I know can't be the only pinball collector that has nightmares about opening up my clubhouse and pinball collection for events (charity fundraisers, car shows, birthday parties, corporate events, etc.) only to have a non-pinball person dump a drink on the glass and have it drain down into the cabinet.
That would be bad enough, and you can bet that if it's not seen by my staff, it would go unreported -- only to make matters worse when it was finally discovered.
So here is what I have done:
- Attached a PinGulp to the right side of every machine.
- Added 0.5" tall black text on white background P-Touch labels to each machine's lockbars which read:
"FREE PLAY - PRESS START. Please Do Not Set Drinks on Glass. Use Drink Holder on Right -> -> "
- Added 1" tall labels "DRINK HOLDER" labels to the fronts of the Pingulps. (don't laugh, the black plastic pin gulps are somewhat hard to see nestled between the machines which are all ~9" apart from one another in your typical banks.
Then I have staff members that work the events, which among other responsibilities, monitor the machines for the dreaded drink (bottle, cup, etc.) set on the glass -- the accident waiting to happen. They've been instructed to walk up, remove the drink and hit the culprit with a cattle prod (though they usually just ask them politely). The larger the event crowd, the more staffers I have work it.
This is a problem that has plagued pinball machines since the beginning, so what measures and precautions do you take to protect your machines while trying to share and promote the hobby with others?
Has anyone developed a new state-of-the-art replacement lockbar with forward-facing optical sensors that would set-off a siren if a the sensors detect an obstruction, such as a bottle or cup was placed in front of it?
Has anyone developed a light-up drink holder that maybe draws more attention that a solid monotone plastic PinGulp?
Has anyone developed an automatic cattle-prod that pops out of the coin door area and teaches the offender a lesson?
Let's hear what works for you. Thanks in advance.
