Casper, WY
Who has the best,high end balls for pinball machines? Every seller will say they do, but the player has the answer.
So who do you recommend for the best,strongest,fastest moving balls on the play field?
(Topic ID: 147244)
If you search your topic, there are many opinions/topics posted. If I recall, Pinball Life 'super shiny' got a good review and popular.
Newmarket, ON
Quoted from Cash_Riprock:If I recall, Pinball Life 'super shiny' got a good review and popular.
Yeah, I've been pretty happy with Pinball Life's 'Oh So Shiny's'....
I couldn't find the premium balls on pinball life. I just got some Silverjets and they're beautiful.
Too easy? You must know your way with balls. I don't. I have a huge gift Visa card from my family for Xmas and I am using it to buy bulbs,mods,anything for my two pins I can and I never purchased a good set of balls for my machines.
So who has the 411 on the best balls?
I got those Silverjet Premiums from Marcos. Put them in my Phantom of the Opera and like them. I expect them to give me many more games than regular cheap balls. http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/PB116-SJ
Someone did a thread and showed microscope'd pics of the ooh shineys and silver jets over many plays and how the ball surface looked, the Ooh performed almost as good as the silver jets (picture wise).......so at the price diff Im always rolling with the shiney's.
Ball jokes,come on, I don't take balls lightly. This is a thread on the balls that really get the job done. Not the biggest balls or the smoothest balls. Not the balls that chip and divot. Just the best fastest,moving balls there is.
i like ball jokes by the way.
Quoted from Wyopinball:All Stern threads say throw those balls out.
Nooooo! Put them in a tube sock and use as a weapon come apocalypse time.
Quoted from Wyopinball:All Stern threads say throw those balls out.
why?
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Quoted from FXR:Yikes ! By the looks of that ST playfield I can only assume that Stern balls must be square. Well at least you can store them in a corner.
That was supposedly a game that went out with a test PF that had no clear coat on it, I think Stern fixed that fiasco?
Quoted from centerflank:That was supposedly a game that went out with a test PF that had no clear coat on it, I think Stern fixed that fiasco?
i took that picture at IOA this past August
Other than I found this pinball in the wild this past august at Islands of Adventure in Orlando and took the picture?
Quoted from Jigs:Other than I found this pinball in the wild this past august at Islands of Adventure in Orlando and took the picture?
OK, Yeah Ive bought many new Sterns and thats not normal wear for sure! Wax it up! 
Quoted from Jigs:this also affects kiss owners. please get the correct balls
How so? have you seen any Kiss Pf's like this?
Seems like you are saying Stern PF's have that wear you pictured and its normal.
Quoted from Wyopinball:Do the silverjet retain magnetism?
NOT THAT I'VE SEEN AT ALL.
Quoted from centerflank:Nooooo! Put them in a tube sock and use as a weapon come apocalypse time.
Quoted from centerflank:How so? have you seen any Kiss Pf's like this?
Seems like you are saying Stern PF's have that wear you pictured and its normal.
and i thought we were agreeing.
it definitely was not the balls that did the above damage to the ST. but it definitely was not a test game with no clear coat.
The OP has a Kiss so i was razzing him.
Quoted from centerflank:Someone did a thread and showed microscope'd pics of the ooh shineys and silver jets over many plays and how the ball surface looked, the Ooh performed almost as good as the silver jets (picture wise).......so at the price diff Im always rolling with the shiney's.
I couldn't find Calico's thread, but it is published (with his permission) on my site.
http://pinballrehab.com/1-articles/tools-and-supplies/245-premium-pinballs
I bought a bunch of PBLs oh so shiny to have on hand. I replace balls after waxing. Half my games have magnets so it's easier to just standardize on these.
Anyone else buy cheap in bulk and run them through an ultra-sonic cycle as you need them? Turns standard new commercial pinball sized carbon steel bearings into the shiniest balls you can find anywhere. For games with magnets. When I joined the hobby a year ago I first bought 4 shiny pbl balls. Nice. But just the same as you can do for yourself if you want to. I washed out a clear plastic jug that originally was for cooking oil and store my bulk stock in mineral oil until I need them. Then when I'm ready for a change out on my pin I run only what I need through the ultra-sonic cleaner unit I picked up from Harbor Freight. Takes 10 minutes. The key is to remove and dry them from the cleaning unit the second the cycle shuts off. Volia. You literally can't get balls shinier. 
Wow,i gotta say this is amazing!! Someone asks, a simple question,and he gets almost nothing???I also would like to know why other balls are better than the ones issued with the game??Which ones from where? Is that so hard for you folks???Merry Christmas!!
In my experience these are equal to or better than the Silverjet balls for much much less..
http://www.niftyled.com/cascade-premium-pinballs/
You get 5 balls for $16.95 from Marco or 7 Balls from Nifty for 15.99
Just like Silverjet, these are NOT made for games with Magnets
For standard balls http://www.niftyled.com/standard-arcade-pinballs/
Quoted from hawkmoon:Wow,i gotta say this is amazing!! Someone asks, a simple question,and he gets almost nothing???I also would like to know why other balls are better than the ones issued with the game??Which ones from where? Is that so hard for you folks???Merry Christmas!!
No clue what you're going on about since several people provided personal opinions and then I provided a link to some quantifiable data, which you obviously did not read.
I've read that report and found it really interesting but isn't the bottom line after 100 plays all the balls tested exhibited the same amount of scratches when viewed under magnification? I bet it would make no disernable difference if you threw them out and replaced them every 50 plays as it pertains to the balls actually damaging a pin. I think what we learned from the report was how nice the balls looked in comparison to each other under magnification before they were actually used.
There are less than 50 ball bearing manufacturers in the united states. Probably less than that who make bearings to the specifications used in the pinball industry. Once the bearing manufacturer meets the specifications for a bearing to be used in the pin industry one is really no different than another. Just my opinion but sheesh, it's not rocket science. I use carbon steel balls because my game has magnets. You can easily buy in lots of 50 or 100 or 1000 or whatever. Pinballs don't have to be expensive, and they really shouldn't be.
I never thought balls would get so many worked up, I purchased the Silverjet's by the way. Thanks for all your input.
Question here - I bought a few years worth of replacement pinballs from pinball life, the "oh so shiny" for $1.50 each. I bought several years worth, so that it would be easy to change them out frequently.
My question is do I need to store them in any kind of oil or anything? Also, before I put them in the machine, do I need to clean them or treat them in any way?
Quoted from ramsfan:Question here - I bought a few years worth of replacement pinballs from pinball life, the "oh so shiny" for $1.50 each. I bought several years worth, so that it would be easy to change them out frequently.
My question is do I need to store them in any kind of oil or anything? Also, before I put them in the machine, do I need to clean them or treat them in any way?
I thought those came coated in oil? If not then yes I would apply some oil to them to prevent rusting. Then just remove the oil when you're ready to use them.
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