PINBALL
EXPO '94
(The
10th Year)
(PART
1)
by Russ
Jensen
Well, believe it or not, 1994 was the
10th year of the
fabulous
PINBALL EXPO (the first show being put on in 1985).
And,
I'm happy to say, I have been lucky and privileged enough to
attend
all ten shows!
This year the show was truly a four day
event, running from
Thursday,
November 10th through Sunday, November 13th.
Because
of
there being not one but two plant tours on Thursday I had to
travel
to Chicago one day earlier this year - on Wednesday.
Well, as I have done for air travel in
the past year or so,
I again
decided to fly from the closer Hollywood/Burbank Airport,
rather
than LAX. This required me to change
planes in Denver;
but I
didn't mind since my daughter could drive me to the airport
rather
than me having to take the expensive bus trip to LAX.
Since my daughter had to go to work that
day she had to let
me off
at the airport around 6:30 AM for my 8:45 flight.
However,
once I got checked in I discovered there was a flight
leaving
almost immediately for Denver. I was
able to take that
flight
and wait the additional time in Denver, but that was fine
with
me.
The two "legs" of my flight to
Chicago were uneventful.
After
picking up my bag and taking the hotel shuttle from the
airport,
I checked into my room in the early afternoon.
My
roommate,
Los Angeles area collector/operator John Cassidy, was
not
scheduled to arrive until about 5 AM the next%worning as he
was
taking the "red eye" from LAX.
When I arrived I only encountered a small
handful of Expo
visitors
who had already arrived. After retiring
to my room to
watch
two of my favorite Wednesday night TV shows, I ate dinner
alone
at the Italian restaurant which was one of the three eating
places
in the hotel. I will say I had some of
the best Italian
bread I
have ever eaten.
I retired about 11 PM, expecting my
roommate to arrive at 5
or 6
AM. But when I awoke at seven he had
still not shown up.
Being hungry
I again ate alone, this time at the restaurant about
a
half-block from the hotel. When John
did arrive around 8 AM he
told me
that his flight from LA had been delayed, not taking off
until
about 2 AM (instead of 11 PM).
PLANT
TOURS
Well, when Expo registration started at 9
AM John and I went
to get
our registration packets and wait for the 9:30 bus
departure
for the first plant tour. While waiting
for the busses
to
start loading I ran into several old friends from past Expo's.
I also
noticed a young couple with a very tiny baby.
When I
asked
about her I found out her name was Arianna and she was only
7 weeks
old. The youngest Expo attendee I am
sure.
When I finally boarded a bus for the
plant tour I discovered
that my
good friend Sam Harvey was our "bus coordinator". Before
we
started he got up and read to us from a brief history of
Electrical
Windings. Among other things, he told
us that the
company
was founded in 1937 by Orland Murphey (who's son Donal
now
heads it) and that the factory had been in it's present
location
since 1944.
During the approximate 40 minute bus ride
I noticed the
interesting
old Chicago neighborhoods we went through during the
last
part of the ride. Once when I glanced
out the window I just
happened
to see the Foremost Plastics plant, a company making
plastic
parts for the pingame industry and which was featured in
a
seminar at a past Expo.
After arriving at the plant we got off
the busses and
entered
the plant through a large back door accompanied by one of
the
plant employees who acted as our tour guide.
We were first
taken
to see Donal Murphey's personal pingame collection which
was
contained in several different rooms of the factory, some on
different
floors.
These games were pretty much separated by
decades and were
mostly
single-players. We were told we could
not play the games
due to
time constraints. There was also one
room where all the
games
and backglasses were for sale.
After traversing some stairs (there were
a lot of those in
the
building) we started touring the manufacturing areas. We
first
saw a woman working at a special machine which wound the
windings
for 10 transformers at a time. It
employed a counter
which
counted the number of turns for each winding, a sheet of
insulating
material being placed between one winding and the
next.
At the next station a man was using a
special saw to cut
each
transformer's windings from the total of 10 produced at the
previous
station. Next, the ends of each winding
were located
and
brought out and connected to external lead wires.
We then saw the metal lamination layers
being inserted,
followed
by the addition of the external hardware (case, mounting
brackets,
etc.). After that, the completed
transformers we were
told
were impregnated with a chemical and then baked in a special
oven
overnight. I was surprised to hear that
their transformers
were
100 percent tested!
The final part of our tour was the area
where relay and
solenoid
coils were fabricated. This, however,
was nowhere as
interesting
as the transformer manufacturing process.
Upon
leaving
the plant we were each given a small relay coil.
After leaving the plant we boarded the
busses and returned
to the
hotel for lunch. After that we again
boarded the busses
to
travel to the Data East pinball plant for our second plant
tour of
the day.
When we arrived at Data East we had to
wait outside for 20
to 30
minutes as they could only take a limited number of people
into
the plant at one time. This was
reminiscent of a previous
year's
tour of the same plant, except this time it was not nearly
as
cold.
While we were waiting a company
representative welcomed us
to the
plant. He also informed us that they
had recently been
bought
out by Sega and were in the process of changing everything
over to
the new name. We were also told that
the current game in
production
at the plant was MAVERICK.
During this waiting period I also visited
with several
people
who were also waiting to get in.
Finally we were allowed
to
enter the plant.
Having toured this plant before I did not
see much of
anything
new. We passed various stages of the
game assembly
process
(sub-assemblies, playfields, backboxes, etc.).
When we
got to
the testing area our guide told us that they have people
who do
nothing all day but play pinball looking for hardware and
software
errors in the games.
At the packaging area we saw how the
completed games were
slid
into packing boxes using a specially constructed ramp.
After
that we left the main plant and walked about a block to a
separate
warehouse building.
In that building we saw miscellaneous
small assemblies being
fabricated. After that we were each given a game poster
and
offered
coffee and cup cakes. We then boarded
the busses and
returned
to the hotel.
Later in the afternoon (as we had last
year) there were
"pinball
playing lessons" offered to Expo attendees by various
champion
players. This idea was the brainchild
of Louisville
Kentucky
lawyer and pin fan Richard Shapero. At
6 PM the Exhibit
Hall
was opened for the first time, an event eagerly awaited by
most of
the Expo visitors. But more about that
later.
Also that evening one of two special
events (called
"Fireside
Chats" by Expo producer Rob Berk) occurred. This was
held in
Rob's suite and consisted of several of the pinball
artists
visiting with and answering questions from interested
Expo
attendees.
A detailed report on this interesting two
to three hours is
beyond
the scope of this article. It would
also be somewhat
difficult
for me as the batteries in my portable tape recorder
failed
after about five minutes after the start of the session.
I do want to say, however, that this was
an interesting
interlude
indeed, and another great idea by Rob Berk aimed at
making
each year's Expo more exciting than the previous one.
OPENING
REMARKS
The next morning (Friday) was the start
of the Expo
seminars. First, came the "Opening
Remarks". Expo chairman Rob
Berk
first welcomed us all to the 10th edition of Pinball Expo.
He then
announced that Dick Bueschel had been added to the
seminar
program that morning. After reminding
us that Mark Pratt
from
Arizona would be recording and selling audio tapes of all
the
seminars, Rob announced that that evening we would have
another
of his "fireside Chats", this time featuring long-time
designers
Wayne Neyens and Steve Kordek.
Rob then told us that there again would
be (as at the past
two
shows) a designer/artist/author autograph session on Saturday
afternoon. He also said that during the Saturday
evening banquet
there
would be a "charity auction" of pin related items, all the
proceeds
going to the "Make-A-Wish Foundation". He then
introduced
his co-producer and Exhibit Hall Chairman, Mike Pacak.
Mike began by again welcoming us to the
show. He next
thanked
all the exhibitors, complimenting them on the good number
of
pingames they brought to the show. Mike
then informed us that
the
hall would be open all night both Friday and Saturday nights,
for
playing only however. This was
definitely an Expo "first".
He
ended by again thanking us all for coming.
HOW
MANY DID THEY BUILD?
Rob Berk then introduced the presenters
of the first seminar
"How
Many Did They Build", my good friend Sam Harvey from Pomona
California
and Tim Arnold from Las Vegas. Rob
referred to Sam as
a
"wild man" who he said knew who most of the designers and
artist
were for many, many pingames.
Tim, Rob then said, was "a collector
extraordinaire". He
said he
and Tim used to argue over who owned the most pins; but
when
Tim's collection topped 900 he gave up the competition.
This
drew a round of applause.
Tim began by posing the question - why do
the manufacturers
put
serial numbers on games in the first place?
He then answered
that
there were two main reasons. First, so
they can keep
"process
control" over production errors.
Secondly, he went on,
so they
can keep track of how many of each game were built.
This later reason, Tim pointed out, is
also why people today
keep
track of serials of old games - to try to determine game
production
figures.
Tim next told us that we all should send
in the serial
numbers
of games in our collections to either himself, Sam, or
Steve
Young (Incidentally, I sent my serials to
Steve several
years
ago).
He then went on to say that they were not
planning on
releasing
the results of their serial collecting right away. One
reason
for this, Tim then told us, was that premature disclosure
could
tend to decrease the incentive for people to provide
additional
information to the project.
Finally, Tim commented that the exporting
of pingames could
cause
some problems with using existing serials to determine game
production
numbers. As an example, he mentioned
the large number
of pins
Gottlieb exported to Europe in the late 1960's
Sam Harvey then began to tell us about
where serial numbers
were
located on the games by different manufacturers. He began
by
mentioning that Data East puts their serials on the backs of
the
machines making it difficult to read them when they are
placed
against the wall.
Still talking about modern pins, Sam told
us that Premier
puts
their serials right on the playfield instruction cards. He
then
commented that he doesn't understand why game manufacturers
keep a
secret of their production figures, even for the electro-
mechanical
games which were made over 15 years ago.
He then said
they
hope pressure from collectors will eventually get the
manufacturers
to release this old information.
On that subject, Tim then quipped that
eventually maybe they
might
be able to tell the manufacturers how many games they made.
Tim
then remarked that he thought the manufacturers should
"pander"
to the collectors by giving out that type of
information.
Tim then said that they are doing quite
well with regard to
deciphering
Gottlieb serials, but that Williams is harder,
because
they use sequential serials - not restarting numbering
with
each new game. He then told us that a
list of Bally
production
figures was once "snuck out" of the plant.
Bally, Tim continued, usually starts
their serials at "1000"
for
each new game. Williams he said does
not start a new series
with
each game, but continues numbering from the previous game.
Tim
then told us that Williams put serial number tags on coin
doors,
the bottom of the cabinet, and stapled inside the head.
He then remarked that "sample"
games put out by the
manufacturers
sometimes cause a problem with analyzing serials.
Gottlieb,
Tim went on, usually put the letter 'S' after the
serial
number on it's sample games. He then
said that Gottlieb
usually
stamped their serials on the front of the cabinet below
the
coin door.
Tim then added that they also started
serials for a new game
at the
next even thousand after the last number of the previous
game. He then said that this means that they don't
"reset" their
serials
for each new game as Bally does.
Finally, Tim remarked that slot
collectors have been
collecting
serials for years and that it's about time for pin
collectors
to do the same.
On a related subject, Sam then told us
that Gottlieb put the
"game
numbers" (the number used to internally identify each new
model
at the plant) on their schematics, but that Williams did
not on
their earlier games. Therefore, he told
us, he needs to
know
many of the game numbers for early Williams pins.
Getting back to serials, Sam said there
was a rumor that in
the
1960's Gottlieb put hidden serial numbers of the playfield
using a
method which required a special type of light to read
them. United, he then told us, wrote their serials
with crayons.
Chicago Coin, Sam then remarked, was very
much like
Gottlieb,
stamping serials either above or below the coin door.
He then
commented that sometimes some operators stamped their own
"serial
numbers" into the wood. But, he
added, after you see a
few of
these you can easily determine the factory numbers from
those
applied by operators.
At that point we were asked if we had any
questions? The
first
question asked was if serial information could be supplied
by
people via the INTERNET computer communications system? Tim
replied
"I don't like computers", but went on to say that if
someone
wants to do it that way to let them know.
When asked if serials were ever found on
playfields, the
answer
given was that they were sometimes found on playfields,
cabinets,
or doors in different locations. It was
next asked if
they
planned to publish their serial information regularly? Tim
replied
that they are afraid to publish anything early because
people
might stop contributing serials when they are published.
At that point Sam remarked that regarding
the question about
serials
on playfields, that some older Williams games had them
stamped
on the field. Tim remarked that today
Williams has 5
assembly
lines which makes serials harder to track as they are
computer
generated. He then added that you
should just forget
about
Williams games made after PINBOT.
At that point Dick Bueschel in the
audience made a comment
regarding
slot serials. He said they have been
publishing those
for
years and are still getting new inputs all the time. Tim
then
remarked that they were thinking about starting some sort of
serial
number contest, perhaps in connection with PinGame
Journal.
Someone from the audience then remarked
that they were
curious
how many of the old games have survived, asking if they
would
share the information they receive regarding how many of
each
game is reported to them? Tim said that
would be possible,
and
then estimated that approximately 1 percent of the games made
in the
1950's have survived, and maybe 2 to 5 percent of those
manufactured
in the 1960's.
Sam next remarked that the manufacturers
build their games
to last
for about 5 years, saying that it's really a wonder that
so many
have survived today. Tim then commented
that many of the
games
were exported out of the country, even saying that many
were
sent to Cuba.
Someone next suggested that PinGame
Journal provide a list
of rare
pins (such as Bally's BALLS-A-POPPIN') and request that
readers
notify them if they own any of those games.
After that
Sam
remarked that somewhere further down the line that a book
might
be published giving this type of information and/or the
results
of the serial number project.
Someone else then directed our attention
to the latest
update
of Larry Bieza's "Pinball Price Guide" which, in addition
to listing
retail prices for post-war flipper games, contained
listings
of highest and lowest discovered serial numbers for
Williams
and Gottlieb games from Steve Young's serial number
project. Tim then told of Sam Harvey purchasing some
old records
from a
pingame distributor which contained many Williams serial
numbers
for games they sold.
At that point someone from the audience
remarked that some
of his
games have had the serials removed and asked why that
might
have been done? Tim replied that there
were often
"exclusive
distributorships" which local operators could only
purchase
from. He said some operators would
remove serials from
games
they purchased outside the local area.
When it was asked how long it would be
until the serial
information
they were collecting would be published, Tim replied
that
they were "open to suggestions".
He then added that people
could
make their suggestions to them, even through INTERNET.
Continuing along this computer theme,
Gottlieb designer Jon
Norris
mentioned a new computer "bulletin board" which had
recently
been set up in Seattle, suggesting that a "conference"
regarding
serial numbers might be set up on that.
Tim answered,
"OK,
but I still do things by hand". A
suggestion was then made
that
the "computer people" get together later to discuss such
things.
At that point Sam remarked that if they
ever could see
production
information from the manufacturers it would be
interesting
to compare the results of their serial number
research
with the actual figures. Tim then added
that the Bally
list
indicated that 799 VAMPIRES were made, a figure which was
substantiated
by serial number information.
Finally, Tim suggested that designers
Steve Kordek and Wayne
Neyens
should be asked for their comments, possibly at the
"Fireside
Chat" scheduled for that evening.
(Incidentally, that
subject
was never brought up during the "chat".)
Before thanking us for our interest in
their project, Sam
remarked
that revelation of low production on certain games could
possibly
result in higher prices for those machines.
That ended
the
presentation which drew a round of applause for Sam and Tim.
PINBALL
FLYERS
Rob Berk then introduced the next
speaker, Dick Bueschel,
who he
said was currently editor of COIN-OP CLASSICS magazine,
had
written many books, and who he said had a wealth of
information
regarding pins.
After remarking that the pinball hobby
"goes on and on",
Dick
said he was going to talk about collecting pinball
advertising
flyers. He said that this was a rapidly
expanding
area of
the hobby, and that he spent much time with the "paper
side"
of the hobby.
To illustrate his point regarding flyer
collecting, Dick
first
remarked that the flyer for the first flipper game,
Gottlieb's
HUMPTY DUMPTY, is rarer than the game itself and could
bring
as much as $150. He then said that he
himself once refused
an
offer of that much for the flyer for Rockola's 1933 pin
JIGSAW. Dick then commented that Bally FIREBALL
flyers are
approaching
$100 today.
At that point Dick began a great slide
presentation showing
rare
pinball flyers from several decades.
The first flyer shown
was for
Bally's 1932 pioneer pin BALLYHOO.
After telling us that
the
game's designer Ray Moloney started with serial '1000' to
make
people think he had produced more than he had, Dick told us
that
that game was "supported by more printed paper than any
other
pingame ever made."
Dick next showed the flyer for Keeney's
RAINBO from that
same
year which he said was one of many "BALLYHOO clones". He
then
told us that BALLYHOO had established the standard size for
pins of
the period.
We were then shown the brochure for the
square pin
BALLYROUND
which Dick said had "died", almost causing Bally to go
bankrupt. Flyers for this game, he told us, are quite
rare
today.
Following that we were shown Peo's DAISY
which Dick said was
another
of the square pingames which came out in the first six
months
of 1932. The flyer showed "high
class" people playing the
game.
Next we saw a game called KING TUT which
Dick said was
promoted
as a product of Automatic Jobbers of New York.
Dick
said
that many different outfits sold this game, but that he
thought
it might have been actually made by International
Mutoscope
Co.. He also told us that he had never
actually seen
this
game.
We were then shown Rockola's JUGGLE BALL
from October 1933
on
which the player could move the ball on the playfield by means
of a
rod. Dick commented that that idea
apparently did not catch
on. Finally he remarked that the game was
similar to BALLYROUND
and
that the flyer was probably rarer than the game.
Next Dick showed Bally's PENNANT from
December 1933, which
he said
had to face the competition of Rockola's very popular
JIGSAW
which came out about the same time. He
then commented on
it's
"crazy handling of the ball" which he said was all done
mechanically.
Dick then showed the 4 page, full color,
flyer for Pacific
Amusement's
CONTACT, the first pin to use electric ball control.
He said
that the flyer for that game is much sought after by
collectors,
the 4 page version not coming out until the
introduction
of the popular "Junior" model.
We next saw Bally's STREAMLINE from April
of 1935 which Dick
said
was a new large size (42 inches long).
He told of it's
interesting
ball manipulation method and explained how to make a
high
score on the game.
This was followed by the flyer for
Bally's June 1934 pin
FLEET,
the first of several Bally games by that name.
Dick
mentioned
that that early FLEET was not mentioned in the
Hawkins/Mueting
dating book. He then said it featured
the
revolutionary
"shooting gun" idea which was a "new thrill" for
pinball
players. Finally Dick told us he had 4
copies of this
flyer
which may be the most available of the early 1930's pinball
flyers.
Next we saw the flyer for a game from
October 1934 called
MAJIK
KEYS. Dick told us that pinball pioneer
Harry Williams
once
said that he considered this game to be one of the most
significant
of the early pins, even admitting to borrowing ideas
from
it.
Dick then said that that game was made in
Los Angeles, which
he said
was one of the centers of pinball development in the
early
years. He then told us that Don Hooker,
who later designed
many of
the Bally "one-ball" and "bingo" machines, originally
worked
in Los Angeles. Finally Dick remarked
that MAJIK KEYS had
an
influence on all succeeding pingames.
We then saw an October 1934 pin called
LIVE POWER, which
Dick
said was designed by a fellow named Dudley Clark. He then
said
that "kickers" on pins came in in a hurry. Finally Dick
pointed
out how balls in the "high voltage" holes near the top of
the
playfield could be "popped up", and up to 9 balls could be
moving
at one time.
Next was Daval's SHOOTING STARS from
September 1934. Dick
described
it's "progressive scoring system" which he said was
exciting
as long as the balls held out.
We then saw Rockola's ARMY AND NAVY from
December 1934,
which
Dick described as "one of the most elaborate football motif
games
ever made". After telling us it
was one of the last of
this
type of game, he described it's action including it's moving
football. We then saw another football motif pin,
ABT's 1934
game
ALL STARS, which Dick said had three dimensional players on
the
field.
Dick then showed us the brochure for a
pin called SAFETY
ZONE,
which he said was made by an outfit in Brooklyn in December
1934. He told us that that company also made
arcade games (such
as
diggers). Dick then commented that it
was designed by a
fellow
named Max Levine and had a buzzer.
We next saw Daval's CHICAGO EXPRESS from
February 1935 which
had a
tri-level playfield. Dick described the
game's action and
mentioned
that it's theme was based on the Chicago "El trains".
Next up was Gottlieb's TURNTABLE from
March 1935, which had
a
turntable in the middle of the field which would turn if a ball
landed
in a special hole. After describing the
game's action,
Dick
told of the "coat of arms" on it's cabinet which Alvin
Gottlieb
once said his father Dave told him he copied from a
Cadillac
hubcap.
Dick then showed the brochure for
Exhibit's STAR LITE from
April
1935. He told us that that company
hired Harry Williams
and Lyn
Durrant who he said designed some "clever and wonderful
games",
using electric action and moving lights.
STAR LITE,
however,
he said was designed by a fellow named Frank Maitland.
Dick
then told us that later models of the game had a short
marque.
We were next shown the flyer for what
Dick said was
probably
the smallest payout pin ever made, Pierce Tool and
Manufacturing's
BULLET from April 1935. He said with
this game a
player
could try to win nickels and not just play for pleasure.
This
little game, Dick went on, gave the player 10 balls for a
nickel
which might look like a "sure thing". However, he said,
it is
actually hard to get a payout on it.
Next we saw a game called CHECKERS put
out by International
Mutoscope
(another New York City manufacturer) in May of 1935.
Dick
said it was designed by a Jack Firestone and that the
playfield
could be changed from checkers to either a "form a
word"
or a poker game.
We then were shown the flyer for a game
called SHORT WAVE
put out
by Scientific Machine Corp. of Brooklyn in January 1936.
Dick
said this game and it's flyers are extremely rare.
The next flyer shown was for a German pin
called TURNER put
out by
an outfit called Jentzsch and Meers in early 1936. Dick
told us
that that company was often referred to as "the European
Mills". He then remarked that it had "toilet
seat covers" over
it's
holes.
Following that we saw the flyer for
Jennings' FLICKER from
May
1936. That company Dick said was
primarily a slot
manufacturer
but also put out many pingames in the 1930's.
He
then
told of the game's lighted backglass, and remarked that it
paid
out using a slot machine mechanism.
Next up was Rockola's 1936 pin QUEEN
MARY, which was named
after
the ship which Dick said was "the biggest thing you've ever
seen". He then briefly described it's one ball
scoring.
We then saw the flyer for a one-ball
payout pin called
COMBINATION
from October 1936 (the month I was born!).
Dick told
us this
was the 15th pingame put out by Buckley Manufacturing, a
company
noted for their counter games. He told
of it's 3-reel
mechanism
in the center of the playfield on which the combination
"W-I-N"
was necessary for a payout.
Dick then jumped to 1940, showing us
Exhibit's LANCER which
he said
he thought resembled Williams' solid-state pin BLACK
KNIGHT. He then commented that electro-mechanical
pins developed
rapidly
after 1936. Finally Dick commented that
at that time
Exhibit
was introducing two new games in some months.
Next we saw a pin called DOUGHBOY from
that same year, the
brochure
implying it was made by Baker Novelty Co..
Dick
remarked
that the flyer tried to say that Baker makes good games;
but, he
then told us, their games were actually made by Chicago
Coin.
After Bally's BEAUTY with bathing
beauties on it's
backglass,
we saw Gottlieb's GOLD STAR which Dick said came out
two
months before the bombing at Pearl Harbor.
We then saw
Exhibit's
AIR CIRCUS from early 1942 which he said was the end of
game
production because of the war.
Going to the post-war era, Dick first
showed the flyer for
Marvel's
FRISCO. He said this was a re-vamp of a
pre-war game,
then
briefly describing what re-vamps are (old games turned into
new
ones by the addition of different backglasses, etc.). Dick
then
showed another Marvel re-vamp, OPPORTUNITY, from October
1946.
The first post-war production game Dick
showed a flyer for
was
Bally's BALLYHOO (the 2nd one by that name) from June 1947.
We were
next shown two more post-war re-vamps, SWEET SUE (a re-
vamp of
United's HAVANA), and ELMER (re-vamp of Chicago Coin's
KILROY),
both done by an outfit calling itself "T & M Sales Co.".
Dick
then remarked that KILROY was the highest production run of
any
game until Bally's WIZARD in 1975.
After showing us the flyer for United's
ABC (one of the
first
"bingo" style pins) from 1951, Dick showed a flyer for a
German
pin called NIXE. Dick told us that the
Germans referred
to pins
as "bombers". He then showed
flyers for some more German
pins,
including a 1954 flipper game.
The final two flyers Dick showed were
Gottlieb's "Deluxe
DUETTE",
a wide-body version of their first 2-player pin from
1955,
and Williams' SUPER SCORE of 1956. Dick
remarked that the
"deluxe"
version of DUETTE was never listed in any pin lists and
has a
different backglass than the "standard" version. Flyers
for the
later game, Dick told us, were quite rare.
After his slide show Dick made a few
final comments before
asking
for questions from the audience. He
first told us that
Dave
Gottlieb's picture can be found on the back of the flyer for
their
1959 game QUEEN OF DIAMONDS, along with a statement signed
by him
to the effect that it was the "greatest amusement machine
we have
ever built."
Dick then told us that flyers for Bally's
1976 game CAPTAIN
FANTASTIC
are getting hard to find. He then told
of a German
flyer
for Gottlieb's 1978 solid-state pin CLEOPATRA, and the
flyer
for a European pin called SEXY GIRL, both of which were
rare. Finally, he reminded us that if you want to
get flyers for
the
latest pins you could subscribe to PinGame Journal.
Dick then asked for questions? He was then asked why he
thought
electricity was not used on pins earlier than the mid
1930's? Dick replied that there was a game using
electricity in
1908,
but the reason it probably wasn't used on more early games
was
that it was too expensive to build electric games in those
days.
Finally, Dick was asked why he took such
an interest in coin
machines? He replied "I'm a groupie; I love
it!" That ended
Dick's
fine presentation.
DOT-MATRIX
ANIMATION IN PINBALL
Rob Berk next introiduced the featured
speaker for the next
seminar,
Scott Slomiany, to talk about the new Dot-Matrix
displays
used on today's pins. Rob said Scott
went to work for
Willaims
in 1991 and was their first full-time dot-matrix person.
Scott then came up on stage and set up
his demonstration
equipment
for his lecture. He then began by
explaining that the
dot-matrix
display used in today's pins is a 128 by 32 array of
small
light bulbs.
He then told us that each lamp was
capable of three shades
of
illumination and black (off). Scott
said these shades were
the
result of what percentage of time each lamp was turned on.
He then
remarked that this type of display was developed by the
pinball
manufacturers to make older model games seem less
desirable
to players.
After telling us that the use of these
displays allowed
games
to have more complex "rules" because the display can add
"more
to the game", Scott remarked that the software to control
the
displays was developed "in-house".
He then told us they used
scanned
images to start with, which were then modified by their
own
animation software.
Scott next described more of the details
of their system
while
we waited for his demonstration software to display the
next
image. During this explanation several
of the people in the
audience
who were "software oriented" asked some very technical
questions
which Scott answered. He then remarked
"the software
guy
adds a lot to what I do to make it look great".
When the demo program was finally ready
we were shown a
demonstration
of animation in the displays. Scott
told about
digitizing
a frame and then cutting out what you need.
He told
us that
memory limits what they can do, saying that they have
about 2
megabytes of memory to use for display on Williams/Bally
games.
Scott went on to say that sometimes they
ad "inside jokes"
and
other things to the display to entice players.
He also
remarked
that they also have to satisfy the license people on
licensed
games, as well as the game designers.
At the point Scott asked for questions
from the audience?
The first
question asked was "what about using bigger display
screens
in the future?" Scott replied that
Data East uses a
large
screen on their current game MAVERICK, but that they don't
necessarily
want to do that now at their company because, even
though a
larger screen gives a better picture, it requires more
memory
thus limiting the animation, unless expensive memory is
added
thus adding cost to the game.
When next asked about using color
displays, Scott replied
that
they possibly might try it in the future, but that price is
also a
problem with that.
Scott was then asked about problems
occurring with the
dropping
of frames on the display? He replied
that they
sometimes
have that type of problem, telling of various things
they
have to consider in their design to prevent that.
Someone next asked Scott what was his
favorite of his own
designs? He replied that he liked his DRACULA display
which he
said
captured the mood of the movie. He also
said ROAD SHOW was
a lot
of fun to do.
When asked what his favorite pingame was,
Scott answered
that it
was STAR TREK - THE NEXT GENERATION. He
then added that
Williams'
EARTHSHAKER from 1989 was the game that got him
interested
in pinball.
Scott was next asked if he determines the
animation for his
games? He replied that he comes into the project
later in the
design
cycle, after the whitewood is created.
Scott then said
that
when he gets into the animation he might determine where it
is
appropriate, and sit down with the programmers to determine
what
can be done.
When next asked if they used any computer
diagnostics to
check
the sequencing of the displays, Scott answered "no, we just
take
the glass off the game and hit the switches." He was then
asked
what kinds of images were hard to create.
Scott's reply
was
that faces are hard to do because high contrast is necessary
in a
facial image.
At that point Scott gave some details
concerning the complex
animation
used in their current hit ROAD SHOW.
This included
animation
of various characters met on a trip to New Orleans,
each of
which was knocked off the road by a bulldozer.
The next question asked was if it was
difficult to
synchronize
the display with the game's sound?
Scott replied
that
sometimes it's very difficult, for example syncing mouth
movements
with a voice.
Scott was then asked if eventually they
might try using a
video
camera to capture data for a display and then digitize it?
Scott
responded that the technology currently exists, but a small
screen
would make it look bad. When then asked
if VGA graphics
could
be used for pingame displays, Scott answered that it was
possible
but extremely expensive.
The last question asked of Scott was what
type of micro-
processor
they used in their games? He replied
that it was a
Motorola
1609 with a 2 megahertz clock rate.
That ended the
seminar.
SHOPPING
YOUR PINBALL MACHINE PROPERLY
The next seminar to be presented was on
"shopping" a pingame
presented
by Jim Tolbert of For Amusement Only in Berkeley
California. In preparation for that we were each given a
hand-
out to
follow during the presentation. While
this was being done
Jim was
setting up the Gottlieb FLIP-A-CARD (1970) game to be
used
for demonstration.
Rob Berk then introduced Jim, saying that
he has been
operating
his company since 1976. He then told
about his former
publication,
Amusement Review (the first magazine I ever wrote
for),
that he currently writes articles for Coin-Op Classics, and
that he
wrote a book called TILT. Finally, Rob
told us that Jim
is
currently researching coin-ops with a baseball theme. Jim was
then
given a round of applause.
Jim then began with a few preliminary
remarks. He first
told us
that some of the ideas he would present are very basic,
but
other things he will talk about may not be so well known.
Some
things, Jim then said, he has picked up from other people,
and
still others he discovered for himself.
He also asked for
our
ideas.
After telling us that Scott Sheridan from
Ohio would be
assisting
in his demonstration, Jim remarked that the game they
were
using had been in storage since 1986.
He then told us that
it had
not been plugged in since then.
Jim next told us that the first rule of pinball repair or
restoration
is to have a complete and organized tool box.
This,
he went
on, should also include such items as cleaners, wax,
polish,
fuses, and rubber rings.
We were then told that the connectors in
a game are often a
big
problem and should be thoroughly cleaned with either a wire
brush
or crocus cloth. Jim then reminded us
to check the power
cord,
and if it is starting to get bad replace to it using a 9
foot
extension cord which can be purchased at a low cost.
Jim next reminded us that the stainless
steel legs and front
door
should be cleaned. He also told us to
remove the coin
mechanisms
and wash them in soapy water.
After removing the lock-down bar from the
front of the game,
Jim
removed the playfield glass. He then
told us that old glass
should
be replaced with tempered glass because one can get cut
from
plate glass.
Jim next said you should remove the
score/instruction cards
and
schematic for the game and store them in a secure place,
suggesting
that the cash box be used for this and to hold any
other
loose items from the game. We were then
reminded to remove
the
ball before the playfield is removed.
At that point Jim said you should remove
the playfield and
mechanism
panel from the cabinet, saving any loose parts found in
the
cabinet. He then suggested vacuuming
the inside of the
cabinet.
Jim next told us that you should clean
the areas inside the
cabinet
that you can see when the playfield is in, and use fine
steel
wool to clean the outside of the cabinet.
After that Jim suggested that the flipper
buttons be removed
and
cleaned, and also that the chime unit be cleaned and that
it's
plungers also be checked. It was then
suggested that the
dirt be
blown out of the mechanism panel.
Jim next told us to tighten the screws on
all switch stacks
on
relays, the score motor, etc.. At that
point pingame designer
Jon
Norris from the audience suggested that the wing nuts be
tightened
on any relay banks.
Jim next said that you should go through
all stepping
switches
in the game, cleaning and lubing them.
He said you
could
use a lubricant called "LPS-1" on the pivot points, but if
they
were still frozen that you might have to disassemble the
unit
and clean it.
Regarding cleaning wipers and rivet
contacts on stepping
switches,
Jim first said that if you remove the wiper assembly be
sure to
mark the "0" (reset) position first using red nail
polish. The wipers and rivet contacts, he then told
us, can be
sprayed
with contact cleaner which then should be wiped off, the
residue
then being removed with crocus cloth.
After that, Jim went on, you can apply
"coin machine lube"
sparingly
to the rivet contacts. Finally, he told
us to check
all the
bracket screws on the units. He also
said you can check
wire
connections by pulling on the wires.
After replacing the mechanism panel and
playfield in the
cabinet,
Jim said you should take everything off the top of the
field
for cleaning. He told us you can use a
"rock tumbler" to
clean
metal parts, which can also be buffed.
He warned us that a
tumbler
could damage plated parts which are beginning to "flake".
At that point Jim's helper Scott removed
the score card
holder
and top arch from the playfield for cleaning.
Jim next
went
into the backbox and told how to set up a game for "free
play"
if desired.
Still in the backbox, Jim told of
cleaning the score and
credit
reels, commenting that you should not spray anything on
the
reels for fear the painted numbers might come off or smear.
He
suggested using a soft cloth or paper towel to apply the
cleaner.
Still on the subject of score reels, Jim
told us that they
can be
disassembled to clean/adjust them and then reassembled.
Finally
he told us to operate the coil plunger by hand to advance
the
reels, ending by reminding us to clean their mounting
brackets.
At that point helper Scott cleaned the card
holder he had
previously
removed. He then cleaned that area on
the playfield
which
the card holder normally covered. Scott
then cleaned the
ball
trough, telling us that the plunger could be cleaned using
the
rock tumbler.
It was next suggested that the plastic
playfield posts be
removed
and soaked in a soapy water solution.
Jim then said that
you
could replace those posts with new ones if desired.
The subject of playfield plastics was
next taken up, Jim
reminding
us that they are a very important part of the game's
cosmetics. He then told us that he has had some success
with
replacing
bad plastics by duplicating good ones from another
identical
game by color Xerox and placing those on a cut-out of
clear
plastic laminate.
If youy plastics are good, however, Jim
reminded us to keep
them in
a safe place until they are replaced.
He then said they
could
be cleaned with either glass cleaner or plastic polish.
Jim
then passed around examples of dirty and cleaned plastics for
comparison. He then told us that the plastics should
"float" on
their
mountings when reinstalled by not tightening down the acorn
nuts
which hold them.
As far as fixing warped playfield
plastics, Jim's first
suggestion
was to use a heat gun to heat the plastic piece until
it
droops. Then, using gloves to handle
the hot piece, he
suggested
putting it under a piece of glass (never between wood!)
to
cool.
Jim also said that warped plastics could
be heated on a
cookie
sheet in the over, Steve Young commenting from the
audience
that the oven temperature should not be over 150
degrees!
(A WORD
OF WARNING! - If you do this be very careful of the
temperature
and also how close the plastics are to the heating
element. I personally almost destroyed two rare
plastics by not
being
careful enough.)
Finally, Jim told us that he usually
removes and services
all the
pop-bumpers on the field, but there was not enough time
to do
this now. He then asked if we had any
questions?
Jon Norris first asked what you could do
to remove paint
from a
painted-over cabinet? Jim suggested a
paint removing
product
called "Goof Off" to remove the top layer of paint.
As an aside, Jim next suggested that
cabinets be checked to
see if
re-gluing was necessary, also suggesting that any old
chewing
gum be removed from the cabinet. When
someone from the
audience
suggested that the ball be checked, Jim suggested that a
new
ball always be used.
A question was next asked regarding
adding a sheet of mylar
to
protect the playfield? Jim replied that
he doesn't like
mylar,
adding that bad mylar can be removed using a heat gun.
Jim was next asked how to repair sunken
playfield lighted
plastic
"inserts"? He replied that
you should knock them out
entirely
(using a nut driver or dowel from the bottom of the
field),
then reset and re-glue them using Crazy Glue.
When asked to define "shopping"
a pingame, Jim said that the
definitive
definition of shopping is a complete restoration.
This,
he went on, includes new bulbs and rubber rings and buffing
and
polishing everything.
Jim then remarked that he sometimes sells
games "as is",
showing
the buyer what to do to shop it themselves.
The next
question
regarded touch-up of cabinet scratches.
Jim replied that he buys model paints for
that purpose.
Sometimes,
he continued, he uses Testor's "paint pens" in black
and
white to fill in bad areas of paint. He
then remarked that
you can
use acrylic paints for backglass touch-up.
Finally, Jim
commented
that paint pens (or "sharpies" as they are sometimes
called)
can be used to touch-up playfield plastics or even
playfield
art.
At that point someone asked for more
information on
backglass
restoration. Jim replied by first
cautioning us to
remove
backglasses carefully. He then told us
he used a product
called
"Zip-A-Tone" for touching up translucent areas on the
glass.
Jim told us that this came in sheets and
you had to cut out
a piece
of the proper color and lay it on top of the bad area of
paint. The bad news, however, Jim told us was that
that product
was no
longer available.
He then told us that you can use acrylic
latex paint which
is
available in art supply stores. Jim
said you should mix the
colors
on the front of the glass, then use a Cue-Tip to dab the
paint
on the area to be touched up. After
that, he went on, you
should
"seal" the glass with a product such as Steve Young's
"Cover
Your Glass".
On
the subject of playfields, Jim next told us that for
repairing
playfield screw holes one should use wood from a wooden
match
and Crazy Glue. He then suggested using
a paint brush to
clean
loose dirt off the field, then wiping it with a damp rag.
After that, Jim continued, you should use
a playfield
cleaner
(he mentioned a product called "CP-100"), followed by
waxing
it with about three coats of a good wax.
He then remarked
that
the game's cabinet should also be waxed.
Jim then said that new lamps should be
used on the
playfield,
recommending using type 47's rather that type 44's.
He then
recommended cleaning/adjusting all playfield switch
contacts,
also suggesting that lamp sockets either be cleaned or
replaced.
Next Jim went to the subject of cleaning
the game's legs and
stainless
steel doors. He first suggested that
legs be buffed or
wire
brushed; foreign materials being first scraped off with a
putty
knife. He also suggested using
"409" cleaner and/or
"S.O.S."
pads to clean the legs well.
Finally, Jim suggested using a good metal
polish or a
special
impregnated cloth which he referred to as "Never Dull".
He then
suggested replacing the old leg levelers with new ones.
To wrap up his presentation Jim suggested
that after a game
has
been "shopped" you should check it thoroughly to see if
anything
still doesn't work properly. Finally he
recommended not
plugging
a game in until it has been thoroughly shopped. This,
he
added, eliminates a lot of problems.
GAME
DESIGN FROM 'A' TO 'Z'
Rob Berk next introduced the speaker for
the next seminar,
Williams
pinball designer Pat Lawlor, to give his presentation
"Game
Design From 'A' to 'Z'". He told
us that Pat had been with
Williams
for 8 years and has designed such games as BONZAI RUN
(1988),
EARTHSHAKER (1989), FUN HOUSE (1990), and TWILIGHT ZONE
(1993).
After thanking Rob for inviting him to
speak, Pat told us he
wanted
to make a few preliminary remarks.
First he said that
this
year his presentation was going to be somewhat different
from
his talks of pervious years.
Pat then told us that he will first give
a brief, broad
overview
of his views on pingame design. He then
commented that
pin
designers are individualists, each doing things differently.
Pat then told us that he would try to
give us a broad idea
of game
design, but that he would like to try and tailor his
presentation
to the depth we in the audience wanted.
He said
this
could be done by letting us contribute our ideas to help
guide
his presentation by answering our questions in a
"interactive
way".
At that point Pat asked how many first
time Expo visitors
there
were in the audience? Quite a few
people raised their
hands. He than asked how many operators? There was also quite a
few.
Pat next said he would talk about the
"concepts" of pin
design,
saying there were essentially 3 "flavors" of concepts.
The
first "flavor" he told us was an "all original" design, not
involving
any licensing, which he said was "fun to do".
The second "flavor", Pat told
us, was the regular "license"
game
such as ADDAMS FAMILY. He then told
about the meetings they
had
with Paramount Studios regarding that property. We were then
told
that if a movie doesn't have "history" you're taking a
chance
buying a license.
We were then told that the last
"flavor" was a mix of a
license
and the designer's own ideas, giving their game ROAD SHOW
as an
example. Pat then commented that ROAD
SHOW actually
resulted
from a game idea he wanted to do. This
idea came from
his
previous trip to the West to attend a Pinball Show. He added
that
the "country/western" theme came from the music he heard
during
that trip.
Someone from the audience then asked
Roger Sharpe
(Williams/Bally/Midway's
Director of Marketing) how long it
usually
takes to obtain a "license"?
He answered that it is
normally
9 months to a year or more.
Roger was then asked how he learns about
future movies he
may
wish to get a license for? He replied
that there are certain
movie
business publications which give such information. He then
told us
that you can also call someone when you hear a rumor of a
new
movie.
Finally, Roger remarked that if there are
several new films
coming
out you have to do a sort of "market analysis" to try and
determine
which might be the best one to license.
At that point Pat introduced his
panel. First was
programmer
Dwight Sullivan, followed by another programmed Ted
Estes
who Pat said was the head of software development at their
company.
Pat then introduced their ace mechanical
engineer John
Crutch
who he said designs all the "great toys" used on their
games. Then, after introducing Roger Sharpe, Pat
introduced
artist
John Youssi.
After defining what was meant by a
"whitewood" (the first
working
model of a new design), Pat told how it was created from
his
game concept. He told us they used
"AUTOCAD" computer
software
to draw out the playfield, this drawing then used to
produce
the prototype field which has no artwork (hence the term
"whitewood").
After Roger Sharpe answered a few
questions regarding the
"timing"
of licenses, Pat told about having "prototypes" of their
ADDAMS
FAMILY available at the movie's premier.
Someone from the audience then asked the
frequently asked
question
of how people could submit their game ideas to the
company? Pat replied that under his contract with the
company he
wasn't allowed
to talk to anyone on that subject because it might
lead to
legal problems. He then said that at
their company Steve
Kordek
"interfaces with the whole outside world" and that he
would
refer anyone to Steve on such matters.
When someone then asked if all mechanical
designs were
committed
to drawings, Pat answered "we draw everything".
Mechanical
engineer John Crutch then added that drawings of all
mechanical
devices they use are drawn on a computer and
prototypes
then made from those drawings.
It was next asked if they used computer
software programs to
simulate
the play of a new design? Pat answered
only "we have
lot's
of interesting software", adding "some things I can't talk
about".
Pat then made some miscellaneous comments
regarding
drawings. He first remarked that there are thousands
of parts in
a game,
each having one or more drawings associated with it. Pat
then
told us that their vendors need drawings to produce parts
for
them, the manufacturing people need assembly drawings to know
how to
put the games together, and their parts sales people have
to be
able to "replicate" the parts later.
Someone then asked how long parts for a
given game are made
available? Pat answered at Williams it's about 5
years. He then
told us
that they can sell 70 percent of their parts to foreign
markets,
adding that the U.S. is "a vast wasteland for pingames."
At that point someone asked Pat why he
made that statement?
Pat
replied that the U.S. is the cheapest place one can play
pinball. He said that in Germany a game costs about
$1.20, in
Canada
from 50 cents to a dollar, and in Australia either one
dollar
(or three games for two dollars).
Pat continued, saying that because the
price of new pins is
now
high, operators have to charge more per play to make a
profit;
otherwise they won't want to buy pins.
He then remarked
that
today video games are again "kicking pins butts".
Pat then added that because of the low
price per game in
this
country it takes operators a long time to pay for a game,
also
considering the cost to maintain them and splitting the
"take"
with the location.
At that point the Williams people started
getting
information
from the people in the audience. First
Pat asked the
players
in the audience who today plays more, the same, or less
that
they used to? Of the people who
indicated they played less
Pat
asked them why?
The two main answers given were that the
games were poorly
maintained
by the operators, and that the games in a location are
not
changed as often as they used to be.
Roger Sharpe then asked the operators in
the audience if
they
were buying more, the same, or less new pins today than
before? Of those who answered less, he asked why?
The three main answers given to that
question were: 1) they
cost
more to maintain and take in less money than more reliable
video
games; 2) it takes too long to clean today's complicated
playfields,
and 3) the price of pins is much higher than video
games. Pat then made a comment to the effect that
the use of
dollar
bill acceptors on pins helps to make more for the
operators,
especially in "street locations".
Pat then asked the people who say they
play more today where
they
play? Using a show of hands the answers
appeared to be
pretty
evenly split between street locations (bars, etc.),
bowling
centers, and arcades.
At that point Pat got back to the subject
of game design,
discussing
some aspects of programming, game rules, etc.,
interactively
with members of the audience. After
that Pat
remarked
that with the state of the art in pinball today, the
people
involved in producing the games have to put in an
unbelievable
amount of tedious work, taking many months per game.
After joking about the programmers
problems getting things
on a
new game to work right, Pat commented that the music and
sound
people also have to get their job done.
This, he added,
includes
getting the sounds in sync with the dot-matrix displays
as well
as with the play of the game.
The subject of licenses was again
broached. Pat first told
of the
problems they often have of trying to get movie actors to
record
their voices for use in the game's sound.
We were told that Roger Sharpe usually
tries to help with
this. Pat then told us that they often have to
send a person to
the
location where the actor is to record his/her voice. He then
pointed
out that this kind of thing has to happen concurrently
with other
tasks in the game design process.
Pat then added that the design
"sub-groups" all have to
interface
with each other, while the mechanical engineer works to
perfect
playfield items.
Finally, Pat brought up the subject of
production prototypes
and
filed testing. A few production
prototypes ("beta test"
models),
he then commented, are "snuck out" for preliminary field
tests.
Pat said that almost without exception
something on the game
will
fail during location testing - resulting in them having to
"go
back to the drawing board".
Somehow at the end of this
process,
he then told us, after about a million dollars in costs,
a game
finally goes into production!
At that point Pat asked for more
questions from the
audience. Someone then asked how many engineering
drawing
revisions
usually occur between the "whitewood" stage of a game
and
final production? Pat answered about 3
or 4 for the
whitewood
and possibly 1 to 5 revisions for mechanism drawings.
Artist John Youssi next showed us his
original drawings for
their
current game ROAD SHOW. These included
the heads of the
two
dummies used on the playfield, the speaker display panel, and
the
"4-color art" and final painting for the backglass. These
drew a
good round of applause.
The presentation ended with Pat telling
us that they would
all be
around later for us to talk to.
THE
LIFE AND TIMES OF THE PINGAME JOURNAL
At that point Rob Berk introduced the
next speaker, Jim
Schelberg,
publisher of the PinGame Journal to speak on the
history
of his publication. He said that two
years ago Jim had
only a
mild interest in pinball, but today he is the
editor/publisher
of his own pinball magazine.
Jim began by asking how many of us were
subscribers to his
publication? Many people raised their hands, followed by
a round
of
applause for the magazine.
We were then told by Jim that it all
started when his wife
Marilyn
wanted to buy him a pinball machine for his birthday. He
said
this resulted in them flying to Chicago for a few hours back
in 1989
to attend Pinball Expo. Jim then told
of Rob Berk
showing
them around at that time.
When he returned home to Michigan, Jim
continued, he put a
"pinball
wanted" ad in the local newspaper and then went on a two
week
vacation. When they returned, he then
told us, there was 60
calls
on his machine in answer to that ad.
Jim then told us that he now owns
approximately 60 pingames,
almost
all of them resulting from that one ad.
He then told of
buying
the first Genco flipper game, TRIPLE ACTION of 1948, from
somebody's
basement.
In 1991, Jim then commented, he started
subscribing to
Pinball
Trader. When he saw something from it's
publisher Dennis
Dodel
about wanting to "slow down", Jim said he called Dennis
offering
to put the magazine together on his computer, with
Dennis
just doing the printing.
But at that time, Jim next remarked,
Dennis decided to sell
the
Trader to Jack Simenton in California.
So, he said, since he
was
already set up to do the Trader on his computer he decided to
start
PinGame Journal.
Jim then told us that he got some
addresses from past
Pinball
Trader ads and sent out flyers asking for subscriptions
to his
new publication. From this, he then
told us, he got 80
people
to send in $21 for a 13 issue subscription.
We were then told about the first issue
of the Journal
containing
over 400 errors (Jim even ran a contest to see who
could
find the most errors which I participated in).
Jim told us
that
some of these errors were corrected on his computer, but the
corrections
were not "saved".
Today, Jim then commented, he has over
1100 subscribers and
charges
$30 for 12 issues. He then added that he
now also has a
proof
reader, and uses a spelling checker, but that there are
always
a few errors nevertheless.
At that point Jim presented a short slide
show. We were
first
shown a picture of his Doctors office (Jim is a pediatrist)
with Rob
Berk in it. Next we saw Jim's children
which he said
were
the magazine's "teen and youth advisors".
After showing his printer (who he
referred to affectionately
as
"Big Bill") and his printing press, Jim showed an assistant
named
Kathy stuffing the magazines into envelopes in his office.
Finally
he showed his "prize cabinet" which contained the T-
shirts,
etc., he used for prizes in his magazine's many contests.
Jim next introduced his lovely wife
Marilyn, who stood up
drawing
a round of applause. After that Jim
remarked "it's a lot
of
work, but it's still a lot of fun".
He then asked for
questions?
The first question asked (obviously from
a non-subscriber)
was
what does the magazine cover? Jim
answered "the world of
pinball",
adding that it covered both new and old games.
He then
commented
that some readers want more stories on older games, but
that he
needs more people to write for him on that.
Jim was next asked why his magazine's
name included
"pingame"
rather than "pinball"? He
replied that he didn't want
the
name to be too similar to "Pinball Trader", which was still
publishing
when he started up.
Rob Berk then asked Jim to tell about the
new masthead he
had for
his magazine? Jim told us that it was
drawn for him by
ace
pinball artist Kevin O'Connor. Jim then
passed out to
everyone
a copy of the cover of the current issue of his
magazine.
Someone then asked Jim where all his
subscribers are from?
He
answered that many were from California, but that most of the
states
were represented. Jim then added that
he also has many
subscribers
in foreign countries, even in Saudi Arabia.
At that point Rob Berk introduced one of
Jim's foreign
subscribers
and writers Frederico Crocci from Italy, drawing a
round
of applause. English subscriber and
Expo visitor and
author
Gary Flower was then mentioned.
Jim then took a photo of the audience all
appearing to be
reading
the simulated Journal issue he had handed out.
Jim's
presentation
ended with the awarding of prizes using numbers
which
were written inside the simulated magazines.
READING
AND UNDERSTANDING SCHEMATICS
Rob Berk then introduced the next seminar
speaker, Steve
Young
from New York, to give his presentation on how to read
pinball
schematics. He said Steve was most
noted for his
publishing,
several years ago, a great pinball magazine called
"Pinball
Collector's Quarterly".
Finally, Rob said Steve was a
"strong pinball supporter" now
producing
reproduction parts for the hobby. Steve
was then given
a round
of applause.
Steve began by telling us that he was
going to make an
informal
presentation. He then told us that
reading schematics
is
something which stumps a lot of people, even operators who
have
been in the business for over 30 years!
We were then told, that once you got the
hang of a few
little
things, the basics of reading schematics was not too
complicated. One day, Steve then quipped, "a light
bulb goes
on."
After commenting that he only had a half
an hour for this
presentation,
Steve told us he would try to make it interesting.
He then
told us to consider the schematic as a "road map".
A schematic for Gottlieb's 1971 game
DROP-A-CARD was
projected
on the screen to aid Steve's presentation.
Steve first
pointed
out on the diagram the name of the game, the designer's
initials,
the game number, and the drawing date.
He then
commented
that the "game number" is often also shown on the
game's
score and instruction cards.
Steve next pointed out the "Table of
Coils" which he said
appears
to give a lot of "cryptic" information until you learn to
understand
it. He then pointed out that the coils
in this table
were
broken down into relay coils, relay bank coils, other coils,
etc..
We were then told that each coil in the
table is given a
letter
(or two) to differentiate it from the others, plus an
"index"
(letter plus a number) used to locate the coil on the
schematic. The coil's "function" in the game,
Steve told us, was
also
given in the table.
Steve then told us that the coil's
"part number" is also
listed. He then said this is something which you
should pay
attention
to when replacing a bad coil (especially those
connected
in series with another coil).
Continuing with coil table information,
Steve told us that
the
table also shows what type and how many contacts were
associated
with each relay.
For example, he explained that the
notation "3A" in that
column
meant that that relay had 3 type "A" contacts associated
with
it. Steve then told us that
"A" means "normally open", "B"
means
"normally closed", and "C" indicates
"single-pole-double-
throw"
contacts.
Steve then commented that the information
provided in the
table
of coils could even be used to determine a replacement for
an
entirely missing relay in a game.
However, he went on, this
would
be a tedious job, but possible.
After giving us some information
concerning the labeling of
"Control
Bank Relays", Steve went to the "motor chart" shown on
the
schematic. He said this was
"another mystery" to many
people.
Steve then remarked that he likes to
think of an electro-
mechanical
pingame as a "mechanical computer" which "executes"
one
function at a time. He then pointed out
the "picture" of the
score
motor on the schematic, showing a top view of the motor
switch
actuating plate with switch position labeled as "4A",
etc.,
for example.
Steve then said that the "4"
indicates that the switch stack
is
located in the position labeled on the picture by that number.
The
letter "A", Steve then told us, indicated that that switch
was
operated by the bottom cam on the motor unit ("B" would be
the
next cam up, etc.). He then told of the
suffixes "S" and "L"
on the
contact code which stood for "short" and "long" positions
respectively.
At that point Steve turned to the
right-hand side of the
schematic
where the game's power transformer was shown.
He
pointed
out the 110 volt primary circuitry and the secondary
windings
which produced the lower coil and lamp supply voltages.
After commenting that each manufacturer
has their own
conventions
regarding the layout of it's schematic and game
wiring,
Steve began telling us that Gottlieb in their games used
vinyl
covered wires for all 110 volt circuits, and cloth covered
wires
for the lower voltage circuits fed from the transformer's
secondary
windings. Steve then went on to say
that the "ground
line"
and the "6 volt hot line" were shown along the drawing's
edges.
At that point Steve told us that he was
going to use a
"sample
problem" to illustrate how to use a schematic for
troubleshooting. The problem, he then told us, was that the
left
and
right rollovers don't alternate properly.
Steve next remarked that often a game's
lamp circuits
(rather
than coil circuits) are sometimes easier to use to
analyze
a problem. He then pointed out on the
schematic the
circuits
which operated lamps associated with the sample problem.
Steve then showed us that all lines from
those lamps ended
at a
single-pole-double-throw switch on the game's "Alternating
Relay". He then told us that that switch was most
likely the
cause
of our problem.
We were then reminded by Steve that the
electrical
connectors
used to interconnect the various parts of a game
(playfield,
backbox, etc.) are often the cause of game
malfunctions. These connectors, he reminded us, are never
shown
on
schematics, but should not be ignored when other problem
sources
have been investigated, adding that these connectors all
"break"
the game's "ground" and power supply lines.
After pointing out what the schematic
symbols for stepping
switch
disc wipers and lamps are, Steve directed our attention to
the
right-hand side of the diagram where the game's "coil logic"
was
depicted. He then pointed out the red
and black wires which
were
the 25 volt power supply for the coils.
Steve next reminded us that the
"Game Over" and "Tilt" relay
contacts
interrupt many of the game's circuits.
He then
commented
that you can troubleshoot the "start circuits" in many
games
with the playfield removed, but not on Gottlieb's.
We were then told that Steve would talk
briefly about
flippers,
pop-bumpers, and "start circuits".
First, however, we
were
reminded that every coil has a black "common" wire connected
to it,
most having two to continue that circuit to the next coil
in
line.
On
the subject of flipper circuits, Steve began by remarking
that in
order for a flipper to work you've got to get 25 volts to
the
flipper coil, the only thing in the way of that being the
flipper
switches. He then added that there is
also an "End-Of-
Stroke"
switch which shorts out the "fine winding" on the flipper
coil.
Steve next switched to
"Pop-Bumpers". He told us
that the
bumper
switch on the playfield powers a "Pop-Bumper Control
Relay"
which in turn powers the bumper's coil.
He then talked
about
the bumper unit's "End-Of-Stroke" switch which holds the
relay
energized until the bumper operates to propel the ball
away.
Finally, we were told by Steve that a
game's "Start Circuit"
is one
of the most troublesome circuits in pingames.
The
circuitry
involved in getting the "Start Relay" to energize, he
went
on, involves several switches on several different units - a
lot of
items to troubleshoot! Steve then
briefly told of using
"clip
leads" to short out various portions of the circuit during
testing.
After suggesting that a game's "Slam
Switches (used to
disable
the game if the cabinet is hit by players in an arcade)
be
disabled for home use, Steve concluded his presentation. He
was
then given a good round of applause.
DESIGNING
A PINBALL MACHINE
Rob Berk got up again to introduce the
presenters of the
final
seminar, the now annual Pinball Expo "design your own
pingame"
session. He began by telling everyone
"now's your
chance
to design a pingame!" Rob then
told us that this year our
guest
designers were two fellows from Sega (formerly Data East)
Pinball,
John Borg and Tim Seckel.
John began, as has been customary in the
past, to ask the
audience
to suggest themes for the game and then vote on them.
The
theme which won out in the voting was "The Three Stooges"
(which
had also been selected several years ago).
Other theme suggestions included such
themes as: Information
Super
Highway; Election '94; O.J. Simpson Trial (yeah - that's
right);
Rocky Horror Picture Show; and Pinball Expo, just to name
a few.
We were then asked to select a playfield
"gadget" for the
game. Three heads in the middle of the playfield
(representing
the
Stooges, of course) was chosen. This
resulted in quite a bit
of
discussion on how the heads should be placed, and how they
should
be used during play.
One idea was to have one head in the
center of the field
with
the other two placed above it. A real
crazy suggestion was
to put "Curley's"
head in the middle, with it being able to pop
up
through the game's top glass, allowing the player to pat it.
Another "head idea" was for the
heads to have hands, with
the
heads being able to move, and thus hit each other. Someone
even
suggested the heads being able to "spit" balls at each other
- a
very wild idea indeed!
It was then suggested that drop targets
be placed in front
of each
mouth. A suggestion was also made that
the game end with
some
sort of "pie fight".
At that point there was a brief
discussion of the Pop-
Bumpers
on the proposed game. When the people
in the audience
were
asked to vote on how many there should be, two was the
number
chosen. After that there was much
interactive discussion
of various
game play details, including the use of ramps,
spinners,
etc..
At one point someone comically suggested
putting three
buttons
on the game's "lock-down bar" (representing each Stooge,
of
course) which controlled the heads on the playfield. These
buttons
he said would be operated by the player touching them
with
his own head.
The final discussion of the design was
concerned with a
"jackpot"
feature for the game. We were finally
told that a
"whitewood"
of our design would be available in the Exhibit Hall
the
next day. That ended the seminars.
DESIGNERS
"FIRESIDE CHAT"
Near the beginning of this article I
mentioned a special
Expo
event, held in Rob Berk's suite, dubbed by him as a
"Fireside
Chat", featuring several of the pinball artists
attending
the show. Well, Friday night another of
these "chats"
occurred,
this time the special guests were pinball design greats
Wayne
Neyens and Steve Kordek.
Wayne, as many of you might know, began
his career in the
pingame
industry with an outfit called Western Products way back
in
1937. After serving in the Armed Forces
during World War II,
Wayne
went to work for D. Gottlieb and Co. and was their top
designer
until he retired in the 1960's.
Steve began working at Genco in the late
1930's and later on
designed
that company's first flipper game, TRIPLE ACTION, in
January
1948. After a short stint at Bally years later, he ended
up as a
designer for Williams and is still there today as their
Director
of Game Design.
The stories told by those two industry
veterans, with
intervening
questions from their audience, lasted for about three
hours
and was a great treat for all. But, as
I said earlier, the
details
of that session is beyond the scope of this article.
However,
it could possibly be the subject of a future COIN SLOT
article.
Well, that's all for Part 1 of my
coverage of the great
Pinball
Expo '94. Stay tuned next time for the
conclusion of
this
story, including details of the game auction, banquet, and
Exhibit
Hall (including a listing of all pingames on display
there).