Transformers (LE)
Stern, 2011
Transformers (Pro)
Stern, 2011You're currently viewing posts by Pinsider mrm_4.
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First things I had to do were replace the Q15 and Q16 transistors for the flippers on the SAM board and have capacitors c53 and c52 removed. Then got the Opto kit for the ball trough to help with an extra ball shooting out midplay or game dying midplay. I got mine in October.
Quoted from 85vett:Yes, the cliffy's are available. You have to contact him direct though I I don't think any vendors sell it.
Being a pre-played game it should be good. Here are some common ones though.
Fixes -
- Some dead foam at the end of the all spark lane if you get bounce outs
- I made a wedge out of foam I got from walmart that was about an inch thick. cut it at an angle and put it against the back left wall under Star Scream. Did this as sometimes the ball would get stuck up their above the plastic. That fixed it for me.
- If you have issues with megatron locking all the needed balls or shooting out slow you may need to put some washers as the front of the through to make it a bit steeper. Normally only an issue if you go above 6.5 pitch
- Ironhide - I removed my control gate. Made it more fun to play. Check to see if your hangs on the back wall. It shouldn't but some did which would cause it to not shake as much as it should.
Does the pro have the same issues with the iron hide playfield and starscream? I thought the ramps were different than the LE. I may be wrong though.
Quoted from dri:What is this opto kit? My Stern Trek has started doing this very randomly and very far in-between.
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/502-6821-00
This is the one I ordered per the suggestion from Chas at Stern Tech Support. Super easy install. A temp fix is to reseat the connections in the front and back of the trough. This happens a ton on a few stern games, such an annoying flaw, and it always happens when your on what feels like could be the best ball of your life. (BOOM DEAD FLIPPERS)
Another thing I did on mine is for Optimus when the ramp is up to hit him. I noticed about 50%-60% of hard direct hits were registering. If you look under the playfield there are 2 springs holding him back. I removed the one on the right. Now 100% of direct hits register and the weak hits still do not, so I feel its a fare adjustment. Some others suggested putting washers between the switch and the playfield to make it more sensitive.
Hooked up a Polk 10” subwoofer to mine this weekend. Love hearing the chopper on Blackout mode.
Also you are right BOBCADE the Ironhide playfield is sweet if you adjust the setting to begin with the mini playfield switch. The LE gets so much hate for that upper playfield but I love it.
Got the Tilt Graffic blades for it too. I think my next mod is gonna be under cabinet lighting.
All hail Megatron!!!
Quoted from northerndude:Did you do any other adjustments like add in a crossover or anything? Or did you just swap out to a better sub?
I love the call outs and sound effects, would like it to have more "depth" to it with better audio
I used the audio out board from pinnovators.com and just set the bass frequency to 160 on the polk. Thumps nicely and isn’t muddy. A LOT of people like to piggy back the sub in the cabinet but personally after running sound and playing bands for years I’d rather not tinker around like that with a powered sub and risk some anomaly happening and frying the SAM board.
All in all took about 10 minutes to set up. The longest part was deciding where to run the speaker cable out of the cabinet lol
Added over 6 years ago: Edit - the frequency on this is around 90... I set the sub for my tv surround sound to 160. whoops.
Quoted from tetsuos:I just picked up a Transformers LE (combo) and have been struggling to get the USB port to recognize any USB stick. I'm testing side-by-side with my X-Men Pro which recognizes the same USB stick immediately, so I doubt it's a formatting problem. I have tested around 6 different USB sticks, and none are recognized. Both testing using the update code function (cold reset with DIP switch 8 on) and using the code backup option from the Settings menu, but the DMD forever says to insert a USB. One of my sticks has an LED which illuminates when I plug it in, so I doubt it's a power issue.
The settings reports: V1.0, sys V1.59, HW 2
Is there any known issue with this machine recognizing USB devices, or should I suspect a damaged SAM board?
You may want to email stern to see if Chas has any advice on this.
Having issue with starscream on my LE. When you hit the target between his legs he does a quick twitch left to right. Well he stops moving half way through his little dance and stays sideways. Sometimes he will go back to normal after a ball search or if the target gets hit again. Or if starscreams hurry up mode is going and he does the full rotation left to right, sometimes he won’t return to center when the mode is over. Problem is when he’s stuck to the side the target is blocked and the ball just drops off his platform, ruining the ramp shot. Any other LE owners have this issue and how did you fix it? For the moment I unplugged the motor but I don’t like the idea of having a piece of the machine not working properly.
Note in switch test mode I touch the switches mounted on the motor and both register fine and in coil test the motor moves him back and forth fine. It only acts up in game play. This happened a few months ago and I reseated a few connectors under him and to the motor and that seamed to help for a bit but now he is having an issue every game.
Quoted from mrm_4:Having issue with starscream on my LE. When you hit the target between his legs he does a quick twitch left to right. Well he stops moving half way through his little dance and stays sideways. Sometimes he will go back to normal after a ball search or if the target gets hit again. Or if starscreams hurry up mode is going and he does the full rotation left to right, sometimes he won’t return to center when the mode is over. Problem is when he’s stuck to the side the target is blocked and the ball just drops off his platform, ruining the ramp shot. Any other LE owners have this issue and how did you fix it? For the moment I unplugged the motor but I don’t like the idea of having a piece of the machine not working properly.
Note in switch test mode I touch the switches mounted on the motor and both register fine and in coil test the motor moves him back and forth fine. It only acts up in game play. This happened a few months ago and I reseated a few connectors under him and to the motor and that seamed to help for a bit but now he is having an issue every game.
Probably one my most frustrating attempts at a repair. The placement of the hex screws and the fact that loctite is used everywhere made this worse. Pulled it all apart and I’m pretty convinced at this point it is the switches. Ordering a few new ones and will see how it goes.
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Quoted from HIPPY:I bouht an LE with few plays,mainly stored. The ramp going to Optimus Prime needs the motor replaced. It is loctited on the set screw where it can't be removed. Motor is easily gotten. There is a piece called hub weldment to replace .Marco said it is coming,been 5 weeks.The bad part is the manual says to use loctite.If you have to change the motor, check it out.Broke my wrenches trying.
What I did is held my soldering iron up to the screw for about 30 seconds and the loctite gave way instantly. I figured that out AFTER I broke a wrench.
Quoted from HIPPY:I forgot about using good old heat, lost my patience with it & got to replace the “hub weldment “. Thanks for the advice. Did you get yours fixed?
Ordered new switches from Marco this morning so I’ll probably get them sometime this week. Maybe next weekend I’ll put them on and report the results.
Quoted from Rickwh:My star scream stays sideways very rarely. Like you say it usually resets itself after something else makes star scream move. Since the tests work flawlessly and he recenters back in place I’ve always thought it was a code issue and was evidence that stern needs to put some polish on this game. (Unlikely but still needed)
Ughh my gut feeling was code because the tests go fine. I really hope it’s a switch wearing out tho so I’m not doing all this for nothing. If it doesn’t fix it I’m going to unplug the motor and put Mylar in the back of the platform where the switch is and where starscream stands that way the ball doesn’t get stuck in that gap. Which is the whole reason they coded him to do that little shimmy.
Switches for Starscream showed up today. So far seems that they were the problem (knock on wood). Tested the motor and new switches about 3 or 4 dozen times. Started a game and activated the target to make starscream do his shimmy about 50 times, stared the hurry up mode 4 or 5 times, hit the target during hurry up mode to make him shimmy during his semi circle rotation about 12 times. Then played 5 or 6 games like normal and so far no glitches. 
Quoted from blowback1976:Anyone know the actual switch part number for the megatron trough? I’ve order a few from several places, but the tension is too much and balls won’t feedback down towards the kicker. Part number from manual is 180-5119-02.
I had what I think is the same problem so I took the screw out of the front of the switch so I could angle it down a bit. Did this in October of 2017. Haven’t had an issue since. Just tightened the back screw a little more snug than normal to help. I also imagine you could just bend the arm a bit of the switch.
One pic shows the ball hung up on the switch. The other shows the switch tilted down a bit so it still activates but allows the ball to roll over.
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Quoted from HIPPY:Welcome, I got an Autobots LE, love it. For more ideas & issues, look for the Transformers LE thread, roll out. More interesting stuff to read.
Can you link this thread you're referring to?
Quoted from NPO:Boom!!! In!! # 105 of # 125 reporting in.
Drove from Florida to Ohio for this one.
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Welcome to the club 
Quoted from NPO:Thanks!! Farthest I ever drove for a pin. ColorDMD and Polk subwoofer both on the way!
That machine bumps with that polk. I love getting Blackout hearing that helicopter on mine. Mannnnn!
I still need a color dmd.
what settings are you guys using for game play? I have owned this game for over a year and have never made it to Roll Out or All Hail Megatron because I have everything set in either hard or factory depending on the objectives. Ive played other machines on locations that I've noticed its way easier to get modes completed. Am I cheating myself by making this game too hard? I put up some big scores with these settings and play 30-45 minute games but I can never close out all the modes for mini-wizard...
Quoted from Deez:Do you have the GC on your game?
I started a timer and was giving you Deez 5 mins before you trolled me hahaha You don't disappoint.
Yes I have GC on the Autobots, lost the Decipticon side this summer, but what I noticed as I cycle through all the scores. No QRK anywhere to be found. 
Edit: Alsoooo this forum is for members only, you just sold your machine 2 weeks ago 
Quoted from NPO:Man, every time ColorDMD supports a game, I have to get one. This one is no exception. Man, this game look SO much better - especially the movie clips.
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Also added the Polk PSW10 subwoofer under my game. Found out someone before me upgraded all the speakers with a varistor volume control directly to the front speakers. Dude, my game sounds like a home theater system - the glass nearly shakes!
Told you that polk makes this game so awesome!!! What frequency are you at with the sub. i think i put mine around 90 or 100 or something before it gets muddy. I need to check.
Quoted from JMitchell147:Nice.. they look good.. I have illuminated buttons on my LE combo to but I think mine are both red.. yours are a better match!
Thanks!
Just switch the one side with a purple, JOIN ME 
https://www.cometpinball.com/product-p/1smdflex.htm
Quoted from Rickwh:Ever since I installed my cliffy for the megatron scoop, I’ve had ball hang ups when the ball comes down the super skill shot lane into the back of Megatron. Lived with it for a while now. Tried putting layers of Mylar back there to make a ramp up over the edge of the cliffy. Sorta worked.
Finally took the time to tear all that topside apart and I modified the cliffy by cutting out the right hand side of it. I put a layer of Mylar over the edge of the scoop hole directly on the play field.
Haven’t had a ball hang up since.
First game after getting the machine back in place I completed roll out and collected the jackpot on ball 1. Unfortunately I had doublers on all shots but the damn all spark shot where you collect the jackpot... By the end of the game I had completed all the modes but my nemesis mode devastator . For some reason in that mode I just can’t hit shots anymore. It’s a mental block.
Still come back to this game and have fun with it. Underrated for sure.
Next time I travel to Fairmont for work you gotta show me how to play. I’ve yet to get Roll Out or Hail Megatron after a year of owning this machine. 
Quoted from Mitoska:I've been making my own art blades for some of my games. Made and installed a transformers set the other day, I have an Epson ultra pro gallery printer, and I got a roll of fat head like material -Pretty happy with how they turned out.
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I like how you used the animated version. I would love to retheme this whole game as the 80s version.
Quoted from Trekkie1978:Get a color DMD in your game.
It does wonders for the video clips.
I went with the Color LED...to each their own!
Yeah I want a color DMD bad, I just get the shakes and close the order screen every time I see the $400 total 
Quoted from Trekkie1978:How does bumblebee change the modes?
I thought he was just for double scoring.
Hitting him works like the pop bumpers, the character changes on the lower playfield
Quoted from Crile1:Still new to this club, but gotta say that Fast Scoring from Mudflap and Skids is one of the best pinball moments ever for me. I have an LE with shaker and ripping the spinner in this mode is AMAZING!
Dude get megatron ready to go, start fast scoring and go into multiball, 3 or 4 balls in those pop bumpers will make the game almost tilt itself out. Its insane!
I keep flirting with the idea of selling my LE. I’m so torn because I want a new DMD game but every time I turn on Transformers I can’t imagine letting it go.
Plus I still haven’t gotten to Cybertron. Has anyone ever?
Quoted from Fieldsweeper:Attract mode when playing it? lol.
Also mine is the LE model. But the previous owner I quoted above had some regular bulbs in a package I thought were the originals or some of the originals. must be for a different thing then. Thought the LED's were an upgrade. Is it possible to put a diffuser on the leds? like a frosted cover for example? to tone down the harshness of the ones pointing at the player?
Also how can I reset all the high scores?
You can get some frosted LEDs that might help with what you are looking for, ( https://www.cometpinball.com/ ) those extra bulbs are replacement flasher bulbs, those are a different style for inside of the all spark, above the slings, and various lights under the playfield
Its normal for the ball to roll down the platform over top of bubblebee when you hit Optimus
I think the music synced flashing of the general illumination you are referring to is when you raise the ramp to optimus, never looked into a way to stop that or tone it down, thats just the design of the game but someone else might know a way or experimented with that and can chime in
As for the scores, there are a few steps to go through in the menu, its fairly easy but a bit to explain here, there should be a few videos on Youtube showing how to do that, also might be in the manual
I left the club back in October but i still find myself humming the Decepticon music the machine plays during a game. Miss this game.
https://classicplayfields.com/shop/pinball-speaker-skins/transormers-speaker-skin/
now i really miss my TFLE
Quoted from SterlingRush:Alright TF experts, could be because I’m tired, just went back to work on mine, and am puzzled on a few things.
TF LE combo:
Biggest one, WTF was Stern thinking, with stacking plastics, with 2-3 loose spacers in between, held together by one screw/bolt, and no easy way to get/grab any of it for removal or installing? Right ramp feed out of the mini playfield for example. I wanted to get further on this tonight, but realizing I’m not in the mind set to deal with that sh*t storm.
So main questions, what are the best ways to remove the ramp, mini playfield, and plastics on the right side?
Also, best way to remove or get under Starscream, top left corner?
Any other hurdles to worry about, when trying to clean and re-rubber?
Out of the list of machines I’ve worked on, this one has become the biggest pain in the ass to figure out. I have to be missing something, just not seeing it right now.
Thank you to any and all for advice and suggestions. Just not finding much info, of others dealing with these headaches on this machine.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/transformers-club/page/15#post-4419500
There’s my adventure with starscream.
I really miss this game, would love to own it again one day.
Quoted from Trekkie1978:I think it’s just a software glitch.
After I replaced the switches it never did it again, and I played the crap out of it until it sold.
Quoted from kwan8:I am getting balls stuck in the Ironside playfield. It goes up the ramp but is not draining down the side ramps. have to wait for the machine to look for balls and then the door will open. Anyone have a fix for this?
If I remember there is a switch on the ramp or at the entrance that opens the gate when its hit. Is that switch engaging when the ball goes up the ramp? I had to adjust mine because it wasnt hitting and the same thing would happen that you describe, would just go up there and be trapped.
Quoted from kwan8:Fixed it. There was an arm switch that had come loose. Thanks for the help.
Man I miss my TFLE now. I had it dialed in perfectly
Quoted from SterlingRush:OK, going back to removing Starscream from playfield, please tell me there’s a different lock screw to undo vs the one just below him. Possibly the two below the playfield?
I snapped my bit off in the screw, trying to loosen it up. I went on to other things, figured I’d revisit it later, and see what I can do to remove it. The dang thing was so freaking tight.
Side note: Those playfield jacks being sold, are awesome for getting the back playfield up and out. Much easier to work in the back areas now.
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The threads have lock tight in them. I put my soldering iron on the screw for a few seconds to release it with the heat and it came right out. If you look back in the thread I describe my battle with removing star scream.
Quoted from Merendino:Just joined the club yesterday (Autobot LE #9). During 2 games in a 30 minute time frame we had 2 of the same error: during both games on ball 3 the game suddenly acted as if we drained, and as such everything powered down and went into end game animations and such. I assumed this is a memory dump issue? I checked the code version and it says 1.8 which to my knowledge is up to date.
Also on 2 occasions the ball would feed behind Megs and the game wouldn't detect it did so. I'm assuming I just need to do some adjusting or tinkering on that front but any input/advice is greatly appreciated.[quoted image]
Every once in a while on mine this would happen. Found out that the last ball in the trough would roll in and hang out on the micro switch. Then as you play the ball would eventually roll over the switch and the game would think you drained and end the ball and start paying out the bonus. See this old post: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/transformers-club/page/15#post-4428670
First pic shows the fix
Second pic shows the ball balanced on the switch
Hope it helps!
Fellas Im not 100% but Im pretty sure the supreme ruler Megatron would not appreciate being called "Megs"... All hail Megatron!!! 
Quoted from SterlingRush:Well, revisiting this once again. Got my iron hot, tried placing it on the screw, next to the screw at the mount, not getting it to budge at all. Tried heating and using vise grips, heating and using my pliers that get under screw heads.....notta, except mangling the outside of the screw that’s exposed.
I’m open to any ideas of help, sucks not having much room to work in that area. Got replacement screws on standby.
Man that’s frustrating. In this type of situation I would say heat has to be what will make it let go.
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