My machine has that but is this something that was an OEM part?

Hey Spencer, I've seen that Tiger Shooter before... Very nice Theatre! Enjoy!

To my knowledge, it's stock.

Woot! My ToM just arrived yesterday - I am now part of the club!

Excellent condition (HuO) ToM, I am now the second owner. Hopefully this weekend I will get to put a few hours of marathon play on it. Been waiting for this one to join the collection for a few years now. Unfortunately with my basement setup, I don't have room to add any more!

Anyone ever find a place to get the Brass Tiger saw mod cheaper than $250? Also looking into the clock and Spinning card in Hat mods as well. Any comments on how they look work or where the best deals are for these mods? As long as I am at it, any current sellers have a "Brass kit" legs, side rails and lock down bar?

I would really like to find a great looking topper for my Theatre of Magic and my Pinball Magic. Of course would have to be totally different.

Good question. Anyone have any advice on this one?

Still got my TOM for another month, would there be any interest in a 3D model copy of the Trunk Opto wheel thing for 3D printing duplicates?

I don't think so. They do make those in aluminum now that work great.

Oh cool! Where does one acquire that?

http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/03-9318-M

I have only found the combo mod Saw and Marquee.Pinball Decal has them at 299 .I would love to put the saw mod on mine to finish off the restoration but I have no desire to own the mirror.

I thought the same but must admit after getting the mirror I would recommend it. It adds to the game and interacts with the different phases of the game.

How reliable or temperamental is TOM. As a first time pin owner will it drive me mad? It is such an interesting game however I don't want to be fixing it once per month.

You're in the wrong hobby

Really are they that bad. Changing rubbers and bulbs is one thing but are you telling me that they will have major problems once per month even when only used lightly? So stick to NIB is what you are saying?

No i'm saying you have to be prepared to work on these if you are going to own them. There is no rhyme or reason as to how often or how severe the breakdowns will occur.

It's hard to predict. My TOM has been fine since I got it in December. Sure, you clean it and keep it nice, but it's hard to predict when things will happen. This is Pinball, and stuff does happen, so, just be prepared for that. And, BTW, even on NIB things happen. It's a complicated mechanical beast. Most of us enjoy working on them and learning how they work.

Marc

Maybe I should have been more specific in my post. I just don't want to buy something that is not working more than it is working. I realize that there are no guarantee's however I do want to play my pin. I am quite intrigued by the mechanical operation of these games and have no issue in tinkering and problem solving but I would like to play my TOM.

TOM is a great game. The Trunk is the big mechanical assembly, but it's fairly simple, really. Everything else is just switches and solenoids, which isn't new to TOM (the trap door isn't that complicated, either...). Buy one in good shape from a private collector and you'll most likely be fine. If you run into issues, this community will help.

Again, you're in the wrong hobby! ALL machines need work. If you look at all the post under TECH on Pinside you will see people looking for help on EM games as well as games that they just bought out of the box!

I have a TOM and had very good luck with it. Nothing major. I actually find changing rubbers and bulbs on the game to be harder than working on it. Some of the bulbs and rubbers aren't easily accessible!

What game do you know of that breaks down all the time? Is there specific info you have read or are referencing? Every machine is different and sometimes its the luck of the draw. Specific to my TOM I have had to do nothing except Eddy Sensor Adj from time to time.

I don't know of any as I am brand new to this hobby however the comments of some like "you are in the wrong hobby" does not instill confidence.

I think the point is there is no fail safe game, there are not guarantee's. Even "newer" games are almost 20+ years old. Half the "FUN" of this hobby is fixing and maintaining the games. If you like playing pinball but don't want to fix games, then its best to play locally at your bars, pubs, bowling alley's or pinball shows. If you are serious about getting into pinball, go all the way get yourself a $1,000 System 11 and dive in head first! Unless your rich then just buy new in box with a warranty.

We just sold our ToM to pay for another and it's one I miss a lot. Despite having quite a few toys and bits to keep running, it's one of the most low maintenance machines we have. We put one part into the machine in three years of ownership.

As much as you hate to turn off anyone to a hobby that you enjoy pinball is different! A lot of people want to have a pinball machine but have no desire to work on them. If that is the case then you may be in the wrong hobby unless you're willing to pay someone to fix or maintain your machine for you.

As kporter stated "its the luck of the draw". You and I can go out and buy the same machine in excellent condition but your machine may wind up with issues and mine works fine.

For a lot of people on this site fixing machines is more of a hobby than playing them. I for one love finding a machine that is non-working and bringing it back to life. I put all the time and money into the machines and then my 15 year kicks my *&* when we play!!!

This hobby gets to be addictive. Everyone starts out with one machine and the next thing you know you're driving 8 hours to pick up another and then having one shipped from 4 states away etc. It's a great hobby and one that can be very expensive but again it goes back to "do you want to learn how to work on them or not and, if not, are you going to pay someone to fix them for you". If you answer no to both of those question you may want to reconsider buying one!

Back to my earlier question. Does anyone here have the hat/card mod, if so which one did you buy and do you like it? I want to start doing some Mods to my TOM, looking at all of them, I like the Saw/mirror, Tophat w/ card, and clock mods. Can you guys with TOM mods give me some insight. I see alot of people saying they have this one or that one but not much feedback on if it makes the experience better or if its worth doing

I like the Hat Mod and purchased it from Andy Dreads. He is the one that makes them and are also the ones, I believe, Joey sells on his site PDI Pinball Decals, I really like the way the hat looks as well as interacts with the game. I did have an issue with my hat as it malfunctioned a few years after purchase but Andy was great to deal with and fixed it. After fixing it the motor in it died shortly after getting it back. Went back to Andy and he wound up just sending me a new one which I have not had issues with since (about a year now). If you come down to the Pittsburgh area and want to see it let me know!

Here is Andy's info:
Judge Dreads Pinball
[email protected]

_{Post edited by meSz: Added contact info}

A model (or scan) of the actual trunk would be even better if you have one. I would love to print some spares, maybe ABS will be more durable that whatever the repros are made out of.

Actually coming down tomarrow, Its my birthday today and My Twin Sister lives in Bridgeville

I am NE (Murrysville) of the city so it's a little bit of a drive from Bridgeville. If you get a chance and like macaroni and cheese (dont stop reading just yet) go to a place called Sauce (http://saucepgh.com/) in Bridgeville. They have a "build you own mac n cheese" plate and the stuff is great. I am actually taking my son there on Saturday for his birthday as thats where he wanted to go for lunch!

I am sorry to say I am doomed to a Chuck E Cheese Birthday. Its kinda weird. My Wife is a twin as well her B-day is 03/11, My son's is 02/24 and my Twin sister's daughter is 03/14. So we are celebrating 5 Birthdays at once at Chuck E Cheese haha. We come down alot so I will make sure on my next visit we stop by Sauce!!

No problem at all and I do feel your pain as my wife, son and I have b-days on the 3rd, 7th and 9th of March. Luckily I am beyond the Chucky Cheese years!!! Best advise I can give you is to start drinking before you go and then continue to drink once your there!!!

Hi,
I am a recent owner of a nicely restored TOM, has LED upgrade and color DMD. Happy to chime in to the club.
Nice machine, but I am experiencing trunk issues, some seem to be addressed in previous posts, so thanks to the forum for some suggestions.

Yes - I, too, am having the ball ricochet back out on a direct shot. The trunk was raised a little by the tech because the opening to the trunk (in the 9:00 position) was too small and prevented the ball from falling into trap. Now that it is raised, the ball falls in more readily when the opening is in the side position, but now the ball ricochets out more than ever. It seems to be hitting the support rod or the bottom of the support frame. See picture. Will probably try lowering the trunk again to reach a compromise. Is the trunk normally this temperamental?

Trunk cracked after the first few plays. It was fixed with some mylar tape. Not pleased that a "brand new" trunk breaks this easily - but understand that it can be reinforced.

Trunk does not register all hits - I did have the sensor adjusted and it did help, but I notice that there will be games where the trunk gets hit repeatedly and not a sound, light or score register. Next ball, it appears to be fine.

Trunk side with the bulls eye magnet, doesn't always hold the ball. The ball will initially stick, but will fall off when the trunk moves to drop it into the trap. Other times, the ball will hit, stick for a second, then drop off and the trunk won't even move. Other games, it plays fine.

Hocus pocus magnet ball save only works on a very slow ball moving toward the outlane. A fast ball, understandably, will not be caught by the magnet, but there are some balls which should definitely work. You hear the hum of the magnet (so the mode is on) but it appears to be too weak to catch the ball.

Generally speaking, I'm very pleased with the game and it's performance, but the tyranny of the trunk is making itself known.

Question for the TOM owners: Does anyone also own an AFM? Curious if the toys and gizmos on another 1995 game also have a similar tendency to act up?
Thanks

DSC09911.jpg

I've had minor problems with the ball going into the scoop, hitting the bottom of the trough under the playfield, and bouncing right back up and out... but it was very infrequent.

I'm not surprised, and this is similar to my experience. I put some beer seal foam on the metal under the trunk, and it helped a little, but not that much.

The eddy sensors can be fickle. Try turning the potentiometer fully back and forth a few times to clean that contacts, then adjust it. Use a ball on the playfield in switch test to verify that it's working.

This sounds very unusual. I have never seen that happen.

I've seen some missed catches on the outlanes, for sure. In the audit menu of the software, the game even keeps track of how many it misses. I wish it compensated you and gave you a legit ball save...

I think you're just having some bad luck right now. If you get these few issues straightened out, you'll forget all about you ever had problems.

I lined the inside of a new trunk with automotive sound deadener (e.g. Dynamat or equivalent; I purchased a single sheet of "GTmat" from Ebay) and it survived plenty of hits with no cracks.

Place a piece of foam tape 1/4 " wide x 3/4 " tall on the floor of the Trunk. It needs to be thin enough so that any balls dropping in the trunk from the back pass by it freely. I've done this and have totally eliminated the issue.

Replace the magnet

Don't let it deter you. You'll pick up stuff through reading the posts. I think most people on this site started off with no experience/knowledge.

Okay so I jinxed myself.....played my TOM today and the hot mod is no longer working properly. The card is not spinning at all. Again, love the mod idea but for me this has been the most problematic mod I have had on any of my machines. I have returned the original to Andy 3 times where the 3rd time he just sent me a new one. Now the new one has failed!?!?!?!? Anyone else encounter issues with this???

Your game is reseting. Time to measure the 5v and see where it's at.

This actually might take care of it:

http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/announcing-new-product-to-help-resolve-resets-in-wpc-era-games

If so, it buys you time until you can have a proper repair done.

Marc

Does anyone recall who sold the Wand mod? This is the wand with the lighted tip and when you get Hocus Pocus lit the wand also lights?

You can find it here and here - different prices and countries of origin:

ebay.com link: Theatre Of Magic Pinball Machine Mannys Floating Wand Mod And Free Apron Cards

http://pinballdecals.com/TOM_MagicWandPage.html

Thanks, this helped me track down my email to him purchasing it. Unfortunately the wand is no longer lighting up!

t6.jpgt3.jpgt1.jpg

Slick

That is wicked awesome! Great idea using the scrolls!

Beautiful