Looks like it is bouncing off the side walls of the shooter lane - first pic shows the ball in the center of the lane but the next pic shows that same ball up against the left wall as it's on the fork. It seems that most balls bounce off the left wall around the start of the fork, so I was wondering if the fork was causing this but the 3rd pic shows the ball already on the left just as it reaches the fork. It seems that the amount of bounce off the wall determines whether it's back in line to make the ramp - the 4th pic shows a ball exiting the shooter lane well to the left so it hits the ball guide to the left of the ramp and simply rattles in the bottom of the ramp. So the ramp itself is not the issue.

I would be interested in a close up pic of the forks from the balls perspective - maybe hold the phone upside down with the camera as close to the PF taking a pic looking down the shooter lane. I'm trying to see whether the forks edges are below or above the PF surface and their height relative to each other. Also interested to see what happens with the ball when manually plunging - any chance of a slow-mo video? This would help eliminate the fork as a potential issue.

I agree with Vitty that the auto-plunger does seem at a slight angle (see the last pic when the plunger is firing). The ball seems to sit against the 2 prongs but if the plunger is firing on a slight angle that would impact the travel of the ball down the shooter lane. Unfortunately I've not looked at how the plunger is connected to know whether an adjustment can be easily made as I'm currently in Covid-19 lockdown and unable to get to my machine. Maybe post some pics so I can share my thoughts on how I'd trying squaring it up.

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This was the problem. The plunger was stuck down. When I was removing the rearward screw to check the switch out that plunger popped up. so I re-tightened the screw and after first use the plunger was stuck down again. Loosened the screw a little and back up it went. Looks like that screw being installed too tight was the culprit as it's now working fine. Thank you!

I was going to offer some suggestions but yours is more consistent than mine so maybe I should just keep my mouth shut....

The suggestion I was going to make was to make your shooter lane switch a bit less sensitive. It looks like yours is really consistent on the first plunge (or even first couple of plunges) and then starts to miss as it's firing super fast. Almost looks like the ball may not have settled all the way yet thus why I say to make sure it's not to sensitive and it only registers when the ball settles. This helped a lot on my Deadpool.

If you do find it shoots to the left or right all the time and you've maxed out the adjustment for it already you can gain more angle by pushing in or pulling out just one side of the launch forks. For example, if you need the ball to shoot a bit more to the right then bend in the left fork just a little bit. That would make the left fork slightly forward of the left as it sits on the ball and thus pushes it to the right.

Guess I need to go mess with mine now as I thought that performance was normal for JP.

Check behind the t Rex to see if there’s anything in the way of its mechanicals that is obstructing his movement. Wiring harness etc.

Was going to suggest the same. If it was working before you removed the playfield then obviously something happened when you re installed it. First rule of pinball maintenance... if something stops working after you did something then re-trace your steps. Wire harness would be my first guess. It’s too tight now probably.

So I pulled it all apart again and no wires are hitting it. It seems to only happen with the horizontal motor. I wonder if the motor just got jostled when moving the playfield out and the gears inside got messed up? I sent video to stern and they just said it’s normal. Everyone I talk to says it does not sound normal. Most sound mechanical and mine sounds grinding. Is my next step to try to replace the motor you guys think?

Hi, everyone. I just got a JP Premium yesterday that I ordered a month ago. While I was waiting for it to arrive I read every page of this and every thread pertaining to theses machines so I would know what to expect when it came in. It was built in July with 1.02 already installed. The only issue I’m having right now is the t-rex seems to want to sleep on the left wireform sometimes. I have adjusted the biases. I have looked over the mechanical parts, they seem okay. I even reinstalled the code update. I went back through the key posts to see if I missed anything. At this point, I’m wondering if there is possibly an error in the code. I say this because, the t-rex will function fine for a while through multiple events, then seemingly out of nowhere it turns its head and rests it on the wireform and if you were to activate another t-rex event while it’s there, It doesn’t turn its head and lower on to the ramp. The head tries to push down where it is on the rail until a ball goes up the left ramp then it will correct itself and work fine again for awhile. It seems random right now so I haven’t been able to track down what triggers it to happen. I’ve fixed a Johnny Mnemonic glove and a Dracula mist multiball, I will not let a t-Rex best me. Anyone else have this issue? Thanks for any help.

It may have actually been faulty wiring on the micro switch on the horizontal part of the t-rex. I’ve replaced it and so far it hasn’t happened again...we’ll see.

has anyone tried installing the cliffy shooter lane protector? I can't get this damn guide off. Two nuts are off from bottom but can't find another

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Thanks for the close attention to details Manny65 ! Yeah your explanation is exactly what's happening. This video I linked earlier should be slo mo but for some reason it doesn't become slo mo until the ~20 second mark: https://photos.app.goo.gl/9p18js4PTrzdiPgy9 You may have to download it first to get it to play in slo mo or use a player that will play it slow for you. Sucks b/c the first few launches in the video are failures. LMK if that doesn't work and if you still need pics. Really appreciate the assistance from afar.

Yep I looked at both of the videos - these are just using the auto-plunger.

To eliminate to forks as being an issue, sit the phone upside down on the shooter lane apron with the camera looking down the shooter lane at the start of the forks (try to get the camera angle as low as possible). Take one slo-mo video using the auto-plunger and another slo-mo video with the manual plunger - do at least 3 plungers in each video.

Did you try pulling up the rail with a needle nose or plier? Make sure you have a rag on the rail to avoid teeth marks.

Yep I like your idea about changing the switch sensitivity to ensure the ball has fully settled in the shooter lane.

You mentioned about the plunger adjustment - are you able to show some pics or help explain for timlah79 as I can't get to my machine atm due to covid-19 lockdown. Thanks

If I remember it correctly there is one additional screw on the playfield under the helicopter plastics.

Just joined the club, my first NIB! Special thanks to Pinballmike217 for a great buying experience, delivery and set up included. I know where I’m going for every future NIB purchase, thanks again!

Do we have any general concensus or guidance on what to do with the post at the tip of the right upper flipper to protect the playfield? Stern ships it with a metal washer. I noticed a few posts here that have shown chipping and damage of the playfield at that post around the washer, but with just 10 games on my game, I was wondering if anyone had a solid suggestion I should do before it happens. Should I get a fiber or neoprene washer and add it against the clearcoat?

Also, is it just me, or did they make access to that post locknut underneath the playfield incredibly difficult? It is literally under the flipper assembly. (Asking for too much?)

Has your upper playfield post gotten loose? Usually the damage around the flipper post comes with a loose post.
My post has stayed rock solid so far but a nylon washer under the metal one totally sounds like a good idea. Can’t personally say how hard it is to get to the nut under the playfield as I haven’t needed to adjust yet.
I thought for sure you were a cartoon man in real life! (Your new Avatar)

For those of you who don't care for the holes and 3D print quality of the roof of the Raptor Lookout Tower by Mezel Mods, you now have a new option. With the help of @eightballtexas, I've designed this 3D printed straw style roof to fit directly on top of the existing one without any modification whatsoever required. The roof is secured with the loud speaker tower which fits snuggly into the existing front screw hole (no glue or tape required), and the back hole is hidden by the new roof.

The straw appearance goes perfectly with the overall theme of the game, the price for the mod is $35 which includes US shipping (will ship outside US on a per quote basis). Also, I'm happy to do custom colors for the loudspeaker tower (green is shown, but gray/silver like the tower color would be another good option). If interested in ordering, please PM me for payment details.

For those of you who are not familiar with my work, I've designed and sold hundreds of mods here on Pinside over the last few years. I mainly design things for the games I own (Getaway, DE JP, AFMr), but I've also done mods for a variety of other pins on request from satisfied customers. You can read feedback from some of my happy customers here: https://pinside.com/pinball/community/pinsiders/mr_tantrum/feedback

today I FINALLY broke a BILLION!! 1.4 to be exact. First time getting to secure control room and king of the island!!

My first game ever was 235Million, and I thought "how hard could it be" to go higher if my first game was 235M? I was wrong. I barely break 200Million for the last few days...

Nice job on 1.4B!

Thought I would post this here as well. Forgot there were two clubs for this game.

Imagine this masterpiece actually had JP movie clips? Hmmmmmm

My upper post was always tight, but it still chipped the CC...
A Nylon washer stopped further damage, just make sure its not thick, because the ball will reach the metal part below the rubber in this case.
Causing damage to balls and small metal pieces of the post will damage the PF.

I owned JP Premium since oktober and mine its playing fantastic. To all new owners try playfield 6,8 at the flippers and put superbands on all three flippers and leave the rest original. With the angle I can make all shots pretty easy and with the superbands you get very nice control. Try it!

Any luck ever getting this installed?

I have a premium on order along with cliffys lane protector, just looking for some advice/write up on installing. This is my second pin, pretty new to all of this, but planning on installing the cliffy before i run a single ball through. I bought his kit, never even removed a post before. Anyone have an additional feedback on installing the whole kit and or tips?

Thanks!

I will be installing Cliffy protectors in my new JP-Premium this weekend. (I installed 5 layers of BLUE PAINTER'S TAPE in the shooter lane before I turned it on the first time to protect the clearcoat and wood until the protectors arrived. I told Cliff about this clever blue tape bandaid approach and it made him laugh, but he didn't hate it!). Anyway, I will let you know if I have any issues installing in a new build.

Imagine!!! That’s so cool!

When I go into the menu and choose "Diag" (Diagnostics), "SW" (Switches), and then "ACT" (Active Switch Test) it scrolls through the switches that are currently active on the machine. One of the switches that reports as active in the test on mine is #67 for the mouth opto.

Any chance someone could check yours to see if #67 Mouth Opto is one of the switches it reports as active as it scrolls through the active switch test? Other switches it listed as active as it scrolled through them were the trough switches, #45 (motor 2), #31 (newton ball left), #25 (coin door interlock (door was open)), and the three flipper EOS switches. I'm wondering if it's normal for #67 to be showing as active in this test.

I had some free time tonight so I put the protectors in. It’s not hard, but takes 20 minutes. You have to remove the two screws on the right side rail, and then carefully position the long protector just right to align with the edge of the lane. Took some eyeballing to get it right. Then just tightened the screw on the rail. The second Protector piece required the apron to be removed, and then the two screws near the end of the trough need to be removed, protector put in place, and then apron put back. Took 20 minutes.

While I was at it, I swapped the green shooter spring for an Orange one (Proper one), and added a small washer under the left fork of the shooter Ramp to make the half-pipe more attainable manually and with auto-shooter. I also added a thin 15mm hard nylon washer under the post at the tip of the flipper to protect the clear coat from chipping...

A good 45 minute investment...

I had to remove a lot more than that to get the cliffy in. There was a notch in the inner ball guide that Prevented one of the bolts that hold the cliffy in from coming out.
I ended up taking off the apron, autoplunger assembly, inner rail, wire form, and helicopter assembly along with the plastic under it (that’s where the screws are that hold the inner rail in place)

I also had to loosen the post at the top of the cliffy to slide it under that

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While I was putting the cliffy in, I believe I found the root of the auto launch issue. The shooter lane isn’t cut wide enough to have a ball sit in it. You’re essentially hitting the ball with 2 prongs and for the first 4” the ball is riding on just 2 points of contact.

I’m working on a solution that doesn’t involve sanding the shooter lane down to at least prove my theory.

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chubtoad13

Thank you both for your responses! Looking forward to receiving my machine in a couple of weeks. I"m supposed to be in the August build.

67 is not listed in the active switch test on my premium.

Is there a sound mod for LE /Prem yet?

Is so can someone send me the link please?

-Dan

There is no link. You have to PM timlah79

mine has always sounded like this. I sent a similar video to stern who claimed it was normal.

does anyone else have a T-Rex that gets "stuck" and just shakes back and forth for what seems like minutes at a time?

My JP Prem is waiting for me in the garage. Wife took delivery of it...and I'm itching to tear that box open!

The concensus in this thread is the first and only essential thing to do as part of your setup is to put in the shooter lane protectors before you load the balls, otherwise you will risk damaging the shooter lane wood. Cliffy has the whole kit (left and right) for $20 or so, and PBL has just the left side (about $8). I ended up using Cliff's right side (easy to install under the side rail) and PBL's left side (stick down without removing the apron. They match perfectly.

Obviously make sure everything on top is still in the right place, Trex jaw is not stuck under the wire ramp, raptor tail is not stuck near the tower, no screws or washers floating around on the playfield or in the cabinet bottom. Make sure you check the third flipper tip post too. Make sure its tight and centered. Then you will likely want to lift the left shooter lane tong and add a washer as previously mentioned in a bunch of places to help ball travel success up the half-pipe.

Install the tilt mechanism. Then the only choice you need to make during setup is whether to put the two backbox bolts in from the back or from the top.

I think that lowering the trough kickout power to the lowest setting will address the issue and a shooter lane protector is simply an added protection. So I personally wouldn't hold out playing games because you don't have a protector on the shooter lane.

Just my 2 cents worth

I used a poor-man's lane protector until Cliff got my protectors to me.... 3 layers of blue masking tape! I cut three 2 -inch strips of 3/4" wide blue painters masking tape and I put them on top of each other on the right side of the shooter lane opposite the kickout from trough. It protected my lane really well until I got the protectors installed and left no residue when I remove the tape. (It would have been better to have the protectors in hand when I unboxed). Anyway, when I told Cliff what I did, he laughed and thought it was pretty ingenious!!!

LOL

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Thanks for the pointers. I just spent the last 2 hours setting it up, I added mylar to the shooter lane, installed a shaker, a coat of wax and checked some posts and screws. It all looks good so far. I was initially confused with how the right flipper switches operated. I had never seen how the lower flipper switch is actuated by releasing tension by pressing in the flipper button. It was gapped far enough where there was a "lag" on a fast flipper press. The upper would fire before the lower and it threw the timing off. I gapped the flipper switch much closer together and it feels more normal now.

My little guy breaking it in.

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I will lower the trough power to address this.

The right flipper button is "staged" allowing the two flipper mechanisms to operate kind of independantly. They are intended to respond independantly, depending on how far you depress the button. Mine was a bit too close, but other on this thread suggest it is intentional and encourages more aggressive timing.

About half of my games have 3 or more flippers. The switch configuration is different than any of my other games. This is my first SPIKE game so I was thrown off when I played it before adjusting and a hard press would actuate the upper first, before the released tension so the lower flipper switch could make contact. The timing was a half second off.

I have it adjusted so that it feels like I'm pressing the lower flipper button directly, even though I know that it's just gapped closer and the tension is release first.

So i gotta ask, what mods?

I have an external sub connected to the game already and I will be trying out the custom audio. Plus I'm aware of the replacement jeep. Anything that is functional that should be added?