Anyone play Pinball Machines growing up?

[Topcat]

Some of the newer ones can actually go up in value.  I'm still amazed with how much they sell for.  I've been lucky and found some decent deals on the newer ones that I wanted.  Here's my current line up.  I sold the Junk Yard for more then I paid and added a new Metallica.

Looks like they hold their value pretty well.

https://www.orangecountypinballs.com/

Crap!

You're making it really tempting CODY to come visit sometime.

Mopars
Steelhead fishing
Pinball

...and of course just hanging out is the best.

[cataclysm80]

do you still have the PW ?
I would love to mount one of the those bodies on a 12v cummins chassis

Another one of my current Mopar projects is chopping a 1985 Peterbilt cab & hood down to pickup size and mounting it onto a 12v turbo Cummins Dodge dually chassis.
Mini semi truck
Little Red Express 

[cataclysm80]

Asteroids man myself, I kept tilting the pinball machine    I was thrilled when Asteroids and Defenders came out. No more tilt.

I played Asteroids until the game couldn't go any further.
After beating the last level, the screen turned brown and just sort of displayed like a demonstration mode.  The machine had to be reset to get it so that people could play it again.

[Chryco Psycho]

do you still have the PW ?
I would love to mount one of the those bodies on a 12v cummins chassis

Another one of my current Mopar projects is chopping a 1985 Peterbilt cab & hood down to pickup size and mounting it onto a 12v turbo Cummins Dodge dually chassis.
Mini semi truck
Little Red Express 

I have to see pictures of the progress on that!

[cataclysm80]

I did really enjoy pinball.
One of my favorite local bars growing up had a pinball machine, and I knew the bar owner, so he'd let me come in and play it even though I was legally under age for being in a bar.  He really enjoyed Pinball also, and would give me quarters to play it for free.  We'd try to beat each other's top score.

At 14 years old, I traveled the USA during the summer on a rock and roll tour, and most of those guys liked to play pinball also.  We spent some time playing pinball in random truck stops.  .38 Special, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Outlaws, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Barefoot Servants.

[Cuda Cody]

That's a great story.  Sounds like you had some good time when you were younger.

I did really enjoy pinball.
One of my favorite local bars growing up had a pinball machine, and I knew the bar owner, so he'd let me come in and play it even though I was legally under age for being in a bar.  He really enjoyed Pinball also, and would give me quarters to play it for free.  We'd try to beat each other's top score.

At 14 years old, I traveled the USA during the summer on a rock and roll tour, and most of those guys liked to play pinball also.  We spent some time playing pinball in random truck stops.  .38 Special, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Outlaws, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Barefoot Servants.

[Cudajason]

I was always more of a Video game guy, but always loved pinball machines too!

I would love to have one of my own, if I ever have the room, but man are some of them pricy! 

@Cuda Cody any pics of the Metallica machine...I played one last year while at the movies and loved it!  Helps that I am a fan of the band!

Jason

[Cudajason]

I did really enjoy pinball.
One of my favorite local bars growing up had a pinball machine, and I knew the bar owner, so he'd let me come in and play it even though I was legally under age for being in a bar.  He really enjoyed Pinball also, and would give me quarters to play it for free.  We'd try to beat each other's top score.

At 14 years old, I traveled the USA during the summer on a rock and roll tour, and most of those guys liked to play pinball also.  We spent some time playing pinball in random truck stops.  .38 Special, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Outlaws, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Barefoot Servants.

@cataclysm80 - dude you can drop a comment like that and not tell us a story, and that sounds like a hell of a story!

I love the movie Almost Famous, but your story sounds like it might be cooler as it covers some cool bands!  Come on man spill the bans!

Jason

[anlauto]

...

[Cuda Cody]

The Metallica gets played the most.  Really a well designed game with lots of good music.  I'll try to snap a photo when I get home.

@Cuda Cody any pics of the Metallica machine...I played one last year while at the movies and loved it!  Helps that I am a fan of the band!

Jason

[Cuda Cody]

The Metallica is one of the machines you just play to hear the good music.  But it plays really well too.  The AC/DC is a harder and more in depth game.  I think I like the NBA basketball game from the 90's best.  It's very easy and fun to shot hoops with the pinball.

[RusTy/SE]

Love Pinball - the Card Shop in my old neighborhood had a Williams Planets towards the back. My friends and I would play all week, then on Friday or Saturday the owner gave something like $25 to the whoever had high score.



https://addictingpixels.wordpress.com/2014/06/18/new-pin-williams-planets/

[HP_Cuda]

Your setup and a mahogany bar would be almost completely irresistible to me. 

The Metallica is one of the machines you just play to hear the good music.  But it plays really well too.  The AC/DC is a harder and more in depth game.  I think I like the NBA basketball game from the 90's best.  It's very easy and fun to shot hoops with the pinball.

[cataclysm80]

At 14 years old, I traveled the USA during the summer on a rock and roll tour, and most of those guys liked to play pinball also.  We spent some time playing pinball in random truck stops.  .38 Special, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Outlaws, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Barefoot Servants.

That's a great story.  Sounds like you had some good times when you were younger.

@cataclysm80 - dude you can't drop a comment like that and not tell us a story, and that sounds like a hell of a story!
I love the movie Almost Famous, but your story sounds like it might be cooler as it covers some cool bands!  Come on man spill the beans!

I haven't seen the movie Almost Famous.  Maybe I'll check it out sometime and see if it jogs any old memories loose. 

Just before I turned 13, my dad began dealing in taxidermy alligator parts as souvenirs.  It's the leftover bits like heads and feet, from farm raised alligators.  They're raised for the leather and meat.  Alligator souvenirs are currently sold all over the South East USA, particularly in Florida & Louisiana, but also in adjoining states.  My dad had been doing that for about a year, and was set up at some kind of festival in Florida, selling these things from his booth, when he was approached by the promoter of the rock & roll tour.  The promoter was a nice guy from upstate New York, named Gary, and he was looking for some unique vendors to travel around with the upcoming summer tour.  My dad fit the bill and signed on.  The tour started in Florida, but I was living in Kansas with my mom.  I joined the tour after the Denver show, on the way to Wichita Kansas where the next show was at, and spent the rest of the summer as a rock and roll roadie.  One of us had to be in the booth at all times, but I had plenty of opportunity to wander around and experience things. 

I had my own set of tour passes, one to get around inside the show since I never had a ticket stub, and another pass to get backstage, so I could go pretty much wherever I wanted.  I spent most of the first show with a guitar tech named Buckwheat.  He was a neat guy, kept all the guitars in tune with good strings, and handed new guitars to the musicians if they broke a string or needed to switch guitars between songs.  My first show was his last (with us).  He took an offer to join another tour that was also passing through the area.
It didn't take long before I knew my way around, and I helped several different vendors setup and tear down.   I worked as an assistant to the vendors who traveled with the show.  We'd set up in the evening, do the show, tear down around 1 am, and then drive until dawn to get to the next location, then sleep until it was time to set up again.  Party all night, Sleep all day. 

Food was catered before we setup.  Usually in a big tent with buffet tables, since most shows were outside.  Only a few shows were at inside venues.  Keep in mind, this was breakfast for everyone.  That's the first place I saw marshmallow fluff in a jar, for use on sandwiches.  During setup, the Lynyrd Skynyrd Second Helping album would always be playing.  Later in the tour, I tried to change it to George Thorogood or The Allman Brothers, or something different, but that wasn't allowed and I had to put Lynyrd Skynyrd back on.  We were working for MCA.  Then the bands would usually take turns playing Creedence Clearwater songs during the sound check.  Usually things went well, and I'd have a little time to visit with people and explore the venue before the show started. 

Of course I got to meet everyone in the bands, and got most of their autographs on a program, and stuff like that.  Overall, I think most of them liked having me around.  When we played Mud Island in Memphis, there was a tornado the night before, so hardly anyone came to see the show.  The bands still played (except for .38 special) and I had a good seat to watch the show.  As the drummers play, the drumsticks get beat up and sometimes break from hitting the metal rim of the drum.  They keep a box of new drumsticks nearby so they can replace as needed.  Since there weren't many people in the audience, the drummers recognized me, and every time a drumstick would need replaced, they'd throw it to me out in the audience.  Doing this mid song, without missing a beat, they didn't have great aim, so several people around me also ended up with drumsticks, but I got a few, and took them onto the bus backstage to have them signed afterwards.  At another show, Kim Wilson of The Fabulous Thunderbirds was hanging out in our vendor booth with us, and lost track of time.  The announcer got the crowd excited about his band, and Kim realized he was late.  When he tried to get backstage, security wouldn't let him through because he didn't have his tour pass.    Show security was always local guys provided by the venue, so they didn't know us.  Kim and I hung out while dad went backstage to get someone who could let him through security.  Afterwards, Kim came back out and gave me the harmonica that he played the show with.  He autographed it for me, but sharpie doesn't stick to a metal harmonica very well. 

I had a driving permit, but not a license yet, so I didn't do much driving on the tour.  One night I was trying to put gas in the truck, and it just didn't feel like anything was coming out of the nozzle.  Not sure what to do, I pulled the nozzle out of the filler tube and squeezed the trigger a little to see if anything came out.  Nothing, hmm.  The T-shirt vendor Carl was nearby talking with my dad and asked my what I was doing.  I told him there was nothing coming out of the nozzle, and he started to walk towards me.  I pulled the trigger again to demonstrate, and gasoline shot out of the nozzle right onto his foot.  Filled up his shoe.  He wasn't to happy.   
The jewelry vendor was named Yenz.  I'm probably spelling that wrong, but that's what it sounded like.  He and his wife Karen were from Canada.  He noticed that I spent a lot of time looking at his multifaceted crystal orbs, and made me a deal.  I could have one, if I promised to hang it from the rear view mirror of my first car.  I saved it for 4 years, and hung it from the mirror of my 70 Dodge Challenger as soon as I could.  The car is apart now, but the crystal is safely stored with all the labeled nuts and bolts, awaiting reassembly.
We played a show outside of Buffalo New York that had a bunch of amusement rides at the venue.  Carousel, Bumper Cars, etc. etc.  Gary the promoter brought his family to that show, and since his kids were about my age, we hung out together all night.

Every night, one of the drummers was "FROM RIGHT HERE IN YOUR HOME TOWN!".  Man, that guy was from everywhere we went.    It was just part of the show, but the audience believed it.  We'd even get audience members telling stories about how they used to go to school with him, or grew up next door to him.  One night, an audience member was talking about how well he knew one of the guys in the band, without realizing that's the guy he was telling the story to!     Some people will just make stuff up.
Marshal Tucker ended every set with "We Just Can't Stop NOW, Can We?!", and then playing another song.  I still use that phrase today.
The last show was probably the best.  Everyone on the tour really cut loose and had fun at the last show.  The bands and tour producer Vic all played pranks on each other.  If you get a chance to see the last show on a tour, that's the one to go to.  Some of the pranks included...
a white sheet being distractingly raised and lowered like a piñata near The Outlaws singer during Ghost Riders in the Sky
members of other bands wandering across the stage with dark sunglasses and white canes during Marshal Tucker's Can't You See
Vic the tour producer interrupting The Fabulous Thunderbirds mid song by putting a golf ball to center stage, taking the microphone and saying "excuse me, just playing through", and then continuing to hit the ball off stage, with his assistant following him on a golf cart across the stage.
Vic also hand selected about 12 of the most overweight women that he could find in the audience, took them backstage, and let them onto the stage during .38 Specials performance of Fantasy Girl.
There were many other pranks throughout the night, but those were the most memorable for me.

Anything else that you think might happen on a rock & roll tour probably did.  I'll leave that up to your imagination.   

It was a neat experience, hanging out with the musicians and stuff.  Overall, the tour did OK, but really didn't pull in the amount of money that the producers were hoping.  It did well enough to keep going and not get cancelled, but the main problem was that The Eagles played a lot of the same locations as us, and near the same date (forward or backward a week).  Though we still had some very crowded shows, they weren't sold out shows.  A lot of people spent their concert money on The Eagles instead of us.  Most of the band members were really nice.  BB, the drummer for The Outlaws was on something which usually made him sweaty, jittery, and anti-social, and .38 Special was arrogant, refusing to associate with the other bands, refusing to play if ticket sales weren't high enough that night, and tossing memorabilia into the audience from people who had brought it and paid for backstage passes to get it signed. 

After summer was over and the new school year started, on the first day of school, the teacher asked everyone what they did over the summer.  No one believed me. 
At the end of the tour, Marshal Tucker purchased as many of the backstage passes as they could from everyone, and used that as their official backstage pass for the next 10 years or so.  Since I kept my backstage passes, I could always get into their shows for free and say hello.  Even after they eventually stopped using those passes, I could usually go around back and find Dave the bus driver, and he'd get me and my friends into the show.  (though sometimes we were subsequently thrown out by security for not having tickets)

I usually had interesting summers during my teenage years.  This was one.
I still have the tour passes, which I think I had signed, and the signed program, drumsticks, harmonica, my crystal pendant, the Rand McNally atlas with pencil notes on how to get to all the shows, the flyer advertising that they're looking for vendors, and a couple large vinyl coated canvas banners advertising the tour.  I might have a worn out tour shirt with all the show dates on the back.
I still keep in touch with the promoter Gary and his family now and then.  He visits Florida every year in the spring.

[Cuda Cody]

Holy molly @cataclysm80  that is a fantastic story.  Glad you still have the drumsticks and harmonica.  Those have to be great memories whenever you look at them.  Thank you for sharing the details.  You're a great writer and at times I felt like I was right there with you.