For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast: Recent Episodes
Nicholas Baldridge
Blood Bank Billiards is the newest game from , built exclusively for the playfield module on the . It is a vampiric game of eight ball, requiring the player to sink each of the pool balls before pocketing the eight ball (at the gobble hole)! In this interview, Ian discusses Blood Bank Billiards' gameplay, and describes some of the creative decisions which have resulted in the creation of the game - including game design choices, artwork, sound design and direction, and beta testing. Blood Bank Billiards is $199 in the Links: Interview with Dan Rosenstein of the Pinball Innovators and Makers Podcast , which delves into more of Ian's background and development journey - Bird Watcher Interview - Gammagoat Sample App (E.M.-style prototype P3 game) - Ian Harrower Games website - Learn More/Purchase Blood Bank Billiards - Blood Bank Billiards Trailer - Blood Bank Billiards Reveal Livestream from Buffalo Pinball is coming soon! Keep an eye on to see the game in action! Learn more about the P3 Pinball Platform - Music used in this episode: Bourbon Blues by Tom Feldmann ( - used for this podcast under the CC BY 4.0 license. Drained is playable exclusively on the Drained playfield module, manufactured by . Learn more or purchase your copy today and shoot some pool with a friend today!
is a tower defense pinball game with three distinct modes of operation. Gameplay is broken into distinct phases, with fast-paced pinball play punctuated by periods of careful consideration. Dungeon Door Defender is the first third-party game developed by Michael Ocean for the , which was released in September of 2023. The game is currently playable on the playfield module, with compatibility in progress. In this interview, Michael discusses the process of game design, graphical and sound design, and some of the differences between first and third-party development. Dungeon Door Defender is $199 in the Links: Homebrew and custom pinball: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Pinball (Homebrew) - Skeletongame - the custom pinball programming framework - Multimorphic games discussed in this episode: Learn more about the P3 Pinball Platform - Heist Game Kit - Weird Al's Museum of Natural Hilarity Game Kit - Final Resistance Game Kit - The Princess Bride Game Kit (Standard Edition) - The Princess Bride Game Kit (Limited Edition) - Dungeon Door Defender: Learn More/Purchase Dungeon Door Defender - Dungeon Door Defender forum discussion - Dungeon Door Defender Reveal Livestream from Buffalo Pinball - Music used in this episode: Industrial Combat Layers, John Leonard French - used with permission/under license.
is a uniquely ambitious pinball game that includes game-to-game progression, collection, and a more relaxing, timed style of gameplay from for the , which was released on November 15, 2023. It is playable on every playfield module available (7) on the P3 as of this recording. In this interview, Ian discusses the genesis of this project, the creation of the , and does a deep dive into some of the technical aspects of game creation, game design choices, and testing a multi-module application. Bird Watcher is $149 in the Links: Interview with Dan Rosenstein of the Pinball Innovators and Makers Podcast , which delves into more of Ian's background and development journey - Ian's Streaming Channel - Ian Harrower Games website - Bird Watcher Tutorial - Op3nPinball (a collection of open source utilities for developing P3 applications) - Learn More/Purchase Bird Watcher - Bird Watcher Trailer - Bird Watcher - Final Resistance Update Trailer - Bird Watcher Reveal Livestream from Buffalo Pinball - Learn more about the P3 Pinball Platform - Music used in this episode: Celebrate Life! by Dark Fantasy Studio/Nicolas Jeudy - used with permission of the composer/under license. Bird Watcher is compatible with the Drained playfield module, manufactured by . Learn more or purchase your copy today and find some bats!
Drained is the latest game from For Amusement Only Games, and released on Nov. 21, 2022. Molly Baldridge created all of the physical and digital artwork for Drained, and it was a lot of fun to be able to work together. Molly has been extremely supportive of my game development in the past, but committing to a project of this magnitude is something else entirely! We discuss the art direction and in what order she tackled the various pieces within the game. All images were created using an open source digital illustration program called Krita using a Huion Kamvas 22. To see the game: The trailer (edited by Stephen Silver) was released yesterday: Martin from Pinball News posted a writeup on the release: And This Week In Pinball published a Deep Dive: If you are interested in learning more, please visit
Drained is the latest game from For Amusement Only Games, and will be releasing soon. I wanted to discuss the creation of the soundtrack for the game with the composer, Charles Wolf. Charles has composed music in many different styles and types for a huge array of projects. He is a very positive and professional collaborator, and I had great fun working with him on the sound design for Drained! I can't wait for you all to hear it! We discuss his background, method of composing for Drained, the difference between creating sound effects when compared to full musical tracks, and some of his other works. Intro: Drained Attract music. Outro: Drained High Score music. Venturer One - Lofi Scifi Concept Album - Charles Wolf Music Website Soundcloud Music Portfolio: Twitter: Email:
Nick discusses the York show and recaps the games brought to Bingo Row, including * Big Wheel * Caravan * Carnival Queen and the games that I brought: * Multi-Bingo * Multi-Races * P3 with QFG, RITR, SF, and FFRE A huge thank you to Sam, Jim, Len, Ed, Chad, and Ed for bringing games (and me!) and for being such a great part of the bingo community. This year, as part of Bingo Row, I gave away vinyl postcards containing a medley of music from my upcoming game, "Drained". There are still a handful of these very limited items left! If you would like one, please send me an email at with your name and mailing address, and I'll be happy to send you one. See what I'm up to anytime at or call the FAO Games line at 724-BINGOS-1. You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is My friends Don, Ryan, and I cohost a podcast about the Panic Playdate console called "Hello, Playdate!" Check it out at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Jon Chad joins us to discuss the realease his new book, "Pinball: A Graphic History of the Silver Ball" from First Second Books. Jon's work is amazing and this book is fun for all ages. To order "Pinball", please visit either: or You can also order from your local comics or book store. To see some of Jon's other work, please visit You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is If you like video games (and some limited pinball talk), you might enjoy Gaming on Ten at Thank you very much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.
We're back! Ava and I wish Wayne Neyens a Happy 103rd Birthday! Ryan Claytor's new watch design is called "Ricochet" and was available in a limited run from Mr. Jones Watches. If you would like a copy, add your name to the interested list Check out Silver Falls at - available now for the Heist playfield on the Multimorphic store. You can sign up for the quarterly For Amusement Only newsletter at The For Amusement Only Discord server is at Thank you for listening, and for your support of indie pinball! You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is If you like video games (and some limited pinball talk), you might enjoy Gaming on Ten at Thank you very much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.
Ava and I talk about a few different games, first up - Williams' Hi-Hand: As part of that conversation, we talk about Williams' Yukon: More work on QFG and some neat stuff ahead! Check out Ranger In The Ruins at: Thank you for listening, and for your support of indie pinball! You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Ranger In The Ruins has been released! My first commercial pinball game is $150, and available through the Multimorphic online store: Ava and I discuss a bit about the game, and some streams available (warning: spoilers!) Buffalo Pinball Reveal Stream - https://youtu.be/M8g07kfWMto Gammagoat -- I also note that the game is part of the Pinside database - if you would be so kind, please rate/review the game, which will help with visibility for other P3 owners. Thank you for listening, and for your support of indie pinball! You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Welcome back! - Ava new cohost - Cosmic Cart Racing 2.0 and Internet play - QFG development diary - last stream available at - Check out my other podcast Gamingonten for weekly updates of the process (and lots of video game talk). - A little about my next P3 game. - Robo-Frenzy artwork is in process. Ryan and I are working on it several times a week! - Multi-Races backglass artwork is in process from Joel de Guzman - can't wait to see it! - New segment: what we've been working on. - E.M Online Repair Clinic (pinside) (funwithpinball sign up page) - Today's featured game is Bally Ballerina - 1959 -
Ava joins me to talk about the newest P3 game, Heist! This Week In Pinball had a writeup on the release day here: We are having a blast with the game, and we talk about the artwork, design, software, audio and how I can't get more than 5,000 points. ;-) For those interested, you can order from Multimorphic at Thanks to Ava for joining me and talking about her new favorite game!
Welcome back! I have decided to slightly retool the show as most of my free time is being spent on developing a modern game for the P3 platform. Build Thread: Multimorphic announcement of CCR update and new Director of Sales and Marketing, Patrick Patla: New game speculation: Today's featured game is Allied Amusement Company of Los Angeles' Barrel Roll - what a cool game! You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Had a follow-up call for the Williams Deluxe Official Baseball regarding the pitching motor. I discuss some of the unique properties of that unit along with the repair for a sticking pitching unit and the gameplay for the game itself.
Listener (and good friend) Ryan Claytor wrote in with a correction to episode 462. Next, there is a NIB Bally Tahiti on eBay... sort of: Today's featured game is Bally's 1937 Classic:
Dan Ferguson, proprietor of the Lone Star Pinball Museum, passed away on December 14th, 2019. I was privileged to meet Dan and spend a few hours speaking with him and playing games in August. Rest in peace, Dan. The new game I discuss has had some new developments, including art, music, and voice acting: Today's featured game is 1967's Chicago Coin Festival:
Another episode, another new game announcement - this one decidedly not EM, but interesting all the same. There is a potential new EM podcast coming - looking forward to it! The more EM content, the better! In other news, a Pinside user had an unobtainable part of the reset bank for Bally games 3D printed. I hope we see much more of this in the future, and prevent more games from being scrapped. Today's featured game is 1969's Seven Up by Williams. A very interesting layout with two sequences, multiple ball saving posts, and specials galore.
I went to the Houston Arcade Expo and talk a bit about what sets the show apart, along with the debut of the Acrylic Bingo project! Shawn did an excellent job with fabricating a new cabinet and playfield for Golden Gate, one of the most complex and astounding bingo pinball machines, out of acrylic. It was great to meet new folks and old friends and teach some how to play. I worked on a Williams Deluxe Official Baseball, and talk a bit about the common fixes needed. Lastly, listener Gene wrote in with his experience at Loof's Lite-A-Line, a pinball gambling parlor on Long Beach. Gene's photos are available here: A very interesting place - thanks Gene for documenting it! You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Things are really hectic right now, but hopefully they will get back on track soon. I'll be at the Houston Arcade Expo next week for the unveiling of the Acrylic Bingo (Golden Gate in a see-through package)! Today's featured game is 1964 Williams Riverboat. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Today's episode is all about the York show! Bingo Row, Woodrail Row, good friends, and fun! I also discuss the end of the Coin-Op Carnival tour and the completion of Multi-Races, along with the first public showing for Multi-Races. Thanks to everyone that makes the York show such a fantastic show - Rich and all the staff, everyone that brings games (especially for Bingo Row), good friends that share in the fun at Bingo Row, and the public that comes to play and learn about all of the amazing games from times past. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at http://gamingonten.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Tonight I am joined by Edward Trapunski, author of "Special When Lit: A visual and anecdotal history of Pinball". We discuss the creation of the book, originally published in 1979, came out at a time of great change for pinball. The industry was moving from electro-mechanical games to solid state. The book touches on a broad history of the game, a description of the appeal from social, art, and gameplay aspects, and even a peek into the future (circa 1979), which turned out to be quite prescient! Special When Lit can be purchased here: The other books mentioned - Pinball! by Roger Sharpe - Tilt! Pinball machines 1931-1958 - Pinball an Illustrated History by Michael Colmer - Pinball Portfolio by Harry McKoewn - Many thanks to Edward for the interview and the great book about the game we all enjoy.
The York show is coming - October 11th and 12th, 2019! This year, I will be giving away custom tokens for those that can win on Multi-Races. I also note a common issue with new bingo owners/mechanics - the timer unit needs to be in proper working order or the game will not function properly. Lastly, I took a look at a King of Diamonds that had some replay issues. I found the problem for most of the replays, but the randomized replays based on the 0-9 unit position I could not resolve before I had to head home. Hopefully the game will be at York for all to enjoy!
Ran into an issue with pyprocgame (or USB) that caused a crash every time I tried to enter a game in Multi-Races. I detail the solution. The York Show is coming very soon! Come see Bingo Row and check out the Coin-Op Carnival booth - October 12th and 13th, 2019! Today's featured game is Bally's Headliner from 1939.
First, a call on the Bingo Line - Len calls with a question about the Selector Lock on Yacht Club. Next, Nate Shivers from Coast 2 Coast podcast has started releasing a new series - Roger Sharpe recorded interviews with numerous folks from the EM era for his book Pinball, and this series begins with an interview with Harry Williams. Check it out at Next, some woodworking for Multi-Races - it's starting to look like a real game! Finally, today's featured game is Gottlieb's "Keen-A-Ball" from 1939: You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Short episode - Our Houston tour stop for Coin-Op Carnival was changed from the original venue and from one stop to two. It was great to meet folks at Bedrock City Comics and the Game Preserve NASA! Thank you to everyone that came out. This weekend, August 11th, I will be giving a presentation and book signing at the Roanoke Pinball Museum in Roanoke, VA. Come see me and say hello! Multi-Races is coming along - I'm getting it ready for the York show, along with the Multi-Bingo and Universal's 5-Star. It should be a great show. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Universal's 5 Star is back in action thanks to Sophie. 5 Star, the Multi-Bingo and Multi-Races will be at York this year as part of Bingo Row! Come out and play these neat games! It will be the public debut of Multi-Races. Junior and Caravan have moved to new homes. Junior will be part of the prewar booth at the Ottawa Pinball and Gameroom Show Sept. 21st and 22nd, 2019. Genco's Golden Nugget is fixed, and I detail the fix. Today's featured game is 1939's Daval Mfg. Co "Gems": Ryan and I will be at the Burke Baker Planetarium for a Coin-Op Carnival tour stop and planetarium-filling presentation! Come see us August 3rd.
I've been programming like a mad person, and there are now several games with full animation and gameplay support available in Multi-Races! I just received a Williams "Super Star" for an upcoming project. Coin-Op Carnival will be at San Diego Comic-Con, with Ryan hosting a presentation on Friday the 17th. Brent and Whitney of the Brokentoken Classic Arcade and Pinball Podcast will have several copies available for purchase at the Southern Fried Gameroom Expo in Atlanta this weekend. Today's featured game is Genco's "Klick" from 1938. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Gerry Stellenberg of Multimorphic () joins me to discuss his history with control systems, development of the revolutionary products the P-ROC, P3-ROC, and the P3, and custom pinball development on the P3. I use and enjoy many of the products produced by his company, and his boardset allowed me to complete the Multi-Bingo in a very short amount of time. I have used his boards in every project since and never hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a control system. The P3 is a modular pinball machine which allows for custom development. It has many unique features, from the wall and scoop assembly that can change the geometry of any game on the platform instantly, to an LCD screen that can serve as score display and collection of virtual targets - the ball can roll over items on the screen and interact - it's truly amazing. The 2010 Expo seminar that Gerry references - and Pinball News has a writeup here: A (very) early video of the ball tracking used on the P3: We even sneak in some bingo talk at the end! Join us in the pindev slack channel to discuss homebrew or custom development. To get an invite, contact me using one of the below methods -- You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Perambulate with FNB while he pontificates on the far flung ancestors of modern pinball! Listen in on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, Google Play, and more. You can email the real Nick at Instagram and Twitter @bingopodcast Call the phone-a-saurus at 724-BINGOS-1 Purchase Coin-Op Carnival at Thanks very much for listening, and I'll... talk to you next time!
New game! Auto-Bell Super Circus arrived in the gameroom and Ava is going to help restore. Robo-Frenzy progress - one of the more difficult tasks has been completed. 5 Star progress - Sophie and I turned it on this week! Today's featured game is Genco's "Bang" from 1939. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Ryan and I were interviewed by Michigan NPR about Coin-Op Carnival! (Scroll down for the interview) Sophie has continued work on the 5 Star - it's looking good now, next to polish the metal parts inside the game! An interesting service call on a Bally Circus Queen (I love that game) and a Bally Dude Ranch. Today's featured game is 1935's Bally 3 In LINE. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Ryan's tour stop at Abrams Planetarium was excellent! Read the writeup at There are two tour stops happening this weekend! Pinball at the Zoo and the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo (S.P.A.C.E.). See for more details. I worked on a Bally Circus this past week that needed more than a little help, and I've been wiring Robo-Frenzy - just a little more left! Sophie has removed everything from the playfield and cleaned the 5 Star! Today's featured game is 1959's Gottlieb "Hi-Diver": You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I've been digging myself out of my backlog on local service calls since my return from Texas. I talk about one interesting EM call I had recently. Coin-Op Carnival's reception has been fantastic! Come see Ryan at the second tour stop for the book at the MSU Abram's Planetarium, Sunday, April 14th at 6PM. This is a free event! Following Ryan's presentation (a 360 degree video of Wayne Neyens demonstrating his "Spirit of '76" and his office with pinball memorabilia), there will be a book signing and an array of great games designed by Wayne Neyens or featured in Coin-Op Carnival #1. More information available at www.coinopcarnival.com/appearances. Sophie has been learning how to repair EMs by working on a Universal "5-Star", which is a very unique game. She's looking forward to playing it soon. Today's featured game is Gottlieb's "Coronation" from 1952. This is one of the iconic games of the woodrail era, notable for its fantastic art package as well as its gameplay. The plastics on this game have been recreated by Ryan Claytor and are for sale at the Pinball Resource: You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
My experience at Texas Pinball Festival as part of Coin-Op Carnival. An unforgettable weekend! Some photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/8hNHQvpxRTJqoFPM8 Ryan is doing a solo presentation for the next tour stop - the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University. Aside from a 360-degree video of Wayne Neyens and his "Spirit of '76", there will be a selection of Neyens' games available on free play! Be sure to follow the for a tour stop near you. A listener writes in asking about the difference between wood rail and metal rail games. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Ryan Claytor joins me to discuss our new joint venture - Coin-Op Carnival: Electrifying Tales of Mechanical Contraptions! Coin-Op Carnival Issue #1 is a 64-page, fully illustrated, full color publication. Coin-Op Carnival will release March 22nd at Texas Pinball Festival. Pinball historian Gordon Hasse will be joining Ryan and I onstage during the Coin-Op Carnival Seminar March 22nd at 8PM. If you are not heading to TPF, you can find information and place your order at beginning March 22nd. You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Multi-Races works! I finished the wiring after last episode, fired it up, and can play games on it. There are no graphics currently, but still a major victory. Robo-Frenzy has also had a few victories over the past weekend - the score motor turns, score reels and reset function properly, and the short was found. Today's game is 1942's Keeney Towers: https://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=5095 You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I'm just about ready to turn on Multi-Races for the first time. Exciting time for any project. I talk about wiring the coils and motors in the game, and some of the challenges. Today's game is 1959's Gottlieb Straight Shooter () You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Robo-Frenzy has had a small advancement, but more time is needed to test everything. Multi-Races, I am having some second thoughts about how I will construct parts of the game. Discussion awaits! Today's game is the 1959 Williams "Golden Bells" - https://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=1045 You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
The Multi-Bingo is getting a nice bit of polish ahead of the Texas Pinball Festival. I look forward to meeting new people and seeing their reaction to the game! Multi-Races progress continues - I've wired the playfield and placed it within the game. Soon I'll be testing the games! Today's featured game is 1958's Bally Skill Parade: You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I'm continuing to program Multi-Races, and am working backwards chronologically. I've arrived at the first game Bally produced post-war, 1946's Victory Derby and Victory Special. I speak a bit about the large changes in portioning that these earlier games have from the later (Don Hooker designed) games. Robo-Frenzy has been tested, and I have found a flaw in the 30V line which will require a bit of rewiring (once I find the problem). I will be at the Texas Pinball Festival, 2019 in Frisco, TX - with Multi-Bingo in tow! Come say "Hi", and try to win a prize. Today's game is 1957's Gottlieb "Ace High" - https://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=7 You can reach me at foramusementonlypodcast@gmail.com or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I've almost finished programming the first game for Multi-Races. Bally's Turf King is one of the last one ball horserace games, and therefore one of the most complex. Once I've finished it, I should have no trouble with other games. I talk about the interesting parts of portioning, as well as some of the features of the game. Robo-Frenzy is coming along quite nicely. Two units remain to be wired into the game, and I have a plan on how to do it. Today's featured game is Williams "Dreamy" from 1950. You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Robo-Frenzy is about 70% wired! Multi-Races now has a computer and I've begun thinking about laying out the new electronic and mechanical features. A Chicago Coin Soundstage was unboxed recently. The video (on Facebook) can be viewed here: Today's featured game is a really neat one - Gottlieb's 1948 Alice in Wonderland. You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
A short episode today, wherein I discuss wiring Robo-Frenzy (approx 50% done), and a listener question about adding progressive jackpots to a bingo pinball machine. I put on my best tech hat and respond. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Robo-Frenzy is taking shape, the wiring has begun in earnest. I talk a bit about how I am prototyping the light board, how the wiring is going and the basic functions that are wired. A reminder that I'm running a contest! Anyone that can send me evidence of a current/new 5 in a line on a game will receive a free Bingo Row print! The illustration by Ryan Claytor of Elephant Eater Comics () is amazing. Non-bingo-owners can get in touch if they would like a copy. Today's game is 1952's Gottlieb "Quartette" - Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
This year's White Rose Gameroom Show was incredible! I speak a bit about each game in Bingo Row, and do a recap of the happenings day-by-day. JeffC's amazing unboxing video is in this thread: Tons of pictures in that thread, and lots of information. I discuss the unknowns listed on the sign in front of the game individually and the answers to our burning bingo questions. And - a contest! Anyone that can send me evidence of a current/new 5 in a line on a game will receive a free Bingo Row print! The illustration by Ryan Claytor of Elephant Eater Comics () is amazing. Non-bingo-owners can get in touch if they would like a copy. Lastly, I speak about some upcoming projects, including a Sing-Along, and of course, Robo-Frenzy. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com If you like video games, you might enjoy Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I'm headed to the York show - Friday Oct 12th and Saturday Oct 13th, 2018. Come see me, play all the bingos in Bingo Row, and compete for a chance to win a beautiful limited edition Bingo Row print! Today's main topic is a review of Pinball Magazine #5 - I strongly encourage all folks with any interest in EMs to pick up a copy and read about Wayne Neyens, his amazing career and life, an interview with Steve Young, and much more. Hats off to Jonathan Joosten - this interview and retrospective is very thorough, and has been a joy to read. Today's featured game is 1952's United Steeple Chase. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time. Read more at http://foramusementonly.libsyn.com/#g51Hs5oWTz8Su8BY.99
The York show (White Rose Gameroom Show) will be here before we know it! Come to the show and hang out with us in Bingo Row Beautiful new giveaways, a brand new bingo unboxing, extremely rare games on free play, and a lot of fun! The Multi-Bingo is complete! I've finished all the various programming bits and this is the final programming episode of the podcast for the Multi-Bingo (I promise). Today's game is 1938's Genco "Gay Time". It has a mechanism that kicks the ball into various pockets and increments your score. The final pocket will kick down and back into play. Very neat idea from the era of experimentation. "A Spring Tonic for Sick Locations" https://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=3117
The Multi-Bingo is about to make its yearly showing at the York show! That means I have the typical final tweaks and touches to complete. The Multi Manual is available here: I was also co-author on an article published on Pinball News about gambling pingames: https://www.pinballnews.com/site/2018/08/23/gambling-pingames-manufacturer-perspectives/ Check it out and let me know what you think. Listener Cait brings a very interesting article from Automatic Age regarding the first pinball piracy case - Who's Goofy vs. Bally Goofy! The Ottawa Pinball Show (Sept. 22 and 23rd) will have both games on display, with Goofy playable as part of the pinhistory booth. Go check out the cool games - thank you for bringing them - I wish I could be there! Today's game is 1950's Genco "Canasta" - a very interesting-looking turret game: Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
This episode, I start off with a few technical details about how the animations function within the Multi for the mechanical backbox number movements. Today's game is the 1932 Northwest Coin Machine Company Fan-Tan. An interesting roulette game with a playing card theme. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter () or follow me on Instagram (also ). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
The York show is coming! October 12th and 13th, 2018, please join us in Bingo Row for several special spectacles. - A group of bingo pinball machines free to play all weekend - The Multi-Bingo, featuring all 142 domestically produced bingo pinball machines - A brand NEW Silver Sails, still sealed in the box, to be publicly unboxed on the show floor Friday. If it is playable, it will be available for play! - Giveaways for any four or five in a row on any machine at Bingo Row - limited edition posters of the Bingo Row illustration by Ryan Claytor! - And some other surprises that I cannot name yet. Join us! Win a poster! Watch a historic unboxing! For the second half of the episode, I interview Sophia, as Ticker Tape might be leaving the building on Friday. She wanted to give her thoughts on the games and eventually started telling me about "po-ta-to, to-mah-toe" and expounding on what makes Double-Up so great. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter () or follow me on Instagram (also ). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
I am back from a very special vacation - Dennis Dodel was willing to open his gameroom to a few of us traveling to Wayne Neyens' 100th birthday celebration! I had an excellent time and discuss some of the games and what makes them special. Thank you Dennis! Next, I traveled to Wayne's home to help him ring in his 100th year and discuss some of what made that special event so extremely special to me. Thank you Wayne, for being such an amazing man - you are an inspiration, and I am so honored and humbled to have been one of the people cheering you on at your party. The citation presented to Wayne: The man himself, finishing a ball on his "Spirit of '76": And finally, a photo of us together, in front of the toolbox he used at Gottlieb(!):
United's coin flash animations are in process - I discuss the mechanical differences between Bally and United games from the perspective of coin flash, then give some simple updates on Robo-Frenzy and Multi Races. Jones Plugs are fantastic for allowing simple connection/disconnection of the head of a game or a coin door from the cabinet body, but it's important to double check these plugs when your game is having problems, especially if a new (to you) game, or a game that has recently been moved. Lastly, the game for today is Gottlieb's "Double-Shuffle" from 1949. Twin scoring, similar to Twin Bill, but with a simple, fun sequence on either side of the playfield. Attractive artwork and backglass animation round out the package. Extra special - 1/2 Million? Sign me up. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter () or follow me on Instagram (also ). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com My friend Don (formerly of The Pinball Podcast) and I have started a new video-game focused podcast called Gaming on Ten Minutes a Week. Join us there if you like at Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
The biggest news for today's episode: the announcement of the Multi Races project. Thanks to Dennis Dodel for the name! The plan is to make another Multi-type game that will allow you to play all 49 of the one-ball horse race games. Very excited to get started. I've made a thread here: The Multi-Bingo still needs some animations written for a handful of Bally games and almost all of the United games. Robo-Frenzy - I decided a while ago upon a design for the timer unit - I had previously stacked too much on that one unit. I'm moving certain circuits to trip relays instead, which will simplify the timer unit design. Unfortunately, I ordered the wrong part. After York, I'll get back to the game. Two small updates to the last podcast, I talk about repairing the Bally Ballerina and going through the underside of the Williams Rag Mop that Ryan and I discussed. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter () or follow me on Instagram (also ). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
Ryan Claytor () joins me for a discussion of all things vacation: Fixes for - 1) Williams "Penny Pitch" 2) Gottlieb "Paul Bunyan" () 3) Bally "Sheba" () 4) Chicago Coin "Fox Hunt" () 5) United "Thunderbird" Talk about 1) Williams "Rag Mop" () 2) Bally Ballerina () (After the show was recorded, I was able to go fix up Ballerina, and work through the playfield of Rag Mop. ) Discussion about Coos' backglass foils - beautiful work! For the final "Year of Flipperless" game, we go over Genco's 1940 masterpiece, "Metro". Multiple sequences, extremely challenging play, and my daughter's new favorite game. Russ Jensen's writeup is here: and is a great read on the ruleset. We also talk about Ryan's thoughts on finishing his Williams "Swinger" () His Pinside thread is located here: And the Flipperless buy/sell/trade thread: Bingo Row is coming soon! Ryan and I chat about the upcoming festivities. Thank you, as always, for listening! You can reach me at or via the bingos line at 724-BINGOS-1 You can listen to the show on iTunes, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Google Play Music, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter (@bingopodcast) or follow me on Instagram (also @bingopodcast). The show's website is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you very much for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.
A great story from Graham TerMarsch - three donated Bally Big Times were used to teach kids at his son's school about reverse engineering and they ended up restoring one of the games - congratulations everyone! This week I also wanted to highlight a couple of interesting notes on the Pinside forum regarding bingos: One person has trouble with their left and right buttons in a Magic Screen game, with a simple, but easy to overlook fix: And second, another owner converts his beautiful Bally "Bikini" to have wooden rails - an interesting modification: The Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown is this weekend, June 8-10 in Denver, CO. Phil Bogema will be there this year and will be bringing two beautifully restored Bally bingos: Parade and Carnival Queen. Phil does stunning work, and I look forward to hearing the show reports from players there. Today is the penultimate "Year of Flipperless" game: 1932's Amusement Corporation of America's "Ski-Doo 23": As always you can find me on Facebook at Instagram Twitter Thank you for listening!
I just came across an announcement that the Canada Pincon is going to have a history of pinball booth with: 1932 Bally Goofy 1935 Bally Bumper 1932 Bally Ballyhoo 1939 Keeney Thriller and a 1954 Bally Surf Club! If you're in the area, check out the show at - and let me know how you enjoy the history of pinball games! Getting back to my roots a bit, thought I would talk a little about how to narrow down a backbox illumination problem in a Gottlieb woodrail, as a question came up on Pinside recently. Lastly, we're headed towards the end of the Year of Flipperss - today's entry is 1935's Rockola "TNT": As always, if you'd like to get in touch, you can email me at or call me on the bingos line at (724) BINGOS-1 - (724-246-4671) - thank you for listening and I'll talk to you next time.
Allentown Pinfest was last weekend and it was a lot of fun. Thank you to friends new and old that made it a huge success for the Multi and for me. The Multi played well at Allentown, despite a pretty bone-headed mistake I made in coding before the show... lots of compliments and lots of help forthcoming or received at the show. I did sneak away and play the beautiful custom "Nightmare Before Christmas" machine ) - and the creator also learned about bingos in turn. I'm looking forward to York now, and how I will implement the improvements planned (and maybe a couple of surprises)! Today's Year of Flipperless game is United's 1946 "Sea Breeze" - a beautiful fun-looking game with multiple sequences. http://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2079
Allentown is coming next week - 5/3-5/5/18. I will be there with the Multi on Saturday only 5/5! Come say hello and try the game. I look forward to seeing everyone there. I talk about some of the development challenges in getting the game ready to show the new animations, including the small touches like flashing the insert lamps on coin flash. Today's Year of Flipperless is 1938's Bally "Arcade". http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=3650
Discussion of some of the difficulties with animating the coin flash for each game. Some discussion of outstanding bugs. Today's Year of Flipperless game is 1938's Chicago Coin "Swing". I love games with mechanical diverters as well as the captive ball feature. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=2481
Robo-Frenzy is coming along, awaiting some new parts. I discuss a bit about how difficult it is for me to wire up a stepper from scratch. The Multi is progressing on several fronts, and I'm working on adding coin flash for every game. Our Year of Flipperless game is 1939's Exhibit Avalon. A very beautiful and interesting looking game, with uniquely shaped bumpers. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=117&picno=5616
Sing Along tear down started - and that playfield is really rough. I located a different used playfield that should clean up ok. Very excited to rebuild this game. Robo-Frenzy wiring continues, albeit slowly. I speak about some repairs, including Shoot-A-Line and a Dixieland that just would not stay fixed, ending it with a Williams Skylab. Finally, the Year of Flipperless has a new entry: 1946's Bally Double Barrel. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=708
As usual, lots going on - I've begun work in depth in wiring Robo-Frenzy. All coils have power, but switches and steppers between still need to be wired. I also need to install a light board and wire lamps. Much of the game is driven by illuminated elements, so testing will not be much fun until I can see what I'm doing! I've also taken the first step to making a Multi Horse Race game. These predecessors to the bingo pinballs are fascinating in their own right. I also picked up a game that's been on my want list for many years: Gottlieb's Sing Along. Beautiful game with compelling gameplay. Lastly, thanks to a user on the woodrail Facebook group, some of the interesting gameplay elements of 1941's Bally Fairmont are explained as the Year of Flipperless continues.
Jeff is an avid collector of pre-war pinball (games produced prior to WWII), coordinates the History of Pinball booth at the Texas Pinball Festival, and helps reproduce rare and unique parts for games where reproductions do not already exist. The History of Pinball booth typically includes 15 playable machines from many pre-war collectors. This year's booth will be set up on March 16th-18th, 2018, at the Texas Pinball Festival in Frisco, Texas. ( for details). You can see some of these beautiful games and the reproduction parts, as well as contact Jeff at
I finished working on a '72 Williams "Line Drive". Well, enough to play, but the crowd doesn't go wild! Next, I talk a little bit about what I've been working on on Robo-Frenzy. Lots more to come. Finally, I go over 1935's Pamco "Roto Lite". This is an excellent example of how forward-thinking Don Hooker was, and how he was already making his mark on the industry in the 1930s! Thank you to Dennis for the suggestion!
Fox Hunt is done! Ryan came down and picked it up on a whirlwind trip. I filmed a short video of gameplay/features: Also, I wrote up a Pinside thread with lots of photos! Aside from this, I've been doing some repairs around town again, and had the pleasure to work on an original Shoot-A-Line. This particular one had some operator changes that contributed to its downfall, but will hopefully be scoring again soon. Thank you, as always, for listening!
The 1940 Chicago Coin Fox Hunt is just about finished. Two shorted 'coils in a can' are taken apart and rewound. I have a trip relay coil to replace, as well as two springs that are not doing their job, and a shorted lamp socket. Otherwise, things are working pretty darn well. Serenade was picked up by Bingo Butch and his son, Mike, and Mike already has it up and running. Great finish to the year in bingos the pinball community just learned of its existence at the beginning of the year! Today's Year of Flipperless game is Genco's 1939 Airport. A beautiful machine with an interesting ruleset that requires the player to traverse the entire playfield across 5 balls, with a ball return feature. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=36&picno=19261&zoom=1
A friend of mine asked me to pick any meter I wanted to, to replace my really poor DMM that I've been fighting forever (thanks Ryan!). A Sanwa SP-21 is what I chose: Good balance of price and features. Has a continuity test, despite being an analog meter, as well as a diode test. Both are basically resistance tests, but nice to have. Uses two double-A batteries, which is convenient. I talk a bit about my first service call using the meter, as well as some challenges specific to the game. Next, a listener writes to discuss an alternative method of demagnetizing. Today's Year of Flipperless is Rockola's Screamo from October of 1935. Another proto-bingo, this time with a literal card layout, but a more fun playfield than most of the other early bingo concepts. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=2071&picno=66169
I hope all my American listeners had a great Thanksgiving. I am very thankful for all of you. Today is a cautionary tale. Managed to set the game I was working on on fire... sleep is necessary, but so is remembering to remove a jumper before stopping for the night. Today's Year of Flipperless - Exhibit's 1934 Lightning '36. Compared to PAMCO's Contact: http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=3029&picno=23059&zoom=1
Some discussion of a pre-war game I'm working on currently, and the Year of Flipperless game, Chicago Coin's 1934 Show Boat. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=2136&picno=16947
Scott Gullicks is part of Riot Pinball, LLC, who are best known for their creation "Wrath of Olympus", a full-size DMD-style pinball machine. This year at Expo, Scott unveiled a new project, focused on portability and competition: "Dead Man's Hand", which is based heavily on the layout of the card-themed bingos. Scott joins me to discuss his experience with bingos and the motivation behind the creation of "Dead Man's Hand". Shortly after our interview, Riot Pinball announced a partnership with VPCabs to produce the game. It is available now at
Bingo Butch Glauda is an operator and serious bingo collector. He owns one of each Bally bingo pinball machine and needs only three more United games to complete his collection. Butch tells many great stories about operating, which games made the most money, and his fascinating history with these great machines. He was extremely generous with his time, and I am pleased to have spent time with him after York this year.
I recap the details from the York show! I had a lot of fun talking to everyone and watching them play the Multi-Bingo over three days! Thank you for coming out and giving the games a shot in the Bingo Row! The Multi had over 8000 Red/Yellow button presses over the weekend. That equates to roughly 400+ games. I'm thrilled with that number. Thank you to everyone that brought games and shared with the public. Today's 'Year of Flipperless' game is Baker's "Twinkle". Backglass animation, multiple ways to win, and a unique playfield mechanism make this game extremely fun and challenging to play. I was lucky to see it and play it at the York show! http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2691
The Multi-Bingo will be available for you to play on September 29th and 30th, 2017! Come play it, say hello, and compete on any of the bingo pinball machines in the 3rd annual Bingo Row. Win a 4 or 5 in a row, come show me, and you'll receive this year's prize: beautifully illustrated key fobs by Ryan Claytor of Elephant Eater Comics. See if you can name all the bingo card styles represented! Today's game is the beautiful Bally Skyscraper - one of the first games with illumination. A skill score is added to your eventual total, to award a maximum of 45 replays! ... just remember the show title. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=2205&picno=51161
I had some folks over to playtest the game - outsiders tend to play the game differently than I do, so it's valuable to see if anything new breaks. Out of many many games played and discussed, only one new bug appeared. I have figured out how to mitigate it. I've also been working really hard to put the polish on the game. It looks great, plays great, and I'm trying to make it as good as it can be before York. Speaking of York - come to the Bingo Row at the White Rose Gameroom Show Sept. 29th and 30th in York, PA! Play the game and try for a 4 or 5 in a line to win a prize, made just for the show! Today's Year of Flipperless game is 1947's Williams 'Amber' - It's got a really interesting layout that looks very challenging. I love gobble holes, love curtains, and love a good sequence game with a good payoff for skillful play. Looks like the total package!
The Multi-Bingo is really taking shape. I discuss some of the difficulty in introducing bugs that are unexpected when thinking about the reset sequence of the EM games vs. a solid state. Today's year of flipperless game is 1934's Exhibit Golden Gate. Golden Gate has an interesting middle playfield feature that allows for high scoring if you land balls in the 'open gate' hole. You can also return 'Out' balls to play by hitting a different hole. Fun looking machine with an interesting gimmick. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=1048
I talk about the process for installing the backglass in the Multi-Bingo. Check out the podcast Facebook page or the Pinside thread to see some photos of this beautiful artwork! I also discuss some of the other improvements in progress or complete. Today's featured game is 1933's Genco 42nd Street, a pure mechanical game with metal diverters and cool 3d artwork integrated with the painted playfield artwork. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=923
Happy 99th birthday to Wayne Neyens, fantastic pinball designer for Gottlieb! Bingo Row 2017 prep is underway! I am working to make the Multi-Bingo a great game to play. Robo-Frenzy cabinet has been put together, and I am working out installing the mechanics now. I recently worked on a Chicago Coin Baseball Champ, and I talk about some service notes and playability notes. Great game! Today's 'Year of Flipperless' game is 1934's Automatic 'Action'. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=17&picno=14
The Multi-Bingo programming, a labor of love for 70 weeks, is complete! Yep, 138 games later, and this thing has shaped up very well. I talk about next steps (briefly, gotta have some surprises), and my next project.... Robo-Frenzy! I've already discussed it a lot on the show, but now I'm starting work on it in earnest. Today's game for the Year of Flipperless is 1938's Exhibit Coney Island. It has some unique features, but unfortunately, no images of the game nor video exist. Please send information to the IPDB if you happen to own or come across this beautiful piece of Americana.
The Multi-Bingo marches on! Only 9 games left to implement. Pretty exciting to be down to the single digits. I discuss some of the 'special' games included with the hybrid solid state 1960s bingos. Then, some slow, but important progress on Robo-Frenzy. Next, a service call that had several interesting components! Was it a machine that doesn't have any photos on the IPDB? Today's featured game is 1937's Genco Archer - a beautiful game with a great theme. http://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=4526
All 25 hole games are complete in the Multi! I'm down to 20 games left to implement. In this episode, I discuss the method I am using to prevent damage to the Magic Pockets unit, and special thanks to Michael Ocean for a second opinion on the code I had written. Ryan Claytor and I spent some time discussing the Robo-Frenzy cabinet and some time at the Flippers arcade at Grandy, NC. Some great questions came from a user on Pinside regarding the bingos I've implemented thus far. Some pretty interesting tech stuff, so I thought I'd put some in the podcast. Today's game is the first of the YEAR OF FLIPPERLESS (as suggested by Ryan Claytor): 1938 Exhibit 'Regatta' http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=4671
The Multi-Bingo is coming along! New parts, new machines, new playfields - great! Phil Bogema is bringing a beautifully restored Parade and a Show-Time to the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown! Check out those great (and unusual in the case of Parade) games. June 9-11th in Denver, CO - Universal 5 Star is a bingo pinball-style machine made before the first widely accepted bingo pinball machine! Check out the pics on the right side. Weird, attractive game that looks very challenging.
Lots of interesting topics this episode - unfortunately, I have a head cold that is making me sound odd. Sorry about that. IFPA posts an interesting document from a law firm representing the Amusement Devices Association to legalize pinball in Cincinnati. https://www.facebook.com/ifpapinball/photos/a.670610496321546.1073741827.208963032486297/1343263932389529/?type=3 The Multi-Bingo continues to progress - three more games are complete - in my cold-filled stupor I forgot to name the third or really any information about them. I also have other news on the Multi front. Something to look forward to for next episode? Hobby Burn-out - I had a series of stressful events happen in close succession and felt like I wasn't enjoying owning games any longer due to not having time to play them. I posted them for sale and was contacted by multiple friends in quick succession asking me (politely) if I'd lost my mind. I thought about it, finished off some stressful things, cleaned up my gameroom, and did a complete 180 degree change on selling. This is the first time since I've been collecting that I've felt this way. Keeney Eleven Belles - I unfortunately started to really lose my voice around this part, so I had to cut short what I was going to say, but this is another of the 'one-ball revival' games of 1960, designed by Ed Krynski. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=3079
I've been making my own harnesses and wiring up some new playfields in the Multi. 1) Shoot-A-Line 2) Gayety 3) Double-Up Double-Up is only about 1/3 complete, but this will allow me to add another 20 games into the Multi, bringing me much closer to 100%. In other news, shows everywhere this weekend! The VFW show including one of the lost playfield designs of Harry Williams (built by Duncan Brown) and the EM world championships, and Allentown are both this weekend. I hope everyone has a great time, and I hope to hear how the lost Williams game plays! Ryan Claytor has produced another 3 sets of reproduction 1950's Gottlieb woodrail plastics! Coronation, Shindig and Joker are now available from the Pinball Resource. Put in your order today! http://www.pbresource.com/news.html Today's featured game is PEO Manufacturing Corp's All American Football! A very unique and interesting game for 1935. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=4948
My stencil has been sprayed and it looks pretty good! See the Facebook page or the Pinside thread for pics. I detail some of the mistakes made, and the good parts too. I'm in the process of building the drawer wiring, now that the drawer is physically installed in the game. So satisfying to see the cosmetics start to come together.
The Multi is progressing. I get over my existential art crisis and finish the stencil graphics and cut my stencils. I discuss some of the things I have left to do and some that has already been done! Big thanks (this two weeks) to Ryan Claytor for help with coloration consistency (elephanteater.com) Steve Smith (woodworker extraordinaire) Phil Hooper (bingo documentarian and technician - bingo.cdyn.com) Thank you for listening!
Wayne Neyens was a very prolific pinball designer, most famous for his time at Gottlieb. We discuss everything from his time at Western Electric and Supply to his career at Gottlieb and a bit beyond. He is almost 99 years old, and as such, has seen a LOT of interesting happenings in coin op since he started at Western. Wayne was incredibly generous with his time and willingness to discuss some of these items of curiosity. Thank you again, Wayne!
Chicago Coin's 'Thing' is up and running in my home! I go over some of the challenges and gloss over some others. The game has several fairly fragile-looking components. Odd and unique relay ladders, and tons and tons of relays under the playfield. Great game, and I'm happy it's done! Almost every shot earns at least 10,000 points, and the two passive bumpers at the bottom earn 100,000 at certain times. In this game, increase in score will open the ball save gate sooner, allowing a ball to drain, so it is in your best interest to make accurate shots. I also got a correction from a friend (and friend of the show), and discussed a very interesting thread on Pinside about cheating and bingos: Thanks for listening!
Some interesting fun things happened this past weekend, and I discuss a few standout games I played at the Pinball Hall of Fame and Flipperspiel Underground. I also thought it wise to cover a game again! Today's game is Baker Big Time. This game has 8 different ways to win, multiple sequences, and a neat playfield design that reminds me of the horse race games. You can win up to 60 replays on this game! http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=282
I dislike the construction of Williams solid state drop targets - I give some reasons why and discuss the mechanical problems of a steel ball hitting plastic affixed to metal with more plastic... I also discuss a short circuit troubleshooting session from a recent repair. Lack of heat shrink in my travel toolbox caused me to improvise. I picked up a Chicago Coin 'Thing' and have been removing the multiple coats of white latex paint from the cabinet - I give a breakdown of some techniques used to remove on this cabinet in particular. Lastly, there is a person from TX (Nicovolta) that is traveling across the US, teaching EM repair in home - very intriguing idea and I wish him all the best.
I've been working on graphics for the Multi cabinet, and had a coding weekend to take my mind off of artwork... The Hold feature allows you to return some or all of the balls during a normal game. Pretty cool feature! Used on only three games, Palm Springs, Surf Club and Ice Frolics. I also describe the gameplay and some of the features of Robo-Frenzy, the new EM arcade game being made by myself and Ryan Claytor. Speaking of Ryan, he has started working with Pinball Resource to produce new plastic sets for 1950s games. He began with Score-Board, and his work is absolutely stunning. If you need plastics, call PBR now! It was an extremely limited run. Also, I found out recently that Marco Specialties carries 'dead' rubber. I ordered a bunch and will be outfitting all my playfields with dead rubber on the red posts (as they came from the factory). All for now!
Multi Progress: 105 out of 107 games that utilize the standard 25 hole playfield (with no additional coils) are complete! One of those two remaining games was just discovered this week! United's Serenade appeared out of nowhere. I assume it was a prototype game that never made it into full production. A listener asks how to deal with a noisy coin lockout relay. Steve Smith is putting together a list of folks interested in a reproduction Bally Bounty backglass - currently impossible to find in the US. Please contact me or see this thread: Another very interesting development: Ryan Claytor and I have teamed up and are designing a brand new EM arcade game! I've already finished the schematic, and am acquiring parts. This is being worked on in-between other hobby projects.
My first attempt at a courtroom audio drama. This one involves a court case between the City of Baltimore, MD and Bally Bounty - yes, the pinball machine! Special thanks to Ryan Claytor (elephanteater.com) for providing some of the voices in the drama. Just a silly, fun, educational thing to get you started in the New Year. Happy New Year, everyone!
Miss America - all four of these games have been implemented. In fact, I'm up to 83 games implemented! I talk about some of how the games changed over the years, my favorite games, features of all the Miss America games, and how I've implemented the moving numbers within Miss America. Hey! You like podcasts, you like pinball - friend of the show Ryan Claytor has illustrated another podcast masterpiece. Pre-order a poster or t-shirt here: (Especially a poster - I want it to be produced.)
Talk about the way United games work and portion, and lots of interesting news: 70 games in the Multi-Bingo! Ryan Claytor has illustrated artwork for The Pinball Podcast's 100th episode! Check out Robert Medl has put together a fantastic document about reflex adjustment: Check it out!
Phil makes a special 'in-person' appearance on the podcast! We went over the codebase for a Magic Screen game and I explained how and why each of the functions work the way that they do within the program. Phil provided me with a good clue as to why the machines seemed too 'tight' - my mixers were able to move between 1 and 23 positions with each spin. In reality, they only move a small subset. Speaking of code, I've pushed up a very large amount of code, for the first 50 games to the public repository:
My interview today is with bingo collector/repair person/player Keith Nickalo. Keith has a fascinating website with information about some of the machines he has repaired, as well as documentation on various oddities: The heavily modified Lotta Fun that Keith mentions is here: Some documentation on the Belgian games Keith converted are here:
There's no shortcutting the implementation of these games in the Multi-Bingo. Duncan Brown's Expo seminar on the unproduced games of Harry Williams is an amazing story: It's the biggest EM news in many years. Well worth the read! The Pacific Pinball Expo is happening on Nov 10-13 in Alameda, CA. Attend and play some of the great woodrail and EM games (and some bingos, too!): The featured game is 1947's Williams Torchy: http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2596
This year's York show wrap-up! I discuss how the Bingo Row went, some feedback from players of the Multi, a short interview with my friend Ryan Claytor, and lots and lots of 'thank yous'. The thread on the Multi-Bingo that Ryan mentions is here: and Ryan and I each wrote some wrap-up posts on the 'row here: Thank you to all the bingo folks (new and old), especially: Chad, Len, Ed Jeffrey Robert and Sal Jim Steve Butch and Mike Ryan Vic Dennis Phil H Phil B ...and all the players. It was great getting to meet so many new players, and new Multi-Bingo fans. It was absolutely fantastic! Can't wait for next year!
I am running behind on the latest release - I wanted to do a York show/Bingo Row/Multi-Bingo unveiling wrap-up, but I will not be able to record and edit until Friday evening at the earliest. It'll be worth it!
Sing Along is one of my favorite Gottlieb wedgeheads - beautiful theme execution and great, challenging gameplay. CORRECTION: I said this was a Parker art package. Couldn't have been more wrong. It was Art Stenholm. My apologies. I also speak a bit about Duncan Brown's excellent upcoming seminar at Expo 2016: "From The Lost Playfield Drawings Of Harry Williams: A Pinball Machine 40 Years In The Making" He is making a brand new EM whitewood from the drawings of Harry Williams. Wonderful! Next week is the York show - come to Bingo Row and compete for a free t-shirt, illustrated by Ryan Claytor!
Troubleshooting a game of your own creation can be very difficult; especially when you are marrying the worlds of electro-mechanical and solid state! Join me as I track down a misadjusted switch and a bug in my lifter logic. Also, I discuss several of the games gracing the multi, along with today's featured game, Bally's Hole-In-One. Only one unit is known to exist, but no paperwork is available, and the owner does not know the rules of gameplay. Therefore, I got to try my hand at creating a bingo ruleset on a one-off oddity.
Getting ready for the York Show in just a few weeks! I'm still working hard on the Multi-Bingo. As of this recording, I have 24 games complete. This year should be a lot of fun! York is always fantastic - I did many episodes last year detailing some of the great games I've seen there in previous years, but just know that York is more than bingos, it's more than solid state, it's more than EM - it's a great blend of all pinball and other games and decor. This year, the York show is on Sept. 30th and Oct. 1st. Come out and meet me, play the multi, and learn how to play a bingo! If you are able to make a four or five in a line (subject to availability), I will give you a free Bingo Row t-shirt illustrated by Ryan Claytor! I'm really excited about this design, and seeing folks wearing this shirt around the show. Last years' giveaway was very successful. I'm looking forward to seeing friends old and new at York, and playing some new games. See you there! If you'd like to purchase a t-shirt (if you're not able to make it to York), check out the podcast website, to buy your own today.
What's that T-Shirt? Illustrated by amazing pinball artist, Ryan Claytor, these incredibly soft, ring-spun t-shirts are the same quality as my podcast t-shirts. These shirts will be available in extremely limited quantities at the White Rose gameroom show in York, PA Sept 30th and Oct 1st as giveaways for anyone who can make a four or five in line on any of the glorious bingos in bingo row! Or, if you cannot attend, or just want to ensure you get one of your very own, you can buy below. Domestic (U.S.) Orders Sizes XS $20.00 USD S $20.00 USD M $20.00 USD L $20.00 USD XL $20.00 USD 2XL $22.00 USD 3XL $25.00 USD International T-Shirts Sizes XS $20.00 USD S $20.00 USD M $20.00 USD L $20.00 USD XL $20.00 USD 2XL $22.00 USD 3XL $25.00 USD
Steve Young is the owner of the Pinball Resource, and he is a wealth of knowledge. We discuss his start in the hobby, some of his best-loved games, thoughts on specific games, the business of pinball, and much more! Visit to see some of the parts that are available. Steve is constantly working to bring us new parts, and you can see some of his work at . Contact Steve for parts orders at 845-473-7114. You can also email Jimmy at Pinball Resource is a fantastic, well... resource! Thank you, Steve!
The Multi-Bingo is working very well! I am having a lot of fun losing on a variety of games in a single cabinet. Right now I have (mostly) working: Bright Lights (100%) Broadway '51 (100%) Coney Island Spot-Lite Palm Beach Leader Zingo Circus Stars Atlantic City Barrel 'O Fun Barrel O' Fun 61 Fun Way Lotta Fun Stock Market Ticker Tape I have lots of bugfixing to do, and some cosmetic work to do before York. Dan from Tiltcycle has a United Manhattan for sale near the Pittsburgh area. A beautiful flipperless woodrail with fantastic artwork and challenging gameplay. Increasing your bonus, earning the double bonus and collecting it looks very fun - contact Dan for more information! I am working on artwork and portioning for additional games. I'm excited to show it off in just a matter of a few weeks!
The Multi-Bingo is alive!!! I've been playtesting and enjoying the gameplay of Bright Lights and Broadway '51. All 13 games currently implemented have changes that were required once the actual hardware was plugged in. I'm working on a new game! For tonight's featured game, I learned about 1952's Bally Miss California this week: Miss California is a re-themed Atlantic City without the Extra Ball feature. It was apparently produced for the West Coast.
The game is just about ready to test! I have a switch issue, and a couple of computer issues that I have resolved, then I should be playing a ton of new bingos. :-D There's a solid state magic screen game called Palm Beach Turbo for sale by the operator near Baltimore, MD. Please contact me if you are interested in an inexpensive solid state bingo! http://www.ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=5495 Today's featured game is 1960's Bally Ball Park - the first and only game that Bally produced with a running man unit. I really wonder why that might have happened. A fairly straightforward two player pitch and bat, Bally Park has a moving red target that will score four runs when hit! http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2890
The game's schematic is complete and now I am beginning to wire it up! So exciting to see the game move from conceptual phases to physical reality. Much, much more work left to do, but things are coming along nicely! Today's game is 1967's Bally Boot-a-Ball. This is a head-to-head EM soccer game. Each player has three sets of flippers to attempt to get the ball into their opponent's goal. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=356
The game is starting to become a physical reality now! I went on a road trip over the weekend to pick up hardware from Dennis Dodel. Had a great time, and Ava and I got to meet Dennis and his friend Jon. Now, I'm working on the hardware and wiring, and I am more excited than ever! Today's game is 1962's Williams 3 Coins. 3 Coins is the replay version of Jolly Jokers. The layout is unique and interesting to play, as well as a lot of fun. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2535
My multi-bingo has come along well - up to 8 completed games, and another two in progress. Many thanks to Dennis Dodel, Chris Dade and Bingo Butch and his son Mike! Next episode I should have the first hardware episode. This episode's game is 1965's Bally 50/50. Bally has made an interesting, low-production 2 player game here - 1/2 of the playfield is essentially not useful for scoring or progression at any given time. http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=842&picno=9964
Game progress: my game is coming along very well! I have Coney Island, Bright Lights, Broadway '51, and United Zingo reasonably finished. Now, I am working on United's Leader and Bally's Spot-Lite. My code, to this point, has been released at I'll be keeping this updated as I add each new game. Today's game is 1964's Bally 2-in-1. Very fun looking game where you have to get a hand to 21, then hold. The trouble comes in that next ball, you will get a hit unless you hit a particular rebound switch off the skill shot. View the machine at http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=2698
Sal Mazzeo is a slot machine collector and restorer, and joins me for this episode of For Amusement Only. He has a fantastic collection that has really sparked my new-found interest in slot machines! He has multiple articles in Gameroom Magazine, as well as the COCA magazine. Sal has made the generous offer for anyone looking for help with slots to shoot him an email at mazzeosa@fuse.net As an interview episode, I did not wish to add in the development update this time, but the development of my multi-bingo is going very well indeed! You can follow along here:
I'm working on the artwork and integration of the artwork with the code for Coney Island. Special thanks to Chris Dade and Ryan Claytor for all the help! This episode is all about the 1950 Bally Turf King. I picked up this game back in January, and decided to have my eldest daughter do all the renovation/restoration on the game. Ava did a fantastic job, and unbelievably, she was interested every step of the way! The game is complete, and the only thing that really needs to be done one day is to polish the shooter rod housing and coin acceptor slot. Otherwise, it looks beautiful, and plays great! Ava discusses some of the things that she learned during this odyssey, and she and I discuss gameplay and the difference between her and my gameplay styles. Lastly, I discuss a deal on bingos in Baltimore, MD. Contact me at if you're interested in one of the bingos, or for more information.
In this episode, I talk about what is done and in progress for my Coney Island simulator/emulator, 1962's Williams Valiant 2-player EM, the 8 Ball ball trough from Pinball Life, a fun repair on a search disc, and some corrections, thank yous, and more! Links of interest: Phil Hooper's awesome bingo site: 1962 Williams Valiant:
Pinball Life's 8 Ball ball trough:
Elephant Eater Comics (Ryan Claytor's awesome artwork):
And my new (small) podcast, Virtually Human, a show all about the Nintendo Virtual Boy:
Happy Birthday For Amusement Only! In this episode, I discuss how to try bingo pinball on your own computer. A big thank you to my wife for illustrating the Episode 365 artwork! A fellow named Joop in the Netherlands has been developing bingo emulators, and releasing on the web for Windows and Mac OS X. His simulations are fantastic! Go check them out and try them for yourself. If you have any questions about how to play, feel free to ask me at and I'll be happy to explain. Download here: A person on the Bally Bingos in Britain forums has been using Joop's emulator and putting it into a physical cabinet - pretty cool!
Lastly, I've been working on a bingo emulator, fully programmed to change between Bally bingos. I will be using a lower cabinet from a real bingo. This will include the lifter hardware, shutter hardware, trough, tilt, etc. I will use an empty backbox, fit an LCD monitor in the back, and use a computer to both drive and keep track of the game state, and drive the monitor. Playfields will be swappable to allow for multiple games with different playfield features! The vast majority of the games will be playable with any 25 hole playfield. I will eventually release the code for the world to critique, but keep in mind that I am not a skilled programmer (in my own mind, at least). I am using the P-ROC framework due to familiarity with the Python programming language, and the ability of the P-ROC hardware to drive high power motors such as the ball lifter. I'm very excited about the potential for this system, and am looking forward to all the learning I have ahead of me, understanding the reflex and mixer documentation for each game! I've started with Night Club, but then dropped back to Coney Island as it is much simpler and has no backglass animation.
Pro Basketball is a cool mannikin arcade game. The basic premise is that it is a one-on-one basketball shootout - you play as the offense, and the defense will automatically move left and right, raising and lowering their arms. You have to watch the score board in the back to determine when you should shoot for maximum effectiveness. Gameplay video: https://youtu.be/0DyIAot5VX0
Duet is a very beautiful and interesting machine. There are three ways to win, and the player must select before playing, or put in another nickel to load the full ruleset of the game. Completing the sequence of 1-10 will award 20 replays, with the possibility of earning a 'reserve' set of replays - up to 200! http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=3065&picno=64416&zoom=1
I missed one machine from the bicentennial - Liberty Bell is almost a carbon copy of Williams' own Grand Prix. Earning a special requires advancing the starts four times, then dropping all four drop targets. Tough! The spinners have rockets screened on them, to represent "the rockets' red glare". Gameplay Video: https://youtu.be/zWsUZ-bxfjo
I'm not big on after-factory modifications with few exceptions, but these are very interesting. Also, I saw LEDs used in a way behind a very faded backglass that appeared to work well! Bingo Chime Units: http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Old-Stock-Bally-Bingo-Game-Sound-Chime-Kit-with-Add-on-Factory-Kit-/231849933979?hash=item35fb553c9b:g:IoUAAOSwDuJWxg4W Chris Howard's "Golden Gates" - truly masterful! http://www.ballybingo.co.uk/Golden%20Gates.html
Gottlieb invented a new mechanism for launching balls in 1950 - the turret shooter. This launcher allowed designers more space on the playfield to add targets, and gave players the ability to choose their entry angle onto the playfield. A pretty nifty idea that was used by other manufacturers over the years.
Derby Day is a neat take on a flipper game with a horse race theme. The upper playfield contains a single gobble hole and four passive bumpers that can advance one of four horses, whose position is displayed via inserts in the center of the playfield. The bottom portion contains a single pop bumper, which can pop the ball back up to the flippers (in the center portion). You main goal is to advance all four horses to the Win position, then roll over the center button to earn a replay. You can earn many multiple replays by lining up your horses in Show, Place or Win, then shooting into the gobble hole. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=664
Galaxy and other Sega games used several interesting mechanisms: Slings that work via pressure from the ball hitting a large piece of plastic instead of ganged switches, and pop bumpers that are a single piece of plastic rather than using a rod and ring assembly. On top of that, Galaxy has an under-playfield magnet that will move the ball from left to right, similar to the Mist ball on Bram Stoker's Dracula. Neat stuff!
Gameplay video: https://youtu.be/bBFtqw0rKpY
Freedom is a fun game from the bicentennial. Bally's take has some more interesting artwork and a fun ruleset. This was one of the changeover games that was made in both EM and solid state versions. The early production had 1776 and 1976 on the backglass, but operators asked that this be removed as it would make the machine 'dated'. Kind of funny for a game themed on the bicentennial. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=952
Spirit of '76 came in three flavors: The four player was Spirit of '76. The two player version was Pioneer and the add-a-ball version was New York. Spirit of '76 is all about increasing your bonus, but the player can double the bonus on each ball, earn extra balls or replays by completing the A-E sequence, hitting all 8 drop targets and landing in the kickout hole. Fun game!
Chicago Coin Rapid Transit Restoration:
Ryan Claytor's Latest Pinball Artwork: Pinball at the Zoo:
Stern pinball shirt: http://costore.com/sternpinball/productenlarged.asp?ProductId=5516824
My interviewee tonight is Chris Dade, a man who has done quite a bit for the bingo hobby! He has scanned, touched up, and reproduced many of the Bally bingo backglasses, as well as several of the bingo playfields. He also started the Bally Bingos in Britain forums, located at - this is an excellent resource, with many clever people providing help and information. It also gives a neat window into the UK bingo scene for us folks in the US! Take a moment and look over Chris' collection at - click 'My Machines' to see his beauties. He also has some great stories and other information on his website. He notes that whereas in the US, 20 replays would be a dollar, to earn a pound, you needed 80 replays! That's quite a jump! Thank you to Chris for his patience and time answering my questions.
My 1947 Mystery started blowing fuses - it was time to pull it out from the wall and troubleshoot. Here's the story of how I corrected the issues and what went wrong.
Nags is a unique game from Williams with two interesting features - It is one of a small handful of horse racing themed games that Williams made with a horse racing unit with six horses that can move independently along a track, until one finishes. This game is also the only game from the 'big three' manufacturers that had a rotating platter of six pop bumpers. Each bumper hit would advance one horse toward the prize. 25 cents on 'Stinky' for me! http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=1654
Bally bingos made after 1960 had multiple tilt states - a 'hard' state, from which the game could not be revived without additional money or credits, and a 'soft' state or 'sleeping' state that would allow the player to revive the game by pressing the 'R' button, or playing for extra balls.
A unique mechanism in later Bally bingos, the auto-mission coin divider allowed operators to automatically set aside a portion of the game earnings in a special cashbox for the bar owner.
What if the game you purchased accepted nickels from the factory, but you want to put it on route and collect quarters to match other games that you may have in various locations? You have to add extra switches or change adjustments to accept the new denomination. If you wish to just do a one-for-one coin exchange, you just change out the coin mech, but if you want to provide some extra value for higher denominations, you have to add additional circuitry. This gets more complex in Bally bingos, since you have multiple systems that are already working together in the start circuit.
Moon Shot is a neat game with a unique set of ball return gates (shaped like metal flipper bats) on the left and right outlanes. The layout looks like a skilled player can really rack up points easily by running up the rocket values to 500 points and collecting. Extra balls, two separate bonus steppers and cool Christian Marche artwork complete the package. http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=1628
In 1963, Bally was hunting around for a replacement for their bingo business in the U.S. Things were looking rather bleak, until they hired Ted Zale, the designer that would add multiball, chicane lanes, etc. to later games. For his first effort, Moon Shot, he made a 100% carbon copy of Gottlieb's Tropic Isle from the year before. I've had the pleasure of playing Tropic Isle, but I've never seen a Moon Shot. Tropic Isle has two sets of two pop bumpers, and an A-B-C-D sequence to make a monkey climb a tree on the backglass. Once you get three monkeys up the tree (this is a carryover feature), the game will award specials! You can also light special by completing 1-5 at the top rollovers. Moon Shot is very much the same with a space theme. Tropic Isle:
Moon Shot: http://ipdb.org/machine.cgi?id=1627
Continuing last night's episode, some interesting tidbits learned while in Ohio, some games I've been working on recently, and various other things going on in my world. Follow along on the Turf King fix-up: Vote to add bingos as a separate topic of discussion on the Pinside forum: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/do-we-need-a-sub-forum-for-bingo-machines-poll
I spent a few days in Ohio recently, and wanted to discuss some of the games I played and various features that I was either incorrect about in my speculation, or thought would bear in-person impressions. Had a blast losing on all these bingos!
Continental is the very last Bally bingo pinball produced. In 1980, a Belgian firm ordered the entire run be shipped overseas. This firm ended up using the designs and creating their own line of bingos - which have been produced up to this day (over several company name changes)! Note that at least some of these games were put out on location in the US - interesting! Continental is a six card bingo - in fact, it's a feature-for-feature remake of 1978's Dixieland. The only difference is the solid state boardset that drives all of the computation. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/continental/resources/pf-continental-1.jpg
Malibu Beach was the last EM bingo that Bally produced, and the final Magic Screen game. This game has exactly the same feature set as Laguna Beach (produced twenty years earlier!). Rumor has it that Nevada asked for a rerun of Laguna Beach to put in the casinos in 1980, and Bally would not agree to reproduce the earlier title. Instead, they agreed to make an entirely new title with the same features. Nevada changed their mind after Bally went to the trouble of producing the games... and as such, "somehow", the games got out into the world. It seems to be a fairly common game for home collectors, as I've seen several. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/malibu_beach/resources/pf-malibu_beach-1.jpg
Tahiti is a love/hate game - the last of the 20 hole machines that Bally produced, Tahiti brings back the ball return feature from Galaxy. Instead of returning half of the card, it will return only the balls in either section B or C. The Mystic Lines return, but this time, can be awarded in any order. You can earn only C or B and so on. The red letter game does not return, nor do extra balls. Bally also reduced the amount of replays earned for all four numbers in the star zones to 100. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/tahiti/resources/pf-tahiti-1.jpg
Galaxy is a one-off bingo with a 24 hole playfield. You cannot bring the ball back to a ball return on this game. You can actually return one half of the numbers to shoot again. You can also move two columns at a time up or down one position (on this 6x4 card). This game does not have the spotted numbers features from Miss Universe (another interesting experiment), but it does have extra balls. Galaxy looks like it was completely engineered to make you lose a ton of money, quickly. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/galaxy/resources/pf-galaxy-1.jpg
ROMANCE! Another holiday visit from Fake Nick Baldridge, this time with a very special guest. Miriam Cobblebottom, widow of the Nantucket Nickel company figurehead, Eustacious Cobblebottom, provides some revelatory insight into the little-known pingame manufacturer’s company history. Thanks, FNB!
Miss America Deluxe is the last of the Miss America games made by Bally. It contains all the features (extra card, magic lines that move each row of numbers one position left and right, the red letter game, corners scoring on the main card, all 4 star zones score your green 5 in a line odds, and roll overs to extend your time for the moving numbers feature) of Miss America Supreme from the year before. This game adds the 'red diagonals' feature from High Flyer! In this case, they call them 'Striped Diagonals'. This allows you to win on the odd diagonals, but only on the extra card. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/miss_america_deluxe/resources/pf-miss_america_deluxe-1.jpg
High Flyer is another great six card bingo. This machine has an eight coin max. Your first six coins light the bingo cards, and coins 7 and 8 light the red diagonals (diagonal connections between odd diagonals) on each card. There are rollovers to light super lines and corners for each card, and the Double or Nothing feature returns! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/high_flyer/resources/pf-high_flyer-1.jpg
The third Miss America game from Bally - typified by two bingo cards side-by-side with the ability to move numbers on each row left and right one position. Miss America Supreme adds 'Star numbers' which can be used to earn 5 in a row green odds, or start a red letter game! Corners score red 5 in a line, extra balls, and alternating rollovers return from Miss America '75. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/miss_america_supreme/resources/pf-miss_america_supreme-1.jpg
Bonanza is the last of the Magic Squares games. Aside from the standard corner mounted squares, there is also a center Magic Line, allowing for some great action - necessary as there are four different colors on the bingo card, corresponding to four true independently moving odds sections. This game has no extra balls, but has an extended time tree to after 5th, corners scoring for 100 and 200 (at random), and a huge redesign of many of the units inside the head. This game would be interesting to work on - many units are actually simplified. A bell will sound as you earn features or odds jumps! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
Internals: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/bonanza/resources/int-bonanza-1.jpg
Bali is a three card bingo pinball with a few interesting features: 1) 7 coin max - the game gives you all you can get with 7 coins 2) First three coins light the three cards 3) Second three coins will light "Super Score" - doubling 4-in-line and 5-in-line wins on all three cards 4) Last coin will give you a guaranteed extra ball. Backglass (modified):
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/bali/resources/pf-bali-1.jpg
Jeffrey and Robert rejoin the show to talk about various bingos, issues with Bally's design as engineering changed the design of various units, unique or unusual features that were only used once or twice, United games, and the fun method used for us to play the games at Robert and Jeffrey's homes. I had a great time visiting Robert and Jeffrey - can't wait to talk about the games I got to try on the trip! Some of the photos from Robert's collection and a great photo of myself, Jeffrey and Robert: https://goo.gl/photos/6F4Lfho9kFv4X9u57
Blue Chip is another great six card bingo - 25 holes, super lines, corners scoring and Double or Nothing - along with the potential to light a center spotted number with additional coins. The player can actually move the center spotted number between cards, which gives great control and the ability to turn a losing card into a winner! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/blue_chip/resources/pf-blue_chip-1.jpg
Wall Street is the next in the series of six card bingo revivals that Bally produced in the 70s. Super Lines, Corners scoring, and each card has a chance at lighting the center number as a spotted number! On top of this, the Double or Nothing feature returns. A chance at 600 replays is hard to pass up. Great game, great features, great cabinet art. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/wall_street/resources/pf-wall_street-1.jpg
Hawaii is the follow-on to Double-Up. It contains all of the features of Double-Up, including the player controlled doubling of any one section, but brings back Stop and Shop, allowing the player to pay additional money for a chance to increase both their odds and features. This is different from previous titles with Stop and Shop, like Cypress Gardens, in that those titles would only allow you to play for a chance at increasing odds. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/hawaii/resources/pf-hawaii-1.jpg
Hole in One - as far as anyone has found - is only a backglass. It depicts a 6 card bingo with a few intriguing mysteries: 1) There is a golfer rating - good, excellent or superior. What is this for? 2) The replay register is masked off and only a single digit is shown. Why? 3) What happened to the rest of the game? How many were made? 4) Did this ever make it into limited production? Backglass: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/hole_in_one/resources/bg-hole_in_one-1.png
Stock Market marks the return to 25 hole bingo production, and the return of the six card! This game has corners scoring and introduces the Double or Nothing feature. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/stock_market/resources/pf-stock_market-1.jpg
Bonus-7 is the sister game to Super-7. You have your standard (at this point) Mystic Lines gameplay, but now, the extra game is called Bonus-7 and has similar rules to Super-7. Bonus-7 requires you to make a number combination with your first two balls that equal 7. Next, you have to get a red outlined hole, then yellow, then red. This machine also includes a sunburst feature that will automatically award you maximum odds on the Bonus-7 game on your next game! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/bonus_7/resources/pf-bonus_7-1.jpg
Super-7 brings a new layout to the Mystic Lines and the Super 7 bonus game! The bonus game requires you to hit two holes that add up to 7, then hit alternating red or yellow holes. These bonus games sound so difficult and fun! Backglass:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/super_7/resources/pf-super_7-1.jpg
Safari has a unique 'tower game' on the right hand side of the backglass: the Animal Feature. You coin this up with the white button, and the idea is that several holes on the playfield will move you up or down. Ideally you move either all the way up or all the way down. This will light the giraffe, which gives you your best payout! The same Mystic Lines gameplay from London returns, including the Twin Number feature. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/safari/resources/pf-safari-1.jpg
London is a Mystic Lines bingo with a couple of really cool features. There is a "Twin Numbers" feature that will light either 17 or 18 if you get one or the other number. Same for 11 and 19. That is a really powerful extra feature. The 'tower game' on this machine is the "Triple Play". In this case, the game has a symbol for each hole on the playfield (three different). Your first ball can land in any hole, but then you have to aim for one of the other two symbols. Your third must be the last symbol. At that point, you can cash out, or you can shoot the flashing symbol to increase your payout. You can also do this with your 5th ball! Accomplishing this meta-game while accomplishing your goals on the standard Mystic Lines game would be challenging indeed. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/london/resources/pf-london-1.jpg
Venice is a 20 hole bingo machine. This game carries forth the Double-Up special game from the previous game, Orient. In this case, the max payout has been increased. The same alternating hole gameplay applies, though. I think this feature would be very fun. All 4 star zones can also pay up to 900 replays! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
Orient is a great 20 hole game with an entry into a whole new world of features: solid state! That's right, in 1967 Bally was using solid state in a production game! The solid state component is a 'white-button' feature - a whole separate game that will allow you to play by alternating sinking even and odd numbers. Very cool, especially as you have to pay attention to the main Mystic Lines game underneath! Backglass (modified to say Bamboo):
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/orient/resources/pf-orient-1.jpg
Bahama Beach is the next to last beach-themed bingo that Bally produced. The beach themes are iconic and (mostly) timeless, aside from the swimwear. This game contains all the features of the previous, but entirely new artwork, in case the cabaret theme was too racy. It may also have been a sign that the game itself was very popular, as with the flipper games that reused the same layouts and rules. The playfield image is a reason not to move your bingo with balls in. It is easy to smash those light towers when the balls are clanking around. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/bahama_beach/resources/pf-bahama_beach-1.jpg
Folies Bergeres is the sister game to Beauty Beach. It also contains the ability to double or triple one set of odds, quadruple deck scoring, extra balls, the red letter game, all 4 star zones score 300 or 600 replays and Mystic Lines! Flier: http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=3105&picno=5764
Beauty Beach contains all of the features of the previous game, Border Beauty, but adds tripled odds for one color. Along with, it can double odds for one color, has the red letter game, and can award 300 or 600 replays for all 4 star zones. The Mystic Lines return for this game as well. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/beauty_beach/resources/pf-beauty_beach-2.jpg
Border Beauty is the first 20 hole bingo pinball game. It has a brand-new feature: Mystic Lines. This moving numbers feature allows you to swap columns of numbers on the left and right side of the bingo card, and move the center column up and down two positions. Border Beauty also allows you to double any color. Backglass:
Cabinet: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/border_beauty/resources/cab-border_beauty-3.jpg
Fun Spot '63 is the last of the "Ohio Dime Games" that Jeffrey Lawton has written about in "Bally Bingo Pinball Machines". These games award score rather than replays, and will retain your score from game to game, though it will reduce by 500 with each new game. As Jeffrey mentions in tonight's correction, the games always required a single coin drop. At that point, it will tick down your score until it either runs out or lights all six cards. Fun Spot '63 is pretty much exactly the same game as '62's model, but with a different cabinet. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/fun_spot_63/resources/pf-fun_spot_63-1.jpg
Shoot-A-Line is a one-off Bally bingo that has a unique playfield layout: 28 holes! Each row contains 7 holes, which would make this very challenging. Especially because each bingo card only contains 25 numbers! The backglass and cabinet artwork are not very inspired, and I am curious as to why Bally experimented with the playfield layout and iconic image, but the playfield artwork is pretty great! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
Flyer:
"Look! 28 Holes!"
Lido is one of the two Futurity games (Bikini is the other). Often praised for their use as home games, these games will allow you to save up your OK game and play it at a later time. In this way, rather than relying on the green odds to advance to a particular point before really playing to light the OK feature, you can earn advances on the Futurity for even low green odds. Lido has a fantastic art package. For those who have not seen Phil Bogema's restored Lido, I have before and after photos on my Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages. Check those out - incredibly impressive! I cannot link those here, but these are great photos of the artwork. Backglass (with some Magic Screen sections showing):
Playfield:
Cabinet: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/lido/resources/cab-lido-1.jpg
Barrel-O-Fun '61 and '62 and Fun Spot '61 and '62 are "Ohio Dime Games" as Jeffrey Lawton calls them in his book "Bally Bingo Pinball Machines". I've wrapped four games into one episode since Barrel-O-Fun '61 and '62 are the same game (run in different years), and Fun Spot '61 and '62 are the same game as Barrel-O-Fun without the replay button on the front of the game. These games are six card bingos that do not earn replays. Instead, they earn 'score' which can be used to play new games... but are not at all replays. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/barrel_o_fun_61/resources/pf-barrel_o_fun_61-1.jpg
Can Can is a beautiful magic screen bingo with a great feature set. This game has extended time, rollovers, extra balls, a blue section that scores 300 or 600, an orange section that scores as green or gives the OK game. On top of all that, you can also light both super sections (which allow you to score 2 as 3, 3 as 4, and 4 as 5) via the white button on the front of the cab. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/can_can/resources/pf-can_can-1.jpg
Lite-A-Line is a fantastic, difficult six card bingo. This machine has the possibility of a random, spotted center number, and yellow lines, which score differently than the rest of each card. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/lite_a_line/resources/pf-lite_a_line-1.jpg
Touchdown is the first Magic Numbers bingo that Bally produced. Instead of a 2x2 square of numbers that rotates, you have a 3x2 rectangle that rotates! Pic-a-play returns with triple-deck scoring, an extended time tree, a center spotted number, and the ability to earn a 5-in-a-line by sinking balls in each of the numbers in the bottom-right quadrant (the star numbers). Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
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Fun-Spot is another of the "Ohio Dime Games" as Jeffrey Lawton, author of Bally Bingo Pinball Machines, calls them. Instead of earning replays on these machines, you earn a lighted score advance for each 3, 4, or 5 in a row. This six card game has another fantastic carnival or state fair-themed art package, and brings in a regular six card bingo feature - Super Lines! Backglass:
Cabinet: http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=969&picno=60286 Playfield:
T-Shirts! These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Laguna Beach is next in our chronological tour of Bally's bingos! It is a Magic Screen game with the OK feature, super sections, an extended time tree, blue section scores as green 5, and orange section scores as green. Beautiful artwork and very fun gameplay make this a great bingo. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
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Ava and I spent the evening together - I taught her some of the basic schematic symbols, along with some very basic troubleshooting, like checking continuity. We recap the info from tonight. Her impressions and reactions to this new information - we're in the home stretch of the Turf King. T-Shirts - These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Fun Way is the first of a few games that Jeffrey Lawton calls the "Ohio Dime Games". Please see the book Bally Bingo Pinball Machines for more information. Fun Way is a six card bingo - instead of earning replays, you earn a 'score' - the score can, in fact, be used exactly like a replay. Wonder if you could gamble with that? ;-) Backglass:
Cabinet: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/fun_way/resources/cab-fun_way-2.jpg Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/fun_way/resources/pf-fun_way-1.jpg These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Sea Island was Bally's second Magic Screen game - they added another section of the screen, and according to Phil's site, bingo.cdyn.com, they made it easier to achieve the feature. A full extended time tree (after 5th) gives the player the ability to score in each color. The extra section completely changes the gameplay with the small, difficult blue section. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
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Carnival Queen ushers in the era of the Magic Screen! Magic Screen games are the most popular among many bingo players. Instead of a flat bingo card, there is instead a movable grid that makes up each column of the bingo card. As you move the screen, each column will shift and reveal colored sections. If you land three in the section (not necessarily adjacent!) you will win the indicated replays on the backglass. This game was also the first to feature the 'R' button to register your replays. Prior games would automatically find winners and count them up. Now, it is totally under the player's control. Backglass:
Cabinet (this shows the screen revealed):
Playfield:
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Beach Time expands on the concepts used in Sun Valley and Cypress Gardens! Every number on the bingo card can be moved to another postion, the ballyhole awards you all the moving numbers features on the next game, and the game has stop and shop before 3rd, 4th or 5th ball! Extra balls, extended time tree for moving numbers, corners scoring and a beautiful art package really make this quite a winner in my mind. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
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Cypress Gardens is a very highly regarded Magic Squares bingo. Centrally located Magic Squares with a single Magic Line at the bottom, triple deck scoring, extra balls, a carry-over Ballyhole feature, and Stop and Shop (increasing your bet during gameplay)! Beautiful artwork: Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
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Ava has been learning how to fix EM machines. She has been a very good student and has learned how to clean steppers, test bulbs, solder, and more! Hear Ava's thoughts about the work and Turf King's artwork. T-Shirts?!? Yes, it's true. They are still available. These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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My grandfather has been a 'picker' for most of his life, trading various items for others - mostly antiques, though he has dabbled occasionally with coin-op. He was very interested to see the new game, so I captured his reaction and his pinball on location story from years ago. The game he references in the beginning of the recording is a mechanical horse race game - as near as I can tell a trade stimulator. These games with mechanical animation are both interesting and valuable. T-Shirts! These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Brent is one of the co-hosts for the Broken Token Arcade and Pinball Podcast. If you have not listened to Broken Token, pause your player and check it out at http://www.brokentoken.com Two collector friends speak about collecting, repair tips, useful reproductions and community topics and more! Always entertaining and informative. Brent and I discuss his collecting habits and fantastic gameroom, along with his excellent power switch box for his games, solid state repair in the long term, and I try ever-so-subtly to convince him to buy an EM. T-Shirts: These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Steve is a fellow collector who happened to come across a Turf King! Steve recorded an interview with me after loading the game, which was thankfully less difficult than previous moves. We discuss how he happened upon this game, it's history with him, his history with collecting and more. Steve was gracious enough to let me play his collection - fun and beautiful games! Thanks Steve! T-Shirts! These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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In the world of the EM, one of the biggest and most interesting devices is the 35mm film projector. In this episode, I teach you how to run your own carbon arc projector, cut cues, run a Brenograph machine, dim the lights and open the curtains! I worked as a projectionist for several years before starting my career, and as a box office attendant for a couple of years before that. The Byrd Theatre is an amazing movie palace that is both still standing and still used to show movies daily!
Information about the organ:
Great photo of the organ:
Now, T-shirts! I'll be taking pre-orders for the next two weeks, and if we have at least a dozen commitments, I'll be sending in the order to the printers (otherwise, I will refund your money). These will be available to pre-order only until 1/18/16. For listeners in the US - shipping $4.50:
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Showtime is the first game to feature Magic Squares rearranged into the center of the backglass. This game also features the first Magic Line - in this case, a set of four moving numbers that rotate across using an additional two discs behind the backglass. The ballyhole gives first extra ball, rollovers can extend the time tree to after 5th, triple deck scoring, and corners score as green 5-in-line. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/show_time/resources/pf-show_time-1.jpg
Key West is the first bingo that Bally produced that allowed you to collect wins in triple deck scoring before you were locked out of the moving numbers feature (in this case, Magic Squares). Collecting in multiple colors is a great thrill. The ballyhole returns - awarding first extra ball, corners score green 5-in-a-line, and also a first for this game, you can swap the red and yellow scores if one or the other is higher and you want to earn those extra replays! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/key_west/resources/pf-key_west-1.jpg
Big Show is a magic squares game, notable for being the first game with triple deck scoring! Corners score as 5-in-a-row in green, extra balls, magic squares in traditional position, and spotted numbers 2 or 18. Ballyhole lights first extra ball. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/big_show/resources/pf-big_show-1.jpg
Double Header is another unique game! Bally made two separate games in one - the first game is a static bingo card with multiple spotted numbers and select-a-spot. Red yellow and green lines can score double or triple. The second game is a Magic Squares game. It does not have the double, triple or quadruple scoring, but it has multiple spotted numbers. Beautiful baseball-themed artwork round out this real bingo rarity! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/double_header/resources/pf-double_header-1.jpg
Parade is another unique game in the Bally bingo pantheon: the Extra Lines feature allows you two extra rows of repeated numbers to try to put together a winner. Advancing odds, up to quadruple replays awarded for a winner, magic squares and extra balls. There are no spotted numbers on this game, but the Ballyhole returns to award first extra ball. Backglass:
Backglass with second extra line exposed:
Playfield:
Broadway was the first game Bally produced with Magic Squares! Magic Squares allow you to rotate each of the four corner quadrants via player control on the footrail. Broadway has red and yellow lines that allow you to earn up to triple odds over what is indicated by the advancing odds. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/broadway/resources/pf-broadway-1.jpg
Beach Beauty is another Bally one-off game - this game's unique feature is 'Wild Pockets'. Based on the machine qualifying green or red, you have to sink a ball into one of 7 holes to qualify the feature. From there, you can move that ball into another position! The backglass is split basically in half, one side red, the other green. Corners scoring, advancing odds, extra balls, super cards, and more fantastic beach-themed artwork. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/beach_beauty/resources/pf-beach_beauty-1.jpg
Miami Beach was another experiment by Bally. In this case, they tried a feature called "Magic Curtains". The bingo card is actually 9x5. By default, only a 5x5 card is shown, and as you insert coins, you may reveal additional sections of the card. As you do this, other features may be revealed. Advancing odds, extra balls, 'corners scoring' (not exactly), 3 scores as 4 or 5, and great artwork. Backglass (Curtain in default position):
Backglass (Curtain in expanded position):
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/miami_beach/resources/pf-miami_beach-1.jpg
Gayety is one of only two games with the Magic Pockets feature. This feature allows you to kick the balls physically from hole number 1 to number 7 and back again, stopping anywhere along the way. The game will spot numbers at mystery intervals, has corners scoring, three columns of Magic Lines, and has the "3 scores as 4" feature. Extra balls allow you to have up to 8 chances at getting a 5 in a row. I hope everyone had a great Christmas or happy holidays. :-) Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
Flier explaining Magic Pockets: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/gayety/resources/fly-gayety-1.jpg
A special holiday episode with repeat guest host, Fake Nick Baldridge, who once again joins the For Amusement Only podcast to discuss esoteric pingame manufacturer, Nantucket Nickel, and their second production release. Thanks, FNB!
Big Time is a Magic Lines moving numbers game that allows you to move each column of numbers up or down one position! The catch is that you earn that feature at mystery intervals. Between advancing odds and this feature, the game has spotted number rollovers, extra balls, and corners scoring, along with two super cards. Great game, beautiful artwork! I was very happy to see and play this game at York this year. Big thanks to the person who brought the game. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/big_time/resources/pf-big_time-2.jpg
Variety is a single card bingo - the first with moving numbers! In this case, Magic Lines. Magic Lines allow you to move the first three columns of numbers (on this game) up or down one position. This increased the winning potential for players, and really opened up Bally to experiment with different designs and player-friendly features. The fixed numbers on earlier games of course allowed for complex gameplay, but this innovation really took things to another level. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield:
Flyer describing Magic Lines: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/variety/resources/fly-variety-2.jpg
Hi-Fi is a single card bingo with super cards, select-a-spot, advancing odds, extra balls, and the 'Bump' feature (only used on this machine). The artwork is music-themed and gorgeous. Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/hi_fi/resources/pf-hi_fi-1.jpg
Surf Club is yet another fantastic Bally bingo with a complete integrated art package, select-a-spot, super cards (qualified via rollovers), extra balls, a Super Line (3 in a row score as 5!), advancing odds, and ... the hold feature returns with a twist! Backglass:
Cabinet:
Playfield: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/surf_club/resources/pf-surf_club-1.jpg
Ice Frolics has the super score system of Frolics (one card scores based on advancing odds, the rest are fixed payout), but adds the Hold feature used on Palm Springs. Corners, Extra Balls, three cards, rollovers, and the ability to choose your Super Score card (with an extended time tree) make this a very deep bingo experience. Backglass:
Playfield:
Cabinet:
Technical Info: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/ice_frolics/
Palm Springs is one of only a small number of Bally bingos with the 'hold' feature. This allowed you to hold only the odd numbers, only the even numbers, or hold all. The rest of the balls would drop back down, allowing you to shoot again! This game has two super cards, corners scoring, advancing odds, extra balls, and select-a-spot. Fantastic looking player. Backglass:
Playfield:
Cabinet:
Technical Information: http://bingo.cdyn.com/machines/bally/palm_springs/
Dude Ranch is a highly-regarded bingo. A two card bingo with a super card, super lines, select-a-spot, extra balls and corners scoring! Advancing odds, and rollover spotted numbers round out the package. More fantastic bingo artwork!
Beach Club has a single main card and two 'super cards' - 3x3 sets of numbers that score 3 in a rows as 4! The game also features corners scoring on both the main card and the super cards, up to seven spotted numbers using the select-a-spot dial on the front of the cab, extra balls, and amazing artwork.
Bally's Beauty is a really fantastic looking three card bingo with advancing odds, extra balls, spotted numbers and ... the first game to feature select-a-spot! By turning a knob on the front door, you can choose one of five numbers to spot across all the bingo cards. If you need more (for some reason), this game also offered corner scoring on the center card. Beautiful, fun, thought-provoking game!
Bright Spot is a six card bingo, made as a follow-on to Frolics, which had come out earlier in 1952. Whereas Frolics introduced some new features and ideas to six card players, Bright Spot brings players back to basics: a spotted number which lights one center number (a mystery to the player until the first ball is shot), the manual ball lifter is back, and fixed payouts for each card make this a quick, clear six card game. Beautiful artwork (love the cityscape on the curvature of the Earth beneath)!
Here's some stuff that's been going on in my pinball world recently (really more than a month, been holding onto this stuff for almost a month!) If you haven't listened to 'This Flippin' Podcast' yet, be sure to check that out. They discuss new machines and various other things in their pinball lives (including EMs).
Adam is one of the hosts of the One and Done Pinball Podcast, and picked up his first EM a few months ago, a Williams Grand Prix. We talk about what was needed to bring it back to life, gameplay, bingos, and general pinball.
A couple of quick techniques for figuring out wire colors when they are faded or covered with goo/junk.
Plus and Minus is another Gottlieb payout game from 1935! This game features the same Liberty Bell graphic on the playfield, and liberty bell mint vendor on the front of the cab, which led to confusion about the title of the game. Plus and Minus has multiple trap holes, each of which is labeled with a picture and a point value - either positive or negative!
Gottlieb's Liberty Bell was a good study in 'firsts'. This was Gottlieb's first game with a mint vendor attached (to skirt the illegality of payout pinball), and also was the beginning of the 'Liberty Bell' series that Gottlieb used to describe other payout games.
Match play is a payout game (Gottlieb's first EM payout game) that had an intriguing concept: fire one ball into a special playfield, then match the value of that ball on a special lower playfield with your second ball. If the values match, the game will pay out! Based on the point value matched, you will earn up to 20 coins!
Gottlieb made a variety of payout games from 1932-1947. Today's sample is their first payout game - 1932's Cloverleaf. Cloverleaf has a neat looping playfield design - shooting a marble around this playfield, your goal is to shake the ball into a center trough at the bottom. Doing so will pay you some number of pennies. Cool!
Baffle Card is a bingo-esque game from Gottlieb, made in October of the year before flippers were added to Humpty Dumpty. You light one of four cards on the backglass, and then attempt to get the largest set of numbers to earn special and extra specials via rollovers. One intriguing aspect is the concept of 'points' on this game. There are 5 point values, two of which are the same, and I suspect these would pay off. I've seen pics of the game and don't see any payout mechanism, but quite interesting. The head appears to have a knock off button mounted on the side, so it's possible that this would pay out nickels based on the number of points accrued per game. This is all high speculation, though! If anyone has any idea, please let me know.
Frolics is a uniquely interesting six card bingo - it has both advancing odds and the extra ball feature! Looks incredibly challenging to earn a significant number of replays, as max payout without this game's unique feature (the superscore) is only 50 replays. With the superscore, your maximum for a 5 in a row hit is 200.
Special guest host, Fake Nick Baldridge, returns to the For Amusement Only airwaves to discuss a little known pingame manufacturer and their first release. Thanks again, FNB!
Bally's Palm Beach was the follow-on to Atlantic City. It brought back pick-a-play, advancing odds, and added rollover buttons. The rollovers would spot up to five numbers, and you could also earn spotted numbers through red or yellow button play. Between the five spotted numbers and three extra balls, you had the ability to light up to 13 different numbers on the bingo card! A single card bingo, this was also the first game to feature super cards - the super card is a 3x3 grid, where a 3-in-a-line scores the 4-in-a-line odds.
Atlantic City was Bally's fourth production game, following Bright Lights, Coney Island, and Spot-Lite. Atlantic City was a slightly simpler game than Spot-Lite - a three card bingo with spotted numbers, extra balls, nice artwork and fixed payouts make this an interesting early bingo.
I missed uploading this in the correct order (first time that's happened in almost 300 episodes, I think I am doing ok ;-)), so apologies if you just noticed that the episodes jumped from 267 back to 264. Zodiac is a 20 hole Mystic Lines bingo themed after the astrological signs of the zodiac (as one might guess). Some player-friendly features like mystery awarded score doubling or tripling in one color, along with the excellent red letter game and Star Zone play. Zodiac has some fantastic backglass artwork, and a neat cabinet stencil.
This was actually the second Bally bingo produced - but it was either only made as samples or for a very limited run. The true second bingo Bally produced was Coney Island (see a previous episode for info on that excellent game). Same straightforward gameplay as Bright Lights, however, only a single card instead of six. This game also contains the same excellent artwork as Bright Lights, except for the backglass. Gorgeous early bingo!
Bally's Bright Lights was the first production Bingo by Bally in the post-1940s one ball horse race game world. Bright Lights is a straightforward six card bingo with no additional features. It has gorgeous artwork, a manual ball lift, and fixed payouts that are different than the standard Bally six card payouts.
United's Brazil has an interesting feature: the ability to spot up to three different numbers on three different rows! This game also features extra ball play, a single set of advancing odds, the United style of extended time tree, corners scoring, Lite-a-name (for an instant 5-in-a-line winner!), and the Pennant feature for earning your first extra ball automatically. With so many ways to win, why does this look like such a fun game? Because of how the features work together - I'm sure that most wins are just out of reach, even with all of the help shown above. Beautiful Molentin artwork.
I finally found it! The game I've been trying to remember for almost 1/2 of a year! This is the first example of a game with player-controlled kicking rubbers (or slingshots). Fun basketball theme, with some interesting ideas in the artwork as well as the gameplay.
We get a call on the bingos line - a listener wants to know how to safely work on a machine that has no on/off toggle switch, and how you can identify these machines.
In 1951, Chicago Coin created a game around a hit record 'The Thing'. Roy Parker created a fantastic art package with great integration of the theme. Every aspect of the song is found in the artwork and gameplay. The backglass tells the entire story from the song, while the playfield tasks you with collecting the 'thing' by shooting a box in the center of the playfield. One of the best ideas is the special noise that the pops make as the score motor rotates at intervals - Boom... Boom Boom. Thanks to Bruce Zamost for permission to use portions of his writeup and his photos - photos to be found on our Facebook or Instagram pages. One version of the song on which this game is based can be found on Youtube. Happy 'Thing'sgiving!
Super-Zeta was a rehash of the earlier Zeta with the addition of a backbox. Super-Zeta is another proto-bingo with the roulette style tub. This looks less appealing to play as the ball doesn't travel around the playfield, nor is the bumper in the center a pop, merely a spring bumper.
Oklahoma is a conversion game by United. Flipperless sequence game with a super special kickout at the bottom center of the playfield. Beautiful backglass artwork and interesting bumper orientation make this a fun looking game!
I explain in great (probably too much) detail what my troubleshooting technique is and how to apply it to any given game! First, review the schematic located at Then follow along while I explain how to find an issue with zipper flippers not closing.
When should you (and when shouldn't you) use high tap on your EM. High tapping the machine provides an extra amount of voltage to all coils in the machine. If you have low line conditions (less than 120V or a large draw on a given circuit), high tap may be appropriate. Otherwise, it can cause damage to the machine (potentially).
Phil is a bingo player and restorer who just picked up a large number of bingos. Great titles, and Phil is interested in selling many of the games. Excellent titles, such as Sun Valley, Miss America '57, Key West, Show Time and more! If you're interested in one of the games, I will get you in touch with Phil. Phil and I chat about some restoration topics and various items of interest. Here are some examples of Phil's excellent restoration work:
Genco's first effort was incredibly solid. Cabinet and playfield were made out of painted aluminum, and could be interchanged with future games. The game's playfield glass has the score and instructions screened on, along with the scoring information for each of the lanes at the bottom of the game. Very attractive for only using a small group of colors (red, yellow, brown), along with the combination lifter/shooter lever, and the coin slot on the side of the glass make for a very interesting machine.
A simplified version of Bingo - Baffle Ball has four large circular colored scoring sections, arranged in a diamond pattern. If you make a matching colored marble into the matching scoring circle, you earn double points! A small trap hole at the top will also double all scores. Due to the location and construction of the trap hole, landing a ball in that hole is best done on your last shot - otherwise, you are likely to knock the ball out of that hole. Baffle Ball is Gottlieb's first original design.
3-Ring Circus was the first game that provided a score card from the manufacturer that listed payoffs for particular score thresholds. The playfield has beautiful pin work, accentuating the 3 rings of the circus. The flier for this game has all kinds of interesting details.
Bingo was one of the first, if not the first coin operated pinball machine. Bingo Novelty Manufacturing was the designer and initial manufacturer, however, it was quickly licensed to D. Gottlieb & Co. (a name you may recognize), newly formed, who themselves appeared to have some difficulty keeping up with the demand. Production was sublicensed to other distributors, including Keeney (another later pinball producer).
Miss America '75 is the second incarnation of Bally's popular Miss America series of games. A new artist and the double or nothing feature, ported from the 6 card bingos of the early 1970s, makes this game take on another entire dimension. Any ability to earn double the replays normally awarded is pretty cool. The ability to move every number on the backglass on both cards is still the main draw.
Leader was the first United game to have the extra ball feature. It also used a playfield layout almost exactly the same as the competing Bally for the first time. This game has attractive coloration on the backglass and playfield, and reminds me very much of games that United made in the 1940s. The cabinet is one of the floor-length models similar to the earlier United bingo games.
Todd is a former NBA player, pinball collector, and operator in the Pacific Northwest. He joins me to talk about some of the fantastic EM arcade games in his collection, along with a few new additions. Todd has a variety of modern games at various establishments around Seattle - be sure to look up those establishments next time you're in town!
Just catching up on what's happening in my bingo world. I was interviewed by Nate @ coast2coastpinball.com regarding the bingo row and my love of the games. Thanks Nate! I joined a pinball league and actually played pretty well on my first night (total accident, I assure you). The ebay auctions I reference:http://www.ebay.com/sch/biggie36/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=
Miss America was an incredibly popular bingo produced by Bally starting in 1957. They brought this idea out several times throughout the years they were producing bingos. Magic Lines A-E will light to shift the numbers on each row horizontally, allowing for some interesting combinations. This game has two cards, and will light card #2 (also called the Extra Card) on a mystery interval (read: multiple coins). Corners scoring on the main card, quadruple deck scoring, and the best bingo curtains I've yet seen make this a game to remember.
Ballerina was an interesting experiment in bingo history. A Magic Screen game with positions up to 'H' (the last with this feature), the game gets really interesting when you have the ability to increase the Magic Screen feature awarded by hitting rollovers on the playfield, and the ability to reverse the top row of holes (ex: 1 becomes 7 and 7 becomes 1). Beautiful artwork (another curtain!), and interesting gameplay make this game very unique.
In 1947, Gottlieb made their last payout pinball - New Daily-Races. It was so named because it was the spiritual sequel to the Daily-Races that Gottlieb produced before the war. I'm highly intrigued by the gameplay and features on this machine, along with the unusual Parker artwork. There is one currently for sale in Ohio!
Replay games can all be set to free play very simply (pretty much). Find the switch or switches that tell the game you're at max credits and jump it out of the circuit.
Creditdotpinball asks why Williams went to using DC bumpers in their games. Stretching what I say in this episode out a bit - if you have a coil driven by DC, dirt and wear are masked a bit by the DC drivers.
New score and instruction cards are a great way to increase the attractiveness of your game. Instructions for how to print and cut out cards, and affix them to the apron (if there are not dedicated holders).
Issues found and corrected in the Bounty. 1) General Cleaning 2) Skill shot not lighting in certain instances 3) Red letter game not awarding correctly in all cases 4) Magic screen unit dirty or misaligned causing extra number to spot on the backglass. Solutions to all these problems found within!
Vic Camp, expert bingo pinball player, joins me to talk about the bingo row, new bingo players that are getting games, his latest acquisition, and more!
Bally's Spot-Lite was the third bingo game that Bally produced after the one-ball era had ended in 1950. Spot-Lite has the first use of Pick-a-play in a Bally bingo (although the button colors are slightly different), and has the first use of spotted numbers in a bingo. The internals are unique for a bingo as well - the control unit and several steppers are contained in a board inside the cabinet, similar to the one-balls rather than Coney Island (the second bingo off the line). A beautiful single card game with extra balls and a corners feature. Yet another I'd love to play. Up to five numbers can be spotted independently - one of which is my favorite/least favorite number: 16, the center of the bingo card.
Acapulco is Bally's second (and last) Magic Numbers game. These games have a set of 2x6 numbers on a chain that operate in a similar fashion to Magic Squares. These are disabled before you shoot your fourth ball or via the extended time tree, before fifth or after fifth. On top of this feature, the game allows for up to 1200 replays on a single game, and brings back the Ballyhole (though it is not marked as such on the playfield). Several interesting and unique or almost unique features, a beautiful playfield, cabinet and backglass round out the package.
Bingo legs have a hidden feature that could save your game or your life - there is an extra plate welded in towards the top of the leg to add strength and prevent collapse. Inspect your metal bingo legs carefully to ensure that the extra plate is installed or the game could come crashing down!
I worked on a customer's Bikini today, and spent some time cleaning and troubleshooting. The technician that worked on this game on location made a variety of interesting tweaks and apparently documented very well. Unfortunately, the documentation did not survive. Listen as I go through the troubleshooting process I used to figure out what was wrong and how to correct.
Happy Halloween everyone! Midway's Mystery Score is one of the few pitch and bat games that are not themed after baseball. It has a monster theme, with artwork filled with small jokes and interesting details. Two sets of score reels to keep track of a single player game? It's true, and unusual. Red and Green score separately, each with their own threshold for free games.
Setting bingos on free play is actually relatively straightforward - there are really only two major differences during the entire Bally run. One thing I believe I forgot to fully flesh out: The 'anti-cheat' switch that I reference is also known as the anti free-play switch, and is located on the left (or numerically high) side of the replay register.
How do you put your wedgehead into free play? I have a few suggestions. My main recommendation does not require an additional switch, however, there are several ways, depending on the era and type of circuit used to count coin drops. A few are listed here!
Chad is a fellow EM collector with a Bally Beach Club bingo in his collection. After experiencing the bingo row, he is now looking for another great bingo game for his collection. He is a heck of a nice guy, with a love for the mechanical aspects of these fantastic machines. I hope he's playing a new bingo soon!
Bally's Yacht Club used a mechanism that was not used in any other bingo! The numbers on the backbox are arranged in a 9x5 grid. By default, the second through the sixth column of numbers are surrounded by a yellow border. This is the card you are playing for. If you earn the feature, you can move those yellow lines to surround a different set of 5x5 numbers! This changes the makeup of each row as you move the surrounds. In my mind this is the precursor to the Magic Screen - just less expensive! It was likely confusing for new players, which may have been why it was never used again.
Run down of the items that had issues before/at York in Bounty and how I plan to correct. Disassembly and reassembly of magic screen, lubricating clutches, checking all steppers and re-cleaning them. Replay register tear down, clean and rebuild, and more. Basically, finishing the rest of the shop job that I started on this game when I got it.
In 1962, the Magic Screen games were kings of bingo production. During this time, Bally experimented with a new way to use the same mechanism - instead of sections that allow for different scoring, what if the player could control the makeup of the bingo card, one column at a time. Seemingly a natural evolution to the typical ways that a player can control the makeup of their cards, this method was never repeated by Bally. A single button game, another unusual feature of "The Twist" was that the player was notified what their next coin would do: advance one of the sets of odds or advance the 'magic cards' feature. Another game I'd love to play one day.
Magic Screen Units, when misaligned, exhibit certain symptoms which will help you diagnose (and correct) the problem.
Exhibit's Mystery is a beautiful sequence game. A masquerade theme, with mystery kick out awards. Complete sequences 1-4, 5-8 and 9-12 to light three different playfield specials. Gorgeous backglass and playfield artwork with fantastic lightboard design and a great stencil round out the package.
Magic Squares units are a really neat moving numbers feature. After working on a few games with this feature, I really appreciate their simplicity in design.
You've got the whole thing apart... now what? Follow these instructions and you'll get it back together quicker than you might think.
Now that you have the thing apart, you should be able to clean it! Be very careful of what and how you apply cleaning agents to the reels, the numbers like to move with the cleaner. Tomorrow we'll talk about how to put the whole thing back together.
Disassembly and cleaning of the replay register is very important for correct operation of any multi-replay game (such as a bingo or upright arcade/slot). There are many small pieces to keep track of on this unit. Pay attention to the direction from which you remove the main shaft! Only one reel is keyed and you will break the reel if you are not paying attention.
United's Jones Plug design is fairly unique in the world of pin games. The parallel rows of male pins are replaced by a single inline package, with pins that wrap around the edge of the plate. Cool! And infuriating!
An interesting idea for a new feature on a bingo is incorporated in this 20 hole game: by earning a 'Gate' feature, the player can swing the rebound rubber out of the way and get to the second row of holes easily. The rest of the game does not look incredibly appealing - it is low-scoring and has no extra ball feature, and no Red Letter game.
Pretty self-explanatory - don't use Vaseline on any motor on an EM. Was used during World War II to keep games going, but hardens into cement! If your game has Vaseline on any motor, it will need to be removed.
Adam from the One and Done Pinball Podcast calls in to ask a question about how to determine if a spring needs to be replaced and how to know what kind of spring to order. Parts catalogs are invaluable for EM games.
Hugh Kown is a master restoration expert on bingos, and a master repair technician. He is also known as the 'Old Binger' and ran an incredibly popular bingo pinball forum several years ago. His site, oldbinger.com, lists some of the beautiful restoration work he has completed. Hugh recounts some of his early bingo memories, and provides a really fascinating way to look at troubleshooting using a schematic!
Pamco's Baby Lite-A-Line is actually a completely different game to the full size Lite-A-Line released the year before. This game actually looks like a lot more fun than the full size. Single card with a unique playfield layout. Looks very challenging.
Pamco experimented with the bingo format one other time in the 1930s - Roto Lite is a bingo-esque game that came out in 1935. Your goal is to land in the upper hole via skill shot and spin discs or lamps in the backbox to light three in a row. I like the mixture of bingo and traditional pinball.
Springs are incredibly important for successful operation of your game. I attempt to discuss how to diagnose a spring problem and how to address - both correctly and incorrectly.
Line-Up was Bally's first attempt at a bingo-style pinball machine. 25 holes arranged in a grid on the playfield in the same arrangement as the card on the backglass (1-5, 6-10, etc). Due to the extreme spacing between numbers, it looks very difficult to actually win on this machine. Couple that with the fact that balls do not return to the player when they reach the bottom, and you've got a very player-unfriendly machine. That said, I'd still play it.
In 1934, Pacific Amusement Company made a three card bingo, almost 17 years before Bally's first bingo machine. Each card is bought with its own coin slide. Cool deco stylings, with especially neat wooden legs. The 25 hole playfield uses a roulette wheel style tub like United's first bingo, ABC, but without the pop bumper in the center. Oddly enough, there may be a tie between this and Bally's Lite-A-Line, which was designed in 1961!
Quick tech tip for tonight - pull on wires in order to expose problems in wiring or solder joints. This will save you hours of frustration. Don't go crazy - just a gentle, yet firm tug on each wire in question.
In 1963, Ted Zale designed a fascinating game called '3-in-line', based off of the bingo gameplay, but in a flipper package. Ther eis a 9-digit bingo card in the playfield and backglass that lights as you hit various targets on the playfield. Some neat swinging gates allow entry to the left and right pops. I love that the flipper division made a game marketed to bingo players at the height of the bingo market.
Continuing to browse Danny's site at danny.cdyn.com, I found another oddity: Williams Yukon. This game allows for winning up to 100 replays based on the cards that you hit on a bingo-style playfield. I am interested in seeing one of these one day - this game is not in IPDB, so I'm not sure when it was made, but I'm guessing in the 1950s or early 1960s. It looks like a lot of fun, since you are able to choose a spotted card by landing in the 'Joker' hole (in the center of the playfield, similar to #16 on a Bally bingo).
A divergence into solid state. While browsing Danny's site at danny.cdyn.com, I noticed he had some photos of the internals of the Magic Screen bingo manufactured by Sirmo in Belgium in 2005. This is a solid state bingo with a very interesting boardset - using what appears to be PC hardware in a pinball machine, including multiple LED and an LCD monitor, manufactured almost a decade before Jersey Jack's Wizard of Oz - simply astounding! I'm looking forward to spending a lot more time on a solid state bingo in the future, and part of the fun of any machine, for me, is knowing how they work.
A listener writes in with a writeup on their grail machine: 1954's Hawaiian Beauty by Gottlieb. This machine has a very unique layout that looks like it is very challenging and a lot of fun. Wide flipper spacing, with three palm tree pop bumpers near the bottom, multiple lower exits from the playfield, and gobble holes all make this sequence-driven game look incredibly fun and difficult. This listener also wanted to know if there were any bingo collectors in the Southern California area. The only folks in CA I know that have bingos readily available for play are the Pacific Pinball Museum.
Listener Tim writes in with a note on how the Williams multiplayer games have a superior method for letting the player know they have another ball. The Same Player Shoots Again lamp does not go off until you score a point on your extra ball. This is completely different behavior to Gottlieb and Bally games, that would turn the lamp off as soon as the ball was served to the shooter lane. Listen as I try to describe the circuits involved! Big thank you to Tim for suggesting the topic and bonus points for sending a schematic snippet!
A listener writes in with a question about cleaning their 1932 Ballyhoo pinball playfield. The short answer of how to do this is 'carefully'. Ensure that you are not accidentally removing the artwork from the playfield as you remove the dirt. The second question involves how to shore up the cabinet. Thanks Mike!
Bingo serial numbers are shrouded in mystery. Rod McLarge, aka CreditDotPinball asks how one may find the serials, their location, and any interesting information about them. I do my best to answer these questions, and ask that anyone post their serials to ipsnd.net, and bingo owners, also contact Danny at danny.cdyn.com as he is collecting bingo serials as well. Check out Rod's site at creditdotpinball.com to read some really fascinating articles about the hobby we love.
Did a lot of pinball-related stuff this weekend, in preparation for York. Has new siderails put on the Night Club and have been playing it like crazy. Unfortunately, the replays would never score - didn't matter if I had three, four or five in a line, or whether the winners were in the magic squares units or elsewhere! So, it's time to bust out the schematic. Follow along with me by reading the schema on bingo.cdyn.com as I fix this issue.
Jeffrey Lawton is the premier bingo technician - we initially chatted on air on episode 54 with Steve Smith. Jeffrey wrote the books Bally Bingo Pinball Machines and The Bingo Pinball War, both excellent books still in print today. We discuss the York show, his involvement, parts and a little technical chat, some of his recollections of working for two different amusement vendors, and some in-depth gameplay discussions on a couple of games. We also announce the contest for the Bingo Row at York: Make a 4 or 5 in a line on _any_ of the awesome bingos in the row, and you'll win your choice of an autographed Bally Bingo Pinball Machines or The Bingo Pinball War by Jeffrey Lawton! I've got a case of books to give away, so I want to see some smiling new bingo players! I am more than happy to explain these excellent games in depth to anyone that would like a tutorial. What more can you ask for? I'm excited to see everyone at the show!
United made this conversion game during World War II for the game Sky Blazer. A sequence game - you try to unlight all 12 bumpers on the playfield, which will light super special at the bottom kickout hole. There are two bumpers near the ball arch in an unusual arrangement. A very fun game - if this was the game that I played... I forget!
Gottlieb's Knock Out woodrail is a beautiful game. A V-shaped mechanism prevents your ball from draining until you complete certain goals. Your main goal is to knock down a mannikin boxer in a three dimensional boxing ring in the upper middle of the playfield! You do this by hitting the 5 bumpers, the rollovers, or the center target. The 5" bell when you knock down your opponent is great fun!
Criss Cross has an interesting gameplay feature - make three in a line or four corners to earn replays... sound familiar? This game has a unique roto target with colored standups that light the bumpers of corresponding color. Lighting four corners lights the gobble holes for special! Really fun gameplay with very interesting artwork.
Bally reprised the name Ballyhoo in 1947 with this super fun layout. This flipperless game has a unique feature - two diamond shapes on the playfield with a total of seven kickout holes arranged in those diamonds. The ball will travel from hole to hole and around a bottom arch back into another kickout hole (hopefully). You win on score, and the only sequence opportunity is to hit one of the side rollovers to light super special at the lower passive bumpers.
Jack 'N Jill was manufactured by Gottlieb in 1948 as part of the 'fairy tale' series - the first games manufactured with flippers. This game's dominant feature is the amazing artwork. There are multiple ways to earn replays, and the flippers allow you to move the ball back and forth across the playfield as you descend. Jack's eyes at the bottom flash when you hit various items rapidly. The backglass animation is also very cool, and in the style of the other early backglass animations on Gottlieb games. A great overall package, and I hope to play one again one day!
Gordon Hasse, the famous woodrail pinball collector, discusses his recollections playing these beautiful games on location, where he learned pinball repair and maintenance, some of his favorite games and his upcoming book on 1954 Gottlieb woodrails! To be put on the list for his book, please email hasse.gordon at gmail dot com Gordon made an incredibly generous donation to the Pacific Pinball Museum (see: http://www.pinballnews.com/news/ppmdonation.html). Please visit the Pacific Pinball Museum at : 1510 Webster Street Alameda, CA 94501 (510) 205-6959 Tues - Thurs: 2pm - 9pm Friday: 2pm - midnight Saturday: 11am - midnight Sunday: 11am - 9pm Monday: closed Also closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. $15 for adults $7.50 for kids under 16 (and you can play all day and as late as midnight!) Please consider donating some time, money or even games to keep the machines we love alive for future generations. I hope to make it out there one day soon and play some of Gordon's great games! http://pacificpinball.org/
I forgot one! And it's the one that I'm most excited about - a game I've made a deal on to pick up at York - 1956's Caravan by United. Way too many ways to win, gorgeous artwork, and the unique United moving numbers feature. What an excellent game. Confirmed for Saturday at York!
These three games may make it to the York show: 1960-63 (Unknown) - Bally Spot 'Em 1950s Keeney (Converted to Single Coin) 1956 Bally Night Club - my own game is almost complete and may make the trip!
Dixieland was Bally's last and greatest EM six card game. It has all the features of Nashville, plus a randomly awarded Double-Double feature that will award you quadruple the replays if you make your hit on an indicated card and make the magic number. The maximum payout on card #6 is 300 ordinarily, but if you double that with a magic number win, you get 600, and if you quadruple that you get 1200. If you press the 'D' button on the lockbar when the game looks for winners, you will be awarded 2400 replays (or none at all)! Dixieland is challenging and exciting as your strategy has to shift multiple times during the game. You may start looking for a 5 in a row on card #6, but wind up working the super line on card #1. The game that may come to York is a 'Single Coin' conversion of Dixieland. All the features are intact, but the game starts fully off of a single coin drop or button press.
Bally's Silver Sails is the sister game to Golden Gate, and contains all the features of Golden Gate, but has a completely different art package. In this episode, I talk about those differences, then stumble on the one minor electrical difference in the backbox. Aside from this, artwork and playability are discussed. In Jeffrey Lawton's Bally Bingo Pinball Machines, pg. 107, you can read about how the Golden Game works and what is involved in winning this special mode.
The first game to feature the separate Red Letter Game or OK game, County Fair has some of the most impressive artwork of any Bally Bingo. It has the blue section scores as green, and triple deck scoring. A gorgeous game, I hope it comes to York so that I can play it!
A surprise for those who don't read the Pinside thread for the show - I managed to fix a pesky problem with Double-Up and it is ready for the show! It will be the only example of a 20 hole game there. I've discussed Double-Up's features and scoring on a previous episode, so I thought I'd go over the troubleshooting process on this episode. I got frustrated enough to reach out to Phil Hooper, and as soon as I sent the email, I found the problem and fixed it. The game is an awful lot friendlier with a working set of mixers!
Steve's back to talk about his other game, which will be making an appearance at this year's York show: 1962's Golden Gate. Golden Gate is a really fun magic screen game that has an entire game unique to only Golden Gate and Silver Sails (the sister game of Golden Gate) - the Golden Game. Qualifying this game by landing three in the purple section (the area surrounding the orange section for the OK qualifier), will cause the screen to shift and load 5 balls - you have 5 chances to land 3 in the appropriate sections to score the indicated number of replays - up to 600! Triple deck scoring, pick a play, the red letter game, up to three extra balls and the blue section all round out the package. This is one of my favorite cabinet stencils, and one of the most complex.
Bikini is the sister game to Circus Queen (as I learned tonight). It has all the features of Circus Queen, plus a new way to store your OK game for later play. You can build up this 'futurity' game to 12 different positions, each which give a different game. The normal red letter game has seven different positions. The 3 in the orange scores as green makes a return, normal magic screen gameplay, including the blue section scoring. Triple deck scoring, an extended time tree with rollovers rounds out the package. Great beach-themed artwork on the cabinet and backglass. Jeffrey Lawton describes Steve's Bikini here: https://youtu.be/bX3LKXrEa14
Nashville is a late-era 6 card game - it came out in 1978, with only one more 6 card to arrive after before Bally closed their production down in 1980. Nashville has all the features of Ticker Tape, but adds rollover buttons to achieve super lines and corner scoring on all 6 cards simultaneously, the magic number, which, when hit, will double all scores on each card, and the lovely red diagonals, which will allow for 8 additional scoring lines per card. I've never played a Nashville, and look forward to playing it at the show in October!
Bally's Circus Queen is a magic screen game with an unusual feature: three balls in the orange section, when the feature is lit, will score as three in the green! This was the first game with dedicated blue section scoring. This allows for 3 or 2 in the blue section to score 300 or 600 replays. Triple deck scoring, an extended time tree with the rollovers, and the OK game round out the package.
Coney Island is a fantastic game - the second bingo Bally produced, it came out in 1951 with three cards, and the first appearance of the extra ball feature. Up to 8 balls in play at once, and the game will discover and award replays on each of the three cards. The first bingo appearance of the reflex and mixer units, along with the automatic ball lifter. Max payout was 100. Great artwork, a nice small straightforward bingo!
Bally's Miss Universe is a very unusual bingo - with only three balls, and the majority of the gameplay involved with spotted numbers. This is the only 18-hole bingo produced, made in 1975, five years before Bally closed down bingo production. A very interesting game, and I look forward to playing one at York, hopefully! Check out this video: https://youtu.be/l33K5a9RoN0
The Bounty - one of the most highly-prized magic screen games - is packed with features to keep players coming back. Triple-deck scoring, three separate OK features, Magic screen with two super sections and a blue section scoring, an extended time tree, and of course, the skill shot. Bounty was released only as an export game in 1963.
A special guest joins me tonight to talk about her favorite bingo: 1972's Bally Ticker Tape. As you heard on Episode 177, Ticker Tape is a 6 card bingo, with super lines, corner scoring and a 'Double or Nothing' feature.
Gay Time is a fantastic player that has features and gameplay well ahead of its time. The Magic Pockets feature, which has always sounded so cool, is actually incredibly cool. The game will sense when there is a ball in the first row of holes, and allow or prevent you from moving based on the position. Aside from that, there are spotted numbers, corners scoring, and the magic lines. All explained in this episode!
Stepper Units are crucial to the proper operation of an EM - in this episode, I talk about disassembling, cleaning and rebuilding the typical step up/reset unit - found on most EM games including the bingos!
Vic Camp joins as co-host for tonight's episode - we talk about the payouts, features and gameplay of the six card bingos produced by Bally, starting with Bright Lights, all the way to Dixieland. My Ticker Tape:
Some actual bingo gameplay: https://youtu.be/ywUXz2ZVgng
I've run into a couple of things I didn't know about at all this week, namely: Some Gottlieb games had a weird Jones Plug arrangement. Not all woodrails are created equal.
Properly lubricated motors will ensure that your game functions properly for years and years to come. Some games have easy-fill tubes or wicks to allow you to lubricate their motors. Other games have sealed gearboxes. Techniques for lubing both are within!
Thanks to previous interviewee Phil Bogema for the subject of this episode. You can substitute a fuse for a circuit breaker temporarily to troubleshoot problems in any game. Using the link: https://www.bluesea.com/products/category/0/26/Push%20Button%20Reset-Only you can find the quick connect breaker of the size you need to troubleshoot your game. Typical breaker sizes are 5, 10 and 15 Amps for most EM games.
My replacement Night Club playfield came with a problem: the ball arch between the shooter lane to the rebound rubber, was routed down about 1/4 inch. I've thought about several methods for repair, and decided to try Varathane as I have a can here, and it holds up to ball travel normally... We will see how it holds up!
Bally's Night Club (1956) was a heckuva game. Rotating numbers in the corners of the bingo card, changes to quadruple your wins in certain areas of the backglass, corners scoring, an extended time tree, and the Ballyhole! Whew! That's a lot of features! One of my all-time favorite bingos, and mine is running, so I'm a happy camper.
Insert cupping is much more difficult to fix than sunken inserts. There are several methods that can be used, and I give some of the pros and cons of each. Get ready for nerve-wracking sanding!
There are multiple ways to reglue inserts. In this episode, I give the method that I use. When inserts are loose, they must be removed and re-adhered to the game to prevent nasty playfield wear.
The bingo helpline lights up again tonight with a call about how to most effectively troubleshoot the scoring on a magic screen. I give my personal method for troubleshooting, and explain the (few) shortcuts I take. Troubleshooting a new game for me using this method takes only a few hours. Congratulations on getting your blue section working, btw75!
In 1952, Williams put out a bingo-style game that encourages you to land in the four corners of the card to win the most replays. As with most woodrails, there are multiple ways to win replays. In this case, you win replays based on three or four in line on the bingo card. It looks like a very fun game!
Bally Bingos were big money. If the machines had a feature that allowed for skilled players to earn replays too quickly, some sly operators would disable that feature. Alternatively, they might make it come up much less frequently. Working on a hacked game can be difficult - some of the technicians were very clever. The ham-fisted ones are usually very obvious and easy to repair.
The solid state bingos made by Wimi or GAA have a different type of ball return board - the design has one advantage over the Bally style of ball return, however, it also has a few disdvantages.
Bally's bingos had a ball lifter that would handle multiple tasks - chief among them, to serve a ball to the shooter lane to allow the player the chance to fire!
Bally Bingos have a special part underneath the playfield that is designed to return the balls to the trough. This part, despite its simplicity, is also an elegant solution to getting all the balls back into the trough without jamming.
Bingos have a special mechanism underneath the playfield which will trap or release the balls. This mechanism is pretty neat and actually controls quite a bit of the game logic depending on state (open or closed). Some issues that can occur with the shutter are discussed.
Had a productive evening. Finished cleaning and swapping parts that I had onto Night Club - enough to get the game to turn on. I have two of the motors moving appropriately, and various relays are doing the correct thing. Very exciting! I'm waiting on a few parts to get it fully working, but at the moment, it feels good to make progress.
Bally bingos have a button under the shooter rod that is only usable at certain times during gameplay. What is the function of this button? Why was it included? Is there any difference between the various games Bally produced with regard to this button?
Bingo playfields are not all created equal. I have a bingo playfield swap about 90% complete, and note some differences between solid state bingo playfields and their Bally counterparts.
Pinside user btw75 just picked up his first Bally bingo! A Circus Queen magic screen game. He also provided me with a great tech tip (or TekTip) that I just had to share. Thanks btw75!
I spent a bit of time tonight looking at my new Night Club project. I began shopping the units in the head, and have finished a good portion. This is what is needed to get the game going.
I finished replacing the control unit motor on Gay Time, and the game roared to life! I only had two items that needed tweaking, then the game started playing perfectly. My first test game, when I wasn't really trying, I got a 5-in-a-line! I've been unable to replicate this feat thus far.
Bally actually made it very easy to swap units in and out of a bingo. Today I talk about how to remove a control unit motor from a Bally bingo. I have a couple of photos of the removal up on the Facebook/Instagram/Twitter pages. But it is just about how you might imagine it. Once I have the new motor installed (hopefully by the end of the week), I will likely have a working game!
Bally thought long and hard about how the player would approach and play their bingo games, but they also thought about the poor guy who would have to maintain them! Learn some of the secrets of working on a bingo in this episode.
I finally made the trip up to NJ and met Vic in person. Vic spent the whole day with me and shared his amazing collection and variety of gorgeous bingos. We talk about the day, his truly fantastic collection and the unique and wonderful bingo gameplay of the games in his collection. The best part: I drove home that night with two new bingos in my van - 1955 Gay Time and 1956 Night Club!
Special guest host Fake Nick Baldridge joins us for a walkthrough of the 1973 Jubilee that he owns. FNB does an excellent job describing the features and gameplay on his game. Hopefully FNB comes back for an episode in the future - thanks FNB!
Charles Rowland is a local (to the Richmond, VA area) operator who has been in the industry since the 1960s. Charles has fascinating stories about running bingos and EMs on location during their heyday. He currently runs Games People Play, a shop that sells to home game enthusiasts and runs games on location. Games People Play is on Dabney Rd is in the near West End in Richmond, VA.
Flip Flags are a unique feature found on only 3 Bally machines, beginning with Wizard! in 1975. The EM Dungeon did a treatise on this topic all the way back in episode 6 of the Spooky Pinball Podcast. A fun feature that was obliterated with the rise of solid state.
Bally reintroduced the world to multiball through Balls-a-Poppin in 1956. They continued to produce multiball machines throughout the remainder of the EM era.
Bally's innovations continue with the Chicane Lane, a feature that slows the ball down and wiggles it back and forth to draw the player's attention. Amazingly simple in execution, two stacked plastics!
Another Bally invention, the mushroom bumper is a really fancy target that feels very satisfying to hit. How they work and common problems.
Originally known as 'Flipper Zippers', this feature allows the flippers mounted on the playfield to 'zip' together, closing off the outhole. The feature is pretty simple under the hood. One of Bally's innovations during the EM era, pioneered by Ted Zale.
How to take apart a flipper and change them. The same basic rules apply to any EM pinball machine with flippers.
Flippers have undergone a bit of change since the beginning of the flipper era (1947). Different designers had different techniques for using the flippers, and they certainly changed the face of pinball. I also discuss the basic pieces of the flipper mechanism.
What is a transformer? What purpose does that heavy thing do in your game? These questions and more answered!
Wanye Neyens was a prolific designer through much of Gottlieb's woodrail and metal rail EM production. His career spanned at least 179 machines (according to the IPDB, 177 machines made it to production). He is 97 years old today, July 29, 2015. Happy Birthday, Mr. Neyens!
Some of the basics about how to construct a circuit, how the circuit actually functions, and how to measure and calculate the values of Votage, Amperage (current), and Resistance.
How to use a multimeter to troubleshoot various aspects of a game. A bit of a small electical/electronics crash course in how current flows, what to expect, how to change your settings appropriately, and how to zero out your meter.
The final set of switches on the control unit govern the search process. Everything from the release of the search disc to the lockout of footrail buttons happens here. The control unit is complete - from switch stack A to switch stack ZB!
In our next-to-last episode detailing the workings of a Bally bingo control unit, we examine the switches necessary for the operation of the payout. When a winner has been determined, the machine has to have some way of stepping up the replay meter in the backglass.
This is our continued series looking at the control unit on a Bally bingo - specifically the 1972 Double-Up. These switches are involved with normal gameplay, and only comprise a little over half of the switches and cams involved in making the game operate as per normal.
The first switches in the control unit are required for timing out the motor, thus saving wear and tear on the motor. It is crucial that these switches are adjusted properly or your motor will never stop running.
Bally's Control Unit was an ingenious design for several reasons - in the bingos, one of the most impressive designs was how very serviceable these units are. You take one part Bally score motor, add in some more power and clutches, and you have a rather simple design that allows for servicing from almost any angle. I love 'em!
The last (for now) in my score motors series detailing the differences between the various manfacturers and their approaches to the same problem. Williams score motors have a service plug that can be moved that will lock all the cams in place. I wish this option did not exist. Any Williams with this option constantly trips me up.
Bally's Score Motor design changed quite a bit over the years, depending on the style of game they were making. In a future episode, I'll dive into the control unit, which is a beautiful, complex electromechanical marvel. This episode, however, I talk about the relatively straightforward, no-frills Bally score motor, its ease of adjustment and common issues (really the same common issue that plagues most score motors that have been sitting and transported many times without being used for a long period of time).
Gottlieb used the same style of score motor for pretty much their entire EM life. Discussion on orientation, maintenance, advantages and disadvantages of this setup. I enjoy the compact setup of these motors.
Score motors are the 'brains' of any EM game. Tonight I discuss Exhibit's score motor orientation and function in the 1947 Exhibit 'Mystery' that I own. I also added a quick addendum to last night's simple 'hack' podcast.
Sometimes, you don't have the time or correct parts to fix a problem. If I am going to create a hack to fix a problem temporarily, I like to ensure that it is easily reversible and will cause a minimum of damage to the game in case it goes wrong. With a time crunch before a group of newcomers to pinball came over, I had to correct a flaky switch that incremented the score on an older machine. A freely rotating contact on a leaf switch can, sometimes, be soldered in place to allow for continued operation without a replacement switch at hand. This is a very easy hack to reverse, as I simply have to replace the switch and the issue goes away (I'll be doing that soon).
The Magic Screen games between Sea Island and Bounty have a design flaw that will sometimes cause a coil to remain locked on during payout. The timer unit steps up in certain circumstances during payout and will shut off the motors. This causes a coil that is normally engaged during payout to remain on and fry. Fixing this problem is thankfully pretty easy! I would recommend that everyone make this modification on their screen games to prevent heartbreak when you're not looking.
Sadly, my nickname is Coil Burner. Steve gave me that name after I blew up his Golden Gate. Now that I'm aware of that issue, I pay close attention to payouts. I'll be detailing the issue and remediation in a future episode.
A large amount of surface rust can be a tell-tale sign that the mechanisms in the head or the cabinet are frozen in place. Evaluate any machine with rust carefully before purchasing. How to remove rust from your siderails, legs, and coin door, as well as smaller parts.
You've got a great new game, but your cabinet looks like it has been in a nicotene testing facility for the last 40 years... how to bring back the beauty, as well as how to protect it.
Vic Camp comes back on the podcast to talk about his current collection, bingos, and Gottlieb wedgeheads. Note that the package deal for 10 bingos is still available in New Jersey - contact Vic for the (100% working) bingo collection at campgames@yahoo.com.
Jeff is one of the co-hosts of 'The Pinball Podcast' located at thepinballpodcast.com We talk about EMs he enjoys, repair, and I try to talk him into a local Magic Squares bingo.
Bingo lamp shield springs are beautiful pieces that are difficult to remove, but very satisfying once cleaned. Removal requires a good degree of caution. Follow these instructions and you should be good!
The basics of how to disassemble the metal bits on the playfield of a typical game, and how to clean. I'm super cheap, so I hand polish these items - discussion of products used and any extra precautions needed. Next episode I will discuss the lamp springs on bingo playfields - they are conspicuous in their absence.
Our first caller with a question that pertains to cleaning of an EM with visible mold. Take it outside! Then clean/sand.
Here's what I do for any new game, strip it down, clean it and wax it. Tools used vary based on the dirt-level of any game that comes in. Games with more dirt will require more abrasive tools to clean. Cleaning should happen at a minimum of when you start seeing dirt, or when you change your rubbers/balls.
You've got your ball arch, posts, and plastics removed - now it's time to remove your pops/bumpers, flippers, slings and other mechanisms!
Discussion on how to disassemble the top of your playfield, including how to polish your plastics and posts.
Cleaning the bottom board in an EM machine is important, for any machine that has components mounted on a board beneath the playfield. This would include most any flipper game made in the 60s+.
Molly is my wife, and I finally talk with her about her thoughts on pinball in general, her favorite machines, and bingos. Molly holds the high score for Twinky, one of the toughest, fastest, most difficult machines that I own. Molly enjoys the social aspects of the hobby, but mostly does not play, so I was curious to record her perspective on the games.
Jay Stafford is one of the key members of the IPDB, who helps to accrue images and documentation on pinball machines to post for reference. The IPDB site provides an invaluable service to the collector community - I know, speaking for myself, that I would be absolutely lost without the availability of the images and information on the site. Jay provided his answers via e-mail. The Internet Pinball Database is available at http://ipdb.org. A sidenote: don't forget to register your serial numbers at http://ipsnd.net
Danny runs the bingo history website located at http://danny.cdyn.com Danny has been collecting and archiving stories and history on all the bingo machines - Bally, United, and the solid states from overseas. The stories that have been archived at Danny's site are fascinating - he has lots of info on bingos and the law and various player stories and info on playing these great games. Note that there's a couple of bad words, if you care about such things.
My thoughts on clear coating playfields - I'm not a huge proponent, which I know is an unpopular stance. Hear me out, though: ball travel is all important in any flipper game. Knowing how the ball will react is also critical. When the game is being played with a clear coated playfield, the ball reacts as if it is skating on a layer of ice above the wood. Spin and travel are not as they normally would be for that title. Ball travel is also critical for the bingo: one of your measures of control is knowing how the ball will react when striking a post or spring. There are exceptions to my thought - if you do playfield touch-ups, you will want to clear coat over top of the touch-ups to help preserve the new artwork. The original artwork has a shellac or other lacquer finish that has preserved the artwork for 50-60 even 70 years - why mess with success? I ensure that my games are waxed regularly, and this preserves their paint.
Ryan Claytor made his way to the Pinball Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, and wanted to try his first bingo. He contacted me for a brief tutorial on the game. In this case, it was one of the many Miss America games produced by Bally. Miss America games are characterized by Magic Lines and high scoring potential. I plan to put this writeup on my site as well.
Don is one of the hosts of The Pinball Podcast (www.thepinballpodcast.com). He recently attended the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown and found the elusive Scoregasm Master. Topics range from Scoregasm gameplay, construction and features to bingos, general repair, and the unrealistic nudge physics of the Pinball Arcade.
Dancing Dolls was a game produced by Gottlieb in 1960. It is a woodrail, has lighted scoring, and has a unique backglass animation. Beyond the cool animation, the game has multiple pop bumpers, slings, rollovers, 2" flippers and some standup targets. Quite a bit to do, and the animation is incredibly neat.
Brent Amrhein is a friend of mine, younger than me, and I have successfully convinced him to play as much pinball as possible. Based in Atlanta, he went to the Southern Fried Gameroom Expo, and I ask him what he thinks of the various machines and the show in general. There is some Solid State talk in this one, as Brent is rather new to pinball. He was able to play some classic EMs at the show, so I ask him questions about the various machines. One day you'll beat that Egghead!
Need to know how to take basic care of your coils, listen here! If you need to replace a coil - contact the Pinball Resource or John's Jukes to get the appropriate replacement. They both carry various sizes of coils, stops, sleeves, etc.
Short one tonight - a bit of feedback had me check out a song available on Youtube - Lonnie Irving's 1960 song Pinball Machine discusses the evils of bingo pinball playing.
Replacing a broken switch is something that you'll have to do sooner or later. It's relatively simple, but keep track of the spacers and the order in case you have to reassemble from scratch.
Phil Bogema attended the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown earlier this month, and he reports on some of the games he played and enjoyed, and the overall EM availability. He also responded to my show on slot machines a few days after that, and I've taken the liberty of posting both anecdotes here. Vic Camp also posted a correction about my episode on Exhibit's Treasure Chest.
If you are curious on how my backglasses were created to replace the broken/messed up backglasses for my 1947 Exhibit Mystery and my 1937 Genco Junior, keep reading! The files are made using the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP), a free and open source raster image editor. These are the source images, and may not have been the final that were sent to the printer. The main thing about my process is that I reprint the viewable image again in reverse for the masking side. I also worked with the printer to find a way to print on a single piece of vinyl, which should resist fading and wear. Each of these backglasses was color corrected from photos on IPDB and my own remaining glasses by taking an average sample of each color from various areas on the glass and reviewing the images on IPDB. They are not perfect, by any means, but they turned out quite well compared to the bare sheets of broken glass that were in each game previously. Mystery Files: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3y5aqhk3j5k4idf/AAA2RaEm2h96Yd4K2jG04yPJa?dl=0 Junior Files: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/20lzdhyn08noyhl/AAAU6CkAaqBamiWqIm56qSw6a?dl=0 I don't know if this will help anyone, but here you go!
Here's an interesting game: Chicago Coin, a manufacturer with a terrible reputation (that I have not been able to fathom), created this game that automatically sensed a special 'golden ball' for double scoring. This is fascinating for a couple of reasons: 1) There are no special mechanisms that I can see to sense the gold ball from the IPDB photos 2) It used a credit projection unit, which, though common for the time in Gottlieb games, was unusual to find in other games. The game has gorgeous Roy Parker artwork as well.
1947 was an interesting year for innovation in pinball. America was out of World War II, manufacturing was brought back to bear on amusement devices. Exhibit came out with an interesting game called Treasure Chest, which contianed a player-controlled magnet! This used a flipper button on the side of the cab to turn the magnet off an on to (potentially) achieve higher scores. Years and years before such magnets would make a resurgence in solid state games in the 80s, Exhibit put one at the bottom middle of the playfield. Interesting artwork, good use of the theme (dive down and back with the treasure to score up to 30 replays!), and of course, the magnet make this a really neat game.
I worked on a Satin Doll the other day, which is a 2 player EM, built in 1975. I've never played one previously, and had never thought much of the layout. Once I saw the way the ball interacted with the various elements, I was sold. What a fun game! A lesson that appearances can be deceiving!
I interviewed Robert Medl, a bingo collector and enthusiast who has just purchased many machines. Robert discusses his first experience and purchase, his current lineup, and some of the games in his restoration queue. The bingo repair videos discussed are available at the following sources:
The first is a direct download for $15. The second is $30 + shipping. I have not reviewed these myself, but Robert is the third person who has told me that they are very good.
Bally Bingo ball troughs are some of the best designed pinball mechanics ever produced. Working on a bingo, then switching to a modern solid state with trough issues always irks me. Bingo ball troughs are bulletproof and another marvel of engineering.
Ryan Claytor, pinball illustrator extraordinaire comes on to talk about his EM resurrection project - a two player Williams called Swinger. Those who may be afraid of working on an EM should listen to this episode, as Ryan had never worked on an EM before this project. Also: thanks to Ryan, we now have T-Shirts! See our post above to order. I'm incredibly excited and honored to have worked with Ryan. Ryan's Website: Ryan's Swinger Restore:
T-Shirts! Now available with an original design from Ryan Claytor, the pinball illustrator. Ryan and I worked together to design this shirt, which includes a Bally Night Club and a Zoltan fortune teller (and me!). Show your love of everything EM with this great illustration on a 100% ring-spun cotton t-shirt. Please note that these will only be available in the initial run until July 2nd, at which point ordering will close. Orders closed for now! Check back later.
The roto feature enabled the player to spin the innermost circle of numbers on a bingo card. This was only used by United, and used on three games between 1955 and 1956, never to be seen again.
EM and purely mechanical slot machines are very interesting creatures, mostly due to the way the mechanisms work together. I am highly impressed with anything that is purely mechanical, though some of the EM machines have unusual or captivating features. For this episode, I focus on two manufacturers, Bally and Mills.
Trade Stimulators were small countertop amusement devices - typically modeled after slot machines. These games would vend something similar to a gumball or other small trinket - to skirt gambling laws. The gameplay was typically gambling. If the slot came up a winner, you would notify the bar owner or shopkeep and win a free beer or other prize, or in some cases, a payout. For amusement only, indeed!
Magic Pockets are a unique under playfield mechanism, only used on two Bally Bingos in 1955 - Gayety and Gay Time. These bingos allowed you to reposition balls in the top row of the bingo playfield (numbers 1-7). If this wasn't enough, these machines also had the magic lines feature that allowed you to reposition numbers on the backglass. This allowed for the ability to make some great winning combinations.
Gottlieb was famously against payout games, however in 1951, they produced a bingo style game with a throwback playfield. There are several interesting and unusual features in this game, which are detailed within!
Most of the big amusement manufacturers made EM rifle games, some early examples with lighted scoring, and most with score reels. These games are very interesting in the way they present the targets to the player vs. what is actually happening inside the game. Adjustments, game mechanics and cabinet style are discussed.
In 1955, Bally experimented with their payout game formula, making an attractive and innovative game called "Crosswords". Crosswords is an interesting game - you put in coins to light additional puzzles on the backglass (up to four), then play your game - if you spell a word (max of four letters), you win replays. You earn a multiplier-style reward if you also land a ball in one of two specially marked star holes. It is a very attractive and interesting game, and looks like a lot of fun to play.
James Willing of the Spooky Pinball Podcast's EM Dungeon segment (http://spookypinball.com/podcast) comes on to fill in my knowledge gaps on bowling games and their special modes and features, including ball bowlers and shuffle / puck bowlers. Jim put up some photos of the United Skippy machine's glass on the EM Dungeon Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/emdungeon), which I will reshare on my Facebook as well. https://www.facebook.com/foramusementonlypodcast
The Reflex Unit is shrouded in secrecy in bingos and horse racing games. It acts as an auto-portioning circuit. When you win on a bingo, it steps up, preventing the machine from granting you awards quickly. Conversely, when you press the button to play off credits or put in money, the machine steps down. The connection between the hit Duran Duran song and this unit is also explained.
The super card was an additional feature on games with a single card. It allowed you to shoot for a smaller 3x3 grid of numbers instead of the normal 5x5 grid. The super card granted you 4-in-line scores instead of the normal 3-in-line for 3 in a row, so worth shooting for if it was lit.
Phil Bogema is a very good player from Colorado and Maryland. He was able to max out credits on machines on route (900 credits) very quickly. Phil has a very analytical mind, and it was fascinating to talk to him about his playing days and play style. He also was active on the Old Binger forums before they went down, and has restored many bingos. His stories on Danny's site (danny.cdyn.com) are very interesting, and recommended reading.
Terry DeZwarte, of www.pinballlife.com and dayonepinball.com fame, has recreated the 1934 Pacific Amusement Co (PAMCO) game Contact Master as Scoregasm Master. Scoregasm Master retains the gameplay and features of the 1930s game, but adds beautiful new artwork, a great cabinet (with wooden legs!), and some minor solid state changes. It is great to see the great gameplay of the 30s pingames return with Scoregasm Master. Unfortunately, the first 15(ish) minutes of the audio are a little rough. Stick with it, good stuff! We discuss some of the differences between this modern game and the original, the return of the pedastal-style tilt mechanism, reliability, scoring techniques and the open source nature of the game. If you would like to purchase a Scoregasm Master, contact terry@pinballlife.com - these are an incredibly limited quantity, and likely no more will be made! For those attending the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown next week, there will be a Scoregasm Master at the show - check it out!
Taylor Reese, a local collector and one of the hosts of the One and Done Pinball Podcast comes on and I try to convince him to pick up an EM flipper game. Taylor provides a service called Reese Rails, where he manufactures new oak playfield rails. You can find him on Facebook under Reese Rails, or message him on pinside.com at TaylorVA to get the conversation started. You can see some of his excellent work on the Oak Replacement Playfield Rails thread on pinside at https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/oak-replacement-playfield-rails-wh2o-and-taf-ready-to-ship-or-york He also is very active on Instagram as @richmondpinball, and also is one of the members/league runners of the River City Flippers. You can see league happenings at richmondpinball.org You can also hear his thoughts on Wizard of Oz on the latest Pinball Podcast, episode 56 - http://www.thepinballpodcast.com/2015/05/26/episode-56-ding-dongle-the-wizard-is-dead
Older games (from the 30s-40s-50s) used coin slides instead of gravity-fed coin slots. This episode explains how to manipulate them, and remove and clean them. I also discuss some of the downsides to coin slides.
How to clean and care for your score reels. Note that this is only my method, but by following these steps, I've never had an issue! Last in my series of 6 episodes on score reels.
Some score reels have PCBs attached - what do they do? Why would a game with mechanical scoring need a circuit board? Find out here! Episode 5 in a series on score reels.
Some of the differences between various makes and models of score reels. Gottlieb Decagons in various formations, and other oddities. Episode 4 in a series on score reels.
Episode 3 in a series on score reels. What are the pieces that actually hold a score reel together? How do they work together and change state?
How do score reels function? Pt. 2 in a series on score reels. As a continuous stepper with pictures instead of rivets!
What is a score reel? This and other questions will be answered. Score reels were first used in the 1950s, and continued to be used through most of the 1970s.
Early pinball machines from the 1930s, all the way through the 40s and into the 50s, used a method of keeping score that was unique to the era. "Lighted scoring" was a way for the game to show you your score and to keep track of your current score for the purpose of awarding replays. I describe how lighted scoring is controlled, and the similarity between it and its successor, the score reel.
Jim Willing from the Spooky Pinball Podcast's EM Dungeon segment (spookypinball.com/podcast) emails with a question on an odd back door switch on a bingo. I give him the wrong answer and he graciously provides the correct one. To be fair, I was nowhere near a manual, schematic or bingo when he asked, but I tried!
...my hubris, in particular. I finally found and fixed the problem with my card #5 in Ticker Tape. It wasn't at all where I was looking, but I (re)learned a valuable lesson. I should actually read the manual/schematic if the game contains units I've never encountered. Also, Australian listeners - a call to action! Please contact me about the bingo scene (if there was one) in Australia. I know absolutely nothing, and would love to be educated.
When you have a scoring problem in a bingo, testing can be a pain, if you don't know this simple trick. Dropping all the balls, and shooting a new winning combination, even with the glass off, takes forever. Pressing a couple of coil plungers and a relay plate are all that's needed to re-test.
The ball gate switch is a very important switch, indeed! It tells the bingo with a time tree that it should throw a trip relay based on the position of the timer unit. Without the trips tripping, the timer will no longer advance, and you will have crazy gameplay issues, including issues with registering replays, locking you out of various timetree-driven features, etc.
Bally and United were both manufacturing bingo pinballs in the 1950s. Since starting this show, I've been increasingly interested in the differences between the two manufacturer's machines. United's mechanics and circuits are engineered differently than the Bally ones, and I like 'em both!
Another deep tech episode - how to remove the unit (could be anything, score reel, search disc [I know, I know], bonus stepper) and safely reattach. Also a cautionary tale about fuse blocks!
Dennis Dodel is an influential bingo and flipper pinball collector that has many notable pinball credentials. He started the Pinball Trader newsletter, which became/inspired the Pingame Journal, and continues to contribute to various pinball publications. If you've ever been to ipdb.org, you've most likely seen a photo credited to Dennis. Dennis answered my questions via email on 5/21/15.
One of my favorite bingos - Sun Valley - this 1957 beauty has great artwork, and is jam-packed with features. Magic Squares and a single Magic Line row allow the player to move every number on the backglass. The challenge is in getting those features lit, along with a time tree that actually allows you to reposition your numbers well, without tilting! I love everything about Sun Valley - the knocker that goes off as you get awarded features and scores is particularly gratifying.
Gottlieb's Vari-Targets were, as per typical Gottlieb fashion, simple yet sophisticated mechanisms that allowed for a new dimension of play. Hitting the target with differing speed/accuracy provided different point values, and would send the ball flying back to your flipper.
Tonight's topic is Roto-Targets - my favorite toy from the woodrail era, that carried through the metal rail era and into some early solid states.
Ball Bowlers (contact and non), shuffle bowlers, and mannikin bowlers are all unique games. In this episode I go over some of the differences between the various types of bowlers.
EM arcade games offered a level of physicality and beautiful artwork that is no longer seen. Uprights, simulators, slots, trade stimulators, and more are discussed (in brief).
Staples of EM arcades - made as early as the turn of the 1900s up through the 60s, these (mostly) beautiful machines are easy to understand, and fun to watch.
My final episode on search discs (for now!) - I also discuss the EM world championships at Clay's VFW, the Isley Brewing Company Triple Strike tournament here locally, and give a more lengthy explanation of the search disc, its function in a bingo and what is wrong with my game.
More issues fixed, and more appear with my Ticker Tape search disc. Search disc and scoring problems are some of the most difficult to troubleshoot and correct on a bingo.
Well, back to tech - I discuss a problem I encountered tonight with scoring on cards 4-5-6 on Ticker Tape, and recount various ways that the search disc can come out of adjustment and how to correct, as well as what to look for when trying to find a searching problem.
Episode 61 - The First Bingo - United's ABC United was the first on the scene with a bingo machine - one month before Bally. Featuring a unique design only seen once more in this history of bingos, United's ABC was more random chance than something that allowed for real bingo gameplay.
The two most interesting designs in the Bally bingo universe - Big Wheel and Magic Ring! A circular 'card' layout on the backglass that I think might have to be played to fully understand.
Later EMs from all the major manufacturers used DC power to drive certain coils. Did you know that Genco games from the late 30s also did the same? And earlier games can be modified to use DC power, after transforming what comes from the wall. This episode is all about the technology that allows this to happen.
You've bought the stinky filthy game of your dreams. Now what? Follow the advice of episode 51, and then do this. Your olfactory sense will thank you.
My process for repainting cabinets, stolen shamelessly from Steve Smith. Stencil and the right amount of webbing, spatter and overspray are key!
Interview with Jeffrey Lawton, the pre-eminent bingo technician, and has been working on bingos for many many years. He is also the man that wrote the books - Bally Bingo Pinball Machines, and The Bingo Pinball War (Bally vs. United). Purchase online at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=bingo+pinball&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Abingo+pinball or catch Jeffrey at the York show and pick up a copy. A very handy reference to the games and their features, in order of their release, along with great photos and Jeffrey's stories about the machines. Steve Smith and I sat down and talked about bingos and working on games, and did a bit of storytelling.
How to fix some basic problems with cabinets and another thing which could be dangerous if not corrected. Also: an interesting bingo at Allentown!
Yet another way to get injured on a pinball machine. Ensure all your machines have tempered glass before someone gets hurt. Better to clean tiny pieces of glass out of the machine than large chunks out of your arms!
Nothing beats the feeling of picking up a new project! I tend to get some pretty rough games (cause I'm cheap). The furry or fecal surprises inside must be removed - even under the transformer board!
I'm no expert, as I've said early on. Here are some of my stupid mistakes, learned during my time refurbishing games. There are others, of course, but here are the choice cuts, my favorites.
If this one sounds like it stops abruptly, that's because I'm sleepy, and it's a two-parter! How to care for your backglass if it has deteriorated.
Vic Camp (the passionate bingo pinball player and collector) sits down with me to talk about his time playing bingos on route in New Jersey.
My partially parted out Gigi project is now working! I detail the gameplay and fun with Gottlieb coin circuits (they hate me).
Rockola was a jukebox manufacturer, and got into pin games (along with every other company, it seems) in the 1930s. During this decade, they produced one of the most beautiful, elegant games ever created.
Interview with the EM Dungeonmaster himself, James Willing from the Spooky Pinball Podcast.
Older pinball machines used bells as the only sound (aside from the coils and noises of the machine).
Discussion of the only hack I found in Ticker Tape - the operator had disabled the 4 corner scoring feature. I fixed this afternoon, then Ava and I played many rounds together.
Arcing in a pinball machine - sometimes unavoidable, almost always bad. Why it happens, how to stop it, and how to look for it. Also: Our first listener question answered on the air!
Cleaning the ball arch on a metal rail EM is important, though no one but you will ever know!
Bzzzzt! What makes the machine tilt? There are many tilt innovations that occurred after the 30s (when the plumb bob tilt mechanism was invented), and several interesting tilt innovations in Bally's bingos.
Description of the gameplay of the 6 card Bally Ticker Tape and the current status of my project Gigi.
I talk with my friend Clark Fraley, who is a technician for an operator. Clark has been with me on a couple of pick ups now, and is a great guy to boot. Interviewed after we moved my new bingo and played for a bit. I hope to have him on again soon(ish) to discuss his upcoming acquisition!
Another new pickup! Gigi described - gameplay to follow after I shop it. I describe how to perform adjustments on an EM game.
I interview Phil Hooper, creator and maintainer of http://bingo.cdyn.com, the Internet's source for technical information on Bally and United bingos. Phil conducted this interview on 4/5/15 via email.
Ramps, lighted scoring, DC-driven coils, multi-level playfields - all were children of the 1930s, and continue to inform today's games.
What's the point of shaking a machine? How much is too much? How do you know? Are bingos games of skill or games of chance? Can older games make you a better player?
High voltage can hurt or even kill you. This is a warning about how to identify high voltage in your machine at a glance and the super easy way you can avoid getting hurt. Your health is more important than getting a game running.
How does a bingo know to lock you out of features after shooting a certain ball? How does it know _not_ to lock you out if you are able to reach the ball return without landing in a trap hole?
When your bingo doesn't count replays approporiately, what do you do? Manual, schematics and observation are a help, but knowing the units involved will set you on the right path faster.
How to disassemble and clean a drop target bank, and how drop targets are typically constructed. Not mentioned: how much I dislike solid state Williams drop targets.
What are the main things to consider when looking at your first bingo? Condition is king, but if you are like I was at first, you'd never seen one of these before.
Talk about how EMs are able to determine the game state. Tech: How to properly adjust a relay, and when to hit it with a hammer (really)!
How were Bingos persecuted in the United States? Why did Bingo production cease in the 80's? These and other questions answered in this episode.
I talk about a toy invented in the woodrail era that is still in use today - the Pop Bumper. Tech: Changing pop bumpers, and how to increase pop safely (by cleaning).
Woodrails gave us some of the toys and mechanical devices that we still use today. Tech talk: flippers - how to disassemble and rebuild. These same basic instructions apply to anything with an EOS switch (basically machines up to 1990ish).
I talk with Ava about Pop-A-Card, the first game I purchased, and the machine that brought me my love of repairing and playing Gottlieb machines (all eras) and EMs and Bingos!
I talk to Steve Smith and give him wide berth to tell his view of how we met and how I fell in love with bingos. He discusses various topics, including differences between flipper vs. bingo pinball, playing on location as a kid, and how he got his first pinball. Forgive sound quality - I was sitting too far from the mic and didn't notice.
Describing how to use the schematic for Pop-A-Card to troubleshoot both a scoring and a lamp problem.
Describing pictures is difficult. Beginning talk about what the symbols represent and what those devices do. I don't describe a switch in great detail, but will be doing so next time.
Double-Up is working now, but I re-learned the same lesson I've learned 1 million times already. The simplest answer is often correct.
Jones Plug care and feeding and I work on Double-Up - fixing a couple of problems, and creating more! All this and lots of repeating myself.
The devil is in the details, and carry-over switches are one detail that you can't ignore. Proper cleaning and adjustment allow for operation of the next higher score reel.
Discussion of hugely popular baseball-themed games from the 50s and 60s. I'll leave discussion of 1930's and 40's games for another episode.
Big thanks to the support of two of my favorite pinball podcasts - The Pinball Podcast with Don and Jeff and The Spooky Pinball Podcast, specifically the EM Dungeon segment. Thanks fellas! One ball horse racing games were made by Bally and were around for over a decade before the first bingo.
In this episode, Double-Up breaks. I give a quick lesson in reading schematics, adjusting switches, and consulting the manual. I talk about the proper switch adjustment tool and how I'm a big scaredy cat when it comes to adjusting switches with the power on. I also talk about the method to replace a switch.
What's the best part of games from the 60's? Challenge, fun, artwork, gameplay? To me it's the variety. What to look for in an EM Tech: I talk about safety, steppers, coil sleeves, cabinet paint, and playfield lockdowns. I'm still experimenting with my audio software, I typically strip the silence and umms from the recordings, but I think it sounds like I don't breathe. I've adjusted a bit and allowed for some blank space. Work in progress!
What are the star zones on a Mystic Line bingo for, anyway? How do you earn a red letter game? How do you even open a bingo? There's so many locks!
Opening the discussion on Mystic Line 20 hole bingo games. Tech segment discusses the difference in the cab between 20 hole bingos and magic screen and earlier bingos.
I talk to myself about the purple section - only present on Silver Sails and Golden Gate. Putting three balls in this section would start a Golden Game, which moves the screen all the way to the left, and exposes several different gold sections. If you put two or three balls (depending on what is highlighted on the backglass) in the golden sections, you win the golden replays (single odds shown in a separate area of the backglass from the normal odds). I also discuss some more tech sections and begin moving to the more mundane - lamps, playfield parts, and pinballs.
A special guest spot with one of my all-time favorite people. And our first correction!
Discussion of the Futurity game available on Bikini and Lido, as well as talk about teh various motors in a typical bingo, and the payout hoppers that can be installed.
I discuss the later 25 hole games, magic squares and magic screens. I describe in detail the typical magic screen gameplay flow. Lastly, I talk about some of the things you want to inspect before plugging in and turning on your brand new bingo machine.
I discuss bingo resources, including Jeffrey Lawton's excellent bingo books (available on Amazon, or catch him at a show to snag a personalized autograph) the earliest bingos, and briefly talk about some gameplay innovations.
For the first episode, I wanted to give a brief introduction and explain my interest in these wonderful amusement devices.