I finally cracked 100 mil on my new TSPP! I got to Alien Invasion, but didn’t complete all the ball locks. My game lost track of a ball and did a ball search as time expired. Maybe next time. It’s chaos during that mode! Really fun pin!

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Anyone know where i can get a good set of plastic protectors and cliffys for my TSPP? wanna make sure she lasts awhile

Cliffys are at http://www.passionforpinball.com/TSPP.htm

Plastics you can find on eBay.

indypinhead sells very nice plastic protectors for TSPP. They fit perfectly.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/tspp-pf-plastic-protectors-now-available

he doesn't make the itchy and scratchy gobble hole protector though.

http://www.pinbits.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=74

That's right. He lets you know that and points to Pinbits. Very clear.

Also any suggestions on cabinet art? My game is in great shape except the cab and head art are super faded.

If it truly is faded (which a lot of people think they are, but they are not), you can get decals from Pete at Retrorefurbs-
https://www.retrorefurbs.com/shop/the-simpsons-pinball-party-cabinet-decals/

All of the minor characters on the cabinet appear faded, but that's the way they are supposed to be. I've never seen a cab with the Simpson family and logo faded. If yours is truly faded, post a pic. I think we'd all like to see what that looks like.

Those cab decals by retrofurbs have been "colored," correct?

Definitely. I always thought the Simpsons Pin Party cabs were prone to major fading. However, it appears to be just the low-res printing on the cabinet and the color saturation. Like you said, it’s intended to be very faint compared to the larger, main characters. Also, if you look at pics from different TSPP production runs over the 5 or so years (2003-2008 or 09), the color seems brighter on some cabinets. I’m not sure why, but it does vary on some pins. My 2008 pin looks very faded in the background, but the color is crisp on the logo and larger characters.

Correct. A lot of people actually prefer the decals out there more than the original cabinet, because they feel the original cabinet appears faded, even though it is by design.

I always disliked the faded look of the original decals. Re-decaled my cabinet with full colour decals. Colour matched the cabinet bolts too.

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I just did decals on one of these and did notice this: On the original art the word "MAYOR" on the mayor is correct, but the "DUFF" on the beer bottle is backwards. On the new art, the word "MAYOR" is backwards and the "DUFF" is correct. Seemed odd that they fixed one backwards word and created another.

Also, there were a few characters missing from the lower part of the head decals.

Great job on the decals. Did both of you go the "strip it to bare wood" route? Difficulty?

I very rarely remove the old decals. I see no point at all to go through this quite time consuming exercise. The old decals make a perfect new surface for the new decals. I of course fill in all scratches or damage to the cabinet and sand it all back to be smooth.

Thx. Can you see any bleed though of the old decal image? If not, then this is the way I'll go with mine

Is the original cab a decal? I thought it was direct print. At least i think mine is.

My original had no decals from Stern; art was printed right on the cabinet.

I lightly sanded mine (not enough to remove the original art) , filled nicks and scratches with body filler, masked, then primed white with Zinsser oil based primer to prevent any old art bleed through (although I'm not sure priming was necessary with the decals I got as they seemed to be completely opaque). I applied the decals dry.

It turned out awesome! I wouldn't say the whole process was hard, just time consuming.

I can confirm the original cab was direct print. No decals.

Looks fantastic with the I&S cartoons playing!
Is there a protector for the shooter lane by chance? Mine is getting worn right where the ball pops out.

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Got my I&S replacement. They were both just holding sticks.

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Anything special to worry about when buying a TSPP?

Looking to join the club this weekend. I am going on a 6 hour round trip to possibly purchase a supposedly HUO TSPP for $5,000 this weekend. This won't be my first pin but will be by first Simpsons game. Is there anything in particular I should be looking out for on this game? I'm thinking main points of concern are wear around the flipper buttons, shooter lane wear, Itchy & Scratchy popout, and garage door. Is there anything else I should be weary of on this machine? I have requested a few additional pictures before driving up there.

Assuming it looks brand new, I'll probably put some LEDs and side art.

Thanks

Think you got it covered TSPPway besides the general pinball stuff like leaking batteries, broken entry on ramps and broken plastics. But I would like to add check extra the mini display on the upper playfield. If it has button wear I am guessing it is not a HUO.

Make sure that there are no issues with the couch mb release. They make a strengthened bracket that is available at Marco.

Hi! I would check the ramp behind the garage door. This one can be broken easily. I’m not sure if there are replacements available. I did mine with Cliffys a long time ago and it was partly broken already.

Enjoy!!

To be really sure you can remove or raise the upper playfield easily

Anyone know where to buy green inserts for the nuclear side rails and hinges? I’m getting yellow powder coat so need to switch to green. I can always laminate some heavy fluorescent green paper but it would be easier to buy pre-made.

When I paint mine I was planning on just taking the plastic off and spray painting it, if you find something premade I'd love to know where!

That’s not a bad idea, thanks. Looks like there are some neon green paints available that are compatible with plastic.

Looks like this is mine decals? If somebody need new decals for cabinet. DM me. i have two options, with or without fade effect.

And... seller doesn't have any more photos, it's in a storage unit, and won't take anymore before me committing to a long drive so its a pass.

Just purchased TSPP last week as my first pin and looking forward to lots of fun and great advice from you all.

Firstly, I see batteries on the board- is it safe to assume NVRAM should be my first upgrade?

Second, how difficult are the color DMD and I&S TV mods for a newbie?

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1st - i would remote battery or ditch the lithiums altogether.
2nd - pretty easy and very easy.

I just put NVRAM in mine, I'm happy to not have to worry about batteries anymore. The mods are simple enough and they should come with decent instructions.

The itchy and scratchy mod limits the ball visibility leading to the upper right flipper which will hurt the accuracy for the left ramp shot, IMHO.

My treehouse gets triggered with the garage shot sometimes. I checked the switch on the treehouse ramp and it does not seem stuck open. Anything else I should check for? Or is this normal.

Also quicky mart sometimes does not trigger. Usually during Wiggum mode which is annoying. Again when I test trigger it seems fine.

I bought my machine with the tv installed and I agree. I moved mine over to the right screw on top of the spinner and it improved the visibility greatly. Here's a 6' player view of it.

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That's where I put mine from day one, never felt it was blocking my ability to see any shots there.

Over to the side like that is where the installation instructions recommend.

So my upper right saucer #24 stopped working. Soldered in a new switch last week and nothing. Tested and found switch 64 and 16 also not registering. Only thing in common is the white/gray CN7 row. But the other switches on that row work (tilt Bob, garage door etc). We looked for obvious broken wire and tested diodes and reseated the connection at the CPU.
I don’t want to start digging into the harness looking for a broken wire. I have a meter to test continuity. Any suggestions or old threads to read?

Thanks.

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Remove the switch row / column connectors. Short those switches with a set of test clips. If they don't activate you have an IC to replace (or cold solder on the Male pins). If they work appropriately it's something between the connectors and playfield.

OK. So to do this test right what state does the machine need to be in? In service menu mode or in standby? Does it matter?
How do I “short those switches with a set of clips” so I do the right test correctly? Short the male pin from the board and connect to the ground strap?

With the power of unplug the connectors, I think it's 5 and 7. Then go to the switch test (IIRC you can get there with these connectors disconnected as the menu buttons are dedicated). With your test lead connect the Male column pin to the Male row pin and it will show up in the switch test. Compare with known working switches to make sure you're doing it right.

Thank you, I will run the tests shortly.

Please welcome the newest member of TSPP (me)! This is my first ever pin! It’s going to be shipped in a few days. So excited.

What is everyone’s thoughts about adding a shaker or colour dmd? The guy I’m buying it from said he could add a shaker for $230 CDN and said he’d have it associated with the pops. Also considering the colour dmd. Obviously looks nicer but there is something said to keep it original. He said he would install the dmd for free if he can keep the original screen.

Thoughts? Very happy to be the newest member!

I’d buy and ship him the colour dmd (obviously).

I'd get the color DMD, it looks great. The install is easy if you know how to use a screwdriver and follow printed directions. If you're not comfortable doing it having him install it is certainly an option.

I'd say adding a shaker to a game that doesnt have code integration is a miss. Just having it shake when it hits the pops is kind of weak in my opinion. But it's your game! Go hog wild and do whatever makes you happy. Welcome to the club!

Colordmd is a must for this game!

Color dmd is crazy cool. I wouldnt bother with the shaker. Lot of fun mods for this one. Check out sparkys simpsons tv with itchy and scratchy cartoons

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