Collecting A 4X Bonus On An E.M. Pinball Playfield? - Gottlieb's Great Spirit of 76 Machine

[@ericbentsen1785]

This machine was the prize for 1st place at the 2nd Annual New York State Pinball Tournament on April 24, 1976. All games at the tournament were set to 3 balls instead of the 5 balls that everybody was used to in their home towns. Some games gave 50,000 points for a special when lit, so scores would be lit up in the hundreds of thousands on the backglass in addition to the 5 digit score reels. They really tried to eliminate extra balls on these machines. I played Spirit of '76 at the tournament while wearing a cast on my arm for a hairline fracture in my elbow from a skateboarding accident, and scored 120,400 on 3 ball play. It's the only time I've ever seen the game and it was exciting to watch your video of this game play today. I just love games that give you back your ball when you score 0, lol. That horse shoe hole shot was a real suicide shot, but just about everything is on that game anyway, yeeks! I had to be 18 years old to be in the tournament, but I was 14 years old. I placed 4th out of over 100 qualified players from around the state the following year, and 3rd place in 1978. I've got to say, these tournaments set a really bad precedent of starting games with 3 balls instead of 5 balls. Suddenly many arcades reset their machines to 3 balls. It's also strange that pinball manufacturers had a 3 ball setting for years before tournaments came around.

[@MrButtonpresser]

Hats off to the engineers who designed these beauties!

[@Nunya_Bidnez]

Daaaaaang! Almost looks new. Nice work Ron and Joe.

[@gynandroidhead]

This was the first pinball machine that I played at a high level when was eleven years old, followed by Captain Fantastic.

[@1976aztec]

I own one, I've had it for 22 years played it in my dads store back in 1979 so i been playing it for years it is a fast and fun game to play.

[@markjackson1444]

Very enjoyable trip down memory lane. It was good to see a normal problem: the hole wasn’t ejecting the ball because a switch on the hole relay was out of adjustment. …Perfect. That’s the kind of problem I like and understand. This game should be ideal for a family game, although it’s harder than a lot of games. Thanks for the videos.

[@kellingc]

That playfield looks so good, especially the condition your received it in. Those colors and design take me back to my 9-10 year old self. Excellent work.

[@Cool_Retro]

Spirit of '76 is one of my favorite EM pinball machines. I remember seeing a lot in 1975 and 1976. I would love to own one one day. Your videos brought back very fond memories.

[@northhankspin]

I love this Channel.

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for watching North-Hankspin!!!

[@johnmichael1979]

What a great game with some unique design tricks. Played it back in the day....love the EMs, makes me smile. Thanks Ron!

[@EsotericArctos]

Gottlieb were good at adding some unique and sometimes quirky features. They were the God of EM Pinball design really. If it could be done with EM, Gottlieb would find a way to do it, often things other companies just didn't ever think to do.

[@jamesbishop338]

The best machine ever. .. ❤❤❤❤

[@miguelrios4602]

Sweet game and video. Thanks Ronnie!

[@_JellyDonut_]

The playfield looks awesome, almost as clean as the Prospector machine

[@paulclarke7571]

Whenever I see these older games, I just wonder what the record score is for this particular machine. Cause you gotta' know that some night, somewhere someone knocked it out of the park!

[@robbiemercury889]

Hey I was at your store last night that store is so nice

[@LyonsArcade]

Thank you for stopping by Robbie!

[@PeterWMeek]

I set my home pinball machine (Stern Spiderman) to be almost impossible to tilt by shaking or jolting. I have to wear gloves (fingerless, with gel-padded palms) or end up with huge bruises on my palms. I can usually keep the ball up in the pop-bumpers for a long time by shaking the machine so the ball hits the bumpers harder. I can usually bounce the ball back and forth to choose which top rollover lane I want. On the lower playfield, giving the machine a jolt or shove just as the ball hits the flipper or kicker will add impetus or slightly change the direction of the rebound. Giving the machine a pull or side-push at just the right time can make the difference between scoring a drop-target or not. I think it gives the game a better sense of old-time pinball. I also level the machine properly; many arcades steepen the playfield so that return chutes send the ball directly between the flippers. Rip-off! It's not as though pinball machines are unprofitable when leveled properly. I will never put a second quarter into a machine that is rigged so blatantly against the player. Of course, for a home machine, I set every adjustment to be player-friendly. Big scores are normal at my house.

[@pfeinauer]

FYI: You can also place an old flipper rubber across the bottom of the chime unit, it will have the same effect as the foam, and probably last a little longer, and usually it's cheaper. :)

[@LyonsArcade]

That's a good idea, do you just stretch it across the entire thing?

[@pfeinauer]

@@LyonsArcade Yes, across the bottom. If the rubber is way too hard (like disintegrating) it won't work, but if you have an old one, yes. It's hard to stretch it across, but it works great. A brand new one seems to be too bouncy.

[@pfeinauer]

@@LyonsArcade Yes, where the beer seal was. I don't remember if you do it horizontally, or vertically, I think it is just one of them, and horizontally. Also you'll notice a brand new one is a little too bouncy, and a screwed to hell one will break when you try to do it. It has to have a little elasticity to be able to stretch around it, but a little old as well. It's a good thing to save those old flipper rubbers now!

[@justlookin20101]

Is that orange infield cap a replacement for an 'A' on the left roll through behind the left drop targets ?

[@sguttag]

[Edit] Ron, It looks like the orange (looks orange in the video) light for the left slot (opposite the "E" slot) is an additional "A". When your ball rolled through it, the "A" went out. Also, the "B" lens is still rotated. I wasn't going to mention it, but you pointed it out. Me, personally, I think pinball machines are designed as 5-ball and the 3-ball option is for businesses to get more money/higher turnover of players.

[@LyonsArcade]

If that's true, then why are they designed so 3 ball is easier than 5 ball?

[@sguttag]

Because you get 2 more balls to get the bonus/specials. When they go to 3-ball, they make concessions to keep it fun (like combining letters in this one).

[@gorillaau]

​@@LyonsArcade I don't think we are ever going to settle the argument with 3-ball or 5-ball being the real game mode.

[@naytch2003]

I'm happy just having 2 balls 😆

[@gorillaau]

@@naytch2003 It's not the number of balls but what you do with them that counts.

[@freeculture]

Yeah, tons of memories with that machine. Do you not test the tilt sensor and lamp? 😀

[@naytch2003]

If youre not tilting..you're not trying 🖖

[@gorillaau]

​@@naytch2003 If you not tilting, then you are wilting. Bump the table occasionally!

[@matthewbarry4464]

I've always thought Gottlieb chimes were the best sounding of all pins. Hell, I feel all the Gottlieb EM sounds are the best.

[@LyonsArcade]

They are very nice!

[@irieman442]

looks like a fun machine!

[@waynegram8907]

JOES CLASSIC, What does the Sequence Switch do? I'm not sure if all pinball games have sequence switches or its only a Gottlieb thing they did. The sequence switch opens/closes only when all the drop targets are closed been hit down. I'm not sure what this sequence switch does or its purpose of having a sequence switch.

[@jasoncorreal8810]

Definitely not used to no kickers, but I like it!

[@naytch2003]

Kickers or knickers 🩲😆🤣

[@johnbaumgartner]

Great vid! I notice D top rollover turns off D and B, and vice versa, which it shouldn’t, they should be independent

[@LyonsArcade]

It depends on if it's set on 3 ball or 5 ball

[@johnbaumgartner]

@@LyonsArcade how cool. You learn something new e’erday. Thx!

[@naytch2003]

1976...my first year of school 🚸

[@LyonsArcade]

Wait, you're educ.... come on now we know you didn't go to school Naytch :)

[@naytch2003]

@@LyonsArcade I ate my lunch there lol first week I got a metal ruler whacked across my right hand for talking in class but hey...I turned out alright people come on now

[@jasonsteverson4609]

Hey Ron!!

[@Bob-sd7qr]

Fun fact: Spirit Of 76 was featured in the movie Car Wash!

[@walkerv8530]

Just one more game , i say that and then its 2 hrs later

[@EsotericArctos]

Can't fault a company for wanting to keep their property safe. Gottlieb designed this machine and the circuits, so if they want to hold on to the schematics and make a dollar or two from selling them, then that's acceptable. It's not like they are asking hundreds of dollars for schematics. They are only asking a very small amount, and obviously Pinball Resource is adding a small profit for them on it too, so $15 is really not much for the schematics, and you do get a really nice paper copy of them.

[@LyonsArcade]

Yup and thing is.... they gave you a set of Schematics with the machine when they sold it new... they all came with schematics and a manual. So they're just charging for a replacement set, and it's a minor price to pay, I have zero problem with it personally.

[@keithperry8098]

What knocker? I did the rewind and Playback and did not hear the knocker for the free game. Perhaps you need to fix that knocker to where it is louder. I did not hear the knocker at all.

[@naytch2003]

Don't knock knockers Keith come on now..👙😆

[@keithperry8098]

@@naytch2003 he just pretended to get... there was no.... come on people lol

[@jasoncorreal8810]

I'm gonna just play one more......

[@lileveretteyoakumiii]

Yodelayheehoo

[@LyonsArcade]

Hello Lil Everette, happy Saturday!

[@naytch2003]

Yo..what we having for Christmas Dinner again?? 😆

[@lawrenceveinotte]

To ad some extra excitement to your game play videos, put some English on the machine, even just one of the games. :)

[@naytch2003]

I beg your pardon...he never promised you a rose garden??? 😁

[@frankhollein7093]

Every pin ball game needs a post between the flippers. Drains drive me crazy.

[@terrybarber8975]

very interesting

[@naytch2003]

It's Arte Johnson!!! 😆

[@michaelwhitley-yt7hd]

Great pinball machine I,ve owned mine for 24 years, its a fun game to play. As always thanks for the video Ron, great job

[@michaelwhitley-yt7hd]

Read the instructions Ron you do any other time.