Flipper Issue

Stinger357

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Need some help with a left flipper problem. When you push the button the left flipper goes up like it should then it wont go back down, it just stays up. The right works perfect. So When I looked under the cab at the coil and flipper build the right one will switch up and down with ease and recoil back up byitself without issue, but the left one is tough to push down and won't come back up on it's own. So from some advice from other people I took the coil apart and cleaned the inside plastic sleave of all the black carbon, and dried it of course, then sprayed some wd40 where the shaft goes in the coil and rocked the flipper back and forth and it seemed to help for about 10 seconds then it stuck up again. The spring also on the metal shaft doesnt seem like it is pushing too hard to put it back up. As I said the right one slides like glass up and springs back up no problem. So what can I try to get this flipper to work right? I heard of a flipper rebuild but that is basically what I did. It seems like it is rubbing against something in the shaft or a washer is pushing against it so it wont recoil. Any pro's wanna take a crack at what I can try next to fix it without having to buy a new coil and flipper assembly?
Thanks/.
 
rebuild the flipper cause what you did is no where close to it. wd-40 is very bad for a pinball machine. it would cost maybe $10 to rebuild the flipper so you dont have to mess with it anymore.
 
Problem is a mini kit for a gottlieb 1988 bad girls is going for 31 dollars on pbresource, is there a cheaper place to get it? I would rather try and fix it myself then spend 31 dollars.
 
Here's the first thing to check.

Next time it gets stuck, just turn the power off to the machine. If it stays up, the problem is mechanical and requires a flipper kit (or at the very least a new sleeve and spring). If the flipper comes back down by powering off the machine, the problem is electrical.

In all honesty, a lot of the parts in the flipper can just plain wear out and will need replacement. The plungers get beaten up pretty bad where they impact the stops....and the stops get beaten up by being hit by the plungers. The springs wear out and break, and the nylon coil sleeves are basically disposable parts. With pinball machines, sometimes you just need to buy new parts. $31 to rebuild a pair of flippers isn't too bad at all..... other places charge another $13 for the same kit.

-Hans
 
Wow - I can't believe I'm reading someone doesn't want to spend $31 for a flipper kit?! Look .....maybe we don;t know your financial situation but believe when I say when you buy a used pin "especially of that age" you better expect to do the basics which are:
Flipper rebuilds
Rubber ring kit
And yes the coil sleeves are disposable and cause plunger drag. When a plunger coil is ~.59 a piece a person can afford to change them.

So basically for a $100 bill and a very small amount of your time you'll have a pin that'll play almost like she's brand new. If you want a pin that plays slow then do the bare minimum.
 
Well instead of spending 31 dollars I read the repair guide and it said to use a spacer tool to make sure the metal lever on the metal plunger was not pressing up to much to the playfield, so looking at the flipper in the field you could see wear right where the flipper moved so it obviously was too tight, so I loosened it with a tool and released some pressure on the plunger and it works perfect now....score 1 for ME! I knew it was a simple fix, no need to spend money when I can repair it for free just a little research and work. So now I need to fix a few other small issues with it, and the game will be workin perfectly as it should.
 
Good you got it fixed but if the flippers have never been rebuilt, they really should be.
 
I'm just beginning with the pins and recently had a flipper stick ... lifted the play field and noticed the flipper switch was arc-welded together. After pulling it apart and examining it it appeared as if one contacts was completely missing/burned away.

Long story short, bought all new switches and flipper rebuild kits... not cheap! But should last me hell of a long time. Excited to get it rebuilt to see what it should really feel like.
 
Even if it's working now, other cheap items to replace are the plastic sleeve in the coil, the linkage (usually made of fiberboard or plastic or something) that connects the pivot lever to the coil plunger, and the nylon/teflon sleeve in the pf that the flipper shaft goes through. Also check the end of the coil plunger for 'mushrooming' (the end of the plunger sometimes spreads out a bit), and file this down a bit if it is.
 
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