For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast Feed

The ball gate switch is a very important switch, indeed! It tells the bingo with a time tree that it should throw a trip relay based on the position of the timer unit. Without the trips tripping, the timer will no longer advance, and you will have crazy gameplay issues, including issues with registering replays, locking you out of various timetree-driven features, etc.
Episode 75 - Ball Gate Switches


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When you have a scoring problem in a bingo, testing can be a pain, if you don't know this simple trick. Dropping all the balls, and shooting a new winning combination, even with the glass off, takes forever. Pressing a couple of coil plungers and a relay plate are all that's needed to re-test.
Episode 76 - Testing Scoring in a Bingo


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...my hubris, in particular. I finally found and fixed the problem with my card #5 in Ticker Tape. It wasn't at all where I was looking, but I (re)learned a valuable lesson. I should actually read the manual/schematic if the game contains units I've never encountered. Also, Australian listeners - a call to action! Please contact me about the bingo scene (if there was one) in Australia. I know absolutely nothing, and would love to be educated.
Episode 77 - Hubris and Bingos


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Jim Willing from the Spooky Pinball Podcast's EM Dungeon segment (spookypinball.com/podcast) emails with a question on an odd back door switch on a bingo. I give him the wrong answer and he graciously provides the correct one. To be fair, I was nowhere near a manual, schematic or bingo when he asked, but I tried!
Episode 78 - Backdoor Bingo Oddity


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Early pinball machines from the 1930s, all the way through the 40s and into the 50s, used a method of keeping score that was unique to the era. "Lighted scoring" was a way for the game to show you your score and to keep track of your current score for the purpose of awarding replays. I describe how lighted scoring is controlled, and the similarity between it and its successor, the score reel.
Episode 79 - Lighted Scoring


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What is a score reel? This and other questions will be answered. Score reels were first used in the 1950s, and continued to be used through most of the 1970s.
Episode 80 - Score Reel History


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How do score reels function? Pt. 2 in a series on score reels. As a continuous stepper with pictures instead of rivets!
Episode 81 - Score Reel Operation


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Episode 3 in a series on score reels. What are the pieces that actually hold a score reel together? How do they work together and change state?
Episode 82 - Score Reel Construction


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Some of the differences between various makes and models of score reels. Gottlieb Decagons in various formations, and other oddities. Episode 4 in a series on score reels.
Episode 83 - Score Reel Differences


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Some score reels have PCBs attached - what do they do? Why would a game with mechanical scoring need a circuit board? Find out here! Episode 5 in a series on score reels.
Episode 84 - Score Reel PCBs


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How to clean and care for your score reels. Note that this is only my method, but by following these steps, I've never had an issue! Last in my series of 6 episodes on score reels.
Episode 85 - Score Reel Care and Feeding


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Older games (from the 30s-40s-50s) used coin slides instead of gravity-fed coin slots. This episode explains how to manipulate them, and remove and clean them. I also discuss some of the downsides to coin slides.
Episode 86 - Coin Slides


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Taylor Reese, a local collector and one of the hosts of the One and Done Pinball Podcast comes on and I try to convince him to pick up an EM flipper game. Taylor provides a service called Reese Rails, where he manufactures new oak playfield rails. You can find him on Facebook under Reese Rails, or message him on pinside.com at TaylorVA to get the conversation started. You can see some of his excellent work on the Oak Replacement Playfield Rails thread on pinside at https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/t...ield-rails-wh2o-and-taf-ready-to-ship-or-york He also is very active on Instagram as @richmondpinball, and also is one of the members/league runners of the River City Flippers. You can see league happenings at richmondpinball.org You can also hear his thoughts on Wizard of Oz on the latest Pinball Podcast, episode 56 - http://www.thepinballpodcast.com/2015/05/26/episode-56-ding-dongle-the-wizard-is-dead
Episode 87 - Interview with Taylor Reese 5-31-15


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Terry DeZwarte, of www.pinballlife.com and dayonepinball.com fame, has recreated the 1934 Pacific Amusement Co (PAMCO) game Contact Master as Scoregasm Master. Scoregasm Master retains the gameplay and features of the 1930s game, but adds beautiful new artwork, a great cabinet (with wooden legs!), and some minor solid state changes. It is great to see the great gameplay of the 30s pingames return with Scoregasm Master. Unfortunately, the first 15(ish) minutes of the audio are a little rough. Stick with it, good stuff! We discuss some of the differences between this modern game and the original, the return of the pedastal-style tilt mechanism, reliability, scoring techniques and the open source nature of the game. If you would like to purchase a Scoregasm Master, contact terry@pinballlife.com - these are an incredibly limited quantity, and likely no more will be made! For those attending the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown next week, there will be a Scoregasm Master at the show - check it out!
Episode 88 - Interview with Terry DeZwarte 6-1-15


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Phil Bogema is a very good player from Colorado and Maryland. He was able to max out credits on machines on route (900 credits) very quickly. Phil has a very analytical mind, and it was fascinating to talk to him about his playing days and play style. He also was active on the Old Binger forums before they went down, and has restored many bingos. His stories on Danny's site (danny.cdyn.com) are very interesting, and recommended reading.
Episode 89 - Interview with Phil Bogema - 6-4-15


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The super card was an additional feature on games with a single card. It allowed you to shoot for a smaller 3x3 grid of numbers instead of the normal 5x5 grid. The super card granted you 4-in-line scores instead of the normal 3-in-line for 3 in a row, so worth shooting for if it was lit.
Episode 90 - The Super Card


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The Reflex Unit is shrouded in secrecy in bingos and horse racing games. It acts as an auto-portioning circuit. When you win on a bingo, it steps up, preventing the machine from granting you awards quickly. Conversely, when you press the button to play off credits or put in money, the machine steps down. The connection between the hit Duran Duran song and this unit is also explained.
Episode 91 - The Reflex


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James Willing of the Spooky Pinball Podcast's EM Dungeon segment (http://spookypinball.com/podcast) comes on to fill in my knowledge gaps on bowling games and their special modes and features, including ball bowlers and shuffle / puck bowlers. Jim put up some photos of the United Skippy machine's glass on the EM Dungeon Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/emdungeon), which I will reshare on my Facebook as well. https://www.facebook.com/foramusementonlypodcast
Episode 92 - Bowling Game Scoring with James Willing 6-6-15


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In 1955, Bally experimented with their payout game formula, making an attractive and innovative game called "Crosswords". Crosswords is an interesting game - you put in coins to light additional puzzles on the backglass (up to four), then play your game - if you spell a word (max of four letters), you win replays. You earn a multiplier-style reward if you also land a ball in one of two specially marked star holes. It is a very attractive and interesting game, and looks like a lot of fun to play.
Episode 93 - Bally Crosswords


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Most of the big amusement manufacturers made EM rifle games, some early examples with lighted scoring, and most with score reels. These games are very interesting in the way they present the targets to the player vs. what is actually happening inside the game. Adjustments, game mechanics and cabinet style are discussed.
Episode 94 - EM Rifle Games - Smoke and Mirrors


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Gottlieb was famously against payout games, however in 1951, they produced a bingo style game with a throwback playfield. There are several interesting and unusual features in this game, which are detailed within!
Episode 95 - Gottlieb Watch My Line


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Magic Pockets are a unique under playfield mechanism, only used on two Bally Bingos in 1955 - Gayety and Gay Time. These bingos allowed you to reposition balls in the top row of the bingo playfield (numbers 1-7). If this wasn't enough, these machines also had the magic lines feature that allowed you to reposition numbers on the backglass. This allowed for the ability to make some great winning combinations.
Episode 96 - Magic Pockets


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Trade Stimulators were small countertop amusement devices - typically modeled after slot machines. These games would vend something similar to a gumball or other small trinket - to skirt gambling laws. The gameplay was typically gambling. If the slot came up a winner, you would notify the bar owner or shopkeep and win a free beer or other prize, or in some cases, a payout. For amusement only, indeed!
Episode 97 - Trade Stimulators


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EM and purely mechanical slot machines are very interesting creatures, mostly due to the way the mechanisms work together. I am highly impressed with anything that is purely mechanical, though some of the EM machines have unusual or captivating features. For this episode, I focus on two manufacturers, Bally and Mills.
Episode 98 - EM and Mechanical Slot Machines


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The roto feature enabled the player to spin the innermost circle of numbers on a bingo card. This was only used by United, and used on three games between 1955 and 1956, never to be seen again.
Episode 99 - The Roto Feature


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    @ejrcooney Try right clicking on backglass with mouse pointer, and you should see B2S DMD Visibility setting at top of window.
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