker (much louder than it sounds in the video), and everything along J7 appears to be out (Balrog motor, upper right VUK, sword lock, slings, etc.).
I also noticed that fuse F7 keeps blowing. I've put a few fuses in already and they blow immediately.
Another thing I've noticed is that the Balrog seem to not tuck into hiding all the way. When I push it manually, it just pops back and sort of sits in the middle as you'll see in the video.
I've gone as far as I can with the manual. Looks like J7 goes to a DC Bi directional relay board, but not sure what that is.
Any thoughts on what this might be, or what I should check?
Since you were working on Balrog concentrate on that. The two common failures surrounding Balrog are the relay PCB mounted underneath the playfield near Balrog (cold/broken solder joints) or the Balrog wire harness (broken wires inside the sheath which could short against each other). Additionally you may have caused a short working on the Balrog switch itself. I’d put my money on the latter, the Balrog harness or the switch.
3 weeks later
Quoted from ruzeo:There is a clear piece of plastic that covers the arwen piece that will protect it just fine. The potd diverter mod increases the flow of the game but it actually is to your disadvantage. The game was designed to give you extra souls if the ball falls off the potd into the shire so you are actually making the game harder by using that mod.
Ruzeo is correct. The best Arwen protector that also still gives you the gameplay and souls at intended is this one:
https://redshiftled.com.au/Plastic-stuff.php
I have it installed on my LOTR and it works perfectly.....
Quoted from JONESDS:Just not sure the few extra souls you get is worth it over the diverter, it's another stop/start process in shooting the POTD.
It starts at 200 souls and increments by 50 each following time, plus you get the Shire mystery award if it's available. It adds up after a few POTD and makes ROTK multiball much more accessible, as intended by the Gomez & Keefer......
1 week later
Quoted from Damien:Did you get yours NIB or buy second hand like that?
Also, when your game boots, do you get this screen? Can this be turned off with the dip switches so it is USA and does not show this screen?
And can you guys confirm that this is the latest software?
[quoted image]
That is the latest software, and showing that info can be done by the menu setting for Fast Boot or Fast Restart or something like that....
1 week later
Quoted from winteriscoming:Stern used a ton of glue on the AOME figures anyway (or a previous owner did)
Previous owner, as Stern did not use glue. Stern used clear plastics and black wireties.
Quoted from winteriscoming:I don't mean Stern glued the figures down. I was thinking they glued them to keep their joints from moving, or a previous owner did. The stock AOME figures have some joints for posing them. A lot of the figures in my game are glued stiff.
Thanks for clarifying. Yes, Stern did glue the joints, as the AOME figures fall apart easily at the joints. I had to do the same when I built my Path of the Dead Mod and when I added Gimli & Boromir. After just a few games the figures started to resemble Monty Python instead of Tolkien.......
Quoted from Alamo_Pin:Can someone please provide a link where I can purchase the Arwen plastic mod that helps deliver the ball from the Path of the Dead? Apparently, I am not good at google.
1 week later
Quoted from winteriscoming:I was curious to know where to get replacement palantirs, and found references to these:
https://www.cristalier.com/products/clear-smooth-crystal-ball
You'll want the 30mm one. I measured the stock palantir at about 31mm, so the size is pretty close to stock. Even if you didn't do an eye projection onto it, the clear orb looks way better than the one with a screw in it.
Jay's mod Palantir Crystal Ball is much larger than that at 50mm. As soon as I have a little time I'm going to play around and try to make one for a friend of mine who just picked up a mint LOTR, as I have one of the last run of Jay's to use as a guide. He would buy one as well, however the availability of these in any significant quantity has been slim and none in the last year......
Quoted from winteriscoming:I think that would look too big. I successfully (temporarily) had an image projected onto my 30mm one with a simple printout that was back lit with a flex bulb. It was just taped on and fell off, but I'll eventually make it more permanent.
Like I said, the ones that Jay has sold dozens of over the years is 50mm and looks fantastic!
1 month later
Quoted from talking_goat:Welp, just had the best first ball of my life get utterly ruined by my ring magnet. Cleared all shots on Destroy the Ring, got the first ball in the ring, then shot the second ball perfectly into the ring (a DIRECT HIT into the ball held there) and they both got stuck and refused to move. I couldn't find the keys to move the glass in time and it dumped another ball into play, ending the mode. I think I could strangle a horse with my bare hands right now. Is there a way to fix a ring magnet functioning TOO well like this?
Edit: The balls are not magnetized themselves, they don't stick to each other at all. My machine is 100% stock, HUO. Only issue I've had was a disconnected flipper wire that I resoldered and have had no issues with since.
That one ball knocking the second ball thru the Ring to destroy it never has worked 100% on most LOTRs. Most everybody turns Destroy the Ring setting to one ball in the Feature adjustments to avoid this.....
2 weeks later
Quoted from Jgel:Where is the best place to get these?
2 weeks later
Quoted from Pinkitten:Can you attach multiple pins to a single Polk external sub? I have 2 subs total. One is attached to Tron and works great. I want to add LOTR to that one, and then use the other speaker on 2 other pins. I've seen comments that you can use 2 pins on each sub, and I've seen others saying up to 4 pins on each sub is fine. Does anyone know from personal experience? Is it as simple as snaking speaker wire into the cabinets and clipping to the existing speakers? Are there drawbacks to that method?
Thanks again.
I don't see how hooking up two or more amplifiers to each other can be a good thing electronically for the soundboards/amps. By hooking up two or more machines to the same subwoofer that is exactly what you are doing. Some others may have done it "successfully", but sooner or later some pin sound board is going to get fried.....
Quoted from AUKraut:I don't see how hooking up two or more amplifiers to each other can be a good thing electronically for the soundboards/amps. By hooking up two or more machines to the same subwoofer that is exactly what you are doing. Some others may have done it "successfully", but sooner or later some pin sound board is going to get fried.....
Quoted from Pinzap:This is absolutely not what’s happening when you hook up separate sources to separate inputs. Of course I agree if you’re trying to stack wires on a single input. But, the inputs on the subwoofer are electronically isolated internally. Otherwise how do you think it would work that it has a left and a right input? With your supposition, the left would travel back up the right and vice versa... and in your home audio system you’d no longer have stereo sound. This is not how subwoofers are designed as long as you keep one source per input. Voltage will not travel back up to the other amplifier.
I went and took a look at the wiring connections of the Polk Subwoofer everyone uses. We are both correct. If you hook up on pin's speaker level output to the Left SW input and the other pin to the Right SW input it will work. If you hook up two or more pins to one SW Input my statement still holds, as at that point you are tying together the 2 pin soundboard/amps by tying them together at the subwoofer input, which could be asking for trouble
Quoted from winteriscoming:I installed the LED ColorDMD in my LOTR. It looks great. I don't have much exposure to their LCD offerings, so I can't do a comparison, but I really like the LED panel.
While the LED ColorDMD is a great improvement over a standard DMD, LOTR is one of the best games for LCD ColorDMD and really stands out.
Quoted from ktownhero:I used all retro bulbs from Cointaker for the GI. All warm white except in the rear I used a couple green on the left and 3 red on the right. Also put a green in the light under the path of the dead.
I'm not entirely sure I like/need the exaggerated green in the rear left, but it certainly looks nice. I have some extra warm white I'm gonna try.
I followed this guide verbatim: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/led-and-rubber-maps-for-lord-of-the-rings
Only different is I used warm white retros in the shooter lane lights. His guide calls for mini 555 but mine are in #44 sockets. Not sure if that was an error or if some machines are different. Either way, it's a great look. I paired it with LED OCD.
Same guide I followed, and found the same error in the shooter lane specs:
IMG_6249 (resized).JPG 2 weeks later
Quoted from hollywood:What brand is the silver lid wax you are talking about?
P21S Carnauba comes in Blue Lid (Cheaper) and Silver Lid (More expensive) versions. Carnauba concentrations are supposedly higher in the Silver version.
Quoted from red-line:I feel like the balrog should light up - am I imagining that?
It should, and it could be the light or the wiring harness. Over the years the constant opening/closing of Balrog can cause some of the wires in the wiring harness to break, causing the bulb not to light or the switch not to register.
Quoted from red-line:Ahh. Thanks. Is the wiring harness below the playfield?
It plugs in under the playfield, but travels up thru a hole into Balrog. Pinball Heaven in the UK makes a replacement, or you could make your own.
Quoted from red-line:Is there an easy way to see if a balrog led kit has been installed? I tried to check last night, and got as far as taking the 2 screws out of the side of the balrog. I couldn't get the toy off from there so I gave up. I was scared I was gonna break it on my first night w the table lol.
Only good way I know of to check Balrog is to uninstall him. Just some screws, posts, and spacers, along with a plastic for access, with the wire harness going thru the playfield. Take your time and plenty of pics, you'll be fine.
Quoted from monkeyboypaul:Still can’t decide between brass and black.
Now with matching feet..?[quoted image][quoted image]
Unless the brass is a perfect match to the powder coat, which it’s not, I would go with black bolts and feet....
Quoted from Chalkey:Does anyone have contact info for the redshift guy? I want to buy his path of the dead diverter/ protector but his website has had his store "closed until January" since I started looking. No reply to email. Just wondering if he's planning on selling it again or if he's closing up shop for good or what.
Just emailed with Mike earlier, he's fine and his website store will be back shortly. He had some new pinball mods to work on and finish up, as well as some personal business as well.
1 week later
Quoted from the4Orr:Hey, thanks for your reply. The plastic piece is installed the only way it can be.
Also @neal_w, thought about it and realized that this has been happening since we got the machine and I installed brand new balls in it immediately when we got it. Can the balls get magnetized within the first few games? I took those ones out anyways and put some others I had in and there was no difference, every single ball down the drain. I don't have any of the "cheap" ones so I'll have to buy some of them and try it out. I am now sceptical about magnetization being the issue but until I try it with some of these other balls I won't be able to say for sure. Really frustrating to finally get a machine I have been wanting and not be able to play it. Thanks in advance for your replies! Really appreciate the help.
It could be that the sword ramp itself was installed incorrectly after a shopping, not having enough slope in it causing the balls to move to slow.....
Quoted from hollywood:I have three I am looking at currently.....
What worries me is that I may buy, then Stern announces a Vault. That is why I sold mine 4 years ago. I mean, they HAVE TO make a vault right?
They did, and it was sold as an LE in 2009.....
Quoted from Pinzap:You have to ask yourself, how would a vault even change your game IF they did make it? If it's an immaculate HUO example, then a vault would not be of greater quality. And no way they'd add figures to a vault, so if yours has those, you're ahead with an original. Only thing I can think of would be a possible upgrade to the audio quality, but would stern really spend the time to re-master all the original clips? Or could they even do this with licensing issues? Maybe it'd end up being like a SMVE with new audio callouts that everyone complains about. The jackpot callout alone is worth it's weight in gold (wait, do callouts really weigh anything? oh well, you get my point). I personally don't think they'll do a vault because finding an original is not very tough... you said it yourself that you're considering three separate ones. Sells would be lackluster at best for a vault. Now, a tron VE is more likely I think (if they can get disney licensing to agree) because of the difficulty in finding these. I'm not worried about that either, because my LE will still be way better than any vault they can release (unless they put Daft punk multiball in the vault, and then I'm gonna go ballistic).
TL;DR - Get the original LOTR now... you won't regret it.
Pinzap nailed it......
1 week later
Quoted from Jarbyjibbo:With an LED board and better quality warm LED's you can come fairly close but to my eyes it still isn't the same...... and costs money. For me the math just doesn't make sense to try and come close.
Don’t forget swapping to LEDs also lowers the heat and power demands put on the wiring connectors and boards, which are now 15+ years old.....
Did mine with LED OCD, warm white LEDs, and a few color LEDs on some inserts and to highlight parts of the backboard. Couldn’t imagine going back to regular bulbs....
Quoted from Damien:I did LED and OCD in my previous LOTR. I went with 2 SMD warm from Comet, and although it looked great, it doesn't look like stock.
So with 1 SMD, have you found that playing with the OCD settings can get it looking close to incandescent?
1 SMD Warm White with LEDOCD and GIzmo, some color LEDs in inserts and backboard. Lighting effects look perfect with OCD.
LOTR2 (resized).jpgQuoted from jsm172:Can anyone take a few pictures of the Gandalf area on shadowfax? I am doing a ship job and the plastics and protectors behind him seem bent and posts are leaning. Just want to make sure I don’t have something in the wrong place
Here you go:
0843AE14-6FC0-43B8-A130-8945B88B66CB (resized).jpeg1F2F6E91-11B7-4789-90FC-A946892CFFD0 (resized).jpeg682D3E00-8C8E-42B4-A104-E0BB215DC129 (resized).jpegB2766A20-8B2B-42F6-B1B1-2086513DE723 (resized).jpegD022450C-C83A-4694-99B7-592BA38E3B0B (resized).jpegE71429F1-BCA6-45A7-A4B0-5A9FB087DAD1 (resized).jpegEC0D2799-6BB5-4EC6-9507-236287423B95 (resized).jpeg
1 week later
FYI - I've made some Palantir Eye of Sauron mods available here on Pinside. For more information please go to this thread:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/palantir-eye-of-sauron-crystal-sphere-mod-for-stern-lotr
1 week later
Quoted from Bigbad:Does anyone have any information on the ring magnet?common failures they might know about, it seems like it isn’t grabbing the ball properly and as if it doesnt know if the ball is there.
For the ring magnet to grab the ball it uses 2 switches, those need to be checked first: The ring ramp spinner and the optos in the ring itself. Verify correct operation of those two first via the switch test.
1 week later
1 week later
Quoted from BobC:Is Lord of the rings one of those pinball machines where the incandescent bulbs have fade and flickering effects that would require an OCD board is switching to LEDs?
I haven't had my Lord the rings at home for a long time and it's about to go on route at The Flipperroom room in Concord and we are trying to get it ready to go.
I saw there was a specific thread on OCD and Lord of the rings, but some people in there were saying they put an OCD on every game they own...so it wasn't clear to me if OCD was a necessity or just an option when using LEDs on LOTR
Thanks!
If you are using LEDs in a LOTR then OCD is a must IMO. I have OCD installed on mine, and in the last 6 months played 2 other LOTRs with LEDs that didn’t have OCD and they did not look right.
2 weeks later
Quoted from Robertstone0407:So i got my LE with a path of the dead rhat the person used super glue and acetone to clean it
Long story it was trashed. Had a buddy cut me a new one and etch skulls in it. Love it
[quoted image][quoted image]
Like those etchings, a very nice touch!!!
Quoted from Robertstone0407:Also making path of the dead pieces. I can do it without figure mounts as well. One with a river path etched in and one without. Buddys helping me on these and the sword
Thanks looking to paint it
[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
NICE!! if you make those available you have a buyer on both of those with me!
2 weeks later
Quoted from Nihonmasa:Hey there,
Got mine not long ago and have a question, probably missing something.
Regarding the skill shot, how do you chose between one and another? On my machineI see it going very fastr from top light to bottom and I always end up with the right orbit skill shot.
Would be nice to know how to solve this
Quoted from Pinzap:The three lights that cycle will stop on whichever one is lit when the ball leaves the switch position at the bottom of the shooter lane (next to the plunger). So you have two options... either 1) plunge at the exact time you need to select the skill shot you want, or 2) do what I do and just bump the plunger with the palm of your hand just enough to make the ball leave that switch when your option is lit. This will lock in that light and allow you to take your time plunging.
Pinzap pretty much nailed it on the skill shot. The other thing to verify is to check which version of ROMs are installed on your LOTR. When I first got my LOTR I had many issues with the skill shots either freezing or running very fast, which were fixed when I installed the V10 ROMs.
1 month later
Quoted from ktownhero:May I ask what technique you used to put the sillyoldelf blades on? Did you pull the whole playfield? I've had mine sitting uninstalled for months!
Quoted from red-line:Sorry, can't help ya. My pin came with the blades on already. I would imagine you have to pull the whole play field, but I'm not the best-equipped to answer.
I installed them on mine, trickiest installs on artblades I've done. As a matter of fact I had to order a second set as I screwed the first one up.
I ended up doing it wet, and while other thicker vinyl blades can be done wet while leaving the playfield installed in a vertical position, that will not work with these artblades (That's how I messed up the first set).
Easiest way is to do it wet with the playfield totally removed from the cabinet.
Next easiest and the way I did it was to rest the front of the playfield all the way forward on the service rails, and then got 2 equal length pieces of wood and supported the rear of the playfield up so that the rear of it was basically about 12" up above the cabinet edge. Then used the wet method on the vinyl to get it in place.
The other thing is the playfield is tight in my cabinet, and having blade protectors from PBL when lowering/raising the playfield is a must IMO.
Quoted from Red_Devils:I have recently done this to my machine. I used flynnibus guide in this post...https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/led-and-rubber-maps-for-lord-of-the-rings Really excellent guide for all the LED's and rubbers! I made a couple of changes for my own personal liking. I purchased all the bulbs at Cointaker total cost was around $100 also bought the LEDOCD board and couldn't be happier with the result, no clown puke and the colors are rich and vibrant without losing the original effect what the machine was designed for. It's well worth going this route IMO, saves a lot of money over the kits and the effects are awesome! Many thanks to flynnibus for taking the time to put the guide together.
I've got this exact setup as well following the guide, and it looks fantastic. The LEDOCD is a must, LEDs on a LOTR without it is almost painful....
One error on the guide in that article: the nine GI lights next to the shooter lane are 44/47 bulbs and NOT 555. Buy some WarmWhite Frosted Dome 44/47s for those.
1 week later
Quoted from WizardsCastle:I put in a brand new spinner, so I think it might be the ramp. Anyone have suggestions on how to tell if it's level?
Can anyone who has one working well perhaps take a photo with a flat ruler showing where it is in relation to the ring opening.
Is the spinner face angled back at the bottom? If the bottom of the spinner face is angled towards the front it will take some momentum away from the ball.
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Not sure if this photo shows it, but here goes....[quoted image]
Bingo! When your ball hits that spinner it hits it on the bottom leading edge that is angled forward. That will absorb a lot of energy from the ball, making the ramp shot so much harder. Ideally the spinner should be almost perpendicular to the playfield, with the bottom edge just slightly away from the direction the ball will hit it from, i.e. in this case the bottom edge should be just towards the ramp. Adjust the spinner to that, and then the spinner will no longer absorb as much energy from the ball.
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Can you share a photo of yours?
Unfortunately my LOTR is "on location" at a friend's house, but I've made a quick crude drawing showing the spinner in both configurations. With the spinner bottom edge forward it absorbs a lot of the energy from the ball up the face, following that blue arrow upwards.. In the correct configuration the spinner just spins from the ball hitting it.
IMG_0978 (resized).JPG
Quoted from red-line:I'm a little confused on how you solve that. Mine isn't always like that but at least a portion of the time it settles in the wrong direction.
Slightest bending of the spinner arms is all that is needed in many cases. This thread got a few other hints:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/spinner-balance#post-2394292
Quoted from WizardsCastle:So any suggestions on what direction I need to bend the spinner arms?
Leave the spinner in place, grab one of the arms with a pair of needlenose pliers, and slightly push the spinner into the direction you want it to move. Don't force it, those arms aren't very big. Next do the same to the other arm. Lather, rinse, repeat until you have it where you want it....
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Cheers!
I wonder if it will need pushing or pulling based on the current position
you got a 50/50 shot, and if it's the wrong way just redo it in the other direction.
My guess is for your pic is pushing the bottom towards the ramp...
1 week later
Quoted from Digduglus:Just joined the club! My machine has been on location, but the playfield is nice, everything works, and no broken or missing pieces. First question: suggestion for color dmds? Lcd or led?[quoted image]
The LCD model of ColorDMD really shines installed on a LOTR, probably the showcase model for ColorDMD capabilities hands down!!
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Where did you guys get those speakers mods with the ring?
Speakerlightkits.com
1 week later
Quoted from auspin:color screen owners with lotr, is there a general consensus the color dmd or the color lcd is better for this game? (as it renders)
Its similar price, will be my first color screen and not sure which way to go.
I'm definitely in the LCD camp for LOTR
Quoted from auspin:On the support page for the colordmd ROMs,
It says either:
ROMs for new displays, controller board version: Chroma A1
Or
Support for older displays, controller board versions: 1.2 1.3 1.3a 1.3b
Lotr is listed in both, which one do you download?
https://www.colordmd.com/chromainfo.html
That means LOTR will work for those different versions of the board. You download the one for the ColorDMD hardware you bought, i.e. if you bought just bought it new, download the Chroma A1. If you bought used you need to verify the hardware version of the boards which should have that printed or labeled on there.
1 week later
Quoted from auspin:I've recently got all the figurines for my LE.
Also got the pinbits LE mounting kit.
I have mounted all the figurines except white Gandalf on shadowfax, I just can't seem to work that one out..
Does anyone have some pics or can explain how to do this one?
The pinbits picture didn't help either as the bottom plastic is a color piece where as on mine it's a clear plastic.
Cheers[quoted image][quoted image]
Here are the pics from when I shopped my LOTR. Unfortunately I can’t take any other pics at this time as it’s on location at a friend’s house....
3057D59B-6EE7-48A5-9C87-AEEDA904ED0C (resized).jpeg61F48CAB-58D7-4C96-8CDE-2EE9BF98E7EE (resized).jpeg81317508-4E0D-4E5A-8080-AB9EBD42B88D (resized).jpeg9ED1B08C-5B35-4D6C-95E4-40439D2994AC (resized).jpegD242AD94-41DA-4E4B-AD9E-991923E9FE3D (resized).jpegD6D16494-33EE-4271-9555-5F7D7C5FBA1F (resized).jpeg
1878F143-784E-4C71-BC10-0CF15D08FA60 (resized).jpeg
Quoted from auspin:Is yours a standard lotr? I noticed yours has that pink and purple plastic piece as the base where as mine is clear. Is it the same piece?
Mine is a standard, and I'm not sure of the detail differences between it and your LE. Just thought I'd post my shopping pics to see if they help you.....
Quoted from paynemic:So my colordmd randomly went blank in the middle of a game. Rebooted. Still blank. It had power because I was able to get into the menu. Finally, I shut it down for an hour and rebooted. It came up and has been fine since. The only change I have made was to add the fancy new Palantir but i can’t imaging that’s messing with the power
The Palantir mod should not be the issue here, as it ties directly into the existing stock Palantir lighting plug & circuit only. Electrically it uses a Comet 4SMD Wedge bulb and a 1N4004 diode to help prevent any ghosting issues.
One guess at this point that while raising and lower the playfield it ever so slightly pulled on the ColorDMD wiring. I've also seen a ColorDMD on other games (SAM and WPC) randomly do what you described, then start working again without incident.
If it does reoccur ColorDMD's support is phenomenal, reach out to them and they will help diagnose.
1 week later
Quoted from multibrawlr:Code version running on mine. Is there another update or is this the most recent?[quoted image]
Version 10.0 is the latest: http://www.actionpinball.com/parts.php?item=ROMS190
1 week later
Quoted from Ozzy:Have a question for all the lotr owners. Recently looked at an all original lotr. Low plays, never been shopped, original rubbers, no leds, glass is bad (large deep , long scratches. Whats the value of this? Fair offer etc etc. Thanks for everyones time
Around $4.5-5K unshopped, $5500 shopped and gone over is what I see for one like that on here and FB Marketplace...
Quoted from Ceemunkey:Just received an amazing topper courtesy of Dan at Tilttopper and the new palantir mod from Frank (AUKraut). Really sets the game off...
This one is everything it's cracked up to be - awesome game I love it.[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Awesome!! Your pic really does a great job capturing the look of the Palantir Mod.....Glad to see you are happy with it!!
If anyone else wants to get one, please see the following thread:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/palantir-eye-of-sauron-crystal-sphere-mod-for-stern-lotr
Quoted from Gogojohnnyquack:This is a very cool mod, however if you have kept your LOTR stock with incandescent bulbs for their more classic feel then AUKraut's Palantir mod may not be for you. It uses a very bright LED that brings a different vibe to the playfield. Basically all the reasons why you haven't changed over to LEDs are all the reasons you may not like it. Super bright, abrupt on/off, flickering, and a cooler color temperature.
If you do use LEDs in your LOTR, herg’s LED OCD is a must. When used with warm white LEDS it gives you the classic look of incandescent bulbs without putting the increased power strain on the power driver boards on incandescents while also giving you a brighter playfield to see better. It is also the perfect compliment to the Palantir mod, giving it the perfect look & feel for your LOTR.
Due to the space limitations, needed brightness, and the lack of an available flat faced incandescent bulb the Palantir mod can only be made with a warm white LED bulb, which I do defuse and rectify to bring it down to an appropriate brightness for this application.
2 weeks later
Quoted from WizardsCastle:The game was barely used when I got it. All coils were like new, so figured I didn't need to upgrade.
The medium coil upgrade is a must IMO for LOTR.....
I just added an identical clear plastic post right between the other two, looks factory and solved the problem.
Quoted from Jarbyjibbo:I'm interested in getting this as well as the mount doom mod but $100 seems a little excessive to me. What all is involved in the mod that brings the cost that high?
Watching the installation video it seems to be well designed, engineered, and crafted, all of which cost time and money to do, yet alone to produce. For what I see the price is reasonable.....
Quoted from Lostcause:My palantir mod arrived today and it awesome! Thanks Frank.[quoted image]
Cool!! Glad you like it!
2 weeks later
Quoted from MSLONEKER:Thx. So i down loaded code. Unzipped, and there are about 10 files and a read me. Should i delete read me file before sticking the usb in the pin.
Whitestar can't be updated via USB. You have to swap out ROMs. Action Pinball has them and Ray is great to work with.
Quoted from MSLONEKER:I guess I would have figured that out when I went to find the usb connection. Thx for that heads up. I just bought both the eproms. So all I have to do is take out the old ones out, put in new ones and reboot.
Yep, that's it! Just be sure to do it with the Power off and that you orient the ROMs in the right direction. I'd recommend using a chip puller, but careful usage of a small flatblade screwdriver also works.
Quoted from FatPanda:I installed the PBL LOTR special coils for the flippers, and man, it rockets the ball around. One issue is that a left ramp shot will often send the ball flying, sometimes into the shire, sometimes into the left outlane. Any remedies to this?
Quoted from pipes:I had installed those on my game and took them out after a few days. I found them to be way too strong. I felt like I was launching a wrecking ball at my playfield. I went with the medium strength coils and I think they're perfect - no issues.
Quoted from pipes:Bought them from apb_enterprises (Andrew) for $12/ea. a couple of years ago I believe. Send him a PM. They were selling on ebay as well but not sure if you can find them there now.
Agreed: the PBL coils are WAY too strong. The apb coils referenced above are perfect for the LOTR.
Quoted from FatPanda:One issue is that a left ramp shot will often send the ball flying, sometimes into the shire, sometimes into the left outlane. Any remedies to this?
Check out the following thread for the LOTR Habitrail mod. I believe he still makes them:
Quoted from FatPanda:The ball is flying out quite early in the ramp, next to the PotD as it's going uphill. I also have the plastic airball deflector mounted right there, with the inscription cut into it.
Ahh, now I understand, had that issue as well. Just cut a piece of clear acrylic in quarter-circle form with a hole to mount it to the path of the dead. On mine it doubles as a place to mount the missing Legolas minifigure. If you zoom in the on attached pic of my LOTR you can see it.
LOTR2.jpgQuoted from MrSmiley:Nice side art blades, where did you get that from?
Here on Pinside:
Quoted from Jarbyjibbo:I second these they look amazing! Wish they were the same material as the rest of the blades out there though. Would make me less anxious lifting the pf.
Agreed, they look fantastic but the material is the least durable of all the art blades I've tried. The blade protectors sold by PinballLife are a MUST when lifting the playfield on this pin.
Quoted from MSLONEKER:I cant believe the speed the ball generates when it hits legolas cleanly. It flies off the rail here and usually enda up in the sam shot. It hits Sam like a missle.[quoted image]
Which is why a lot of LOTR owners have put in that piece of acrylic on the Legolas ramp, as the clear plastic at the back of the Sam VUK will break.
Quoted from FatPanda:Just got finished with a topside teardown, cleaned, waxed, new titans, and 2SMD comets in sunlight white. This game was a bit more difficult then what it looked to be! Gonna do LED OCD board tomorrow. This will be my first time installing one. Anything I need to know? I saw something about connecting it to a computer or something?
I plugged and played mine, looks great. You can tweak the settings via USB, but I didn't find the need too.
Quoted from FatPanda:i see in the first couple pages of this thread that there were some people that added computer fans to their flippers for cooling the coils. Is this a worthwhile mod? Any suggestions for which fans to use?
That was before the different replacement coils came out. Once you swap to the APB coils them overheating is no longer an issue.
Quoted from FatPanda:gotcha. I've seen them, and had them in my cart, but decided to wait to see how the stock coils play. I guess it doesn't make any sense to me as I'm sure Stern used these coils in other games at the time, but you don't see anything for the other games. I didn't do any cross-referencing to check, but just seems odd that this game is the only game known for fading coils. I don't necessarily want stronger coils, just coils that play consistently.
Fans seem to be the best compromise and seem relatively cheap and easy to connect in relation to the new higher strength coils.
The mediums are just a touch stronger than stock and nowhere near as strong as the PInballLife coils. The best part is the mediums don’t start getting weak as you do have that long game and need to Destroy the Ring.
Quoted from Vyzer2:I tried ordering the medium coils from apb enterprises but wouldn’t take my order because it says they are on vacation till 2099!
Anyone know if all is ok at apb?
I don’t know if it’s a typo, but couldn’t even get on their website.
They have a Pinside message link as well as cell phone listed on the Pinside Biz page, try contacting them that way.
I’ve just made the Palantir Eye of Sauron Crystal Sphere mod available for sale here on Pinside. The ad can be found here:
They are made out of extremely durable 50mm K9 Crystal spheres. K9 is a Optical Borosilicate Crown Crystal (Optically Clear) with low inclusions and imperfections ideal for use in lenses and prisms, optics and decorative crystal lighting. It has good physical properties and can be polished similar to lead crystal, weighing approximately 15 percent less than full leaded crystal having a lead content of only 10 percent. It is also rather durable, as I advertently found out by dropping one from my 3 foot high counter onto the concrete garage floor. I was pleasantly surprised that it did not shatter, leaving just the slightest of marks on the surface. The spheres are mounted on custom stainless steel Palantir Brackets. Comet LEDs are used for the lighting source, with diode rectification to prevent ghosting, and Molex connectors to plug into the factory wiring harness. The LE Version also includes a wiring adapter as some LEs came with a different Molex connector as compared to the Standard versions.
Installation is extremely straightforward, and I will include illustrated instructions as well as attach a PDF here. The mod is also fully reversible if you ever decide to return your LOTR to factory stock condition.
Quoted from PhantomO:How is the image added? Is it a decal or painted on back of crystal with led behind it?
Quoted from StrangeSubset1:Cannot tell you how the image was added, but I can tell you this thing is AMAZING!!!
It is a backlit image that the crystal magnifies.
...and thanks @strangesubset1!!
1 week later
Quoted from MSLONEKER:Ok so this is what the guide said. Flash Helms Deep Right. Q14. Can anyone tell me where to find the High Current Coils group 2. Is it one coil im looking for. Im really kind of clueless in trying to read this chart.[quoted image]
Stern commonly powered Flasher bulbs in the Coil section of a driver board due to the higher current capacity of that section of the board compared to the normal bulb section. So you really aren't looking for a coil.
All "High Current Coils Group 2" is a grouping for the connectors to the driver board, in this case J9. On page 128 of the manual you'll see transistor Q14, this particular transistor failing is extremely common on LOTR. As others have said, remove the flasher bulb for now to prevent the plastic & dome from melting, mine was melted when I purchased my pin. The dome is easy to find and replace, the plastic is very hard to find.
You are going to have to get that board fixed, if you aren't comfortable doing it yourself it's an easy repair for any reputable PDB repair shop.
1 week later
Hey gang,
LOTR Palantir Mod will be on sale here on Pinside with the following 20% off Coupon to use during Checkout: "BF2019-20off"
Supplies are limited, Coupon expires at midnight 12/29/19.
Quoted from AUKraut:Hey gang,
LOTR Palantir Mod will be on sale here on Pinside with the following 20% off Coupon to use during Checkout: "BF2019-20off"
https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1227-williamson-pinball-mods/02988-palantir-eye-of-sauron-crystal-sphere-mod-for-stern-lotr
Supplies are limited, Coupon expires at midnight 11/29/19.
Due to the great response Coupon has been extended thru CyberMonday!!!! At this point I have 7 Palantirs still available, however I'm not making another run of these until sometime in 2020.
Quoted from -ZZZ-:Should I put any LED GI bulbs in before I have the OCD board? Not sure how annoying the general fading effects are without that add-on.
Thanks so much for the help everybody!
The LED OCD board is for the inserts only, it has no impact on the GI lighting circuits. Here also sells a GI board for LEDs. I use it on my LOTR, but some feel that it’s not necessary it as long as you use quality nonghosting LEDs.
Quoted from -ZZZ-:That's interesting. I thought that for GI lighting you actually WANT to have ghosting LED's in order to smoothly display GI fade effects, etc.
LEDs do nothing smoothly, they are either off or on. The smoothing is done by some electronic PWM circuitry that control the on/off cycles of the LED. Highly technical bordering on magic black box stuff, more information can be found at Herg's website: http://ledocd.com/faq_led.html
Quoted from Daditude:Copied originally from flynnibus:
Ok, back for another round.. Here is my effort to improve upon the original documentation for adding silicon rings and LEDs to Lord of the Rings!
For LOTR, the original manual is pretty good, with only minor errors and confusing info for the rubbers. Specifically the photo map for rubbers is incomplete and the list of rubbers is far more extensive than you need for a silicon ring upgrade. LOTR uses 7/16" OD rings extensively for grommets on assemblies and mounting lights to the playfield. These do not need to be replaced when simply adding silicon rings. This also applies to the bumpers used in mechanisms, and two places where rubber rings are used as friction nuts (Sword Ramp and Palantir). So these rubbers are excluded from my charts. I also do not include the blue pad rubber used on the playfield and a shooter tip.
So let's get to the meat of the matter.. The way I assembly my info is I have a google sheets doc that has all the information, and images that help identify the locations used. The Google Sheet can be found here https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AMfgqSx6CONrXw0tBQ8sucsd7wiVSB2cASlilaRADR0/edit?usp=sharing
Here is the Rubber Map. I chose clear rings. Photos of the final install will be added in later posts. (1st pic)
Next.. LEDs!
Why pay for markup on a kit when you can buy the individual lights? Plus, it helps to have someone find out which lights work best where, maybe even some artistic choices.
For LOTR, things are relatively straight forward. I've chosen some subtle color adds for the rear two corners of the game, as well as the GI lights on the backboard. The spreadsheet highlights which bulb changes are alternate styling vs an OEM look. There are no errors in the manual that I noted - its just about which LEDs work best for your intended look.
The spreadsheet includes a BOM of all the LEDs and Flashers used, and a graphical map of where to use each. My list is based on using cointaker LEDs and I try to use the cheaper LEDs where possible. This, along with the style of using Retro bulbs is why you see a mix of Retro, Frosted, and Mini bulbs. This build is also based on using an OCD LED board - which is a HUGE improvement on Lord of the Rings. You could use anti-ghosting LEDs, but my guide is not built around those.
So, onto the graphical map! Photos of this install will be added in a later post. (2nd pic)
And here we go! This is with Titan Comp Silicon Rings, Cointaker LEDs, and a OCD LED Board. Let me know what you think of the final product!
The exposure has been tweaked a bit to try to get the digital cam to look true to life. (3rd and 4th pics)[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Keep in mind for myself and many others there is a typo in the guide: The Shooter lane LEDs mini warm white 555 should be 44s.
Quoted from -ZZZ-:Thank you so much for the updated info. I love the bulb map and will use it as the basis for my LED conversion.
I do have a whole bunch of Comet bulbs on hand. The flashers are easy to match, but I find the regular controlled lamp specs confusing. Can anyone tell me whether these are the appropriate equivalents for the Cointaker bulbs listed?
COINTAKER LED --> COMET LED
Mini 555 --> 1SMD Wege, No Lens
Frosted 555 --> 1SMD Wedge, Frosted (or is 2SMD Wedge Frosted a better equivalent??)
Retro 555 --> 2SMD Wedge, Clear Lens
Retro 44 --> 2SMD Bayonet, Clear Lens
2LED Green 555 --> ????????
ZZZ: 2LED Green 555 -- 2 SMD Wedge Frosted Lens
I did use Flynnibus's quide to LED mine and it in combo with the LED OCD & GIzmo board makes it look fantastic. The only changes I did compared to the guide besides the shooter lanes being 44s was make the 3 O-R-C tope lanes Orange. I also changed the 3 Movie inserts to Red, Green, and Blue to match the DVD covers.
Quoted from -ZZZ-:So what is the difference between that lens and "Frosted - Green - 555" in the guide? Is that supposed to be a 1SMD Frosted?
Frosted - Green - 555 is used for Playfield Inserts, having them too bright distracts while playing. The others are used above the Path of the Dead.
4 weeks later
Quoted from PantherCityPins:I’d get those batteries off the board while you’re at it.
Agreed, swapping to NVRAM at the time of the ROM upgrade is perfect, as you loose all your scores and settings anyway. I do recommend doing one first, testing the install, and then the other. Doing both at the same time and then powering on is inviting a Troubleshooting issue.
Quoted from Metroshica:This is going to sound like a dumb question but what do those batteries actually do? When I bought the machine, the holder was empty so I thought it would be a good idea to put some batteries in it. I had assumed it was for storing high scores and settings but it stored them fine without the batteries in it in the first place. I haven't taken them out since so I don't know if it will wipe it.
Quoted from Lermods:Your game likely already has nvram installed. Take your batteries out and leave them out.
Yep, sounds like NVRAM is already in there.
2 months later
Quoted from canea:Looking to change out my flipper coils (again). Factory were too weak, the Pinball Life ones are great for the ring, but feel like overkill everywhere else and make shots like the Ent hole almost impossible.
I see some medium strength coils available - anyone have any feedback on these coils in the game?
The APB Medium coils sold here on Pinside are definitely without a doubt the ones to have. Don't overheat during long play, and not too strong to overpower things. Recommend them 110%.
1 week later
FYI: I have some more Palantir Crystal Ball mods available here on Pinside. Over 150 sold to satisfied Pinside customers all over the world. Due to parts availability to make them they are probably the last ones I make this year.
Thanks!!
Quoted from latenite04:You can probably get away with a 16v cap since the lamps are run on a pulsed 18v and it doesn't burn out a 6v led but I would use 25v to be safe. I think the standard diodes on lamps are 1N4004. You might not need the diode, I haven't looked to see if lotr has diodes at the lamp socket or remote. I was originally thinking of using this same setup to smooth out the flasher above the sword ramp but I haven't had time to play around with it.
[quoted image]
The Palantirs (including yodamingus' Palantir) I made already have a 1N4004 built into the wiring, so all you would need is the cap and resistor. If you are planning on moving to LEDs instead of incandescents in the Inserts I'd suggest using the LED OCD solution as it works perfectly with the Palantir and the LED inserts.
Quoted from Yodamingus:I’d have to look to see how it’s wired
I don’t want to cut into the mod
If it’s possible maybe make a plug and play sort of in line molex connection..
The Palantir's 1N4004 diode is soldered into the circuit at the molex plug underneath the heat shrink
1 week later
Quoted from DeathHimself:I have been searching but only coming up with the Palantir Mod, but has anyone figured out a way to stop the Palantir Target from moving side to side?
Thanks
You need a target splint:
https://mezelmods.com/products/stern-target-splints?_pos=1&_sid=b8d727f39&_ss=r&variant=923513721
Quoted from DeathHimself:Awesome thank you. So I'm assuming the single one piece splint, not the larger two piece.
Honestly can't remember off of the top of my head, I'd get a couple of both, and then find other places for the spares on your LOTR and any other pins.....
1 month later
Quoted from Gogdog:OK so.....I don't think its the washers.
Here is the orbit with the washers:
[quoted image]
And without the washers:
[quoted image]
Seems about the same. And the lean seems about the same as the orbit wall in front of it ->
[quoted image]
The thing is...I don't know how my orbit looked before I did everything. It probably wasn't a perfect 90° perpendicular angle either, but of course I can't go back and see what it looked like.
Now that they are off...I'm not going to put the washers back on again. A bit too much work.
If you are getting SDTM after ramp rejects, yeah, you can either slightly bend the wall or try and position it a bit differently when tightening.
Anyway, what does everyone else's walls look like? A slight lean or perfectly straight?
May have originally been straight from the factory, but over time as you hit the Legolas shot it will hit that guide and lean it to the left a bit as your does, especially since there really isn't any reinforcement up high there......I wouldn't worry about it.
4 weeks later
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Played 3 games yesterday. First game, no balls were registering on Balrog. Following game, every shot registered.
I also notice phantom hits sometimes.
Anyone ever have this problem?
You've got a broken wire in the Balrog cable assembly causing these intermittent issues. Pinball Heaven UK sells a replacement or if you are handy with a soldering iron and heatgun you can repair your existing one.
Quoted from WizardsCastle:I bought one of those replacement harnesses. What is involved in swapping them out? What do I need to do to open up balrog and swap the wires? Any soldering required?
You will need to uninstall the whole Balrog assembly (fairly straightforward), take it to the bench and disassemble, unsolder the existing harness, and solder on the new harness.
Quoted from WizardsCastle:I see a small clip off to the right side on the post. Does this clip have to come out?
Just wondering the best way to approach this.
This is from memory and some pics, as my LOTR is at a friend's house. I do remember it is easy to figure out.....
Disconnect the wire from underneath the playfield. Remove and save the kotter pin to the right of Balrog and slowly lift the whole assembly up, make a note to yourself on where the washers and spacers are. If I remember correctly Balrog is held in place via the kotter pin and gravity. You may have to remove a plastic on the right for the cable connector to feed thru.
2 weeks later
Quoted from Astill:Hey gang what bulb is used in the palantir eye of Sauron mod? i am fixing a game for a friend and the bulb is bad. I thought i would ask before i used a knife on it and cut away the epoxy.
Depends on which version: Jay's original went thru several iterations/versions. They may be the same or may differ. Jay did use epoxy on his, usually black.
The one's I've produced use a Comet 4SMD Wedge - Warm White. I use a clear adhesive sealant from DAP.
1 week later
Quoted from WizardsCastle:I have a few scuffs on the inside cabinet wall that I'd like to touch up.
Anyone know what paint would be a perfect match?
Thanks
Rustoleum Semi-Gloss Black has always matched well for me on black cabinets
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Also, is there a paint that you could brush on to just touch up spots until I get around to spraying the entire wall?
That Rustoleum I recommended is a brush on paint
Quoted from WizardsCastle:Is this the stuff? Google gives me 99% American sites, but I did find this one:
https://www.homedepot.ca/product/rust-oleum-painter-s-touch-painter-s-touch-multi-purpose-paint-in-semi-gloss-black-946-ml/1000140786
Also, do you find it to be a good match to the stock inside walls, so I can just touch up a couple of spots?
Thanks again!
Yep, looks like it.
You'll have to try and see, the condition of your remaining black will also determine this, especially if it's faded or slightly dirty. It's easy enough to put on with a foam brush you could do the whole inside wall for a good finish.
2 weeks later
Quoted from Gogdog:You could try something like this ->
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/the-lord-of-the-rings-journey-begins-members-club/page/123#post-5659782
I did this exact mod on my LOTR, and it still looks and works perfectly!!!
1 week later
Quoted from Medic:Hello, the Palantir globe base keeps rotating after a few plays. I twist it back but it returns. Is there a way to secure it so it doesn’t twist?
[quoted image]
Is this one of Jay's original Palantir mods?? The base doesn't match the ones I have on mine.
Either way, removing the Palantir with the bracket you should be able to use some adhesive sealant or epoxy to help it from stop moving.
1 week later
Quoted from Bigbossfan:I've just installed the special coils from PBL and although the improvement over the stock coils is fantastic.....these are way to strong. I've done some searching on Pinside to get the answer to my question, but either I'm a dumbass (likely) or it just hasn't been clearly explained before.
I've read that there is a flipper adjustment you can make in the menu. I've looked through both the standard and LOTR adjustments. I do not see anywhere that I can change the flipper coil strength to medium.
I did find the 3 various flipper adjustments in the general adjustment menu (#53-55), played around with those default numbers but no change in the strength of the flippers (literally, the ball flies off of the habitrail....just a matter of time before plastics start getting broken!)
Am I missing something???
I definetly want to switch these out with the medium coils that have been spoken about, unfortunately the seller won't ship internationally, and I don't know of any source here in the Great White North.
In any event, thanks in advance for any assistance provided!
Yeah, the PBL coils will break stuff, they are just too strong.
The Medium Coils guy doesn't sell to Canada?? Shoot, he can ship them to me and I'll ship them to you at cost.....don't mind helping!
3 weeks later
Quoted from attyrhodes:I guess maybe I'm wrong and there is a mod? There is an inner circle with two holes with lights inside them. Is that after market?
That's the camera picking up the light from the opto??
Quoted from attyrhodes:So, I can wiggle the back trough, and from the attached photo it looks like I'm missing a screw. I'm assuming it should not move, can anyone tell me what screw I need? The diagram in the manual wasn't particularly helpful.
I've also attached other various photos to see if anyone notices something.
[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Looks like the exit of the funnel is lower than the rear trough behind the backboard. That funnel has also been modded or not OEM. I don't remember mine being pop-riveted.
You can see where the ball is hitting on the rear trough (circled in red). Either find a way to 1) adjust and lower the rear trough OR 2) raise the funnel exit OR 3) both.
3982c953b355a1c5ca843fbabc8065537a026dfc (resized).jpg
Just noticed: Looking at your last pic your trough is missing a mounting screw, which would affect the height of the rear trough entrance!
2 weeks later
Quoted from etien:Hi, just joined the club and like it so far.
This is my first stern pinball so I am going to ask a totally noob question:
How to I switch the game display from French to English. It’s obvious on a Williams/bally or a jjp, but I have been through all the menus and couldn’t find it.
Asking because I plan to install a dmdcolor and they are only English compatible
Page 5 of the Manual, CPU dipswitch setting
5 months later
Quoted from davidsprague:Looking for advice on back box led kits for LOTR. There seem to quite a few, some interactive and some static. I prefer interactive but it is a bit hard to figure out what is the best from the random videos that sellers post.
So far I know of Flipper Fidelity, Mezelmods, Lermods, Cointaker, Pinballdecals and Pinballbulbs. Very difficult to make a decision having not seen any in person so looking for opinions from those who have seen them. Thanks!
Or you can make your own, it incorporates the red eye flasher mod, everything else is static:
3FCA6294-E633-4C65-BCF9-9AA9BE48DCA7.jpegEE4DCFED-471D-45F9-BC70-D546A59DE598.jpeg
Quoted from Bigbossfan:Hi all. Got a strange situation going on right now. I'm selling a undocumented HUO LOTR. Fella who sold it to me, claimed he bought it from Gilchrist Games back in the day, NIB where it stayed in their cottage until last year.
I fully believed the guy as it had the hasp and bar on the pin as well as a full unopened set of plastics amongst other things that tell me the guy's story is legit.
So now I'm selling it, and when I explained the hasp and bar over the front of the cab, people are calling into doubt how this proves it was HUO and not routed.
(I'm finally getting to it!) I would never intentionally mislead anyone, and I was just going by what I remember from learning when I first got into the hobby. Did LOTR ship with that security hatch installed from factory just as B/W's did back in the day? Or am I completely out to lunch?
Could be that the dealer installed the hasp & bar at the showroom assuming it would be sold to an operator, and then it was sold to a private owner instead. Very feasible, but nearly impossible to prove without the original sales slip showing the ownership trail.
1 month later
Quoted from hollywood:Are these ok? This is an extra set I have...don’t know where they came from?[quoted image]
Those are the Pinballlife coils and are way too strong.
Quoted from hollywood:Can't you just turn down the flipper coil strength?
But good to know! What coils do you recommend?
APB Enterprise ones work great (if they are available)....
2 weeks later
Looks to have minimal wear around the flipper buttons, which shows that it wasn't played too heavily....
2 weeks later
Quoted from Pinkitten:I finally added an LED OCD board to my LOTR and it really makes a huge difference on this pin. Next up is an external power supply, for the several mods I’ve installed. Only missing a shaker, which I understand isn’t as simple on this game?
[quoted image]
Looks great!! Always brings a smile to my face when I see a Palantir Mod installed in a LOTR.....
1 week later
Quoted from RobDutch:Haven't played LOTR for 2 weeks, this is my punishment lol
You — shall not — pass!!!!
1 week later
Quoted from TicTacSeth:I
Two issues though on the main things I wanted to fix haha:
1) Balrog - have it registering hits every time now, that’s good. Still can’t get it to light up though. Have the BA9 bulbs it uses, tested the wires. Maybe it’s connected to other flashers that are out???
2) right flipper - with the new coil, plays strong all game, but specifically at the Legolas ramp, it fires so hard it flies off the ramp, towards the shire. Anyone else experience this?
[quoted image][quoted image]
1) Yep, Balrog Flash is in the Coil Matrix as are the Flashers
2) Common issue, solved by putting a small 2" x 2" clear piece of acrylic attached to the Path of the Dead, overhanging the Legolas ramp at it's apex. You can see the one I made in the attached pic
972B805B-842F-4DE9-AF5C-A45795E030D3.jpegQuoted from TicTacSeth:Awesome, thanks for the pic! So attached under the POTD plastic it looks like, must have raised the end of that plastic? Or did you change out the post to the playfield for a shorter one?
I also need the plastic for my POTD characters I have. Found them for $20!
It's attached under the bottom right post under the path plastic, which is not supported underneath so it doesn't affect the PoTD height.
2 weeks later
Quoted from jlatko:Hey guys. Have had my game for a couple weeks now, and noticed that my Orthanc skill shot started being unreliable, and now hardly ever triggers. Orthanc itself works perfectly and always triggers POTD, but the skill shot is almost always ignored now. Am I looking for a dirty or possibly broken optic sensor somewhere? How to correct if that is the case? Thanks much from a hardware newb.
Which version of code is installed in your LOTR? Some of the earlier versions had some bugs in the skillshot part of the code that caused problems.
2 weeks later
Quoted from SantaEatsCheese:What type of LEDs for the G.I.?
Very happily playing on my awesome new (to me) LOTR. I am in the middle of slowly replacing the rubbers and the LEDs on my machine. I've got an LED OCD board for the inserts for the first time, but am debating what kind of LEDs to put in the GI. I usually use COME 2 SMD LEDs with the natural white, but those wash out the warm colors in the inserts a bit. They have been fantastic in space games like ST:TNG. I have some Comet RETROs left over from my Black Knight and was debating using those. Anyone have any opinions on this and/or photos? Thanks!
Warm white is the only way to go for GI LEDs on LOTR, the only exception for me is a couple of green accent LEDs in the Path of the Dead area and a couple of red LEDs over Mt. Doom.
D26DBE28-4B62-479F-B784-877E9CBBCD0C.jpeg
6 months later
Quoted from adrock:Is a separate power supply advisable on this pin if doing several powered mods?
Depends on the current draw of the mods and if you’ve installed LEDs on the pin. If you’ve installed LEDs to replace the stock incandescent bulbs you have a bit more headroom in the stock power supply and boards. I can’t think of any of the popular LOTR specific mods that draw a large amount of current, even the POTD mod is only 4 extra LEDs. Now if you are talking about speaker lights, backbox lights, and especially playfield lighting rails: those are usually run thru separate power supplies..
Quoted from briyau15:Happy to say I am officially part of the Fellowship. Slowly but surely making my way through all the older posts to decide which mods to go with (Color DMD, palantir, etc…).
In the meantime, would anyone know which size hex nut caps the slings? Just noticed it is missing. Thanks!
[quoted image]
#6 washer and hex lock nut
2 months later
Quoted from adrock:Thanks, looks like one connector is not connected to anything, can you trace that back and tell me where it’s connected on the other end?
This one
[quoted image]
That’s the standard DMD connector, which is not use when a color DMD is installed.
3 months later
Hey gang,
just produced another batch of Palantir Sphere mods (available here on Pinside), however discovered one sphere that has a tiny cheap in the sphere that is visible when the eye is off. When on it is not noticeable. Due to the small defect I'm selling it at a reduced price of $150 shipped CONUS. Please PM me if you would like to get it, payment via Paypal.
1F1EC310-9FA5-4B2A-B445-3D5CFDCD27A2.jpeg27BFC119-35B3-4788-8A21-2EFA93DF081B.jpeg 2 months later
Thanksgiving weekend 15% off coupon is now active in my Pinside store including LOTR Palantir Mods and RUSH Mods!!
Coupon Code: WilliBF2022
Pinside Store: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1227-willipinball-mods
Please note that the LOTR Palantirs will be ready to ship on Monday.
1 month later
Quoted from blizz81:I just did a set of Tilt graphic blades in another machine with the playfield in service position, dry. Just lightly tacked top in a few places, worked out air bubbles, was able to lift and reset a little bit. Worked fine. Was assuming that would work for my thinner silly old elf LOTR set as well? If not could go the painter’s tape and peel the backing route.
The sillyoldelf sideart is printed on real thin vinyl, much thinner than any other makes out there. Best way is to remove the playfield, as even wet it is very tough to get right. Once in it looks fantastic, however putting it in was a hassle. I've installed 10+ pieces of sideart and many cabinet's exterior vinyl, and sillyoldelf vinyl is the only one I've done twice due to the first set messing up....
4 months later
Quoted from Hammerhead:FINALLY joined the club over the weekend, now on the search for the Palantir Eye of Sauron and Path of the Dead mods, ColorDMD in the future.
Palantir Mod is available in my shop: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1227-willipinball-mods/02988-palantir-eye-of-sauron-crystal-sphere-mod-for-stern-lotr
Promoted items from Pinside Marketplace and Pinside Shops!
Deer Park, NY
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