Did you get this expert legal advice John?

Because whomever decides to support the project is most likely smart enough to realize, as you have stated many times, that you are going through a bankruptcy.

Thus, you would be considered “judgment proof” by the “smart money”, or “dumb money”, not sure because I’m confused now too.

“Hey Tommy, why does Zelinsky Auto parts have a GUARANTEE stamped right there on the box in bold print”?

“Well Ken, so what, I can take a dump in a box and mark it “guaranteed” and at the end of the day all you have is a guaranteed box of shit! At Callahan auto parts We stand behind our products with our word Ken.

“Ok Tommy, I’ll buy from you”

Experts ? No. People who have been around the block several times and know what you are going to encounter ? Yes. I have managed budgets way way higher than yours (and still comparatively small time to many) and still almost failed …. Multiple times. You can possibly succeed, but you have left yourself no margin at all for error or delay. Setting yourself up for success is more than just doing a Captain Picard “Make it so”. That only works in movies and tv shows

You don't plan a project by thinking of every possible way it could go right.

You plan by thinking of every possible way it could go wrong.

John is stuck on the former.

How was Gofundme all of a sudden gonna change things? Smart $$?

You guys can still continue to tell the guy what to do and how to do it and not give him a dime.

If John goes this route, he really should consult with a copyright lawyer beforehand. Non-commercial use helps a fair use defense, but it’s not a slam dunk. Displaying it in Texas = U.S. copyright law would apply.

I think this explains it nicely.

I don't know whether he's a good witch or a bad witch, a whalewhich or a sandwich.

Turns out he's great witch. I don't know what that means; but, I suspect that there's a lost dog somewhere over a Canadian rainbow.

Clearly he's not just ANY which...
Clyde, hold my beer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Any_Which_Way_You_Can

Now THAT should be a pinball machine !

inline drops for the nazi biker gang, with some magic option that can drop them all if you get Clyde riled up by pounding the dreaded lockdown bar button. OH yeah.

Maybe it should be based on pounding on the glass.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/pounding-on-tempered-playfield-glass/

Edited: Unnecessary commentary.

Good luck

Yes I have worked my ass of my entire life, & now have a meager pension from my past job of nearly 25 years. Still got the same wife of 33 years, & we have lived paycheck to paycheck the entire time.
Back to pinball & I continue to follow the plan I laid out from the start. Everything remains the same towards the build time & Texas.

What broke pensioners are on pinside searching for a pinball project to drop 10 grand on

I don't think it's the "critical feedback" he is talking about it's more about the vitriol, just the nasty personal attacks spewed towards him.
I get it, the plan is absurd and it's entertaining watching a train wreck... but you don't have to be a jerk and treat him like an ass

Fair enough, John. You do you and I will follow with interest.

You've drawn a line in the sand and Texas Pinball Festival March 24 - 26, 2023 it is.
I'll be there and maybe they'll create a Twippy award for you. You are a category all to yourself.

The GreatwichJohn saga continues and, We Shall See. ...Time Will Tell.

Do not need any awards. Stuff I get in the past playing pinball or promoting shows I donate to other guys in my area.

1. Logical and linear thought process.

2. Not the path which will be chosen.

3. John’s plan has “not changed from the start”.

He wants to be a customer funded pinball company and wants to be one now. Gotta respect that choice.

There will be no TPB pinball machine without permission. Does not look like it will happen so on to Trailer Trash. Could be 1 or up to 10. The build clock starts September 1. There is no new orders after September 1 with Trailer Trash, you are in with the pod or out. Private build over the 6 months. People that get in can sell their spot to others at any time. Small group so not a problem.
I still look at the advice given here. But I am the captain of the boat, smooth sailing or she runs aground. The Big Whale hunt has ended, on with the pod.

Beechwood fire up the mini-whale countdown timer.

John, he can probably put up a mini-whale counter too if you update him about number committed each week.

Good luck captain. I see a grand future on the high seas!

proxy-image.jpg

Let me tell you all why I was willing to help John. When I started my own business in 2015, every so called " industry expert" told me that I was living a fantasy, that there is no way anyone could accomplish what I are trying to do, in the time frame I have, all by yourself. I also started with an idea and nothing in writing.

I was fired from my job Oct 12, 2015 and said I would NEVER work in the industry again unless I was a business owner. I wanted to open a major player automotive repair center. Not some 3 bay, side of road shop, or a franchised chain shop. I had grandiose ideas with little to no cash. So what did I do? I found the perfect building on Oct 21. I went home and did my paperwork on my own and incorporated on Oct 30. I emptied what was left of my 401K and wrote a check for a building hold for 90 days. At the end of 90 days if I cannot come up with the funding, the building's owner keeps my money and I get nothing. If I do get my funding, 50% of that hold check pays for my security deposit on the lease. Nov 1 2015, we shook hands and made a written deal. SHIT WAS REAL. I spent the next 60 days researching, learning and getting tutorial from the SBA business center. My assigned "tutor" also said, you are crazy, why not start small and build bigger later? I told him because that is not my concept. He said OK, write me a business plan that make sense and change my mind.

I wrote a business plan that wowed many people. I was consistently asked how will you achieve this and how will you achieve that and I always had an answer that made sense. My tutor said just said wow. I shopped my business plan to 2 Banks and the second one fell in love with me and my plan. They got me a SBA loan and I was approved on Jan 30th 2016 and funded Feb 15th. I signed my lease and took possession of the building March 1 2016. I had my truck and my trailer and I traveled a 5 state area combing auctions, closure sales and retirement sales to equip my shop spending pennies on the dollar. I signed a lease to own to purchase 4 brand new lifts and a scan tool. Finally, I acted as my own contractor to make all the building and electrical modifications that were needed. I opened my doors, fully staffed and fully equipped shop April 18, 2016.

Fast forward to 2022, I owe $0 other than a mortgage on the building(After 4 years of leasing, I turned around and bought it) My business owns 4 Stern Pros in the waiting area on free play for the customers. I have the highest rated Google reviews of any shop in the area. I did it, and I did it all my way.

Here is John with a dream and an idea that all of us were piling on him for his ways and means. Much of it rightfully so because it was not obtainable in the real world. I stopped myself and said that maybe, just maybe if I opened a go fund me for him, he could still have a crack at his dream if everything else fails. This was a gift from ALL of us pinsiders that wanted a glimmer of hope of seeing a real pinball machine out of all of this. It would have come with some great guidance of business experience, not necessarily pinball, but purchasing, labor costs and outsourcing all work the same. We would have set up levels of achievement to distribute the funds as needed much like the SBA did with me. This was a gift of $10K that came with the expectation of every donator knowing the possibility of failure was high.

Guess what, here we are, back to ground ZERO with ZERO. John, I am sorry, but you are your own worst enemy. If a unicorn walked by and took a shit, you would focus on the pile of shit and not the fact that it was a unicorn that made the pile.

Great story.

GWJ doesnt care.

So this outcome I hate to say it is the pretty much expected one. We all read too much into his consideration of a Go Fund Me and the TPB rejection. I mean let’s all be honest, we have whaled (pun very much intended) on him for the better part of a month here for a bad approach (and it’s still bad BTW). Part of who he is has allowed him to survive this onslaught of people telling him this will never work the way he thinks it should. But that same personality trait has prevented him from seeing much of any possibility beyond his prescribed path. He has viewed us as Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown. Again, I respect that. The man has a plan and is doubling down. I’ll stand back and let him run his playbook. And should it fail (which make no mistake it likely will) I won’t even utter a “I told ya so”. And if it thru a miracle succeeds I will offer up my public apologies for doubting him. On to the mini whale countdown timer.

I would love nothing more than to have this exact excuse to head to Texas and shake John's hand and personally tell him I was wrong.

Another suggestion would be change the name to either The Trailer Park, Trailer Park or Trailer Park Trash. Trailer Trash is a little too generic.

The cabinet artwork practically makes itself with the sides resembling a drug infested trailer.

trailer (resized).jpg

Like I said so far #1 spot is there. Waiting to announce the game designer this week. I thought that was the idea behind the Go Fund Me, to give it lots of time to reach its goal of $11k US. Then to be auctioned off for charity. Still do not know how it works, & really do not care. But the offer is still there by me. I would suggest if the goal is not reached, it goes to a charity. Have it run until December 31. So no money comes my way from the Go Fund Me unless it looks like it is finished. I will agree to opening up all the updates to Pinside when the goal is achieved.

John, do you realize what you are even saying???

Agreed! If vdojaq was local to me, I would give him my fleet of limos to service!

This is going in the waiting room today

IMG_20220808_100314355 (resized).jpg

You need to add a shop down here! Playing pin while waiting on an oil change would be a dream come true!

Yes feel free to pm me. I do not want to start or administer it. Money only comes my way when the game looks finished. Still do not think it would reach the goal. But how do I know. I got my schedule to follow.

I'm going to guess that the mystery designer is Joe Balcer. I hung out with the guy for about 30 min at the bar at TPF and the dude was on a rant about not being hired to design pinball. He was very outspoken of his last employer American Pinball. I bet John hooked Joe at the bar.

I’m waiting for the RPD TM (Real pinball designer) to have spent a month on this project trying to follow John’s direction. Let’s just say it would be interesting having John as a boss. Honestly, perhaps much like it felt working with JPOP if I am to extrapolate from what others have shared from his Zidware management days.

RPD: “John you say you want Stern Pro, but you realize we can’t afford the molds for ramps on a $10K budget”

John: “Just go on Marco and find something you can plug into the design”

RPD: “Whaaa? The design is finished, you can’t just do that”

John: “Ok just get rid of the ramp. As long as it’s a Stern Pro level it will be fine”

RPD: “Did you not hear me, the design is done, you don’t just get rid of a ramp and have the same design”

John: “I’m sure you’ll figure it out. Remember our deadline is TPF”

John's comprehension skills are minimal at best. His project will fail.

I disagree, you have no clue as to what you are saying.

You say you have no clue as to how a go fund me works, and you have no desire to take the time to research and figure out how a go fund me works. You don't care. Then you follow it right up with " But the offer is still there from me. "

You are talking out both side of your mouth.

I am sorry, but after your little tantrums last night about how you didn't care about a go fund me, especially when I wasn't even involved in the initial conversations, I NO longer care about a go fund me. If the offer is still there, and someone else wants to step in, by all means, please do.

I cared about you, your dream and you being the underdog. Your total ignorance and intolerance to do anything that requires 5 fucking minutes of your time to research something has shown us all just how well all of the scheme is actually going to go. No more, sorry.

John, think of it as Go Mini-whale Me, when there are no other mini-whales to be found. And for this mini-whale you don’t have to provide anything in return

I think(i shouldn't think!) He feels anything posted on here is just trolling and mentioned if your intentions are good then send him a private message to discuss. After all the shit and abuse he takes on here he probably doesn't trust mob rules mentality and all this info being thrown at him between all the insults can be a lil bit confusing. Hard to decipher which is genuine.

John thought the GoFundMe money was to buy one of the 10 (hahaha delusional) games he'd build by TPF. The GoFundMe funded game would then be auctioned off for charity?

John didn't realize HE WAS THE CHARITY.

No, it's not hard to decipher at all, because we HAD been PM'ing.

I suspect for a microsecond John did get it. He had no backers with the immediate painful reality that TPB was off the table for now. But then someone stepped up to the plate and said “I don’t care licensed or non licensed you got your $10K. Now go make me a pin.” In John’s mind, bird in the hand versus two in the go fund me bush. So no go fund me needed. My worried suspicion is that this money is not as solid as he thinks it is, and a mistaken belief when handed a check all is ok because he knows come 6 months that he will be handing over a Stern pro level pin at TPF. And yeah if all that comes to pass he is damn right about this. John really should have been salesman. He coulda with that supreme level of confidence been awesome at it as long as his job was to sell not build anything.

How about a Go Fund Me be setup to build a game based on the drama of this thread using a RPD; maybe “JGW goes Whale Hunting & Trashed”! The hitch will be if John will grant a license for free just to get exposure?

I do not understand or care to about Go Fund Me. Told the guy it would go towards the game, just like anyone else. That I wanted nothing extra. Why would I want to look after that, all people would say is John is just using it for drinking money or to fund his dream. If it is dead, too bad for a charity.

The pinball designer is on his own. Why wood I try & tell a real pinball design expert how to do his job. The design is already done I believe from a bunch, ready to go. Trailer Trash is the pinball machine title.

My only complaint about the thread and overall process is that it's too straightforward and easy to understand.

Let's clarify. The go fund me was for John to have $10K to build a machine because everything/everyone else(whales, mini whales, sperm donors) all seemed to be out. This was to be $10K for John to continue his dream/desire to build a machine, nothing more and nothing less. If said machine was built, on the level of a pro machine and fully operational at TPF, the machine was to be shopped around to manufacturers...I.E David Fix or whoever else was interested. John could have ALL proceeds of the sale. He built it , he sold it, the money is his. However, if no one wanted to buy it to produce, then the machine would go to EXPO in the fall and be auctioned off for charity and some money for John's efforts. I was going to oversee the GoFundMe and administer the money so the 10k couldn't be withdrawn all at once and be gone.

Yes , John was the initial charity of a gift of $10K, raised by the gofundme, for him to follow his dream when all else failed. I am sorry, but if he cannot take the time to figure that all out, then my time to me has more value than someone who does not want to give any fucking effort.

the art concept/toys should very resemble the Trailer park Boys theme i.m.o should feature weed prominently or TBP original does not exist?