I have a lot more to say about TPF but am currently hauling 16 pins to RPM and fixing EM’s along the way... so no time to say anything but this:

MARK YOUR 2020 CALENDARS - FRIDAY TPF TAKEOVER AT BAVARIAN GRILL 1:30PM

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It was so good I had to do an encore last Tuesday with Eric (of Titan Pinball) and Derek (of Epic Beard).

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FRIDAY. 1:30PM. BAVARIAN GRILL. Perfect time to sneak away for lunch before TPF gets rolling. And they have the tables and taps to facilitate all of us weirdos at once.

Mark it. See you there in 2020.

My wife and I are on an every-other-year rhythm for TPF, so, see you in 2021! BTW, my DP Pro got exactly 555 plays over the weekend. Love it!

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Eyesight of the caped crusaders need checked, that’s a horrible parking job

Our Maiden Pro received 475 plays at the show.
Just 3 or 4 screws needed to be tightened, but none came out.
Quick light cleaning of the playfield and rubbers and the game is a good as new at the house.

Thank you. I'm glad you liked it.

No, sorry.

So I hear those that are complaining about the amount of down games at the show. It happens. We do get an influx of new people who aren't accustomed to what it takes to keep their machine running at a show. Still others who bring a game that wasn't even prepped for the show. I believe the number of down machines was less than 10% and I got alot of them back up and running as quickly as I could. But things break. That being said if any of you would like to volunteer to help out with the TPF Hospital next year please get in contact with me. I would like to get some more people that could help out if needed, we really need a range of people who are knowledgeable on certain types, mfgs, and years. The TPF Hospital is strictly a volunteer operation, typically we only have some left over parts from working on our machines, and tools. We can always use more parts, and people to help out. Also of note, we only work on those machines where the owner has contacted us, and we don't work on that project machine you didn't have running before the show. We are more of a Triage center, and try to get a down game playable as quickly as possible. Alot of people put their contact info on the card of the game, so if you see a down game, try sending a message to the owner and let them know. Would love to hear your thoughts and ideas on how we could do a better job of keeping games running. So please send me a PM.

I thought the number of down games at the show was better this year. Usually when games go down, they're down for the weekend. Sometimes the owner will try to get it running and it's back up for a short time, then down hard.

This year I noticed many games down Friday night, as usual. But Saturday many of them were back up and running. I also noticed games go down throughout the day and when I came back around they were up again.

The only other show I attend regularly is Expo and let me tell you the difference between the two shows is night and day. Sure, both shows have their share of free admission project games that don't hold up, but I've noticed a greater percentage of broken games at Expo and the owners either can't fix them or don't care. One year in particular there were 3 or 4 games on the floor that had their heads folded down for the entire show, several games were down Friday night and by Saturday night 1/3 of the games were down.

Kevin, I sent you a PM. I can help with repairs and a suggestion I would make is to level games. Several games lean to one side or have almost no slope and I could help with that too.

This was my first pin show but I didn't think a thing about the handful of down games, that's just pinball. So thanks again to everyone who brought one or helped keep them running! If you played the AFMr CE in the King Pin booth, that was mine.

At SFGE people who bring games are required to provide a set of keys to the staff when checking in a game. Volunteers who are great techs volunteer their time to fix games throughout the show. Game owners display a card with the show tech group email address so that game problems can be quickly reported to staff and a game can be back up and running in less than an hour. The game owner has the option of putting their name and contact info on the game, for sale or not, etc. The show staff responds to emails from attendees about games being down, and dispatches techs to fix them. This keeps 99% of the games running, but occasionally a game can't be fixed.

Two years ago I noticed a lot of games were down, some were not working 100% an hour after the doors opened Friday night. Many games were working 100% but were not set on freeplay so you had to wait for the owner to come by and add credits to the game before you could play it. This year I found very few games that were down, but several where the pitch was very low, causing the game to be no fun to play.

first off, thank you. I thought y'all did an excellent job and there weren't really many pins down imo.

The only advice i would give would be mainly for exhibitors to check fuses and funtionality before bringing games, leaving a name and phone number with the line "call or text if game is down", and just making surw exhibitors have direct and clear access to numbers to those who may be fixing games to get in line and the hospital.

I actually spoke with multiple exhibitiors that did not know the process on how to get in line for fixes or even who to reach or how to reach them.

That's alot of Keys to keep track of, we had close to 400 pins, plus arcades. You volunteering to gather, and keep track of them all?

There were fliers on the tables right as your brought your game in, the check in people should have handed you one when you got your name display cards. This is only the 2nd time we've attempted this, so we are learning how to make things better.

Tell that place to get an Oktoberfest!

This makes my 7th year in a row for attending the TPF and my first year of being a exhibitor . My Munsters Premium got a total of 530 games put on it.
Looking forward to TPF 2020 and doing my part of being a exhibitor of another new release game.

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They checked me in on their tablet, but didn't give me a flier or even name cards. After setting up I came back to get my name cards, but didn't even notice the fliers.

This only being the 2nd time for them they haven't made the process routine yet. Once they check in the game(s) they should hand the person name cards and a flier for every game.

The loading dock gets pretty crazy so I can see how easy it would be to miss this step.

It does get a bit crazy, lot's of games, and vendors trying to get into one overhead door. However we are coming up with ideas to help, something like a final check in process. To make sure you have power to your game, record a location id, Make sure you have all the paperwork you might need etc.. Next year should be better, at least that is the goal right?

My daughter and I attended the Texas Pinball Festival on Friday and Saturday. Cheyenne is a sophomore at SMU in Dallas, and I had flown out the night prior from our home in Orlando, Florida. It was our first time attending the show and the week prior I had committed to my first pinball purchase, a NIB Munsters Pro, adding to our excitement and anticipation for the TPF experience.

Ed and Kim VanderVeen created an organized, energetic, and welcoming environment for manufacturers, vendors, operators, distributors, and pin fans of all ages. Details such as lanyards, name badges, and programs, enhanced the event presentation and made for great take-aways. Much appreciation for their time and efforts!

On Friday the Munsters VIP Experience exceeded our expectations, as the design team in John Borg, Dwight Sullivan, Christopher Franchi, and Jerry Thompson, were all enthusiastic and engaging. Butch Patrick and Pat Priest were great, and it was surreal to meet the stars of such an iconic show and Stern’s latest entry. The commemorative poster by Christopher Franchi is exceptional and the perfect remembrance of this amazing event (kudos for even providing a tube for safe-keeping…thanks Presley!). In the seminar on Saturday the team’s presentation provided interesting behind-the-scenes insight into the creation of this excellent pin, highlighting intentional design decisions to make the gameplay fun and accessible to new and casual players.

Throughout the show I was able to meet those whom I regard as the primary influences on why I am a pinball enthusiast and now a machine owner, including Zach and Greg from SDTM, Nick and Kevin from Buffalo Pinball (thanks for the patch Kevin!), and Jack Danger from Dead Flip. These individuals have undeniably elevated the hobby to what it is today, and I have the utmost respect and appreciation for the continued investment of time and energy each commits weekly toward streaming, game reviews, and discussion dedicated to this enjoyable pastime. Congrats also to Jeff, Zach, and Greg, for the highly entertaining TWIPY awards!

Since first playing Gorgar and Black Knight as a teen in Southern California arcades, I have always been drawn to pinball. It challenges your determination, tests your skill, and delights the soul. Thanks for everyone who made TPF 2019 an extraordinary memory for my daughter and I, and we anxiously look forward to next year’s event!

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Thanks to everyone who came by our booth! Sorry if we couldn't hear you. It got pretty loud at times. Our pins held up great throughout the entire show with only a stuck ball on Simpsons. I hope everyone enjoyed all of the pins in the Pinstadium booth. Here are the numbers:

Bride of Pinbot: 547 plays
Whirlwind: 538
Attack from Mars: 449
Total Nuclear Annihilation: 469
The Simpsons Pinball Party: 427
T2 was sold so I'm not sure. If the new owner wants to check, it was at zero

I didnt know this existed, I asked the pinsmith to help me get one of my machines working after someone else tried to help me and we couldnt figure out the issue. He was great and got it running in 20 min, needed a new battery holder and CPU ribbon cable cleaned.

I played your southpark a few times. I wish i could have bought it.

Xenon had 784 plays!

My games typically have around 600 plays so this is a large increase. The highest score was 1,134,080.

Food for thought:
The show was open 8 hours Friday, 16 hours Saturday and 5.5 hours Sunday = 29.5 hours
784 plays divided by 29.5 hours = 26.5 games per hour
That's about one game every 2 minutes!

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Back in my day, there was no ball save! <insert shaking fist emoji>

My HS, with a combo of my and the neighborhood kids’ times, averages 40 seconds per ball - and I’m fine with that. I prefer my pinball brutal. That way, when you do have a long game, it is something special.

BTW, your Xenon was gorgeous! Thanks for sharing.

If they finally release a Hardtop for HS, I suspect I’ll be plummeting down the pristine restoration hole.

I will say it was great seeing all my old friends and also meeting new ones this year. The show is not all about playing games. Socializing and talking pinball are some of the other things I do at all shows while attending. Thanks to everyone who brought games to the show for the free play area. I give those people much credit for packing up a machine and letting the public have a go with the game. Without these people, pinball shows would not exist. Thanks again.

Video of Games at TPF 2019

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1188&v=tCW5BvHCP4k

Final tallies; Space Invaders had short ball times and EBD kept having issues.

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Is there tournament video anywhere?

They have all been archived on the Space City Pinball YouTube channel.

https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCpX6WjqAgvsZKjbXeZFzXRg

Lots of TPF talk on the Pinball Magazine & Pinball News March 2019 recap podcast: http://www.pinball-magazine.com/?p=3920

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My Highspeed up front by the front entrance along the wall had 688 total plays. It stayed up most of the weekend. Only had a few blips Saturday when some balls got stuck in the ball trough.

Can't thank you enough for this recommendation, loved checking out DV on Friday morning. I didn't get back for the show until around 9, but it was worth it!

Even managed to rent a mountain bike and throw it in my rental car, so I could tour around the whole park.

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You're welcome! The bike was a brilliant idea. I see you found the dinosaur tracks.