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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - I'm a top-ranked competitive pinball player, amaa... (Page 6 of 6)

Posted: 1/3/2019 10:49:00 PM EST

[#1]

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Thank you!

Cleared it out, give me a shout again.

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OP, congrats!

I tried following up on your generous offer to ask around to see if any local Connecticut pinball enthusiasts might have interest in my mother's Gottlieb 'Easy Aces' machine - but it appears that your PM mailbox is full.

I figure that you may have your hands full right now with concerns other than ARFCOM - if you can shoot me a PM or reply here when your mailbox is no longer full I will try re-sending the note, thanks...

Thank you!

Cleared it out, give me a shout again.

Your message inbox must be full again

I'll give it another try tomorrow, thanks...

Posted: 1/3/2019 10:53:27 PM EST

[#2]

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Congratulations, beautiful little girl!

My daughter’s named Emily as well. Is “tilt” your favorite movie of all time?

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Clearly.

Posted: 1/3/2019 10:57:19 PM EST

[#3]

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Your message inbox must be full again

I'll give it another try tomorrow, thanks...

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Didn't realize you have to delete the "deleted" folder. Should be good now. Sorry about that.

Posted: 1/3/2019 11:02:00 PM EST

[#4]

Top 10 Greatest Pinball Machines of All Time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDYmKpHfgtQ

Posted: 1/3/2019 11:25:22 PM EST

[#5]

I've never been very good at pinball, but this thread has been entertaining. My best friend growing up had one in their den, all I remember was Elton John (I think) was on the machine. Sound familiar?

Posted: 1/3/2019 11:50:36 PM EST

[#6]

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La-shay. And the dash don't be silent.

No, her name is Emily

What drew me to pinball? I was always "good" at it. (I'm significantly better now). I always had access to machines. I also had machines downstairs so I could practice at home. I met some local folks through forums that were into pinball while I was looking for repair advice, but a couple of them were REALLY into it. I was invited to a small tournament a collector was running out of his house, and I was immeadietly hooked.

I used to shoot competitively at a pretty high level, but soon realized I would never be as good as the top guys I would shoot against at idpa matches, regardless of how much I practiced. And I did. I just decided one day that if I could become world class in something, it would be pinball. As I type that, that sounds really fucking weird

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Congrats!

Whats her name?

And what drew you to pinball? You said you wanted to be great at something, or something along those lines - why that?

La-shay. And the dash don't be silent.

No, her name is Emily

What drew me to pinball? I was always "good" at it. (I'm significantly better now). I always had access to machines. I also had machines downstairs so I could practice at home. I met some local folks through forums that were into pinball while I was looking for repair advice, but a couple of them were REALLY into it. I was invited to a small tournament a collector was running out of his house, and I was immeadietly hooked.

I used to shoot competitively at a pretty high level, but soon realized I would never be as good as the top guys I would shoot against at idpa matches, regardless of how much I practiced. And I did. I just decided one day that if I could become world class in something, it would be pinball. As I type that, that sounds really fucking weird

Good deal, thanks. Congrats again.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:04:23 AM EST

[#7]

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I've never been very good at pinball, but this thread has been entertaining. My best friend growing up had one in their den, all I remember was Elton John (I think) was on the machine. Sound familiar?

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Already mentioned in the thread, but Elton John and The Brown Dirt Cowboys. It was a very popular machine in its day.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:08:15 AM EST

[#8]

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Thank you, my little lady was born this afternoon. 9lbs 14 oz. 23 1/2" long.

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Must suck when you get caught up on the thread and look like an idiot. He was doing the AMA last night waiting for his wife to give birth.

Thank you, my little lady was born this afternoon. 9lbs 14 oz. 23 1/2" long.

Congrats! Saw the pic, great looking baby!

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:10:07 AM EST

[#9]

Arabian Knights

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:13:52 AM EST

[#10]

Well I'll be... today I learned that a thing I didn't know was a thing is actually a thing.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:45:09 AM EST

[#11]

Congrats dad!

Before this thread I thought of pinball as a game of luck. A slot machine that paid out in imaginary points. I'm surprised to learn that you can practice enough to be "good at pinball."

Posted: 1/4/2019 2:16:10 AM EST

[#12]

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I just decided one day that if I could become world class in something, it would be pinball. As I type that, that sounds really fucking weird

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It does.

I'd like to become an expert at something. No idea what it would be though, I've always been a jack of all trades.

Posted: 1/4/2019 6:31:04 AM EST

[#13]

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Must suck being a virgin.

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Not as bad as not reading through a thread, making a douche comment and looking like an asshole.

Let us know.

Posted: 1/4/2019 6:33:56 AM EST

[#14]

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Are you dumb, deaf and blind?

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Ha ha beat by one second

Posted: 1/4/2019 8:37:11 AM EST

[#15]

Best sub $1000 machine?

Posted: 1/4/2019 8:37:42 AM EST

[#16]

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Congrats dad!

Before this thread I thought of pinball as a game of luck. A slot machine that paid out in imaginary points. I'm surprised to learn that you can practice enough to be "good at pinball."

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What is tilting?

Posted: 1/4/2019 11:06:44 AM EST

[#17]

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Congrats dad!

Before this thread I thought of pinball as a game of luck. A slot machine that paid out in imaginary points. I'm surprised to learn that you can practice enough to be "good at pinball."

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I am at a level where I can call my shot, and hit it about 97% of the time. Some days it's 99%, others it's less. Many factors play into shot accuracy; attitude and having the right mindset. Ring the most important in my opinion. Not getting flustered and keeping your composure when an opponent puts up a huge score or has a really good ball are also very important.

Also, not being half drunk and tired help. One of the pro circuit stops includes a tournament that is played for 24 hours straight, round after round, with no breaks. I watched a number of renowned players who are usually like terminators, fade away after about 12-14 hours.

The great Roger Sharpe played a game of pinball in front of a New York court in the 70's by calling shots and making them. This was enough to prove that pinball was a game of skill, and not luck, therefore not gambling. This was enough to lift a 40 year ban on pinball machines in New York City, as mayor LaGuardia deemed them to be gambling devices in the 30's.

Posted: 1/4/2019 11:11:38 AM EST

[#18]

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Best sub $1000 machine?

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Hokus Pokus for em;

Sorcerer for solid state, but it may have creeped past that;

Not sure you can find a dot matrix game anymore for under a g, but if you can, I'm sure it's a Gottlieb Premier.

Posted: 1/4/2019 11:14:07 AM EST

[#19]

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What is tilting?

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Shaking or moving the game beyond the threshold of sensitivity set by the tournament director/operator of the game. When this occurs, the game kills power to your flippers,and every switch on the playfield, causing your ball to drain. You do not get to collect your bonus. Basically the end of your ball instantly when you cross the threshold.

Posted: 1/4/2019 11:18:32 AM EST

[#20]

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Shaking or moving the game beyond the threshold of sensitivity set by the tournament director/operator of the game. When this occurs, the game kills power to your flippers,and every switch on the playfield, causing your ball to drain. You do not get to collect your bonus. Basically the end of your ball instantly when you cross the threshold.

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Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:

What is tilting?

Shaking or moving the game beyond the threshold of sensitivity set by the tournament director/operator of the game. When this occurs, the game kills power to your flippers,and every switch on the playfield, causing your ball to drain. You do not get to collect your bonus. Basically the end of your ball instantly when you cross the threshold.

I've only ever played pinball casually, but every machine I've played has seemed like a big heavy beast that would be very hard to move. How much does it take to tilt one? Are we talking millimeters?

Posted: 1/4/2019 11:32:15 AM EST

[#21]

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I've only ever played pinball casually, but every machine I've played has seemed like a big heavy beast that would be very hard to move. How much does it take to tilt one? Are we talking millimeters?

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It really depends how sensitive they are set; I've played machines where I could slide the machine six inches one way or the other and not even get a warning, or machines where tapping them harder than one would tap a vein prior to getting blood drawn would cause a warning. Tournament prepped machines are usually placed on carpeting or things called pin foots to prevent them from being slid easily; two reasons: so you don't slide a machine into the machine next to it while someone is playing, and so that any external force put on the machine/cabinet is transferred directly to the machine. There is serious physics with motion involved in pro level pinball. I'm not joking. It's one of the biggest parts of the game.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:06:52 PM EST

[#22]

Congratulations on the newborn! I posted earlier, but it was somewhat long and my question was lost at the end. I have a Judge Dredd, WWF Royal Rumble and Rescue 911. I see you commented on the WWF earlier in the thread. What do you think of the other two? I haven't played the Dredd much because it has an error that annoys me to the point of not playing it. It seems like a somewhat difficult game though. The Rescue 911 I picked up because it was a good deal. I'd never heard of it, but find it surprisingly fun.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:19:04 PM EST

[#23]

Cool thread! Thanks OP. My local tavern always had a Lethal Weapon machine and recently it got switched to a Big Buck Hunting game.. We have a lot of people very disappointed about it.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:36:22 PM EST

[#24]

It sounds like there's no consistency in the tilt sensor between tournaments? How do you know how far you can push it at a new tournament? I'm guessing some warm up rounds to get familiar?

Congrats on the baby!

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:47:46 PM EST

[#25]

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It sounds like there's no consistency in the tilt sensor between tournaments? How do you know how far you can push it at a new tournament? I'm guessing some warm up rounds to get familiar?

Congrats on the baby!

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You guessed right; but sometimes, the real bastard directors (in a good way

) will run what is called limited qualifying; in this format you usually don't get a warm up, and limited times to play a machine to qualify for finals. The purpose being everyone walks on "cold" and who can adjust the quickest.

Posted: 1/4/2019 12:55:20 PM EST

[#26]

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Congratulations on the newborn! I posted earlier, but it was somewhat long and my question was lost at the end. I have a Judge Dredd, WWF Royal Rumble and Rescue 911. I see you commented on the WWF earlier in the thread. What do you think of the other two? I haven't played the Dredd much because it has an error that annoys me to the point of not playing it. It seems like a somewhat difficult game though. The Rescue 911 I picked up because it was a good deal. I'd never heard of it, but find it surprisingly fun.

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JD is a great game, that recently has just gotten the respect it deserves. It was always considered a "B-/C+" title (where Addams, TZ, AFM would be "A"). It's a wide body machine packed with cool features and interesting shots. The bottom half (the configuration of the outlanes) is totally original and unlike any other game. It's a great tournament game.

R911 gets bashed because it's a gottlieb premier; doesn't mean it's bad; it just that gottliebs of the era felt rushed to market and "cheap" compared to the Cadillac balky/Williams. Most gottlieb premiers (called system 3's in pingeek talk) are relatively inexpensive, but are built like tanks. I still see them on location. They are very fun for casual players because it's obvious what you need to do to advance the game. R911 in particular can be a pita to get running right because of the helicopter mech, but once you do, you will get many years of reliable play out of it with few future adjustments. Getting it working right the first time is the hard part; it can take dozens of tiny adjustments to get it correct.

Posted: 1/4/2019 2:07:56 PM EST

[#27]

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Cool thread! Thanks OP. My local tavern always had a Lethal Weapon machine and recently it got switched to a Big Buck Hunting game.. We have a lot of people very disappointed about it.

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Yeah...big buck hunter came out during a low point for stern when they almost went bankrupt in the mid 2000's (it's easy to see why, huh?). They put out a bunch of lackluster, stripped down machines that lacked any entertaining features. It's like they weren't even trying; I'm looking at you 24, CSI, Big Buck Hunter, NBA, Indiana Jones...

Posted: 1/4/2019 2:51:54 PM EST

[#28]

Congrats on your new baby girl. This thread caught my eye because we just bought a partially furnished home in CO, and a Williams "Police Force" pin ball machine was part of the deal. Plugged it in and it seems to work just fine, but we don't have room for it and would like to sell it. Don't know the best marketplace but did find two websites that look promising.

www.Pinside.com
www.ipdb.org

Any help or advice you could give would be appreciated!

Posted: 1/4/2019 3:09:15 PM EST

[#29]

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Congrats on your new baby girl. This thread caught my eye because we just bought a partially furnished home in CO, and a Williams "Police Force" pin ball machine was part of the deal. Plugged it in and it seems to work just fine, but we don't have room for it and would like to sell it. Don't know the best marketplace but did find two websites that look promising.

www.Pinside.com
www.ipdb.org

Any help or advice you could give would be appreciated!

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Post it on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace for $2k, accept $1500 assuming everything works and it plays good, and is in overall nice condition. Accept only "cash on the glass", and express no warranty. I've had people play test a machine I'm selling, love it, buy it, only to get it home and either something rattled loose during transport or they literally dropped the machine and then they want to return it.

If you can't get $1500 for it locally, which is unlikely, only then would I post to pinside.

Or keep it, and get bitten by the pinball bug.

Posted: 1/4/2019 3:27:10 PM EST

[#30]

Thanks - great advice. I'll let you know how it goes.

Posted: 1/4/2019 4:06:16 PM EST

[#31]

Congratulations!

Have we talked about Black Knight?

When that came out it seemed amazing to me. Suddenly pinball was competing for my quarters at the arcade I’d walk to during the summer.

Posted: 1/4/2019 5:25:24 PM EST

[#32]

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Do you own the Twillight Zone machine? Cuz I want that.

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I used to kill the oldschool Cyclone machine back in the late 80s.

Skip to :20 I could do that all day long.

CYCLONE PINBALL MACHINE BY WILLIAMS 1988

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3ICmVxltWs

Posted: 1/4/2019 5:26:50 PM EST

[#33]

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Ever see the 1979 movie "Tilt" ?

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Rabbit test!

Posted: 1/4/2019 5:38:33 PM EST

[#34]

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Congratulations!

Have we talked about Black Knight?

When that came out it seemed amazing to me. Suddenly pinball was competing for my quarters at the arcade I’d walk to during the summer.

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Black Night was definitely revolutionary; the magna saves on the outlanes, and the raised play field were the first of their kind; hell, just even having background music during gameplay was aww inspiring then. Steve Ritchie is a design genius, and still is today. Good condition BK's still command a premium price.

Posted: 1/4/2019 5:42:57 PM EST

[#35]

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I used to kill the oldschool Cyclone machine back in the late 80s.

Skip to :20 I could do that all day long.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3ICmVxltWs

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Another classic; surprisingly complex for its day, even has The Gipper on the back glass!

I recommend it as a first game for people that want to dip their toe into pinball ownership as they are plentiful, relatively inexpensive, fun, and a great game to build ball handling and flipper skills on.

Posted: 1/4/2019 8:31:15 PM EST

[#36]

Thanks for answering all the questions. I've enjoyed the thread.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - I'm a top-ranked competitive pinball player, amaa... (Page 6 of 6)

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