Working On A Bally 1973 CIRCUS Pinball Machine Somebody Broke Into in Antiquity! Thieves!!!

[@wackyworldofwindios3476]

Hello, I hope everyone is having a good day. I have been M.I.A. lately . The past 30 days have been ruff. I lost my son first the a week later I lost my Bob teil Bob Cat of 16 years. Then 2 weeks later I lost my Dad. Jesus Lord.

[@LyonsArcade]

Good God Dano, sorry to hear all of that! You're being tested hard! Hang in their buddy, your son and your dad would want you to get back to some semblence of normal eventually but man you're not going to be feeling too good for quite awhile! Hopefully some of these videos will bring you some enjoyment.

[@wackyworldofwindios3476]

@@LyonsArcade Always. You hooked me on the first cast (video).🎏🎏🎏🎏

[@naytch2003]

Oh man that sucks...my thoughts are with you 😔

[@jumpingeneral]

Always my #1 go to channel. Cool pinball machine and great repair!

[@LyonsArcade]

Thanks for watching Jumpingeneral!!!

[@GutsyGibbon]

Your intrepid determination and your love for the EMs is inspiring. An electrical engineer that I worked with at the Northwestern U. computing center used to have a saying when I was about to give up on something that had a problem that we couldn't find. He said, there is something wrong somewhere, we just have to find it. I keep thinking that while working on the pinball machine. It's not "I can't find it, it's I haven't found it yet!"

[@LyonsArcade]

There was an old Tammy Faye Baker song called "Don't Give up, You're On The Brink Of A Miracle!" holds true to a lot of stuff, lol

[@robertlipsett2535]

@@LyonsArcade yes but sometimes you have to put it aside for awhile, clear your head and let your subconscious work on an idea or come back to a week or two later with a new approach

[@Rep2369]

THAT BACKBOX!!! HOLY CRAP! The wire colors aren't even faded! That is INSANE!!!

[@LyonsArcade]

You can see how nice these things were back in the day, real mechanical marvels!

[@Rep2369]

@@LyonsArcade Oh absolutely Ronnie! Gorgeous! Nice to see one so preserved. I think I spoke to you about it earlier, working in bowling etc. Look up Brunswicks model A pinsetter (many still in use!) built in the 1950's, basically 100% mechanical, I think you would LOVE them :)

[@imjabroni1]

Great video. Always nice to see an old pinball that doesn't have a foil chewing gum wrapper around a blown fuse. They made 3,550 of these Circus pins in 1973/74. Bally also made a 2 player pinball named Circus in 1957. Gottlieb made one in 1980 and Zaccaria Italy made one in 1977, in both mechanical and electronic versions, when that evolution was happening. Love your vids.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Maj Dude!

[@MarkCalhoun-i1p]

I enjoy your videos Joe. You have a good sense of humor. I have had a Bally circus for over 40 years. I’m doing some play field restoration and find your videos extremely helpful. One question? Which red bulbs did you use at the very top of the playfield?. There are four of them? The red LEDs I have used are weak and washed out looking. Thank you for your help Mark

[@LyonsArcade]

They're just regular bulbs, we never use LED's. Thanks for watching!

[@johnyoder9302]

great job as always, wish that i could be fixing things full time because it is a lot of fun. I keep working six days a week at my regular job, but do manage to fix up old pc's and gamming consoles. Would love to find a pinball machine to restore, that would be a blast. Thank you for all your valuable pointers.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you John. We're lucky to be able to do this for a living, many years ago we all decided to live with low overhead so we don't spend a lot of money, which means we don't have to earn as much money, and eventually it built up to the point that we were making decent money and it all worked out (so far!)

[@spike8002]

First pin I purchased. Still have it in my EM arcade to this day. We’ve had up to 17 EMs in our game room but have trimmed it down to 9 over the years. Building the bonus on the 3rd and 5th balls is where it’s at while attempting to hit the bonus to hit a target for same player shoots again. Family enjoys it…it’s part of our family holiday tradition.

[@LyonsArcade]

I was reading through the rules and you're right, you really need to focus on that bonus on ball 3 and 5, I was looking in the schematics to make sure that's how you turn on double bonus, and yup it's automatic :) Thanks for watching spike!!!

[@spike8002]

Bally EM pins are solid once restored. Very well designed pins. The largest problem I’ve had is the GI bayonet sockets all need restoration to work consistently. Really stems from Bally making their own bayonet sockets. Which I both appreciate but understand that they were not great at it. The fix is to repair with solder and a wire. Right now I’m doing some home remodeling. Looking forward to completion so I can get back to my arcade restorations. Your vid’s help me get my fix until I can get there.

[@irieman442]

What a clean machine. Once Joey gives her the old magic eraser and wax... it will be awesome!

[@andyemberton4671]

Hi Ronnie and Joe! Great video, as always! Learned a few things when you were going through the schematics. Will help a lot with my Delta Queen. Thanks for posting the video, can’t wait for the next one.

[@drunkeykong2832]

Love your videos. I think the score motor switch stacks are always bent because they were stored upright with the stack lock flat standard screw not tight. The twist lock. And when shoved/moved around it comes loose and slams under the playfield.

[@LyonsArcade]

That makes sense, i'll have to investigate that further on a later video....

[@markjackson1444]

Even though I’ve never played this game, I feel like I’m revisiting an old friend. …I believe this is the third series of vids on Circus. It’s a very happy looking pinball, and is gonna play great after you’ve given it the Ronnie treatment. Good luck on your mission.

[@joetripp123]

Oh that pesky switch... Good call on the stars probably matching the pop bumpers - they do!

[@WreckDiver99]

LOVE the EMs...A local watering hole by me decided to put in a couple Pinball machines, which I was really happy for. Unfortunately, it's one of these new style with the big video screen on them, 4000 different runs, VERY specific sequences to progress through the game...so much going on it's nearly impossible to play. I think it's Simpson's and maybe Buzz Lightyear? Love the darn pinball, but these are just a massive distraction when playing...a bajillion lights flashing, you can barely see the ball moving around. :(

[@LyonsArcade]

I agree, they're about unplayable. A lot of people love them though, I just like the simpler ones personally.

[@LyonsArcade]

The great run of titles Bally released, in order, not counting 2/4p variants, starting with Circus Circus Champ (Elvis owned this one) Twin Win Sky Kings Amigo Delta Queen Ro Go Bon Voyage Boomerang Flicker Air Aces Knockout Wizard Hi Deal Bow & Arrow Flip Flop Hokus Pokus Old Chicago Aladdin's Castle Captain Fantastic Freedom Quarterback Night Rider Hang Glider Evel Knievel Eight Ball Power Play Mata Hari Black Jack Strikes & Spares Lost World Six Million Dollar Man Playboy Supersonic Star Trek KISS Paragon Harlem Globetrotters Dolly Parton Future Spa and that's just the 70's!

[@harrypapas8710]

Bally’s an theGottliebs love those pinball machines ❤️

[@martinda7446]

A truly wonderful channel. This is a multi million sub channel... To my mind?? What's wrong with me?? Where art meets engineering and electronics. I chose audio, Hi-Fi for my speciality field, the other place where art meets engineering, except in more ways than one! This has more art, art though, on the whole.. Mind you my Quad ESLs are living breathing art...

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Martin D A that's very nice of you to say... we try to make it all fun. I've been working on more jukeboxes and tube radios lately because I agree with you about the art and engineering, it's all very fun. Thanks for watching!!!

[@martinda7446]

@@LyonsArcade (I intended to say a little more..) You are blessed with a wonderful voice and delivery, (and a sense of humour) and with it, as far as I know, we now have the finest in depth looks at these great machines available anywhere on planet Earth, all delivered with style and quality. I think that is quite something. Very special. As I say, the enormity of it struck me, but maybe I'm just a nut. 😸

[@rtcharger7484]

Bally where the, King in the 70's

[@danijelcar5184]

Now that is a Mint condition great to see that😎👍

[@daniel_wilkinson]

I would sure love to own one of these early 70s games but I just can not justify the two to three thousand dollars they fetch and I haven't seen one pop up at Goodwill.

[@LyonsArcade]

It's starting to get pretty ridiculous! At our store a game like this would be about $1500

[@ocsrc]

That is an awesome 😎 pinball machine

[@MRNBricks]

Finally getting to this series. I do love these. 😂. Thank you so much for the shout out!!

[@LyonsArcade]

you're the man!

[@robertcecil7329]

Do I spy 2 Stern Draculas? Looking forward to those.

[@ocsrc]

Love those old chimes

[@MrButtonpresser]

Lovely use of logic there.

[@viscountalpha]

Hey Ron always nice to see new videos posted by you.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Viscountalpha, we appreciate you always watching buddy

[@spencerm8598]

Jethro wanted to be a Double Knot Spy

[@warwickhand9722]

Your videos are so interesting, keep ‘em coming , it helps me out so much trying to understand the schematics,,, all the best from australia!!

[@kmart0017]

Williams flippers in a Bally? Come on people. 😊

[@LyonsArcade]

They're Motorolas

[@kmart0017]

😂

[@chrismayer3919]

One tiny little relay off-kilter blew everything straight to hell; who’d have thunk it? 🤡

[@j-pinball3930]

Not sure if you mentioned it, but somebody has put Williams flipper bats on that machine.

[@shoominati23]

This guy is like the Herlihy kid of video games I swear. For the love of god , he'll fix your video games - but all he wants to do is sleep in your vacant bed when you're out of town!!

[@dave-wk4t]

Has there ever been a military themed EM game? Who made it and how many?

[@LyonsArcade]

During World War II, they made a bunch of 'now considered racist' anti Japanese military themed conversion KITS to turn regular pinball machines into a new title. During the War they didn't have the ability to make metal parts (or at least they were limited) so they made new backglasses and things to turn old games into new games, and since the War was going on lots of them had Military themes. www.ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=3829&picno=73420

[@mre9789]

I love the schematic episodes. Very interesting.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you Mr E!

[@ocsrc]

One of those fuses looks really burnt

[@yemons]

What were the wire bundles tied together with? It looks like some sort of waxed twine, but could it be catgut?

[@tonychapman4074]

Keep talkin’ Ronnie!

[@johanivarsson944]

great!!!👍👍

[@aaronbrandenburg2441]

Hey you said looking pretty good! Couple of good-looking things is at least a chime box is there and is not a repurposed doorbell! Somebody was probably well at least people might feel that armoire into traditional pinball machines that that person was either being ding dong or a ding-a-ling making a choice of using a doorbell in place of an actual chime box! But yes cost savings and easier to probably repurpose a doorbell for that application on some pinball machines as well so it would have a bit of Advantage but still it probably wouldn't sound as good or at least be as pleasant and proper for a proper pinball machine kind of teaches on and my been a good design decision regarding production as well and simplicity probably would have been off the shelf sort of part back in the day from a manufacturer perhaps even my pins from some doorbell kit that was an upgrade or just a spare part or perhaps even Surplus production runs up some components for doorbells?

[@homer655]

nice job!

[@TheShanerc1]

👀

[@bobkrabill9073]

can you get a paragon machine on the show ?

[@LyonsArcade]

One of these days I'll run across one!

[@Cool_Retro]

nice game so far! I dig it!

[@MarkCalhoun-i1p]

Joe; which metal file do you use to clean the connectors? Where do you get them? Thanks

[@williamdooly4111]

Do you have games for sale or are they just your personal ones, not including the customers machines

[@lileveretteyoakumiii]

Yodelayheehoo

[@joemanco5864]

oh ya, played it a million x as a kid!