I've rebuilt flippers a number of times before but have now run into a problem. When I attached the flipper bat rod, I clamped down on the rod fully by making the metal "open" sides of the clamp touch. This would still allow the rod to slip relative to the clamp. I continued to tighten, then check, then tighten, etc... eventually, the bolt sheared. This happened twice.

Am I missing something?

That's a good call, I didn't check if the bat was slipping on the rod. The bats are new too. I'll check, thanks.

The shaft was slipping relative to the bat. The bat was new and I didn't even think to check that until Pafasa's suggestion.

It was exactly what I was missing!

Thanks!

Tkaye, a rebuild focuses more on the physical performance. You are describing an electrical problem. Rebuilds are great for weak flippers. I wouldn't expect a rebuild to fix your problem.

The issues sound like those that were experienced by the Data East machines with the solid state flipper boards. The fuse holders were weak, would break, and would allow intermittent electrical connections for both the initial flip and the hold circuits.

I don't know if the modern Sterns have this issue also.