Thank you all so much for 45,000 views 😃For those unaware, the full version of Slam Tilt is streamable on your favourite music platforms! 🎵 benwillms.fanlink.tv/slamtilt
One interesting thing I learned about pinball after my many years of visiting pinball museums and clubs is basically, "The older the pinball machine, the greater the "Screw You!" factor for the layout of the playfield. Older machines seem absolutely designed with layouts that just send those balls into the gutters, and right down that middle, without any flippers having the ability to stop them, than more modern machines. Older machines seem a lot more luck based than modern ones as well. The old machines have their charm, but the ones from say, the late 80's and onward are a LOT more skill based (with some luck thrown in) than their predecessors, it seems. I've played older tables where you're lucky to get one flipper hit on the ball before it gets swallowed up by a gutter.
I would agree with you if it weren't for two things. Human intervention and skill. For someone just walking up to a pinball machine without knowing what it is, yes. For someone who sticks with it, watches and learns it's a whole other game entirely. That said the beauty of pinball is that there is an element of luck or fate. Also no two pinball machines are the same. Every game plays differently. You could have 10 of the same type of machine lined up and each one will play slightly differently. Then there is the mechanical nature of the game. The physicality of it. My son and I, we like the classics. We also like modern machines, but the classics have something about them.
All coin op games were difficult by design. A game that averages 5 minutes of play for 25 cents can earn $3 per hour. A 10 minute play only $1.50 per hour. Games became longer and easier on home consoles which likely carried over to pinball.
In the 70's I was a pinball wizard! So much so that I would win free games and take the coin off the table from the next guy waiting and let him have say 5 free games for 10 cents lol. The shopkeeper banned me from playing because I was too good and would hold up the machine for hours lol. He eventually had the board raised to Pro level so that you would gutter ball in seconds lol...This of course ruined interest in playing again and he lost revenue lol.
Great documentary, our story is very similar in Edmonton where we created one of the largest pinball and arcade collections for free play in Canada. Wish you all the best of success!!!
A couple of years ago I landed a job that finally got me somewhat near to Mike's arcade and the wonderful proper local pub beside it - that year of finally being close enough to pop in quite frequently was awesome. I pop in less frequently now but still try to any time I am in the area. Mike is a good dude and this shrine to not only times that once were but also a cool window into some very good modern tables that he has created is most appreciated. I have no idea how I missed this doc when it came out but it was a great watch - congrats Mike and see you soon.
@@robertfrost8264 All I can say for certain is that Mike has his sights set on a Led Zeppelin. That said, were both surprised and delighted by the announcement of Rush due to them being a Canadian band. Personally, anything made in the 90s and backwards is far more interesting to me both aesthetically and gameplay-wise.
Mate. Top tier and well put together. I admire and respect the fella. It was a reminder that passion and love for what you do breeds success. Sometime I get lost in numbers and the bottom line rather than loving what I do. Mike was the breath of fresh air I needed to wake myself up a little.
Great documentary and perfect running time, sometimes excessively long documentaries can get boring but this one never did. Im not quite as obsessed by pinball but i got my digital pinball cab at home with vpx etc....
Great job on this! I really like the production quality but it was short and sweet at the same time. I’m a home collector and love all things Pinball so this was right up my alley. Thanks for uploading!
Great pinball documentary ! I already go there once in 2017 with my brother & friend, great place and we also meet Mike, really cool guy !! We really need to go back soon...
I dream about a place like this in my area. Or even a tiny arcade with just 5 pinball machines. There's almost nowhere to play pinball in France. Here, it's recently coming back in people's houses (got one myself, wish I could have the place and money for more) but still not in arcades ans bars, where it's meant to be :(
There used to be an unlimited pinball place in Tennessee but they sadly shut down not too long ago and got replaced by a crappy pay to play arcade. They had one of the rarest games: Hercules too
I was curious about Red too, so I asked him. The short of it is he was dissatisfied with the quality of the red braids she wears from the factory, and replaced them with a human hair wig made by a former girlfriend, who was growing her hair out at the time. I must admit, if I didn't know better I'd assume it was stock, it's applied very carefully. In his defense, Red is shown as blonde on the side art of the backbox!
i really enjoyed this! i especially liked the wide variety of tables you featured from the arcade & Mike's collection. i wonder how much time was spent during filming/editing making sure the different games' displays had as little flicker as possible...
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed. The answer to your musings is a lot! A good chunk of crew time at the start of each shoot involved checking and rechecking shutter speeds. We learned the hard way that the varying brightness of DMD dots (for shaded areas of the animations) wildly affects the amount of flicker, so unfortunately some flicker was unavoidable in those cases.
This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I only have 2 machines now, but the cost to get things started is terribly high. Being in California makes things even worse as far as cost goes.
Doctor’s orders: New posts, rubbers, and a full cleaning of plastics for every “new” game that comes through the arcade door (using Windex, Novus No. 2, ultrasonic cleaning, or any combination of these), steel wool and a couple days of walnut tumbling for grungy metal components, and an initial wipe-down with Novus No. 2 for shine (repeated occasionally as needed over time).
You need to talk to Adam Becker he's got about 120 machines and did that documentary without telling me he was doing it. If you make another documentary get in touch with me. I taught Adam to play pinball but this country has no talent other than me.
I wish I would have been into pinball when there were actually tables one could play. They were around here and there, but basically no tables anywhere. If you do find one once in a blue moon, it's in terrible shape. And those aren't even around anymore. Back in the day, I was into the arcade games so ignored pinball. I didn't even play the arcade games very often. I spent my money collecting albums then albums and beer.
Targ subcontracts pinball medics to fix their pin tables right? I've seen guy with pinball medic patch on his back tinkering with out of order pin tables @ targ.
Thank you all so much for 45,000 views 😃For those unaware, the full version of Slam Tilt is streamable on your favourite music platforms! 🎵 benwillms.fanlink.tv/slamtilt
Thank you Mike for Pinball Medics! I’ve placed a zillion orders for various machines and will continue to :)
One interesting thing I learned about pinball after my many years of visiting pinball museums and clubs is basically, "The older the pinball machine, the greater the "Screw You!" factor for the layout of the playfield. Older machines seem absolutely designed with layouts that just send those balls into the gutters, and right down that middle, without any flippers having the ability to stop them, than more modern machines. Older machines seem a lot more luck based than modern ones as well. The old machines have their charm, but the ones from say, the late 80's and onward are a LOT more skill based (with some luck thrown in) than their predecessors, it seems. I've played older tables where you're lucky to get one flipper hit on the ball before it gets swallowed up by a gutter.
El dorado is a pretty brutal game
I would agree with you if it weren't for two things. Human intervention and skill. For someone just walking up to a pinball machine without knowing what it is, yes. For someone who sticks with it, watches and learns it's a whole other game entirely. That said the beauty of pinball is that there is an element of luck or fate. Also no two pinball machines are the same. Every game plays differently. You could have 10 of the same type of machine lined up and each one will play slightly differently. Then there is the mechanical nature of the game. The physicality of it.
My son and I, we like the classics. We also like modern machines, but the classics have something about them.
They were obviously made to make money, not give you 10 minute ball times.
All coin op games were difficult by design. A game that averages 5 minutes of play for 25 cents can earn $3 per hour. A 10 minute play only $1.50 per hour. Games became longer and easier on home consoles which likely carried over to pinball.
In the 70's I was a pinball wizard! So much so that I would win free games and take the coin off the table from the next guy waiting and let him have say 5 free games for 10 cents lol. The shopkeeper banned me from playing because I was too good and would hold up the machine for hours lol. He eventually had the board raised to Pro level so that you would gutter ball in seconds lol...This of course ruined interest in playing again and he lost revenue lol.
Awesome place - I stop by every time I'm in Ottawa. Pinball is timeless, my young children love it too, and Mike is a great guy.
There is nothing in this world can stop a man when they find his passion and the purpose of his life.
Great documentary, our story is very similar in Edmonton where we created one of the largest pinball and arcade collections for free play in Canada. Wish you all the best of success!!!
A couple of years ago I landed a job that finally got me somewhat near to Mike's arcade and the wonderful proper local pub beside it - that year of finally being close enough to pop in quite frequently was awesome. I pop in less frequently now but still try to any time I am in the area. Mike is a good dude and this shrine to not only times that once were but also a cool window into some very good modern tables that he has created is most appreciated. I have no idea how I missed this doc when it came out but it was a great watch - congrats Mike and see you soon.
It’s hard to find quality documentaries on UA-cam, this was great! Great visuals, and those opening titles were fantastic. Great work, keep it up!
12:42 I love that this video made it into my algorithm
He's gonna get a Rush though, haha obviously
@@robertfrost8264 All I can say for certain is that Mike has his sights set on a Led Zeppelin. That said, were both surprised and delighted by the announcement of Rush due to them being a Canadian band. Personally, anything made in the 90s and backwards is far more interesting to me both aesthetically and gameplay-wise.
I wish this gentleman much success. Nice job on the documentary. They should host IFPA tournaments on some nights and draw in the tournament players.
There's a reason these places do not host IFPA events.... the players are a pain in the ass...
@bobgomez9481 we play tournaments there every week 😅
@@joninfect8681 - still a bunch of pains in the ass, "professional pinball players"
Mate. Top tier and well put together. I admire and respect the fella. It was a reminder that passion and love for what you do breeds success. Sometime I get lost in numbers and the bottom line rather than loving what I do. Mike was the breath of fresh air I needed to wake myself up a little.
Pinball is summed up well at 14:02 "it's an interesting time capsule in the subconscious..."
This is absolutely beautiful, the portal into the past indeed.
dude this is such a great documentary! super compelling and well made! loved it!!
Amazing! So glad there is people like him keeping these amazing works of art working. I love Roadshow. My 1st pin.
Great documentary and perfect running time, sometimes excessively long documentaries can get boring but this one never did. Im not quite as obsessed by pinball but i got my digital pinball cab at home with vpx etc....
One ball to rule them all...Thank you ;-)
That intro is super cool, hats off to you for the visual design and transitions.
Awesome documentary!! ( I think Pinball is becoming more popular now)!!
hermoso documental- Saludos desde Argentina.
I love this, I live in Ottawa and had no idea this existed❣️
Awesome documentary! I love going to the Neighborhood pub for pinball.
Eight Ball Deluxe, yes! (Capt. Fantastic was AWESOME, too!)!
Chalk up!
@@benwillms Yes! Forgot about that! Great doc, Ben!
Excellent production values. Very enjoyable documentary. I was rooting for Mike the whole time.
Awesome job!
I think I might have a newfound addiction to pinball and this video is a great look into the hobby.
Wonderful video. Thanks for sharing.
Great video,thanks for sharing your story.
13:08 Nice camerawork. Love the history, thanks.
What a great video and a great guy. I'll be making a trip to Ottawa to experience that place!
Great job on this! I really like the production quality but it was short and sweet at the same time. I’m a home collector and love all things Pinball so this was right up my alley. Thanks for uploading!
Freaking brilliant video dude. Enthusiastically subscribed.
Very good documental, and WOW, the opening titles were fantastic !!!!!! 👏👏👏
Greetings from Buenos Aires 🙂
Daniel
Your living my dream. Gald to see you preserving those awesome machines. Keep it up man👏👍🤙🎮🕹
You have so much passion ❤️. I loving it. I wish I could visit this place in the future. Greetings from Germany.
Great pinball documentary ! I already go there once in 2017 with my brother & friend, great place and we also meet Mike, really cool guy !! We really need to go back soon...
Great job on this! Congratulations and thank you for making it.
Fabulous!
Awesome doc. Great Job! I love pinball.
What a cool dude one place around here where i live runs this theme too i love the time machine they provide
Thank you for this Ben!
Really well made doc! Thanks for sharing. Love pinball.
Great Job Buddy super cool! 👌 well done!!
Great documentary, will look for your stuff in the future
Awesome
Thank You!
Awesome documentary! Thanks for sharing your passion and all the best for the future :-)
Awesome!
Thanks for this 😎❤️
Man I love pinball.. wish it was still common to find machines around
i own a Captain Fantastic...simple game but the art is tops.
Very very nice! But green leds in the Space Invaders head? I would say stay away from colored leds in classic games...
"I have a 6 year old, she has no idea what she's doing" that part made me lol 🤣
I dream about a place like this in my area. Or even a tiny arcade with just 5 pinball machines.
There's almost nowhere to play pinball in France.
Here, it's recently coming back in people's houses (got one myself, wish I could have the place and money for more) but still not in arcades ans bars, where it's meant to be :(
I like the DMD and LCD games; Anything from Theatre of Magic as a casual to newer games like Stern's Star Wars or Godzilla etc.
well done
There used to be an unlimited pinball place in Tennessee but they sadly shut down not too long ago and got replaced by a crappy pay to play arcade. They had one of the rarest games: Hercules too
JR, you know there's a Hercules at the Pinball Museum of Corbin, in Kentucky, right?
That was great. It's wonderful to see people running places like this. What's with the Blonde Red though Mike? lol.
I was curious about Red too, so I asked him. The short of it is he was dissatisfied with the quality of the red braids she wears from the factory, and replaced them with a human hair wig made by a former girlfriend, who was growing her hair out at the time. I must admit, if I didn't know better I'd assume it was stock, it's applied very carefully. In his defense, Red is shown as blonde on the side art of the backbox!
5:07 "It isn't rocket science. It's layers of simple complication>" LOL! Talk about an oxymoron LOL. AWESOME!! Genius!!
i really enjoyed this! i especially liked the wide variety of tables you featured from the arcade & Mike's collection.
i wonder how much time was spent during filming/editing making sure the different games' displays had as little flicker as possible...
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed.
The answer to your musings is a lot! A good chunk of crew time at the start of each shoot involved checking and rechecking shutter speeds. We learned the hard way that the varying brightness of DMD dots (for shaded areas of the animations) wildly affects the amount of flicker, so unfortunately some flicker was unavoidable in those cases.
I liked it. This guy is cool.
This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I only have 2 machines now, but the cost to get things started is terribly high. Being in California makes things even worse as far as cost goes.
Your playfields are pristine! How do you keep them so clean??
Doctor’s orders: New posts, rubbers, and a full cleaning of plastics for every “new” game that comes through the arcade door (using Windex, Novus No. 2, ultrasonic cleaning, or any combination of these), steel wool and a couple days of walnut tumbling for grungy metal components, and an initial wipe-down with Novus No. 2 for shine (repeated occasionally as needed over time).
Nice nice nice
You need to talk to Adam Becker he's got about 120 machines and did that documentary without telling me he was doing it. If you make another documentary get in touch with me. I taught Adam to play pinball but this country has no talent other than me.
Ontario accent my beloved
I wish I would have been into pinball when there were actually tables one could play. They were around here and there, but basically no tables anywhere. If you do find one once in a blue moon, it's in terrible shape. And those aren't even around anymore. Back in the day, I was into the arcade games so ignored pinball. I didn't even play the arcade games very often. I spent my money collecting albums then albums and beer.
I have a banzai run pinball
That's fantastic, Gypsycat! Great-looking machine and one of Pat Lawlor's gems, I'd love to play one.
Targ subcontracts pinball medics to fix their pin tables right? I've seen guy with pinball medic patch on his back tinkering with out of order pin tables @ targ.
Good luck, don't suck.
The opening music is the most confusing sounding song on the planet
Guacamole.
Teds Face needs servicing...
Love this story ❤ Thank you for doing what you do for pinball 🪩