Air Hockey and Flying Pucks

[Mario]

I just picked up a used air hockey table. It's in excellent condition, except that the puck tends to fly off the table a lot (a real lot) during play. I'm looking for suggestions on ways to possibly stop this from happening.

A friend suggested that I adjust the airflow, but the table does not have any airflow adjustments.

The pucks and paddles are worn on the edges. Would this add to the problem?

Any help appreciated. Thanks.

Mario

[Ken Layton]

If it's a Dynamo brand, here are the safety shield accessory listings:

http://www.valley-dynamo.com/pdf/2008/nov20008/All%20Air%20Hockey.pdf

The safety shield installs in existing bolt holes on the sides of the table. Happ Controls sells the kit:

http://www.happcontrols.com/amusement/darts_foos/26124200.htm

Happ # 26-2014-00 (Dynamo # 030400250) Air Hockey safety shield kit $293.00

If you have a different brand, contact the manufacturer of your table and ask if there are any safety shield kits for it. The kits help reduce the "flyoffs" of the pucks.

[Mario]

If you have a different brand, contact the manufacturer of your table and ask if there are any safety shield kits for it. The kits help reduce the "flyoffs" of the pucks.

It's a Sportscraft Turbo.

Thanks for the tip. I'll look into get shields, but I don't think the pucks should even get airborne under normal use. Often when the puck is hit hard, one can hear the puck sounding "wobbly" (for lack of a better word).

Mario

[Ken Layton]

Anytime the puck does not sit flat against the playfield, it can wobble enough to get knocked into the air and off the table. Check the holes in the playfield to see if they are getting plugged up. A few plugged/clogged/restricted holes can change the eveness of the airflow. Same thing for the air filter on the blower inside the table.

If the puck or mallets are excessively chewed up/pitted/chipped they should be replaced.

[Kevin Mullins]

Too light of a puck will do this too.
Some of the cheaper ones are so light it doesn't take much to get them airborne.

[Mauzy]

Ah, some of my favorite memories of the skating rink my friends and I played hockey during the week and free skated on the open skate weekends involve chassing pucks several hundred feet across the rink at high speed. They definitely had their air flow wrong because I swear we could hit it like a normal person and it would go flying.


I need me a nice, big, Dynamo table...

[ChadTower]

Sportcraft is a consumer level manufacturer... I have a couple of their games.  You're going to get some airborne pucks if you play one of theirs as hard as you can play a Dynamo.  There's just no way around it because the puck is lighter, the table is smaller, yet you're still hitting it hard.

[grantspain]

slightly off topic but i have an old dynamo air hockey and the control pcb is shot,there was a faulty fuse holder that i did not spot and whilst on vacation i think it must have constantly shorted off and on thus killing the nvram(or whatever ic it runs)
anyway does anyone have a clue where i can get one of these boards
cheers

[Drews Arcade]

Make sure the play surface is level and straight. A long level works great for this, so when you are done leveling it, look at the level and see if the table has any low spots where the level is not in close contact with.  Shim or place reinforcements as needed to get as flat as possible.  Check the edges where the puck bounces off of, they should be flat and at 90 degrees to the table. Some tables like fast trax by ice have rounded ones and they suck. Better tables like dynamo have the good edges. Good pucks help alot for speed, just sand the dents smooth as they wear with use.

[Ken Layton]

slightly off topic but i have an old dynamo air hockey and the control pcb is shot,there was a faulty fuse holder that i did not spot and whilst on vacation i think it must have constantly shorted off and on thus killing the nvram(or whatever ic it runs)
anyway does anyone have a clue where i can get one of these boards
cheers

Try here:

http://www.valley-dynamo.com/valley/partsandservice.asp#8

[Mario]

Too light of a puck will do this too.
Some of the cheaper ones are so light it doesn't take much to get them airborne.

I have the pucks that came with the game (at least I think so, as they have the same manufacturer name on them). I'm going to buy a slightly heavier puck to try.

Make sure the play surface is level and straight.

Good point. I think it may be a bit unlevel. I'll check this.

Thanks to all for all the tips.

Mario

[Ummon]

Yeah, different, heavier puck. Don't put up no shields; that's part of the danger - I mean excitement - of the game. I first got into it at a bowling alley/ice rink. The table was in the bar, and the bartender would 'ground' us from the game if he caught sight of the puck flying across the room. One time, I knocked it in a sort of pop-fly, and it went across to the corner of the room, bounced off the vinyl booth seat, and landed in a cup. Fortunately no one was sitting there.

[RichSorr]

yeah, light puck, warped puck, clogged holes will all do it.

ICE makes the Fast Track Air Hockey table, which is pretty much what most arcades are putting in now. Stainless playfield with a wider area, smaller goals. the pucks are super light weight and literally float. the game plays ridiculously fast, but boy do those pucks go flying easily.