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Playfield support bar

Durzel

Registered
Joined
Oct 1, 2017
Messages
2,041
Location
Bath, UK
I'm talking Bally/Williams games here..

Are playfield support bars safe to use? I have some work to do on my TAF soon which will involve lifting and lowering the playfield several times. There is a support bar of course but it only props up one side of the playfield.

When I've used the bar on TAF or especially TZ and gently let the playfield rest on the prong the weight of it makes it all flex and creak. It makes me feel very uncomfortable leaving it like that for any length of time, so much so that I pretty much never use it - I end up removing the balls and putting the whole playfield up vertically.

Is there a better solution I can buy that will prop up the playfield on both sides? Or am I making a mountain out of a molehill?
 
Glad it's not just me being precious then. I can't see how you can use it and not have the playfield twist or put strain on fixtures etc. Will just carry on never using it then lol.
 
They're absolute crap. Never use them. Unfortunately there's nothing off-the-shelf but if you get handy you can replicate the kind of support bar that Thunderbirds has:
TBAG-prop.jpg
 
I might use it briefly but you never really need to.......barring I suppose accessing the rear playfield on games where the playfield can't slide forward. Even then I usually feel better working one handed, holding the playfield with my other.

Most times raising the playfield fully gives far better access to whatever you need to get to underneath.

I never use it on a widebody game like TZ - just looks worryingly inadequate.



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Or Baywatch!!! Got in a right pickle once with mine when the playfield twisted and got stuck.
Poor old Greg had a similar experience and ended up shredding the flipper boards mounted to the inside of the cab
 
Playfield always seemed to twist horribly with a prop bar. After the bar on Fathom snapped off as I lowered the playfield onto it, I switched to a trusty three iron - the handle also helps to stop it slipping off.
 
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