Best The Munsters Pinball Mods

Some pinball machines are easy to customise.

The Munsters is almost begging for it.

Stern's machine already has an incredible visual identity: the classic characters, the dark gothic atmosphere, 1313 Mockingbird Lane and that strange combination of horror and comedy that makes The Munsters so recognisable.

But there are quite a few areas around the machine where that artwork can be extended.

That's where the right mods can make a surprisingly big difference.

WizBlades Are the Obvious Starting Point

If we were modifying a Munsters machine from scratch, the first thing we'd look at would be the The Munsters WizBlades.

The inside of the cabinet is a huge area that can otherwise disappear into the darkness around the playfield.

Adding custom artwork there changes the entire feeling of the machine.

And The Munsters is particularly well suited to this because the theme naturally works with dark backgrounds, gothic architecture and dramatic character artwork.

There's also a second option that we really like: the Mansion Wall WizBlades.

Instead of simply adding more general Munsters artwork, these bring the mansion itself into the cabinet, making it feel like you're looking further into the world of 1313 Mockingbird Lane.

Both versions are available from the The Munsters Pinball Mods collection.

WizPanels Complete the Speaker Area

The speaker panel is one of those places where the artwork can suddenly feel interrupted.

The playfield and cabinet are full of character, but then you reach the speaker area and there's a relatively plain section sitting in the middle of everything.

The The Munsters LE Full Speakers WizPanels are a particularly nice solution because the artwork continues across the entire speaker section while still allowing the speakers to work normally.

There are also dedicated LE, Premium and Pro WizPanels available, so the idea can be adapted to the particular version of the machine.

The result is much more cohesive.

The Apron Is Easy to Forget

The apron isn't the first thing most people think about when they start modifying a pinball machine.

But once you've changed the bigger areas, you start noticing it.

A WizApron can carry the artwork further down into the lower part of the playfield and make that whole section feel more intentional.

That's particularly useful on The Munsters because the theme has so much artwork and atmosphere that leaving one large area completely plain can stand out.

If you're looking at the complete range of available Munsters upgrades, the The Munsters Pinball Mods collection shows the different options available for the machine.

WizBats Put the Theme Right in Front of You

Flipper bats are tiny compared with a cabinet panel.

But you look at them constantly.

Every shot.

Every combo.

Every multiball.

That's why The Munsters WizBats are such an easy upgrade to appreciate.

They're small enough not to overwhelm the original playfield artwork, but they're directly in your field of view throughout the game.

And they're one of those mods where you can change the character of the machine without doing anything dramatic.

The Coin Door Shouldn't Be a Black Hole

The front of the cabinet has one obvious visual interruption.

The coin door.

On a machine with as much personality as The Munsters, that big dark rectangle can look slightly disconnected from everything around it.

That's where Pro WizDoors come in.

There are dedicated LE, Premium and Pro WizDoors for The Munsters, giving you several ways to turn that otherwise functional part of the cabinet into another piece of the theme.

It's a surprisingly effective modification because the coin door is right in the centre of the machine.

The Shooter Lane Deserves Some Attention Too

The shooter lane is one of the first areas you see every time you start a ball.

It's also one of the easiest areas to completely forget when planning a set of modifications.

The LE WizShooters brings the Munsters artwork into that space and gives the beginning of every ball a little more personality.

There are dedicated LE, Premium and Pro WizShooters, so once again the modification can match the version of the machine you own.

Don't Forget the Backbox Hinges

Once you've customised the obvious parts of a machine, you start noticing the little details.

The hinges are a good example.

The Premium WizWings are a simple way of adding artwork around the backbox hinge area and continuing the visual theme into another part of the cabinet.

There are also Pro and LE WizWings, so this is another area where The Munsters has quite a few options depending on your machine.

The Mansion Is Almost a Character Itself

One of the things that makes The Munsters so interesting for custom artwork is that the house isn't just scenery.

1313 Mockingbird Lane is part of the identity of the show.

That's why we particularly like the Mansion Wall WizBlades.

Instead of simply putting another character on the cabinet, they make the cabinet itself feel like another part of the Munsters' world.

It creates a slightly different effect from standard character artwork and gives collectors an alternative way of customising the machine.

John Borg's Design Gives You Plenty to Work With

The Munsters was designed by John Borg, a designer whose machines often have very strong visual identities and layouts built around distinctive shots and mechanisms.

We've already looked at his work in our John Borg: The Designer Behind Some of Pinball's Biggest Modern Hits article.

It's worth reading if you're interested in the designer behind The Munsters and some of the other major Stern machines of the modern era.

You Don't Need to Install Everything

This is probably the most important thing about pinball mods.

You don't need to buy every available modification.

Start with the areas that make the biggest difference to you.

For most people, that means WizBlades first.

Then perhaps WizPanels if you want to continue the artwork across the speaker area.

After that, you can gradually add WizAprons, WizBats, WizDoors, WizShooters, WizWings and the smaller details.

The machine can evolve over time.

And that's part of the fun.

The Munsters Mod Setup We'd Choose

If we were building the ultimate Munsters machine, we'd probably start with the WizBlades and then build outward.

WizBlades — the biggest visual change.

Mansion Wall WizBlades — for a completely different cabinet atmosphere.

WizPanels — to connect the backbox and cabinet artwork.

WizAprons — to continue the artwork below the playfield.

WizBats — small, easy and constantly visible.

WizDoors — because the coin door deserves some attention.

WizEmblems — a small detail in a very visible position.

WizShooters — to carry the theme into the start of every ball.

WizWings — the finishing touch around the backbox.

You don't need all of them.

But combining several of these is where the transformation really starts to happen.

The Munsters Was Made for Customisation

The beauty of The Munsters is that the original machine already gives you an incredibly strong foundation.

The mods don't need to compete with it.

They just need to continue it.

More artwork inside the cabinet.

More character around the speaker panel.

More detail around the apron and flippers.

A themed coin door.

A small lockdown-bar accent.

Artwork around the shooter lane.

And finally, those little details around the backbox.

The factory machine gives you the Munsters.

The right mods let you take that world a little further.