Just joined the club! Bought a player's condition X-Files for a decent price. It could use some love -- cleaning, new rubbers, new bulbs -- but it plays well.

What a fun pin! I love the middle orbit, and the ramps feel great when you hit them. I'm also a long time fan of the show.

I need to read up in this thread and am sure I'll have some questions. I'll post some pics later. Just wanted to say hi.

UPDATE: Now with picture.
X-Files (resized).JPG

Hey guys, I have a list of questions I was hoping you could help me out with:

1. I want to buy LEDs for the whole thing. Am I right that I should get non-ghosting LEDs for the inserts but regular LEDs for the other areas? Also, is the manual right as to how many bulbs you need? For instance, on pages 66-67, it says you need 52 #44 bulbs and 13 #89 bulbs. I don't see that many bulbs in the game in addition to all the #555 bulbs that there are.

2. Has anyone added Titan silcone rings to their game. I'm wondering what color to do. I'm thinking blue. Ideas? Also, is the manual correct in its ring count? I know some manuals are wrong / have errors in this department.

3. Has anyone installed the NVRAM? Is it as simple as popping the old chip out and inserting the NVRAM? I'm thinking about getting the one from pinballlife. I don't have the skills to soder directly to the board so I want to make sure this is socketed, and all I have to do is put it in.

4. I'm thinking about ordering a new metal plate from Cliffy as mine is pretty old and discolored. It is also peeling. How do I get the old one off? Does the new one come with an adhesive back?

5. Do you know what type of machine screws to get to connect the ramps to the hex posts? (see pictures below) The posts say 6-32 tap in the manual. Does that mean I need 6-32 screws? (Sorry for the basic question.)
XF Ramp 2 (resized).JPG
XF Ramp 1 (resized).JPG

Thanks for the feedback!

Thanks again all. I ended up doing a combination of looking at the manual and looking under the playfield. Hopefully, I got it right. This is my first full LED conversion on a pin. I didn't realize how expensive it is . . . .

Rules question: It seems like the difference between choosing Mulder or Scully at the start is that for Mulder, you need less shots to start the cabinet MB, and for Scully, you have more X shots spotted to start the Truth MB. Is that right? Also, I believe the lit X return lanes lights another X on the main playfield to help you get closer to the Truth MB. Is that right as well? Finally, how do you light the X in the return lanes?

Thanks for confirming. It would be weird if hitting the ramp lit the X in the return lanes. I'll have to pay more attention and see if I can figure out what causes it.

Played a few games -- probably not enough to say for sure -- but what I think I figured out is that the X in the return lanes is not lit at all for Mulder. For Scully, it is lit initially, and then relit after each made shot up until you get Truth MB. After that, it seems the X in the return lanes doesn't light anymore. So, I'm guessing that the bonus ability of choosing Mulder or Scully only lasts until the first MB and then goes away.

I was a little off about the Scully rules. I believe the X in the return lanes lights a hurry-up X on the playfield, giving you an extra X to get. If you don't get it in time, the X on the playfield goes away, and the X in the return lane lights again.

When I used to play Truth MB, I could shoot a ball to the cabinet and have the magnet hold it while I continued to play with the other balls. However, I just replaced the metal Cliffy magnet protector with a brand new one from Cliffy. Now, the magnet seems too weak to hold the ball. If I hit it there, the ball is not captured by the magnet. If I gently place it there with my hand, it is captured. The magnet seems to work in all other modes and can still throw the ball around. I read somewhere that some people have the ability to have the magnet hold the ball in Truth MB and for some, this doesn't seem to work. Could there be something about the new Cliffy that is more shielding to magnetism than the old?

I figured it out. The first opto was misaligned. It is that opto that triggers the full magnet to hold the ball during Truth MB. It must have gotten misaligned when I was doing work in that area. Tricky thing to keep aligned. . . .

Had some people over last night and we played a four player game. The DMD showed six scores, and it took a while to realize that it had us playing in teams with players 1 and 3 scores showing with a total combined score; the same with players 2 and 4. I couldn't find a setting to turn team play on and off. Is this just the default when four or more people play? Is there a setting?

Ah, so it is standard for Sega pins? I didn't realize. Kind of cool.

My cabinet is developing a slight crack. I would like to reinforce the skin with bondo fiberglass and resin from the back side. Anyone ever do this before? Any issues with fit in terms of putting it back on? How easy is it to get the cabinet assembly out of the game? Does it just unscrew from under the playfield with one connector to dettach?

Thanks!

Well, I figured this out on my own today. Just in case anyone needs to try this themselves, it is very easy getting the file cabinet out of the game. There are 3 connectors under the playfield, all within easy reach, that need to be detached. Then, there are about 6 bolts to unscrew if I remember correctly. The hard part for me came in removing the plastic skin from the filing cabinet. I really had to pry it off after removing the screws, and I was afraid I was going to create another crack. Fortunately, it held up, as it is fairly flexible. I think over time the skin developed a suction like grip around the filing cabinet assembly, but I got it off.

I then used a Bondo fiberglass and resin kit. You mix the resin with hardener, brush it on to the other side of the skin, apply some fiberglass, brush on more resin, and repeat a few times. You can get the kit off of Amazon. It is not too expensive and easy to use. It takes two hours to cure. Luckily, the skin fit easily back over the filing cabinet. It seems much more solid now and really reinforced the crack that had developed. Time will tell whether it will stand up to the constant pounding of the ball, but I think it will (knock on wood).

One thing I noticed when I took the file cabinet out is that I was missing one of the screws that held the skin onto the assembly. That let the bottom portion of the skin move back and forth some and not rest firmly against the metal of the assembly. I'm not sure if that contributed to the crack, but I replaced the screw so everything is tight together now.

Nice to hear. If mine ever gets worse, I may order one, but they're pretty darn expensive. It might be worth reinforcing the back side like I did before you install it.

No, the first opto (closest to the player) was misaligned and not working. That was causing the problem. When I got it aligned again, the magnet would hold the ball during Truth MB. That is likely your problem.

Yes, I believe so. There are other modes where the magnet is active, but Truth MB is the only one that holds the ball.

Good luck with the locks. That sucks.

I actually find it a little easier to Newton one ball into the other and into the cabinet than to try to hit the cabinet outright where too hard a shot can brick back at you.

I have a question about how the extra ball gets lit. I read somewhere that it is lit when you hit the left ramp three times, but that doesn't seem to do it for me. Instead, hitting the left ramp three times activates Tooms which allows you to hit the launch button repeatedly to increase the value before the short timer runs out. The only time I get extra ball lit is when I have a really crappy first two balls. It is like the pin is saying, "You suck! Here's an extra ball to help." Can someone clarify the rules?

Thanks. And, I assume the extra ball for doing crappy on the first two balls is normal too?

I would definitely remove the filing cabinet assembly from underneath the playfield. It is simple to do, and you will have a much easier time removing the rubber skin, which as I said above, can grip the assembly fairly tightly. I wouldn't want to try to peel it off with the assembly in place from the top of the playfield.

SXYZXYS (or however its spelled) X-File mode should be a 2 ball multiball, is that right? Because, lately, the game is only kicking one ball out. All trough switches work. Is there a setting or something that I might have gotten messed up that I need to adjust?

Actually, this is an intermittent problem, which may suggest a switch issue, but I'm not sure which switch would cause it. Any ideas?

Make sure the optos are aligned properly with each other. They move out of position easily.

The diverted pops up unless you are shooting an X shot or in a mode. In those cases, it is down for the orbit.

The filing cabinet takes a certain number of hits to get ready for MB. On the last two hits, it starts dropping down. If you are playing as Mulder, the number of hits is less, and on the start of each new ball, it drops one. Playing as Scully requires more hits, and you don't get any free drops.

It’s a fast, brutal and fun game. It is my go to pin for a quick fix.

The metal plate over the magnet that prevents wear? Cliffy sells them. You may have to email him. I’m not sure if they are on his website or not.

Has anyone experimented with different color LEDs for the inserts in front of the drain? I have white in there, and it just doesn’t look right when they shine through the artwork on top. Everywhere else I have color matched the LED to the insert, and the game really pops. I thought I saw someone do blue, but I could be wrong.

Probably $2200 plus or minus depending on condition.

Most of my shots into the filing cabinet are rejected. It takes a soft shot or a richochet off of a post to go in. Is this normal? Is there a way to adjust it so more direct shots go in?

Bump. Anyone?

I thought so, but is there a way to adjust it? If so, I can play around with it.

That much I know, but I thought it was just four screws. I didn’t see anything to adjust the height. Is there something specific for that, or are you just talking about putting something between the screws and the playfield, such as washers or something?

Thanks. I took a close look at mine, and it seems level. I took some slow motion videos, and the ball seems to go in and then bounce back. I think it has to do with the cabinet flap not fully folding back into the cabinet but only going part way and hitting the back end of the cabinet at an angle. This means that a hard shot is likely to bounce back, while a softer shot will more likely drop to the bottom of the cabinet. I'm surprised if I'm the only one who has this issue, but I'm not sure there is more to do to fix it.

I just noticed that there are two empty switch slots on the orbit. Anyone know why? Was it a redesign after the playfields were made?

Makes sense. So they didn’t test things in the 90s before making playfields?

What about during that mode — I forget the name — where you first shoot the trap door while points run down backwards, and then once you get it, all shots are worth that number of points. I’m pretty sure it flashes there while the door is open for the first shot.

It’s subtle. May be hard to see in a video.

Nice job!

Looks great!

Well, the high score is still there.

Are you talking about putting the backbox down and worried about the stress on the arms over a prolonged period of time? If so, put a folded or bunched up blanket in the space between the head and the playfield glass to even out the pressure.

Yeah, I saw that my initials are still there. Either you guys aren’t playing enough, or I’m that good. I don’t think it’s the latter.

The blue DMD looks great, by the way. Really nice job with the pin.

Non ghosting LEDs worked perfectly for me when I had the game.

Saw this there today. Looked great!

I repaired mine way back when. I don’t remember specific steps, but I think it was pretty straightforward. Unplug the connectors, remove a few screws and just pull out the mech. I think the skin isn’t too bad to take off once you have the mech out. You may have to make sure the cabinet is in the right position before removing, but I don’t recall whether it was up or down.

Maybe the opto got slightly misaligned and is registering phantom hits?