Fun thread! Thanks to all for the pics.

I have only one EM, a Volley, but I'd like to pick up another eventually, perhaps a Bank-a-Ball in good shape. I could easily imagine getting into EMs in a bigger way. They have such a distinctive charm, and most are still affordable. This is pinball as I remember it. Great stuff.

Thanks, Dave. If you were a lot closer, I'd come over for a look. I think the shipping would make this unworkable, unfortunately.

By the way, I did a search in the marketplace and couldn't find it. You can send me the link by PM or post it here. It would be nice to see the machine anyway.

Thanks. Just "a pin too far," I'm afraid. Maybe someday I'll get one of these. I played one at Allentown and liked it. It was for sale, but I already had a Diner loaded in my car. Maybe next year...

Finally got caught up again on this thread. I have to say that I have boundless admiration for the work a lot of you guys do. It is way beyond me, but I at least know enough to be deeply impressed. Really great stuff!

I just rejoined the club. I used to have a Volley, which I sold last year. I missed having an EM and so picked up a Vulcan yesterday. It's in good shape--just needs a few things here and there. I've had a blast working on it today. This experience reminds me what's so special about EMs and makes me want to get more. If I can figure out a place to put them, I will. Great stuff!

I can hardly believe it. My wife asked me to play pinball with her this evening. That never happened before. Not once. The Gottlieb Vulcan has won her over. Amazing.

So, I'm in the market for a second EM! Sorry to be so picky, but I would like something that is in very good shape (even restored), at least a two player, a relatively complex (= lasting fun) game, and located within a reasonable driving distance of central North Carolina. That might not happen anytime soon, I realize, but I'd be grateful if you'd bear it in mind. I love the thought that I might at long last have found a way to share this hobby at least occasionally with my wife. Thanks!

Yup!

Love those baseball-themed pins! Congrats.

Please PM me if you know of any EMs that will be for sale at the Pintastic show in a couple of weeks. With effort, I might be able to make room for one more (for now!). Given that limitation, I would want a very good playing machine, ideally in quite good condition. (Something I'd want to hang onto for quite some time, in other words.) Anyway, I'd appreciate hearing in advance about any EMs that will be there so that I might have a chance to arrange shipping. Thanks!

Beautiful!

Does anyone know how I can get a replacement metal "backdoor" for the head of a Gottleib Vulcan (a four-player)? I've seen others available, but none in this size. Thanks.

I tried PBR already, but the eBay link looks promising. Thanks!

EDIT: Nope. The vertical dimension is wrong. My door is 28 1/2" tall, not 26 5/8".

Thanks! I sent an email and will be eager to hear from him.

Played a Bowling Queen for the first time at Pintastic this weekend. It's a huge nostalgia thing for me. I played my first pin right about the time that came out--and at a bowling alley, no less. I didn't have enough cash on had for a second pin (I did buy a Gottlieb Atlantis just before), so I had to let it go. I'd love to pick up a nice one (this one had a near perfect playfield) down the road. So, if anyone, especially anyone in my neck of the woods, wants to sell...

Just added two. I've gone from no EMs to this in about a month and a half:

EM_lineup_summer_2015.jpg

An update: I mentioned a few weeks ago that it was my wife's unexpectedly favorable response to my purchase of the Gottlieb Vulcan that catapulted my interest in EMs. Well, she got back from Italy (lucky stiff!) last night and saw and played the Cow Poke and the Atlantis for the first time. One game on the Atlantis, and she beat my high score, got the special, etc. I was delighted. I can beat her with no effort on any of the SS pins, but she has an affinity for EMs, and so she is now being drawn into the hobby. I couldn't be happier to have made this discovery. Great stuff!

The hard part is going to be letting go eventually of some SS pins to make more room. The nice part is that I can buy multiple EMs for what any of my SS pins is worth. Not a bad tradeoff.

Cool?!

Wow. Any time you want to come over to my house and impress me some more, let me know!

Congrats!

Tonight, I crossed the Rubicon. The big decision was not buying a few EMs. The big decision was selling one of my cherished solid-state pins to buy even more EMs. Just sold my very good condition Funhouse. Goodbye, Rudy. It was great knowing you, but sometimes a person's just gotta' move on.

Very impressive! I really hope I can add a good BQ at some point. It screams nostalgia!

I drove to Florida this weekend and picked up a Bowling Queen. I really enjoyed seeing BQ at Pintastic in July and had been hoping to pick one up. (Thanks again for the tip, JR!) For me, it's pure nostalgia. My first memory of pinball is from visiting a bowling alley right about the time this was build (1964). I particularly like the three lit pinball machines in the background on the backglass. (Guess the woman on the right just won a free game?)

The playfield and backglass are an 8+, with only minor imperfections. The cabinet is solid but has a pretty awful paint job. That's going to have to go! I am having stencils made, so this will be my first attempt at a repaint. The last pic is my little row of wedgeheads. Not much compared to most of you, I know, but considering the fact that I had none at the beginning of the summer, it's quite a good start. (Don't know why the singles digit on the Cow Poke occasionally does not align, but it's neither a persistent problem nor a big deal.)
Bowling Queen playfield.jpgBowling Queen backglass.jpgWedgehead row.jpg

Thanks. Do you recall which pins those are portrayed in the backglass? I've forgotten.

Looks better than I do, and I'm four years younger.

Okay, so it's a tie.

Congrats. The rest of the pin looks so good, I might even be able to learn to like clowns!

That is one beautiful pin!

Hard to imagine them getting away with that any more. Lots of nostalgic value for those of us who grew up with the Jetsons.

My 1957 Williams Jig Saw finally arrived today. I paid for it back in August but had to wait until now to get it.
Jig Saw 1957 Wms.jpg
It has the wrong lockdown bar, by the way. I wonder if anyone has a spare of the right one.

Hi, all. As some of you know, I took a new job in Dallas last summer, and I have barely "set foot" in Pinside since. Things are fine here, but I am crazy busy. I had to sell six of my pins when I moved since I lost the big basement we had enjoyed so much in North Carolina. That hurt, but you have to do what you have to do. I still have eleven pins, but I miss the great EMs I had to give up. In four years, our daughter will (I hope!) be out of her bedroom, so maybe then I'll be in a position to replace some of those. Anyway, I just wanted to say, "Hi." I've missed being on Pinside and, especially, have missed the folks here on the EM board. I hope you're all well.

Thanks, Joel. We're well, but I am busier than ever and so have very little time for pinball or other hobbies. Someday...