Quoted from RDReynolds:I think it's when you get a jackpot in Tommy Multiball.
This is correct.
(Topic ID: 142990)
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The Who's Tommy Pinball Wizard
Data East, 1994
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4 months later
Quoted from MAJRob:Anyone have a nice plastic for Tommy? I am looking for the long one along the left side of the machine. Thanks!!
I have one. It's used and a little bent, but the artwork is in great shape. It's definitely a lot nicer than the one on eBay. It's yours for free if you still need it. 
1 month later
Quoted from Rascal_H:I'm officially broke now.
Oh well. At least it went to a worthy cause.
1 week later
Quoted from Rascal_H:Nice edits! Hopefully they see this or let you help with the coloring for a code update!
The problem is that you only have a limited color pallet to work with when doing the colorization.
Quoted from Rascal_H:I'm always so messy during these projects.
I'm the exact same way. When I'm working on a game, my tools and supplies are everywhere!
Quoted from Rascal_H:Was a first dremel experience ...
The Dremel might just be the most handy tool ever invented. I've used mine so many times on my pins that I've lost count.
4 weeks later
Quoted from BigLebowski:Now that I´ve played a hundred games or so on my LEDified, Titanringed and completely cleaned and waxed Tommy I have to ask the experienced Tommy-players a few questions. Apart from the fact that I´m just lousy with the upper left flipper (which really hurts on this game) my outlanes are just cruel. I´ve already put both outlane posts in the downmost position but still 8 out of 10 balls disappear through those lanes. Sometimes the sling fires them directly against the outlane post and they disappear in lightning speed.
It also seems to me that those Titan Rings add a lot more spin to the balls than normal rubbers. Sometimes the ball hits the topmost sling post and due to the spin makes a very elegant right or left turn directly into the outlane. Nice!
I also have lots of bounces from the scoops, even the Tommy scoop which I only manage to hit 1 out of 10 times.
So all in all I find my Tommy a very, very challenging pin and I wanted to ask if that´s just my machine or if that is also your experience with this pin?
Tommy is a very difficult game. It's easily one of the hardest I own. I often refer to the sligshots as "Slings of Death" because, as you mentioned, they have a tendency to fire the ball straight down the outlanes. That being said, there are things you can do to mitigate the drains. For example, if you see the ball heading towards the upper part of the slingshot, a hard nudge forward can help direct the ball away from the outlane. Ball control is paramount with this game. Try to slow things down when you can, and carefully choose you shots. If you want to get better scores, you will need to master the upper flipper. The mirror shot is important for obvious reasons, but the right ramp is equally important. It is not only used for jackpots during multiball, but it is also how you light "Mystery".
As far as bounceouts from the mode start hole, there are a couple of things you can do to reduce them. For starters, I find it it a lot easier to consistently hit the shot with a backhand from the right flipper. You may also want to consider adding some type of no-bounce foam inside there. Neither of these things will eliminate the bounce outs, but the combination of both of them should make the game much less frustrating for you.
2 weeks later
Quoted from Number41:The one place that does have slightly annoying bounce outs for me is the Skill Level eject lane/Extra Ball shot - I'll shoot the ball in there with a strong shot and sometimes it'll rattle out backwards back down the lane. I've pretty much learned to accept it as one of the game's quirks.
This never happens on mine. Perhaps your playfield is not steep enough?
3 weeks later
Yep. Looks like that connector got pretty toasted at some point. There also appears to be acid leaking from that top battery.
Quoted from Spyderturbo007:Can you expand on this? I'd like to go that route, but I thought it involved soldering?
There is no soldering involved on Tommy. The RAM is socketed. Just pop it off, and pop in the NVRAM. Anyone can do it.
Quoted from Linolium:I just got a Tommy yesterday. It's a great pin but a bit easy... Took me less then a day to get the wizard mode and the table's #1 score. Any ideas on how to make this a more challenging game?
You're either a REALLY good player, or your game is somehow setup easy. I've owned the game for years, and only been to the wizard mode a handful of times.
Quoted from BigLebowski:I switched mine from normal rubbers to Titan rings and post rubbers and my impression is, that the scoops are much harder to hit now. The post rubbers are thicker and somewhat "stickier" (sorry for my bad English) than the classic black rubbers. So if you shoot the mode scoop and the ball touches one post rubber - even slightly - it doesn't slide in but almost always bounces back out.
Have you tried Cliffy posts? I think you will be much happier with them in this game. They are way less "tacky" than the Titan ones.
3 months later
Quoted from BigLebowski:So I reverted back to stock black seleeves and now my Tommy is fun to play again.
If you want to add some color without negatively affecting the gameplay, I'd suggest Cliffy post sleeves. I have them on my machine, and they play great.
1 month later
Quoted from BeaglePuss:New to the club, and I'm looking for two things to finish up my Tommy project.
I could definitely use a number of plastics, if not a full set. My Union Jack is destroyed, and I have a number of other warped/broken plastics that could be swapped out. I've gotten some PMs, but looking to network as much as possible to finish this bad boy up. I plan on adding Pinbits to avoid future breaks.
I'm also looking for someone to burn me the upgraded rom for the game. I would gladly pay whatever's fair for both.
I'll post before and after pics once everything is done. It's coming along nicely.
Let me know which plastics you still need. I think I have a bunch of used ones in a drawer somewhere which are hopefully in better shape than yours.
7 months later
Quoted from lordloss:I'm looking for the two pieces circled in red if anyone has them.
I might have them. I'll check tomorrow and let you know.
1 month later
Quoted from Methos:Fellow Tommy owners...
Moved the game and now all insert lights are out. Very odd....
Where is the first place to look?
Most likely a connector came loose. I'd start there.
1 week later
Quoted from lhammer610:This is a great game. And the blinders are one of the best features ever. But to use them so rarely during a game seems a shame.
I personally wouldn't want them to be used any more. I agree that the blinders are an awesome feature, but if you saw them too often it would ruin some of what makes them so special. I think Chad's code strikes a perfect balance where they are used more than they are in the stock code, but not overused.
3 weeks later
Quoted from Strohz:I was trying to level/pitch my machine and noticed the Tommy I have came with two different types and sizes of legs on it. Does anyone know which legs originally came with it, crinkled black or smooth?
The original legs were black crinkle powder coat.
2 weeks later
Quoted from Don44:Can anybody here burn the 5.0 roms for me for a fee? PM me. Thanks.
You're referring to Chad's code, right? I'd be happy to burn the chips for you, but I'll have to check to see if I have the right sizes. I think I just used up the last of my last 4 meg chips burning all the swear ROMs for my Demo Man.
3 months later
Quoted from zacaj:I've never been able to get mine smooth. Always cokes down from the saucer, glances of the wall and sorta wiggles back and forth as it comes to the flipper. Very unreliable feed.
Mine gives a good feed most of the time, but occasionally does the same thing as yours.
2 months later
1 week later
Quoted from 94_snake:Hey guys. New Tommy owner, picked it up last night. Quick question.
On my table, I actually have a push button launcher, instead of a plunger. Anybody ever seen that before?
That's bizarre. It's supposed to be a manual/auto plunger setup. I can't imagine why anyone would have changed it. Without the manual plunger, there is no way to go for the skill shot.
1 year later
I just installed a PinSound+ board in my game yesterday. I've owned Tommy for years, but now it feels like a completely new game. The Broadway stuff never really bothered me, but having high quality, full length WHO versions is awesome! I plan on swapping out / tweaking a few of the songs.
Quoted from zahner:I did just that and ended up with a great soundtrack now (one that my wife loves too since I added Elton John for her, and that transcends any of my passing musical preferences). I added a PinWoofer amp upgrade and my brother-in-law says my Tommy now sounds as good as his home entertainment system.
Nice! I already have upgraded speakers in my game, but I plan on connecting an external sub today. I also have a headphone station that I'm going to install which came free with the PinSound+ board. It will be handy to be able to adjust the volume and switch sound mixes without having to open the coin door.
3 weeks later
Quoted from pinballjah:Thanks, the blinders are good, it is this mode never appears. I have to admit I haven’t spent a lot of time on game play as I keep getting other games or projects that keep me from learning about the games I currently own.
Like Ive indicated above, Chad's code utilizes the blinders much more often than the factory code ...
3 weeks later
Quoted from Ive:That isn't factory. Someone has added that.
Thanks! For some reason, it didn't even dawn on me that it might not be factory. I had no idea it was even there until I was shopping the game the other day. I'll have to follow the wires to see what it's tied into.
Quoted from pinballjah:For anyone that has installed the v5.0 ROM chips in their Tommy, can someone post some photos of their placement ...
Here you go ...
Tommy CPU ROM (resized).jpgTommy Display ROM (resized).jpg 1 month later
2 months later
Quoted from AntennaMan:Mine came with all LEDs. First step was to replace all flashers with incandecents.
Those outlane flashers with LEDs in them are absolutely brutal!
8 months later
Quoted from ClarkGriswold:Wondering what other Tommy owners have used for GIs (normal white, cool white, sunlight & so forth) and what brightness 1SMD, 2SMD or what? Same with the back box, what did you use there. Any pics or links to pics are appreciated too.
I recently redid all the LEDs in my Tommy and I'm very happy with the results. I used 2SMD sunlight for the playfield GI, and 1SMD sunlight for the backbox. I also installed an EnerGI Maestro board which eliminates the annoying GI flashing. Unfortunately, I don't think the board is being made anymore.
3 months later
Quoted from ArgyleRuby:Semi-related question: does anyone have a link to a How-To guide or video for chaning out the ROMs?
I find that a chip puller like this makes it a lot easier ...
Chip Puller (resized).jpg
Quoted from ArgyleRuby:It looks like many of us are into modding, which is cool because we've gotten in to making many of our changes because of various comments here and other online communities. Do people think this affects the value of the machines in any way? Increase? Decrease? Nil?
It completely depends on both the mods and the buyer. As pinballjah already pointed out, a ColorDMD will generally hold its full value because it's a very popular upgrade and it can be easily moved from one game to another. Other mods that tend to hold their value are ones that improve the playing experience such as speaker upgrades, a PinSound board, an LED OCD controller, etc ... Mods which are more cosmetic tend to come down to personal taste. Some people are willing to pay extra for things like mirror blades, speaker lights or an alternate translite, while others see no value in these mods whatsoever. Even something like LEDs can be very subjective. Not everyone likes LEDs, and even if they do, they may not like the ones that you selected.
Quoted from pinballjah:Saw this posted on Facebook, alternate Tommy playfield with six bumpers and apparently the ball drops from the plane. Only 10 made according to the owner.
That's a prototype. Is it for sale? How much are they asking for it?
The prototype Tommy is actually one of my dream pins, but I've accepted a long time ago that it has soared way beyond my price range. I should have grabbed one years ago. I don't think they'll get anything close to $100k for it, but I could see it going for $50k given the current market on rare desirable titles.
Quoted from cybevenom:After 14 years Tommy has left the building. I had great fun with it over the years. I now am enjoying Guns n Roses and this one will never leave I think.
They are DE's two best games by far, in my opinion. I love mine!
Tommy and GnR (resized).jpg
2 months later
Quoted from Svend:Am I correct that these 1/2 sleeves should go below the rubber ring and around the plastic post (which have the dent which holds the rubber ring)?
Quoted from HIPPY:Yes, you are correct. Titan has them in colors, too.
Yep. I did white rings with grey post sleeves. I think the combo looks great ...
Tommy (resized).jpg 2 months later
Quoted from TimeBandit:Almost finished my rebuild. I put a Kruzman-cleared NOS playfield in.
Wow! That looks fantastic!
2 months later
Quoted from Ive:RIP Lyman Sheats. Thanks for Tommy and all the other games you worked on. Making the world a more fun place .
I could be wrong, but I believe Tommy was the first game Lyman worked on.
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