How would/have you modified your pin?

camperjohn

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If you would modify you pin, what would you do to it?

I am thinking of adding LED lights to the bottom of it, so that when it is turned on the floor glows red under the machine
 
That's a cool idea actually. There are kits you can buy for Sterns I believe that do just that.

**edit** I did install 555 LED'S in the spotlight assembly on my Getaway HSII. Looks 1000 times better. Before you could hardly even tell the lights were lit.

I also installed LED'S into the pop bumpers on my Addam's. But there is some light bleeding to the LED's so I didn't like it. I also have decals installed for the bookcase, backbox, thingbox, etc. Makes it look way better IMO.
 
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On my TSPP, I have changed a few flasher caps. Changed to white rubber and I also removed the flourescent tube and added a williams light board with 555 lamps for that wonderful incandescent glow. Hated the tube light.

Robert
 
Some games lend themselves to mods, some don't. The 2 mods I have done:

Charlie's Angels - I added Pascal's Pi-1 board and turned on all of the 'bonus features'. You simply will not find a mod on ANY pinball machine that gives you as much bang for the buck as this mod.

Pirates of the Caribbean - I changed the ship spotlights to green LED's. The difference was amazing, considering it was merely 2 light bulbs. The ship became super eerie, and the Krakken showed up 10x better during krakken multiball.


My current pins are Lethal Weapon 3 and Whodunnit. Neither of them lend themselves to mods really. I've considered adding a matchbox car armored truck to the Tri-ball shot, but that's about it. Whodunnit doesn't really need anything else, but it does have the sling plastics on the right signed by Barry Orsler.
 
I have a Who Dunnit? as well. The only thing I have done so far is change the flipper buttons from red to blue - I just like the blue ones better with the color scheme.

Here is a minor mod I will probably do to the Phone:
http://www.flippers.be/whodunnit_mod.html

I am also planning on changing the backbox lights to white LEDs and the playfield insert lights to colored LEDs. That will run about 60-80 bucks in lights so that will be a while.

I really liked how the LEDs looked on someone else's WD? so I will go that route, leaving all of the GI lights incandescent.

I would like to find a Detective-themed topper (maybe, if tasteful) and I would love to try a lighting mod to the Roulette Wheel - I think that would be a natural.

Someday I would love to have someone with far more code skillz than I modding the ROMs to add a true Wizard Mode or Super Jackpot for solving all 5 cases, but that's probably just a dream.

RM
 
Thanks for the phone post! My wife has actually mentioned it and it bugs her. The light show is so damn awesome on this game, that the phone deserves to be perfect.

As for the roulette wheel, it would be nice to run a simple circuit to drive a light based on the spinner. Maybe mini LED's or fiber optics. It is probably beyond me though.

It is too bad that this game doesn't have a more robust ruleset. The ruleset alone results in probably a $1k+ swing in value! A home ROM would be simply awesome!

One other thing that I think whodunnit needs is a light baffle around the 'shoot again' flasher. It bleeds over into the suspect inserts badly.
 
It is too bad that this game doesn't have a more robust ruleset. The ruleset alone results in probably a $1k+ swing in value! A home ROM would be simply awesome!

One other thing that I think whodunnit needs is a light baffle around the 'shoot again' flasher. It bleeds over into the suspect inserts badly.

Yeah, an enhanced ruleset would be a godsend for this game, really make it outstanding.

Rigging a light baffle should be an easy mod.

RM
 
Um, are the 555 are the incandescent bulbs or the LED bulbs? The guy above said 555 LEDs and I am now officially confused.

Do I need special replacement sockets to install those bulbs? Where else would you replace bulbs?
 
Look at the side of one of your old bulbs. It will say what it is. 44 and 47 are interchangeable anyhow. One is just brighter then the other. 47's are dimmer I think and take less power and produce less heat.
 
Um, are the 555 are the incandescent bulbs or the LED bulbs? The guy above said 555 LEDs and I am now officially confused.

Do I need special replacement sockets to install those bulbs? Where else would you replace bulbs?

44-47's are "bayonet base" and the 555 are wedge base. High speed takes 44's-47's and #63 flashers. bcspinball.com has the #63 flasher LED's ready now, he's the only one who has the #63 LED flasher ( do not use #89 led's flashers a system 11 machine, use #63 LED's ). I have LED's under all inserts, I tried the back box with LED's, and no I did not like them there. I also tried them as G.I for the High-Speed and no just not right. Put them under the inserts and for flashers and YES that's it. Trial and error really, just see what it looks like, and go with that. I like the incadescent light for G.I. it's a bit easy on the eyes. LED's are better for the newer pins, in games from the 80's era the led's not so well.
 
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I will definately replace the 3 stoplight lights because I dont want it to overheat the new stoplight I will put in.

I was looking at the flashing lights and what ones I would replace. I could find at least 10 "good places" to put LEDs rather than incansenant.
 
A quick rundown of the modifications I made to my Count-Down...

Installed LED lighting in all inserts and each of the pop target banks:
4120434926_666ea99593.jpg


Replaced the Gottlieb boards with Pascal's PI1-X4, adding functionality like high score tables, a skill shot, attract mode, etc:
4120436044_18835b9b43.jpg


Designed and stenciled new cabinet artwork (based loosely on the original art):
4022568617_16b5b3e097.jpg

4119661145_c29572008f.jpg
 
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