SilverBall Classics - The Wedgie

[gottlieb61]

After about six months I can finally say my mini-pin is finished and post some pictures. I was going to do some "in-progress” photo's along the way but I knew it was going to take awhile so I decided to just wait until it was complete.

I've collected Electro-mechanical pinball machines for about 20 years so when I decided to make a virtual machine, I wanted something that would fit in with the rest of my collection. I didn't really want something that looked like a dmd era pin or an ultrapin clone. I wanted something that would remind me of a classic EM machine. So, I decided to model it after the classic single player Gottlieb Wedge-Heads of the 60's and 70's. I always felt that they were not only some of the best playing EM's but the best looking as well. It’s a truly unique look that was a Gottlieb original, and even Gottlieb only used it on their single-player games.

I tried to stay as true to a Wedge-Head as possible. I didn't want to use (hard to find) parts from an actual Wedge-Head, so most of what you see I made myself. The smaller cabinet would have made it difficult to use real parts anyway. There's a couple of unusual design features that I don't think I've seen before and a unique mechanical nudge device that I'll explain in another post, if anybody's interested.

It's all plywood construction, 17" horizontal backglass monitor and 23" playfield monitor with smoke acrylic.
Artwork was sprayed from hand made stencils. Speckled finish like the originals (though it may be hard to see in the photos).

Let me know what you guys think and I'll post some more details later.

So here it is: "Silverball Classics" a.k.a. The Wedgie

[gottlieb61]

A couple more.

[tagi3d]

Looks awesome man. A really clean and tidy build. Think all the little details you've added work so well. Congrats! Post some videos next :>

What lock bar are you using? custom made? looks tight.

Do tell us about the nudge thingy you made too.

[Rawd]

Very, very, very nice work!

[gottlieb61]

Tagi3d, That's a real lockdown bar. It's cut down and re-welded to fit the machine. The underside has the nudge mechanism. I'm working on a diagram to explain it. I'll post it tonight after I get home from work.

[Rawd]

Wow. Nice weld job. Invisible.

I really like the classic look you gave it.

[billpa]

I would love some plans posted if you have any.

[BadBoyBill]

Looks great, i'd like to see one of these mini pins next to a normal pin to see the size difference.

[The Loafer]

This pin looks FANTASTIC, well done! I see from the pics you show a few DMD games but the DMD area seems to be a place holder graphic for the name of your cab (not a bad idea!). So where does the DMD go when you play?

[bossgp]

yes very nice

[wonderpuddle]

Awesome. I love it.

[wonderpuddle]

Looks great, i'd like to see one of these mini pins next to a normal pin to see the size difference.

Here's a pic of my pin city between my full sized Pinball Magic and Twilight Zone machines:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v732/wonderpuddle/Pinball/gameroom.jpg

[gottlieb61]

About the nudge...

I spent a long time experimenting with various nudging methods. I went from the Wii remote idea to multiple tilt bobs to mercury tilt switches. None of them worked they way I wanted. Sometimes they worked. Sometimes they didn't. It was very hard to get (and keep) any consistency .When I started building my machine the only way to get the components from a Pinball Wizard was to buy one and gut it, and that was just too expensive. By the time you could buy the internals separately I had already finished making this.

I must say I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out. It gives the consistency of nudge buttons with a true nudging feel. It also reduces the risk of damaging the components such as the hard drive and LCD screen.

A piece of angle iron with 2 end pieces attached is welded to the underside of the lock-down bar. Spring plungers are attached to the ends and back of this angle iron. The spring plungers suspend the unit centered left to right and the rear facing ones apply forward pressure. The lock-down bar itself is 1/8" to 3/16" oversized on each end to allow it to move when nudged. Pressure in any direction triggers the appropriate nudge leaf switch. Pressure and position is adjustable and the spring plungers come in many different force values.

I know that probably doesn't make any sense so I made a diagram of how it's laid out. I hope it helps to explain how it works. It's one of the few things that came out as good in reality as it did in my head. It's actually a lot more simplistic then the other ideas I tried. In fact it's so simple that I'm surprised it works this well.

I'm including a picture of an actual spring plunger in case you've never seen one. I got mine at McMaster-Carr for less than $4 each.

[Rawd]

I had the exact same nudge mechanism drawn out inside my head. I was just worried that it might feel 'loose'. It looks like you corrected that with the spring plungers. Very nice to see you have it working sweet. I really think this is the way to go for a nudging device. Thanks for the drawing.

[gottlieb61]

Hey Rawd,

Looseness wasn't a problem at all. As a matter of fact, I have 2 slots made in the angle iron to secure it to the cabinet, but it fits so tightly that I never even got around to attaching them. The side plungers have a pretty hefty spring.

[ktbeasley]

That is an awesome design!! I had a much less refined version in my cabinet and took it out to install the Nanotech kit and I have missed it ever since. It is the most natural way of nudging because you cannot nudge the machine without applying force to the lockdown bar. You have inspired me to ditch the Nanotech kit and go back to the lockdown bar nudging mechanism.

[Rawd]

That is an awesome design!! I had a much less refined version in my cabinet and took it out to install the Nanotech kit and I have missed it ever since. It is the most natural way of nudging because you cannot nudge the machine without applying force to the lockdown bar. You have inspired me to ditch the Nanotech kit and go back to the lockdown bar nudging mechanism.

I knew someone else here had made something similar, I forgot it was you. I am thinking of building one also. My problem is that I don't have the 1/8" gap needed on either side of my lockbar. I would also have to plug the holes where my buttons are now. I am not so concerned with the forward nudge, and would probably just bulid a 2 switch unit for left and right.

It is a nice design because it feels natural, and you don't have to take your fingers off the flippers.

[gottlieb61]

Hey Rawd,

You could probably draw around the edge of your bar and carefully route out 1/8" or so on each side of the cabinet. The ends of the bar would just slide into the void plus, when at rest, it would still be the normal size. Hard part would be removing that small amount of wood without hacking your cabinet up. I'd probably clamp some type of guide on it to keep the router from going where you'd rather it didn't.

I actually designed mine just for left and right nudge. When I welded the angle to the bar I left more space than I intended. Since I had this extra space and 2 extra spring plungers I went ahead and added it. A simple tilt bob would work for forward if you wanted to add it later. I don't use forward nudge much either. It seems like the ball moves unrealistically when nudging forward.

[bbastyr]

That's awesome! If you ever decide to build a full-size pin and sell the mini-pin, let me know! I'm so jealous of all these cabs!