Quoted from girloveswaffles:Hopefully you'll be getting out of San Diego before the madness known as San Diego Comic Con starts.
Worst week of my year. Used to be a fun chance to meet up with friends I've known for 40 years, meet my childhood idols, and just have a great time. Now it's just one over-crowded shopping mall. Every year, it become more of a toy and media show, with fewer and fewer collectibles, comics, and dealers. Just large corporations. Kind of makes the zoo less worthwhile.
By the way, I know you've heard it before, but this is singularly most fun thread to ever appear on pinside. Thanks for taking the time to thoughtfully write up your visits, put faces to names, and share some knowledge. Great stuff.
Quoted from Lefman:So I gotta ask Nic--whatcha gonna do when the "tour" is all over???
My guess is move into Todd Macculloch's basement.
Quoted from Lefman:So I gotta ask Nic--whatcha gonna do when the "tour" is all over???
Quoted from Newport-Bill:My guess is sleep and then start planning the next one.
Quoted from RyanClaytor:My guess is move into Todd Macculloch's basement.
A mix of the above and then some? Hahaha... so many thoughts and possibilities... will discuss for the grand finale. In the meantime we have...
Bonus Visit – The Pacific Pinball Museum Annex in Alameda, CA
The subject: You… and why you must attend the next PPM Expo
This will be a short and sweet entry. Not because there isn’t much to say. No, no... quite the opposite. Whenever one is awestruck, the words tend not to come easily.
Remember Tom? The gentleman who donated more than 300 EM's to the museum? Merely an appetizer.
Warning: You have now reached the edge of the EM pinball singularity. Crossing the event horizon from this point onward will be a one-way journey. Proceed at your own risk.
Many, many rows of many, many woodrails. It may be the single largest playable collection on Earth in a public location.
It may also be the largest collection of tabletop cocktail pinball machines too.
60’s and 70’s EM’s too. At least as many here, if not more.
A thick queue of EM's patiently waits to join the herd.
Gene Hwang (of Orange Photography) stopped by to shoot a few photos and discuss the ingeniousness of Norm Clark’s middle-pop layout.
Next, we indulged in another Norm Clark highlight: Expo. Initially, the game is wickedly difficult, but many powerups can be triggered as the game progresses making it possible to turn the tables in your favor.
Norm Clark was the Walt Disney of EM designers. He constantly dreamed up crazy new ways of playing pinball and usually his ideas worked quite well.
It is quite uncommon to find a Fliptronic machine nowadays.
It features Nixie tubes for score displays.
FINALLY... we meet in person. I’ve been communicating with Michael Schiess (PPM founder) for at least two years attempting to schedule a meetup. We share a similar level of passion when it comes to preserving the hobby and extending it into the future. I'd like to link up with another Makerspace and create a second VECTOR committee in another part of the country. Teach pinball classes, make new amusement products, et cetera. Ideas... so many ideas...
OK folks, after fixing a few games at the museum, it is now time to get my serious face on. You need to make plans to attend the next Pacific Pinball Museum Expo when it opens later this year.
Why this year? Because for whatever reason the powers that be in Alameda aren't so keen on letting people like us hang out in a huge warehouse to play games. Too dangerous? Regulations? Cronyism? Puritanical BS? Who knows.
Point being - the collection is ready to visit - but for how long? If it has to move, where will that be? How long will it take to prep a new site? To get everything moved? To get the electrical and HVAC and restrooms sorted out? To get the approvals? Oy vey.
EM-fans, heed my advice: Follow the PPM's announcements closely. When the next Expo is announced, make your plans.
https://www.facebook.com/pacificpinball/
Yo Gene! Got any photos to add to the thread?
Next stop -> Visit #37 in Lodi, CA
FYI Lodi is the new home to Pin-a-Go-Go which moves there next year - always an awesome show!
And Nic it was nice to meet ya and hang at the Annex! Here's a few shots from our visit - as Nic says, make sure to make it out there - it's a great collection and they even have tournaments for different eras of machines (I've since discovered how fun woodrails can be and how complex the scoring and strategies can be!)
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Michael Schiess in front of the Lil JuJu trailer which I played pinball in before I got into pinball - think there's usually about six pins in there when they bring it to various events
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Nic chats with Larry Zartarian (board member and donator of a ton of the machines) and Mike
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Atari Video Pinball
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Bristol Hills version of Snow Derby (Nic told me why it was a rarer one but I forgot - doh!)
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Nic teaching me how to play Expo
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Quoted from NicoVolta:Bonus Visit – The Pacific Pinball Museum Annex in Alameda, CA
The subject: You… and why you must attend the next PPM ExpoThis will be a short and sweet entry. Not because there isn’t much to say. No, no... quite the opposite. Whenever one is awestruck, the words tend not to come easily.
Remember Tom? The gentleman who donated more than 300 EM's to the museum? Merely an appetizer.
Warning: You have now reached the edge of the EM pinball singularity. Crossing the event horizon from this point onward will be a one-way journey. Proceed at your own risk.Many, many rows of many, many woodrails. It may be the single largest playable collection on Earth in a public location.
It may also be the largest collection of tabletop cocktail pinball machines too.60’s and 70’s EM’s too. At least as many here, if not more.
A thick queue of EM's patiently waits to join the herd.
Gene Hwang (of Orange Photography) stopped by to shoot a few photos and discuss the ingeniousness of Norm Clark’s middle-pop layout.
Next, we indulged in another Norm Clark highlight: Expo. Initially, the game is wickedly difficult, but many powerups can be triggered as the game progresses making it possible to turn the tables in your favor.
Norm Clark was the Walt Disney of EM designers. He constantly dreamed up crazy new ways of playing pinball and usually his ideas worked quite well.It is quite uncommon to find a Fliptronic machine nowadays.
It features Nixie tubes for score displays.
FINALLY... we meet in person. I’ve been communicating with Michael Schiess (PPM founder) for at least two years attempting to schedule a meetup. We share a similar level of passion when it comes to preserving the hobby and extending it into the future. I'd like to link up with another Makerspace and create a second VECTOR committee in another part of the country. Teach pinball classes, make new amusement products, et cetera. Ideas... so many ideas...
OK folks, after fixing a few games at the museum, it is now time to get my serious face on. You need to make plans to attend the next Pacific Pinball Museum Expo when it opens later this year.
Why this year? Because for whatever reason the powers that be in Alameda aren't so keen on letting people like us hang out in a huge warehouse to play games. Too dangerous? Regulations? Cronyism? Puritanical BS? Who knows.
Point being - the collection is ready to visit - but for how long? If it has to move, where will that be? How long will it take to prep a new site? To get everything moved? To get the electrical and HVAC and restrooms sorted out? To get the approvals? Oy vey.
EM-fans, heed my advice: Follow the PPM's announcements closely. When the next Expo is announced, make your plans.
https://www.facebook.com/pacificpinball/
Yo Gene! Got any photos to add to the thread?
Next stop -> Visit #37 in Lodi, CA
Cool! I see they still have that rare Atari Solar Wars there.
Quoted from NicoVolta:...aaand soon we will begin the final segment: REGION 5 - Southwest Return
Short but sweet!
Oh, I see Tucson on the route, hopefully that means Pecos' Palatial Pinball Parlor!
That is one awesome warehouse of goodness, thanks for sharing!
Looks like my former WMS Warlok there at the annex with its extra shiny lockdown bar.
Most of those cocktail pins were part of my collection,
now joining the few cocktail pins that i was never able to acquire
like Viza's War and Midway's Rotation 8.
I think the few cocktail pins missing from the PPM's collection
now are Mirco's Lucky Hand and some of the GamePlan's raritys like Camel Lights and REAL
and Allied Leisure Flame of Athens.
Quoted from NicoVolta:OK folks, after fixing a few games at the museum, it is now time to get my serious face on. You need to make plans to attend the next Pacific Pinball Museum Expo when it opens later this year.
Why this year? Because for whatever reason the powers that be in Alameda aren't so keen on letting people like us hang out in a huge warehouse to play games. Too dangerous? Regulations? Cronyism? Puritanical BS? Who knows.
They should talk to Clay. Seems he figured out how to do it here in Michigan with the VFW - http://vfwpinball.com/.
Quoted from snakesnsparklers:I think for Nic's next tour shirt you should put a Dremel with magic brush in his hand
He also seems to enjoy a TAB (tasty adult beverage)....mabey add 'Will work for beer'.....lol
Quoted from albummydavis:Worst week of my year. Used to be a fun chance to meet up with friends I've known for 40 years, meet my childhood idols, and just have a great time. Now it's just one over-crowded shopping mall. Every year, it become more of a toy and media show, with fewer and fewer collectibles, comics, and dealers. Just large corporations. Kind of makes the zoo less worthwhile.
I guess I'm not surprised to hear that -- part of a natural mercantile drift to such things. Over 100,000 visitors come in just for that each year, and it's apparently not deemed sufficient: in order to please the management of ComicCon and to retain the show, the city fathers have found it necessary to implement grand plans for expansion of the Convention Center's space. So it will only get bigger. The impact on traffic etc. is enormous, and not just in the area most adjacent to the show.
Fortunately, Nic is arriving a couple weeks prior to this year's show. We had someone already scheduled to visit -- unknowingly -- at the time of ComiCon a couple year's ago. And what a fiasco that turned out to be ! I'm sure that person will study the calendar a lot more closely, the next time around.
Quoted from BorgDog:Pecos' Palatial Pinball Parlor
What's Pecos' Palatial Pinball Parlor? Do they have a website? I'll take a day trip to play pinball any chance I get 
Quoted from Aniraf:What's Pecos' Palatial Pinball Parlor? Do they have a website? I'll take a day trip to play pinball any chance I get
Pecos' Palatial Pinball Parlour, homage to the Brits, is the name I have given my collection of pinball machines. It started out with only four pins but has now grown to 33 - a little more than half are playable. I must have had precognition when I named it! 
I do have a Website but I have been so busy lately, mostly with restoring EM pins, that I haven't gotten it up and running. It is called pecospinball.com. You can look at my other Website to see a few pinball articles - pecos-softwareworks.com.
Click on the 33 next to my avatar to see the details of my collection.
Quoted from Heretic_9:I guess I'm not surprised to hear that -- part of a natural mercantile drift to such things. Over 100,000 visitors come in just for that each year, and it's apparently not deemed sufficient: in order to please the management of ComicCon and to retain the show, the city fathers have found it necessary to implement grand plans for expansion of the Convention Center's space. So it will only get bigger. The impact on traffic etc. is enormous, and not just in the area most adjacent to the show.
Fortunately, Nic is arriving a couple weeks prior to this year's show. We had someone already scheduled to visit -- unknowingly -- at the time of ComiCon a couple year's ago. And what a fiasco that turned out to be ! I'm sure that person will study the calendar a lot more closely, the next time around.
It's gotten nuts. National retailers now feel the need to have pop-up stores in the area. Two years ago, Chrysler (I believe) rented out a parking lot so they could display some of their models from the current year. And don't forget, Stern sets up in the show every year (one of the saving graces--I usually get a few games in every morning before the doors open).
Quoted from girloveswaffles:the madness known as San Diego Comic Con
Quoted from albummydavis:It's gotten nuts.
Quoted from Heretic_9:what a fiasco that turned out to be !
Quoted from albummydavis:Worst week of my year.
Hello Haters of Comic-Con!
Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Ryan, I'm a comic book artist and professor, illustrator of Nic's Tour Shirt, and I still love Comic-Con, but maybe that's because I still exhibit there. Ha-ha!
I agree, Comic-Con International has changed A LOT over the years. My dad used to take me as a birthday present when I was single digits (over 30 years ago now!), you could still walk up to the convention center without any hassle to buy your tickets the day of the show, and since the convention was still relatively small the hall was shared with business-types and traditional suit-and-tie conventioneers (a fabulous site to see Batman and Wonder Woman sharing a sidewalk with a couple of working stiffs).
Anyhow, all that has changed, for certain. It's a gigantic, multimedia conglomeration, no doubt. However, you can still find independent artists, long boxes full of back issues, retailers with current stock of graphic novels, discount trade paperback bins, and a ton more. As folks have mentioned, it has expanded to ancillary items far beyond comics. However, Stern Pinball is a part of that pop cultural growth. They've had a presence there for a number of years and I look forward to paying their booth another visit this year.
If you're in the area, feel free to swing by. I'll be in the Small Press Pavilion with my comics, original artwork, and lots of pinball related T-shirts. Hope to see some of you there. ...and I'll do my best not to clog the streets for any native San Diegans in the audience. 
Best,
Ryan Claytor
Elephant Eater Comics
www.ElephantEater.com
Quoted from RyanClaytor:I agree, Comic-Con International has changed A LOT over the years. My dad used to take me as a birthday present when I was single digits (over 30 years ago now!), you could still walk up to the convention center without any hassle to buy your tickets the day of the show, and since the convention was still relatively small the hall was shared with business-types and traditional suit-and-tie conventioneers (a fabulous site to see Batman and Wonder Woman sharing a sidewalk with a couple of working stiffs).
Anyhow, all that has changed, for certain. It's a gigantic, multimedia conglomeration, no doubt. However, you can still find independent artists, long boxes full of back issues, retailers with current stock of graphic novels, discount trade paperback bins, and a ton more. As folks have mentioned, it has expanded to ancillary items far beyond comics. However, Stern Pinball is a part of that pop cultural growth. They've had a presence there for a number of years and I look forward to paying their booth another visit this year.
If you're in the area, feel free to swing by. I'll be in the Small Press Pavilion with my comics, original artwork, and lots of pinball related T-shirts.
I'm NO hater -- mostly agnostic on the subject -- and I have been aware of the Stern presence in recent years. They may have debuted some new pins there . . . ?
From news reports, I gather that one or more of the Comic Con founders despaired over the ultra-commercial format it had morphed into, and was establishing some far smaller, "back to the roots" alternative event, for the purists. Much as how the extravaganza that the Sundance Film Festival became -- where it was maybe easier to get into Fort Knox than to get your modest indie flick considered for the fest -- spawned Slamdance, NoDance, and other alternates. (I'm a few years removed from awareness of that situation, so this could be a bit out of date . . . . ) Anyway, since you are involved with the Con, you likely know what I was referring to.
Eager for an update, are we?
Still giving this thing all I got. The midnight oil burned up long ago but I have enough fumes left to coast to the end... with a few more surprises up my sleeve.
I got 3 hours sleep last night on a slowly deflating mattress with a yowling cat in my ear. Not my brother's fault... he tried... hahaha.
At this moment I'm up to my elbows in wedgeheads. The pics and stories are waiting... just need a spare hour or two to get them online.
As Wolfgang said in the film bearing his name... "It's all up here in my noodle!"
Hoping to have an update tonight, but if not certainly by Friday night.
Quoted from NicoVolta:As Wolfgang said in the film bearing his name... "It's all up here in my noodle!"
"Scribbling and bibbling, bibbling and scribbling..." (I can quote that movie forwards and backwards.)
Keep in mind that's a scene where Wolfie has lost his grip on reality. Get some sleep, Nic!
Quoted from NicoVolta:3 hours sleep last night on a slowly deflating mattress with a yowling cat in my ear.
I can't help picture some poor feline pinned helplessly under you and your balloon bed mattress, desperately hoping it's one extended claw can help work him free.
I can wait, get enough rest to finish out the trip, with plenty of flat texas driving left, its best to be rested up and make it home safely.
Quick question on your magic brush.
I have one. Ate you just jamming it in between the leaf's ? The brush doesn't fit vary well for the space and im afraid of bending them out of alignment. . Or are you disassembling them to clean them ? Thanks and I'm looking forward to reading about the rest of your trip.
I'm finding my magic brush easier to use now the tip is getting a bit gnarly. I swab in with a Q-tip then use that to keep the switch open whilst magic brushing then swab out whilst removing the Q-tip. The Novus #1 cap is just right for holding some alcohol.
This is how we roll in the old country 
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Visit #37 – Eric Neff (@Cheddar) in Lodi, CA
The subjects: Jumping Jack and Grand Prix
After dodging the heat wave in the Bay Area for a week (and paying a visit to the impressive Computer History Museum in Palo Alto), the Pinwagon arrived at a rustic 1900’s house in Lodi, CA.
I was greeted by Eric at the door of his delightful vintage home. A weenie-shepherd guarded the hallway and a Grand Lizard stood watch in the rear. I knew I would be safe in this part of California wine country.
In the pinball room, a rare Eclipse offered a challenge to any would-be takers. It shares a similar layout with Gottlieb’s Black Hole except for two rows of drop targets in place of the lower-level reverse playfield.
Some may scoff at the lack of the lower playfield, but the drop targets nicely break up the wide open feel of the original. Eclipse plays fast with some wicked rebounds! Give it a spin if you see one.
Hello again, Jumping Jack. Have you returned once more to challenge me with weird scoring problems and flaky solder joints?
Yep.
Stingy Reel Syndrome struck again… with only 40 (or fewer) points being awarded per 50-point target. Same story for 500 point targets. Which always leads me to a common point of failure -> motor stack 1A.
A small ratcheting screwdriver like this one is perfect for removing switch stacks in tight areas.
After polishing and gapping the switch contacts at motor 1A, the problem ceased. Yeah! But for some reason, player 1 wasn’t receiving bonus scoring on the last ball (3 or 5). Let’s keep looking.
If you’ve ever examined a Gottlieb schematic and wondered what the numerals inside of this dashed-line box around “PLAYER UNIT” represented – it is the step count of the rivets traveling around the disc.
Starting with a fresh game, one click advances the disc to “click 2”, and so forth. Which means by the time the disc reaches “click 8”, player 1 is on ball 3. And “click 9” puts player 2 on ball 3.
On a 5-ball game, “click 16” would put player 1 on ball 5. “Click 17” would select player 2, ball 5.
We can see that clicks 8 and 16 (for player 1) follow a different path than clicks 9 and 17 (for player 2). Player 1’s issue was found along the path leading through P, motor 4A, and motor 4C.
Whoa… that can’t be right. A wire from the harness was loose.
A quick solder job was all that was needed here.
Aha! The connection after the motor 4C switch had a broken solder joint. It was supposed to carry the circuit back to the transformer... which was confirmed by jumpering the connection.
The solder bridge was repaired, and player 1 no longer suffered a significant disadvantage on ball 3/5.
For some reason, we were being awarded a match replay when the wrong number was lit. One of the wipers had been installed in the wrong position.
On Gottlieb score reels, the wiper should always point between 4 and 5. Think of it this way: Gottlieb score reels always leave work early. They check out sometime around 420... yeah man…
Chris (@alwaysrockin777) came by for a quick spin on Jumping Jack. “It is alive!”
I just happened to be in town when Brad, Ron, and a few others with the Pin-A-Go-Go (PAGG) pinball show were shopping around for a new location. The show has been experiencing growing pains at their usual venue and Lodi will likely be next for 2018.
We walked the large event halls for the afternoon before diverting to a local brewpub. Always nice to relax with a few new pinball fiends.
We returned to work on Grand Prix. Inside the backbox, the match unit had been given the medieval “Butterfly Torture” and screwed to the top. I can’t explain why this was done. Perhaps because the wiper discs had been lost? No matter… the game would still work without it.
Some of the score reels were not resetting. Eric and Chris checked and adjusted some of the zero-position switches.
Fixed a few, and found a few more. Many switch stacks to check on a 4-player game!
I bumped into a nearby Centaur and noticed the… boob orbs. Can you imagine the mighty Centaur reverb-voice challenging you to hit the BOOOOOBBBB ORRRBBSSSSSSSS, human?
Rows of gleaming switch contacts could mean only one thing… the Magic Brush had made its glorious presence known.
Ah, but something was amiss, and I challenged Eric to find it.
And I now challenge you to find it.
The EM Home Challenge continues! We went three rounds on Jumping Jack and the streak prevailed: 19-7. Beware the momentum!
Eric is now a newly-minted Pinball Jedi… ready to conquer the EM world with his Dremelsaber. May the Gleaming Contacts be with you!
One last stop before departing for Salinas. After running into Ron Chan at the PPM Annex and the Lodi event halls, my route took me to his house for a quick visit and some fixes on Bow & Arrow (and lunch).
Really enjoying my time on the west coast! I’ll be back for the Lodi pinball show in 2018.
Next stop -> Cary Carmichael in Salinas, CA
It was a great time meeting Nic and working on pins. We didn't have enough time to finish Grand Prix but I was left with knowledge to keep going. I ordered some 443's for the Dremel and kept at it.
The index wheel on the score unit had a make break that was always make and never break. All of the switches were dirty so i cleaned and adjusted them all. This would be much easier on the bench as its hard to get a side view of the stack while adjusting. Fortunately it is hinged so you can tilt it up.
The outhole relay requires the outhole switch be closed to activate but hard to do with the playfield up. Time to jumper it closed and voila it works.
It plays but it needs tweaking and further adjusting.
Now I have to troubleshoot the left bonus unit, the pop bumpers are weak and sometimes the 100s reel keeps spinning.
Thanks Nic, it was a great time.
Quoted from NicoVolta:And I now challenge you to find it.
Grand Prix... they made a million of them and they all have issues like the one pictured. At least all the ones I've worked on.
My least favorite part of that game (and some others from that late EM era Williams) are the relay banks mounted in a poor position under the playfield. It's really easy for a problem like the above to happen, but due to the construction of those relay banks, sometimes harder to find.
The act of simply pulling the playfield can cause it, due to the design.
That Jumping Jack just does NOT like being moved! When I bought the game it played great at the guys home. Got it home and Steve (RIP blownfuse) and I pulled each others hair out getting it working correctly again but eventually did. Now you have it Eric and by golly you better bolt the legs to the floor so she doesn't get moved again! I really miss it too. Such a great game. BTW, I see my custom stainless steel home switch is still holding up perfectly on that switch stack
Quoted from bingopodcast:Grand Prix...
The act of simply pulling the playfield can cause it, due to the design.
I have a single wire that gets caught on the prop rod and is getting stripped. I need to repair and cover the whole bundle with split wire wrap to protect it.
Quoted from Cliffy:That Jumping Jack just does NOT like being moved! When I bought the game it played great at the guys home. Got it home and Steve (RIP blownfuse) and I pulled each others hair out getting it working correctly again but eventually did. Now you have it Eric and by golly you better bolt the legs to the floor so she doesn't get moved again! I really miss it too. Such a great game. BTW, I see my custom stainless steel home switch is still holding up perfectly on that switch stack
Everyone raves about this machine. Played it at league last night. Top score 48k on 5 balls
Quoted from Cheddar:Everyone raves about this machine. Played it at league last night. Top score 48k on 5 balls
Well yeah- I restored the playfield glass smooth and put in the hot dot flipper coils so she's a true players game. Lucky you I changed all the drops too as my hand repainted originals started snapping of so you should have a ton of fun for years to come (hmmm, nice slogan!)
Quoted from Cheddar:I have a single wire that gets caught on the prop rod and is getting stripped. I need to repair and cover the whole bundle with split wire wrap to protect it.
I don't use the prop rod on that game. Or many late Williams games. Too easy to rip the insulation on wires, and it's easy enough to lift the playfield and tilt against the head. Don't move the machine while the playfield is up, and you'll be ok.
Quoted from xsvtoys:I thought the 2018 festival was all set for the Lodi Grape Festival Grounds???
It is, we were doing electrical planning. I don't expect Nic to know the full story. I do hope maybe we can get him to the show next year.
Quoted from bingopodcast:I don't use the prop rod on that game. Or many late Williams games. Too easy to rip the insulation on wires, and it's easy enough to lift the playfield and tilt against the head. Don't move the machine while the playfield is up, and you'll be ok.
Yeah, the factory prop rods are kind of sketchy IMHO. Never feel safe using those.
I always lean it back against the head (with a towel to protect the paint)
Of the current Dremel cordless models (https://www.dremel.com/en_US/tools/-/search-tools/find-by-category/27343/rotary), which do you recommend for EM repair Nic? Is the 8220 overkill? Is variable speed necessary or 2 speeds enough? What do you think of the 8050-Mirco which is only 2 lbs?
Quoted from spinal:Of the current Dremel cordless models (https://www.dremel.com/en_US/tools/-/search-tools/find-by-category/27343/rotary), which do you recommend for EM repair Nic? Is the 8220 overkill? Is variable speed necessary or 2 speeds enough? What do you think of the 8050-Mirco which is only 2 lbs?
Nic has an 8220 (or an earlier model of the same design). One nice thing about it is the on/off and the speed adjustment are separate controls so the speed is set and forget.
I don't recall having any concerns about weight or size when I was using it.
Wow, good to hear there are like-minded souls out there! I too was a punk rock suburban malcontent who attended many shows at the famous Marble Bar and The Loft in scuzzy downtown Baltimore. My yearbook quote was a passage from a DK song!!
I'm also a tiki aficionado, my entire downstairs is decked out in tiki-memory-abilia from tiki bars past (mugs, totems, foliage, etc, etc). I had the same disheartening experience at Trader Vic's in Vegas, but there are still a few of the "real deal" tiki bars around - Omni Hut in Smyrna, TN is my destination next month!
If you're ever in the neighborhood stop by so we can spin some of my hardcore LP's and I can show off my hand-painted trench-coat featuring Munch's Scream on the entire back and my high school notebooks with meticulous acrylic paintings of punk LP covers!!
-Nate
OMG! That photo!!
Before seeing the close-up I thought, "That looks like Leatherface in his "formal dinner party mask" holding that kid!! Whoooo, boy, what a sight!
Love it.
Quoted from NicoVolta:EM-fans, heed my advice: Follow the PPM's announcements closely. When the next Expo is announced, make your plans.
Have seen Gene at INDISC in the past. Nice to see some of his work here.
What is the pin that Gene is looking over in the 5th. photo down, on post #905 ? And what is that under-the-pf (?) feature in the middle ? (Something like the roulette wheel on Teed Off ?)
Then . . . all of my previous bookmarks for PPM are pulling up zilch now. A quick search did not do any better. What gives, and what's a non-FB-user to do ?
"What is the pin that Gene is looking over in the 5th. photo down, on post #905 ? And what is that under-the-pf (?) feature in the middle ? (Something like the roulette wheel on Teed Off ?)"
that's a 1972 Williams Fan-Tas-Tic
Quoted from spinal:Of the current Dremel cordless models (https://www.dremel.com/en_US/tools/-/search-tools/find-by-category/27343/rotary), which do you recommend for EM repair Nic? Is the 8220 overkill? Is variable speed necessary or 2 speeds enough? What do you think of the 8050-Mirco which is only 2 lbs?
I use the 8220 for the huge 12-volt battery life. The 8050 has a smaller battery but makes up for it by being lighter and easier to maneuver.
I haven't tried the 8050 but I assume it would work just as well.
Quoted from Pinball_Nate:Wow, good to hear there are like-minded souls out there! I too was a punk rock suburban malcontent who attended many shows at the famous Marble Bar and The Loft in scuzzy downtown Baltimore. My yearbook quote was a passage from a DK song!!
I'm also a tiki aficionado, my entire downstairs is decked out in tiki-memory-abilia from tiki bars past (mugs, totems, foliage, etc, etc). I had the same disheartening experience at Trader Vic's in Vegas, but there are still a few of the "real deal" tiki bars around - Omni Hut in Smyrna, TN is my destination next month!
If you're ever in the neighborhood stop by so we can spin some of my hardcore LP's and I can show off my hand-painted trench-coat featuring Munch's Scream on the entire back and my high school notebooks with meticulous acrylic paintings of punk LP covers!!
-Nate
Awesome... sounds exactly like old times. We'd have been pals I bet. Do you hang out with the Crabtowne pinballers? Jose, George, Mike, Shannon, lots of cool folks get together up there regularly.
Quoted from Heretic_9:Have seen Gene at INDISC in the past. Nice to see some of his work here.
What is the pin that Gene is looking over in the 5th. photo down, on post #905 ? And what is that under-the-pf (?) feature in the middle ? (Something like the roulette wheel on Teed Off ?)
Then . . . all of my previous bookmarks for PPM are pulling up zilch now. A quick search did not do any better. What gives, and what's a non-FB-user to do ?
Fan-Tas-Tic is one of Norm Clark's signature middle-pop games. He also invented the roulette wheel feature which first debuted on his A-Go-Go machine.
If you're a non-Facebooker (currently 5.4 billion and shrinking), you can follow the PPM's event activity on their homepage: https://www.pacificpinball.org/
Quoted from NicoVolta:you can follow the PPM's event activity on their homepage: https://www.pacificpinball.org/
Hmmm . . . that's coming up blank page in FF, but I now see it is loading in Chrome.
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Holt, MI
Basingstoke
