Quoted from Jason_Jehosaphat:Fix For Reluctant Drop Targets, Anyone?
I realize that sluggish drop targets on MET are common, so I looked at that owners' thread for a fix, but the discussion is about the opto involved getting tripped by the light show.
My farthest drop target will often fail to drop, despite being squarely struck or glanced. What's the mechanical solution? Do I replace the drop target or do I tinker with the spring and the perch?
Thanks.
Mr. Jehosaphat, Here's what I do to all my modern Stern drop targets banks (including TWD as pictured): I put a strip of shim stock beneath the rear of the drop target bank mounting foot, in this case .030" (thirty thousandths of an inch) thick. This tilts the entire drop target bank rearward slightly. Why do I this you may ask? Because the Stern drop targets have an angled face on them, probably designed with good intentions to stop air ball rebounds off them. However, when that angled face is hit at certain angles and speeds by a ball (mostly straight on and hit hard AF), it will cause the drop target to be lifted up while the angled face is in contact with the ball. Sometimes (maybe often times), the ball will stay in contact with the angled face of the drop target when the target is lifted and bent backwards by the momentum of the ball, then the ball will rebound while still in contact with the angle face of the drop target, and it will allow the drop target to set right back down on the drop target support, quicker than the blink of an eye, making it appear that the ball full on smashed that drop target with no resulting drop.
This shim helps negate that drop target face angle to a degree (that's almost a pun). You can experiment with shim thicknesses. I found .030" worked perfectly on my TWD. No more drop target bricks at all.
The suggestion of strengthening the drop target spring by loosening an end and re-hooking the spring farther down the body of the spring (about 1/4" or so) can also help, as it pulls down on the drop target with more force when the ball is in contact with the angled face of the drop target as previously noted. Maybe doing both will help you. It's something to try.
Good luck and happy flipping.
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