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Episode 98 - Evolution of the Flipper
PodcastAnalysis updated 3d ago1 hr 3 min listen
Highlights
- Harry Mabs invented the flipper in 1947 on Gottlieb's Humpty Dumpty game
- Humpty Dumpty had six flippers facing backwards, controlled by only two solenoids
- Gottlieb's Just 21 (1950) was first to orient flippers to face each other (modern orientation)
- Williams introduced three-inch flippers on Hay Burners 2 in 1968, replacing two-inch standard
- Gottlieb remained on 24-volt AC flipper power until 1989 System 3, while other manufacturers switched to 48-volt DC in late 1970s/early 1980s
- Data East debuted first single-wound flipper coil in 1989, using MOSFET transistors for voltage control
- RoboCop (1990) was first Data East game with solid-state flippers using 40-millisecond pulse and no end-of-stroke switch
- Williams switched to Fliptronic system in 1992, mimicking Data East but continuing dual-wound coils
- Banana flippers came on Williams games Time Works and Disco Fever; were curved and expensive to manufacture
- Solid-state flipper transition eliminated tap pass finesse control available in mechanical switch era
Notable quotes
“pinball wasn't invented by Harry Williams or Steve Richie... the only thing ever those two guys invented 95 percent of what you can point to in a pinball machine but they didn't invent the flipper”
“it's called by the flipper... in France, they call the game pinball flipper”
“Humpty Dumpty it's like the flippers were the gimmick and once you've played modern flipper games... you're like this one like it's very much the flippers there is a gimmick you don't really gain any control”
“when you have inconsistent power... sometimes you hit the flipper and it does not feel like it has the juice sometimes it feels like oh that's a fresh flipper”
“every time we lose something physical with pinball a little bit of the magic lost... when you go to solid state flippers you lose that finesse control you lose the ability to do like replicable tap passes”
“banana flippers very fun because you're gonna... watch the ball... roll off the end of the flipper they're so fun because it's like whoop and the ball just like pops off like a little bike ramp”
“they're always like listen guys you might not like it but the ladies love this”
“Williams won the battle of the shape of the flipper... even stern which uses different mechs uses fundamentally the exact same flipper bat”
Entities
- Data East· company
- Gottlieb· company
- Stern· company
- Wedgehead· company
- Williams· company
- Disco Fever· game
- Hay Burners 2· game
- Humpty Dumpty· game
- Just 21· game
- Nip It· game
- RoboCop· game
- Time Works· game
- Internet Pinball Database (IPDB)· organization
- Alan· person
- Alex the Waterboy· person
- Harry Mabs· person
- Nikola Tesla· person
- Russ Jensen· person
- Steve Cordick· person
- Ted Zale· person
