Ok so I finally got my CPU board (from a Dirty Harry) and while waiting for the security PIC to arrive I thought I'd have a google around to see if on the off chance there was a hack for WPC and to my surprise and delight.. there is!! I used a little app called anypic (google anypic.exe) which patched my rom and let me use the dirty harry chip!

Anyway, now it works (mostly) I've a list of issues I've come across:

1. Saucers are weak and "spongy". The don't even kick out about half the time. The saucer by the goal is also permanently stuck up. I can push it down but it slowly raises all the way back up. The others are similar and it happens even when off. Could the coils be screwed or might a clean (no lube on the sleeve) help?

2. The goalie is ALWAYS on from the moment I hit the power switch. In test when you activate him it does sound like the motor ramps up slightly. No idea on this one.

3. The lock sound never plays, it just keeps playing the main theme?? I think this might actually somehow be to do with the fliptronic board as the previous owner said it did strange things with his fish tales' audio. Any idea why?

4. However much I tighten the left flipper it just keeps shifting up, as if it's not tight enough?? Also I get a nasty shock every time I go to adjust it, even with the power unplugged from the wall, normal???

5. I didn't get any backglass or playfield glass with this, just the translite insert. What do I need to finish it off? I'm sure just sticking a bit of glass up the top won't do, seems like there should be some plastic parts and something to hold it in? Also what dimensions/thickness/glass type do I want?

Sorry for the large post, hopefully someone can help me out, I've been waiting to play this for months and now I just want to get it finished or at least playable!!

Oops, forgot one:

6. There's a couple of snipped cables under the playfield, three thin orange ones near the left flipper and two purple ones the lead up to a plug in the backbox. This plug has nowhere to go so not sure what it's for??

I can answer two of my own questions here:

4/6. The limit switch on that side was snipped when someone robbed the flipper mech. Looking at the other side I can see the black goes on the bottom but there's two orange wires??

1. The hinge where the kickout mech attaches to the playfield had almost solidified, the greese was about 20 years old by this point! Cleaned it off, added new greese and plays like a charm now!

I was wrong about the limit switch on th eleft flipper though, still creeps up even though I tightened it as far as it would go.

The right flipper seems much weaker than the left too.

Goalie still dancing around all day.

Yeah I do find that I am good company

I've also got a load of lamps out and though I know some are dead, there's a lot that aren't. Guess it's time to check that lamp matrix.

Still none the wiser why the goalie is forever going though.

A. It was sold as such and cost what a worker should cost

B. The "hack" is just a software patch. Many others have used it to great effect. I do now have a EWE 22 anyway so I can burn the proper rom.

C. This I will have to double check but they are all keyed and different lengths so I should think so. Anyway wouldn't switches etc be in the wrong place then and not just missing?

For the missing sound (and possibly the soft right flipper?) my money is on the Fliptronics board. The symptom sounds too much like what the previous owner described and I expected it may be the case.

The rest we will have to see.

Well the weak flipper started getting stuck and I needed to release it by hand. Had no idea why until I took it apart and found some twit put grease in there at some point which obviously was heating up and inhibiting movement.

Gave it a thorough clean and works like a charm. Tightened the living crap out of my left flipper too and that's all good also!

Just that darned wandering goalie..

After this, I thought I was near enough done, but then the goal popper got stuck. Turns out one of the solenoid wires came off so I soldered it back in and now the lock magnet isn't working

You can hear the power going "chung" but no magnetization at all. Guess maybe a cable leading up to the magnet got broken.

This thing is just trying to wind me up now.

Ok so I finally have this at the point where I think I can live with the smaller issues for now.

A fuse (I forget which) went on the fliptronics board so I replaced that and now the lock magnet's working again. I'll keep an eye on this.

Also got all the sounds working properly again! Turns out the LS374 on the fliptronics board was bad so plonked a socket in there and suck in a new 374 and all is well!

So really just a couple of lamps which refuse to work and that goalie which seems to be stuck on no matter what but other than that, it's perfect!

Well I guess I was wrong, I can't live with that goalie with A.D.D. It's not right but I can't figure out what to do about it.

Just to recap, when power is on, the goalie starts to move. He doesn't stop moving all through the boot up sequence, test menu game and attract. He only stops moving when I turn the cab off.

Now when in the test menu, if I test the goalie I can hear the motor slightly increase in power, just slightly. I'd say maybe the power driver board was iffy but then wouldn't the other lamps etc attached to that socket also be stuck on to some degree?

Also it's not the CPU board or fliptronics since with both disconnected it does the same thing.

There's not much to it other than that, there's a small PCB it attaches to which has a diode and a couple of coils. I changed the diode to no effect.

So question is, is this going to be an issue with the motor itself (please god no) or the power driver board? Maybe I can just swap a couple of pins on the plug and see if something else gets stuck on?

So, another day, another issue

The right flipper has started doing double flips when you press it. This happens after a while of play.

What could be causing that?

I know what was causing it, some spooner LOOSELY TIED the orange cable to the flipper.

So SOLDERED it on and what do you know, it works fine now!

I think I did but I'll double check. If the odd flasher/lamp is on the same connector there's a chance it's on the wrong pin header though I'm pretty sure they are all keyed.

Double checked and it's definitely in the right place. All the other pins on that connector are doing what they should though. It's very weird.

Thanks but I checked that, it's nothing more than a diode and two inductors. All of which are fine. I replaced the diode anyway but no change.

I suppose all it really can be is a bad transistor or something on the power driver board. Pretty sure that's all that's in line with the wiring after that board.

I do appreciate the help though, much appreciated!