Hey Guys,

Sorry for the stupid question - what is the correct part name for this piece? What was the original bulb color? I thought I had seen a mod for this area with stadium style lights but can't find it any more. Does that ring a bell with anyone? Thanks!

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Are you looking for the plastic name or the light board p/n (I believe A-17713 is the right one)?

The lights originally had a yellow plastic cover on them. All the lights in the machine were originally incandescent.

Thank you very much!

SOLD I’ve got some clear s protectors if anyone wants these. I’m assuming they go to World Cup soccer as they were marked WCS, but I no longer have this title!. Just shoot me $5 for shipping. Or come get them if in Grand Rapids Michigan! DM me. SOLD

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Hey there,

I've decided to buy a second pinball machine (like potato chips it seems that you can't stop at just one!), and WCS is on my short list. I live in the Pacific Northwest though, and it seems that if I'm going to buy any of the machines on my list I'm going to have to be prepared to do some serious driving.

I'd rather not drive 500 miles to come home empty handed, so I'm trying to come up with a list of all of the most common WCS-specific issues, so that I can get a decent sense of the machine's condition before I make the trip. This thread is an AWESOME resource, I've read through a bunch of the messages here and I'm hoping you all can take a look at the list I've made and tell me if you think I'm missing anything obvious/important, or if I've got everything covered. Here's what I've got so far:

1 - Goalie motor works, goalie is able to move fully from left to right and back, moves when goal is lit

2 - Ramps not broken/cracked

3 - Assist ejects the ball cleanly toward goal, and powerful enough to consistently score a goal

4 - Left ramp diverter functions properly

5 - Plastics not broken, cracked

6 - Travel gate (lock gate in upper right part of playfield) working, diverts to pop bumpers unless travel is lit.

7 - Ball motor works (clockwise when game starts/goal lit, counterclockwise during Final Match )

8 - Check Condition of GI connectors (J120 and J121, right)

9 - Plunger can reach 3rd "coin toss" all coin toss

10 - TV Award scoop ejects ball cleanly and consistently to a flipper (which?)

11 - Lock magnet works

12 - Save magnet works

13 - "Extra ball" button works

14 - Check wear around the scoops/holes

How does that list look to you? Is there anything else I should look out for?

Oh, and if you do have a WCS you're willing to part with that's in good shape and you're in the PacNW or Northern California feel free to let me know!

Thanks!

That's a great list. And most everything on it would be reasonably straight forward to fix or correct if you found it less than satisfactory.

I feel like with how much money all of us are spending on these games, a seller can be expected to give you ample information to make a good decision. And if you're coming from a ways away, then they can do some additional testing or provide photos or videos to make sure no one is wasting their time.

With that in mind, and if in your position, I would ask the seller for a short gameplay video. You should be able to see things like the goalie moving side to side and the soccer ball spinning. You can ask them to go into the settings menu and put the game on "All Lamps" test and then pan the camera around to show that all bulbs are working (or reveal which ones are not).

WCS is a game that seems prone to plastics breaking. Chalk that up to the soccer ball whipping the pinball around and smacking into things it isn't always intended to hit. Plastic sets can be purchased as can ramps, but good to know whether you are starting with ones in pristine condition or whether they are already cracked and chipped.

Ramp set here at $387 USD for reference: https://www.starship-fantasy.com/ramps/World-Cup-Soccer-2-ramp-set

If the soccer ball spins opposite to what it is meant to, then desoldering the two wires and reconnecting to the opposite lugs it was initially on is all that it will take to make it right. Easy fix if the ball is already spinning. If it doesn't spin at all then that's something else.

Of your list, my money is on playfield condition for what matters most. As you pointed out, check those saucers and scoop for damage. It's common on WCS for those to get worn down. Super thin stainless steel protector sets can be bought and installed to ensure any wear present doesn't get any worse. It is a ton of work to take enough of the topside of the game off to get the access needed to install them properly, but it is doable. Protector sets are around $50.

Check also for the usual playfield wear you might see on any game. Inserts that have been raised or lowered slightly get rubbed with the ball and over time will wear away the art work and wood. Check for anything else on the playfield like gashes or scratches. Playfield damage is, in my opinion, one of the harder things to work on and repair. Replacing mechanisms or rebuilding flippers I find is all pretty easy compared to playfield repairs.

I would also add to your list to check closely the condition of the circuit boards in the backbox. Check the main CPU one for any signs of battery damage (leaking batteries that is). Are there batteries still on it or has it been changed over to the NVRAM piece that eliminates the need for batteries? You can see if the boards are the originals or not by looking closely at the serial number stickers that came on them on day one. Having the original board set is not as big of an issue like it might be with buying an old car with "matching numbers" but at least check to see there aren't hacked up areas or brown and burnt looking connectors. Your check of the GI strings alluded to that.

Check also the cabinet for any water damage or similar. If it got soaked, you might see that on the bottom or the back. Good to at least know and easy enough to spot previous damage like that.

Translites can get scratched up and then you'll be able to see through those scratches when it is all lit up. A photo from behind the translite will do pretty well in telling you what condition it is in.

The divertor arm can be out of adjustment and often is simply because some sort of centering flange or part is now missing. Or the little connector and spring at the bottom of that rod where it meets the coil plunger isn't correct. Easy enough to fix, but definitely nice knowing it's good on day one.

Similar with the coin toss plunge. If it doesn't make it all the way through, it's likely just the wrong strength spring. Super easy to correct if you get it open and see it's not correct.

That's all that comes to mind. Post pics when you find one you are considering and we can help you look it over.

Thanks for the detailed reply! I appreciate all of the tips, particularly about checking the mainboard for evidence of battery damage.

My goal is to buy a game that doesn't require much in the way of initial maintenance, my 8-year-old daughter loves the game and I want her to be able to play it as soon as it gets home. Small things like swapping the wires on the ball motor are of course not a big deal, but it seems from reading through this topic that a broken diverter can take a lot of effort to fix properly so that's the sort of thing I'd want to avoid. My budget is around $4500-$4700, which I think is a realistic budget given what I've seen listed on Pinside (it's too bad I didn't look to buy one 10 years ago!). The nice thing about WCS is that they made a ton of them, so it seems that they come up for sale regularly enough that I should be able to pick one up at some point in the not-too-distant future.

I do appreciate your suggestion that I ask for a gameplay video. Is that something most sellers on Pinside would be willing to do? I've only bought one machine on Pinside so I'm not sure how a typical that would be. If that's the sort of thing people normally do I'd definitely ask for it, as it would definitely give me more confidence about driving a long distance.

Thanks again for all of the tips, I'll let you know how things progress.

Just to add, I've owned a World Cup Soccer for over 20 years and it's been very reliable with only a couple of minor repairs needed and once a new goalie.

Hi all does somebody have theardown pictures of the mostly upper playfield because i demounted everything 3years ago and i lost the pictures , maybe a googledrive link or other links !?

I think it is very reasonable to ask. I've provided video for the pins I've sold and asked for it for the purchases I have made. Alternatively, you can zoom/facetime the person.

Hi, I borrowed a WCS from a friend and I ran into a problem today that I haven’t found described here on pinside and I thought I would ask if any of you have seen it before and if you have a solution.

I finished a game and the goalie as well as the soccer ball continued to move. I thought maybe it was an attraction mode I hadn’t seen before, so I let it go for a few minutes while I played another machine. They never stopped, so I turned the machine off and back on again to reset it. Now, neither of them work. I can’t get either one to start in test mode. I checked under the playfield and didn’t find anything obvious. The led on the driver board for the spinning ball is on, so it has power.

I ran out of time and I’ll dig into the manual tomorrow. In the meantime, I was hoping that one of you could shortcut the research for me and help me out.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

That’s def a new one to me. Have never heard of that happening.

Good luck to ya. Curious to hear what fixes it.

That doesn’t sound like an attract mode feature to me. Things stuck on like that tend to be transistors on the power driver board that got fried and are stuck on. I don’t have the manual in front of me either right now but I would think you need to do some continuity testing and see what board component has failed.

Yes, indeed...try this link:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/hZPpiZooWmYt3cqZA

There are upper playfield pics in there, but there's kind of a lot so you may have to dig through them to find what you need!

What's the recommended type of grease or lubricating oil to use on mechanical linkages like the saucer eject arms? Mine aren't rotating very smoothly and I thought I would remove them, clean them up and then apply a little lubricant before reinstalling them. Just wondering what we're supposed to use (or not use). Thanks.

Figured out my error. FYI

F6 or F8 switch error is the half press of the flipper button. Go to test and switch edges.
Press the left flipper lightly to trigger f4 and again for f8
Then do the right side half press then full press. Just activate both fixed my issue.

Well, I've found a WCS that I'm considering and I'm back to post some pictures and ask some advice. There's some fading on the cabinet, a couple of gouges that were badly painted over on the backbox, and a couple of bolts on either side of the coin door that shouldn't be there (anyone have any idea why someone might have done that?). The inside looks good to my untrained eye: someone took the time to install Cliffy's, new rubbers and a new soccer ball. I don't see any damage to the playfield, the ramp or the plastics (though admittedly the images aren't super high res), the area around the left inlane switch doesn't look too chewed up... basically it looks like someone took some effort to maintain (and probably improve) the machine.

I know if I'm going to go take a look at it I need to check in on the stuff I listed above (functional motors, diverters, magnets boards, etc, etc), but just based on what you see here, what do you think of the machine? Will the damage to the backbox/cabinet and fading on the cabinet affect my ability to resell it later if I'm so inclined? Do you see any playfield damage or plastic/ramp damage that I didn't see? How much would you pay for the machine given what you see?

Any and all advice appreciated!
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There once was a metal bar across there with a heavy lock on it to more fully secure the money inside the coin door.

Does a better looking game sell for more money than a worse looking one? Sure. Is there anything here that is absolutely terrible or not seen frequently? No. The yellow on WCS cabinets are usually are quite faded on the side. It all depends on how much you pay for it...

The reality is that most "first pins" do get sold at some point
WCS is a GREAT first pin that is very accessible and fun for pinheads and casuals alike.

Playfield looks good and the ramps look really good (possibly new...)

Based on recent prior sales on here, I would say $4200 +/-

Thought I'd chime in since I'm the one that's listing the pin - If you PM your email I can send you more detailed PF pics & video via Google Drive. I priced it a little lower than the last 2 local sales on Facebook and I believe the condition is better than those listings. I definitely took into account the Pinside average price but weighed that with the PNW market and condition. It was definitely routed until 2000, then sat in a Grandparents den for the grandkids until last year without much play. I have someone checking it out this weekend but let me know if you're interested and I'll contact you if they pass or are a no show.

Always nice to see people stand behind their product.
up front not hiding anything!

I agree with Scootss. It’s a super fun game and if you buy it and find some things out that you want to change up/improve upon then doing those mods are fun too. Good luck.

Having the seller comment here in the forum pretty much rules out about 99% of the uncertainty with the game.

Great title for sure. And as a first pin? Yea, super choice. Fun for a huge variety. And you don’t need to be a big fan of soccer in real life. I’ll just put that out there now.

Thanks for the feedback everybody! I'm always a bit leery of Craigslist sales so I thought I'd ask about it here first. I agree with the sentiment that this is a good pin for a wide variety of people. It's my daughter's favorite pin and I'm pretty sure it'll be a big hit for her friend too. I'm in touch with the seller via PM, we'll see how it goes. If it doesn't work out I'll keep looking, the nice thing about WCS is that quite a few were produced, so they usually pop up every now and again.

Question. Where does this part go? Thanks in advance

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And this plastic?

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The metal bracket goes on the left edge of the right ramp, to stay between the plastic of the ramp and the spinning edge of the soccer ball.

The plastic goes on the lower right pop bumper cap, with the pointy end going up to be over the upper right pop bumper.

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Thanks man

The exit/end of each ramp should have a right-angle metal stop to protect it:

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Another question. New problem that didn't exist before teardown. When I start a ball it immediately awards a goal. Thoughts? Opto? Hook something up wrong? Checked the kickout for debris already.

Super excited to finally put some time on a wcs again. In 97, the bar beside my work had one and I'd spend my lunchbreak there

I finally joined the club this past week. I have found 3 issues in my game that I would love some input on:
1. Is there an easy way to tighten the right flipper? The ball trough is too close to fit a ratchet.
2. My lower left GI (including coin door) is out. I tried new bulbs and reseating connectors. Where should I go next?
3. There is a hole under the extra ball button that I would like to fill and cover. Is there anywhere to buy a "COIN TOSS" decal?

Hey guys, just purchased this pinball and I'm truly in love. Started to read through this thread but wow there is a lot! And then I thought I would just look at the pictures instead to save some time but there is also a lot!!! So I feel like the color dmd on this one is a must, just goes so well and looks sooo cool. And then I thought some speaker decals would be sweet. But my question is has anyone put the side blades or art blades on there cabinet and if so how does it look and do you like em?

Also originally what color are the Flipper buttons on this one supposed to be? My guy swapped mine around so I got red on right and then yellow on left and magnet button is red.

Flippers were yellow and magnet was red on promotional posters

Hi people. Game I think is working pretty good except one thing as of now... The magna goal save works but the button to press it doesnt. I went into test and checked it out. It stays open no matter what I do. I feel like I must be missing something super obvious right? All I need to do is close that circuit right?.... Help. Thanks.

Try cleaning the switch contacts with a business card. If that doesn't work, replace the switch.

I use an open ended wrench for tightening my flipper linkages. 3/8" and one with a long enough handle that you can get a good firm grip. No fun having your hand fly off and crash/slice into nearby sharp metal things.

You have the playfield fully raised when you're doing this, right?

Do you have a modern set of flipper linkages? Rebuild kits nowadays have the ends in them that are meant for a wrench. Old ones or other barnds needed a particular six-sided bit on the end of a socket to tighten or loosen. Comeplete PITA those ones.

For figuring out your GI string that is out, I would test for power going back to the connector on the boards if needed. Find out where it is last present. I would imagine it is still coming out of the board and the problem is the connector and/or the pins and whether they are making good contact.

My game has the same hole in coin toss, lol. Yea, it's ugly. I put a washer and bolt over it for the time being.

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I thought about using an open ended wrench after I wrote this post, thanks for the tip about size and length. I'll go pick one up this afternoon. New connectors solved my GI issue, thankfully it wasn't the board, those replacements are expensive! I ordered a commemorative world cup 94 coin to cover the coin toss hole, hopefully that looks decent. I'm surprised nobody sells a decal just for that spot, seems like a common issue. My wife tried to design on one canva but it wasn't great.

I highly recommend this set for getting into tight places.
https://www.amazon.com/SPEEDWOX-Combination-Ignition-Set%EF%BC%8CStandard-Portable/dp/B08KZV4N56

Every once and a while, you'll want this guy. Not worth ordering on its own, but the next time you need rubbers, add it to the order.
https://www.titanpinball.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=152

A friend gifted me one a couple months back. Very useful in my recent teardown and rebuild. Would recommend it

I bypassed the switch entirely and just connected the two wires together and still nothing. Won't register at all. Wire goes from switch to coin door board and everything is working on my coin door so I feel like that board is working properly.

Two thoughts...
- Trace that wire to make sure there's no breakage
- Check the other switches in that row and column. Is anything else acting up?

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Looking around and haven't found a breakage. Right after that button it goes to the coin door board. And the start button works which is right below it in the column and the coin door works which is right to the right of it in the column.

Got all the little issues figured out and played a few games. Fun as I remember.

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Wow, that game looks amazing. New ramps and plastics?

Thanks. Newer plastics. Ramps I cleaned up with novus 2. One small crack by the diverter but manageable. Titan rubbers and Comet cool whites. Going to add some mirror blades down the road

seriously game looks gorgeous man!!!! I definitely need to start looking into that color dmd plan and those comet cool white bulbs... wow well one sir!!!! Mirror blades scare me but I'm very curious, if you ever go that route please take photos and share your thoughts.

And find someone to print me off some apron cards. Color dmd is a must imo on this game

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I snapped the bolt tightening my left flipper today so I took one from a party zone flipper rebuild that I had thrown in the trash. Now it is firing twice on a full button press and only holding up on a half press. Everything checks out in test. Anyone experience this before?

Oh hey guys don't know if this is connected to my other issue but it is also saying this on my machine when I first enter test mode but both my flippers are working just fine so I'm a bit confused.

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Does your eos switch show up in switch test? When you manually push the flipper up in switch test it should register.

Yes it does. Also got into the back box and saw one cable was moved over a slot, moved it to the correct spot and no more random warning about checking the flippers.

Also super great news while in the back box I started to look around more and found that the batteries which are still connected (going to nvram asap) is exactly over the cable that connects to my coin door bored and I saw one cable imparticular was super nasty and all the metal prongs where grey instead of silver and all the copper was more green than brown. Cleaned the crap out of all of it and yaaaaaaa I got magna goal!!!!

Played a few rounds and tried to use magna goal to no success ha ha ha but dang was it cool looking!!!

Already ordered my new soccer ball plunger and my new decals and waiting a bit til I flop down some more coin for the color dmd!!!

Thanks guys as usual pinside is awesome!