types of construction

Pinball machines have a long tradition, whose roots go back to the 18th century. Even then, a steel ball was shot onto the playing field from the lower right corner. In the early days, however, players did not have the opportunity to actively intervene in the game. At that time, the ball ran down a wooden board and had to make its way past a maze of nails before it landed in fields that signified different points for the players. The term "pinball" was coined as a result and still exists today. After the Second World War, pinball fingers were invented and for the first time the player had the opportunity to shoot the ball upwards again and in this way keep it in the game for as long as possible.

Each pinball machine is a unique masterpiece, which was made with great attention to detail. A lot of manual work is involved in the production of a pinball machine, so no two are alike. On average, 400 meters of cable are laid in a device and over 3500 individual parts are installed. The restoration is therefore not easy and takes a lot of time. Our restoration team has over 30 years of experience and therefore knows every move for every pinball machine.

Since the invention of pinball fingers, the world of pinball has changed a lot. Thus, pinball machines today can be divided into 3 different periods - and thus construction types. The first generation are the electromechanical pin ball machines (EM), which were built from the 60s until the end of the 70s. The EMs did not yet have music or sound effects and do not have ramps over which the ball can run. Rather, the player hears the clacking of the rollers, which constantly change the score as the ball bounces off various bumpers or hits individual targets; on some machines, a bell is sounded when the ball hits a target. The player feels the run of the ball as he plays. The baking glasses (glass in the header) are printed and are especially rare in good condition. To replace an original printed baking glass is very difficult.

At the end of the 60s, pinball was already an integral part of youth culture in Germany. Terms like Game Over, Tilt and freaky became independent expressions and from then on they became part of the general language.

The following generation were the Early Electronics (EE), a term that would form many years later. These pinball machines were built in the 80s up to and including 1990. Classics like High Speed, Taxi or Phantom of the Opera date from this era. The EEs had music, speech and ramps for the first time. Play took place on multiple levels on some units. In addition to ramps, there were outholes - holes in the playing field - that transported the ball under the playing surface to another location. One example is the Magic Mirror of the Phantom of the Opera. The score display was now no longer output via rollers, but shown digitally on a display.

The technology developed steadily and so in 1991 the first DMDs came on the market - Dot-Matrix-Display. The DMDs had more powerful displays and displayed various animations and lettering as well as mini-games. The Fish Tales Flipper (1992), for example, shoots at jet ski riders - these shots are fired via the pinball buttons. The DMDs always have music, partly played by famous bands like "The Who" and often have the original voices of stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator II and III) or Will Smith (Independence Day). The DMDs are very colourful, the game is fast and promises enormous entertainment and fun for fans of all ages! 

Pinball machines are still in production and now even offer TFT monitors for scoring and graphics for an even better gaming experience.

We offer our customers pinball machines of all categories. From 1961 to 2010 our portfolio includes over 100 different pinball machines. If the pinball of your dreams is still not there, feel free to let us know and we will help you find it. Have fun playing!