Pinball Skills - Nudging part 1

[@marcovirtual]

I wish the pinball community was bigger just so more people could appreciate the high production value of your videos. Thank you for your efforts!

[@tedbrockly7296]

This is by far the slickest and most informative/practical guide on nudging I've ever seen. Incredible job!

[@aaronsilva5784]

The entire vibe/tone of your videos is so immersive and captivating. Thank you for what you're doing

[@MysticMan184]

Those nudges are Kung Fu like. Impressive.

[@TechShmoo]

Looking forward to part 2! These are the best pinball tutorials on KZbin.

[@blackdaan]

i never agreed with TechShmoo,, but this time.. i do

[@coten]

i think "moving the machine out from underneath the ball" is the most important idea to wrap one's head around when learning how & when to nudge (there's not much friction between a steel ball & a clean playfield!)

[@toothyweasel2705]

Wrapping my head around this concept was like reaching a higher plane of thought lol I couldn’t figure out why when I nudged the machine on the right side to get a ball away from a right outlane it never worked, not realizing I was actually helping to drive the ball toward the right outlane.

[@bowlerhat127]

Super useful. Many thanks. Think I have been nudging totally wrong!

[@AbeFlips]

Thanks! I'm curious, how so? What did you do wrong?

[@bowlerhat127]

​@@AbeFlips Well, I am very new to pinball, few months only... but I was trying to nudge thinking that it moved the table rather than the ball - I think it may have largely the same effect but I was much more kind of moving the table than kind of slapping it to pop the ball out. Will go to my local pinball place tomorrow and try this technique!

[@AbeFlips]

@@bowlerhat127 Ah i see thanks!

[@donericdisante]

More videos about the danger zone please!

[@TheKommercial]

Damn these videos are so awesome! Please keep it coming, got some other tourney players sweatin now! Hahaha

[@no_nose_diving_danny2143]

I started recently. Thanks for the great tips.

[@EricFryc]

These are so good. Excellent work.

[@philspinballgameroom5807]

Love your Pinball Skills Videos!! Keep up the good work!

[@fulltiltpinball1746]

You’ve done a fantastic job on a video that is informative and entertaining! Keep them coming.

[@madmack_back_to_the_arcade]

A must have! Nice vid

[@edtimings1869]

Another great tutorial!

[@AfroRyan]

I went to a nice barcade that actually drilled its pinball machines' feet into the concrete floor with custom parts, which made nudging nearly impossible. Slapping the machines hard enough to get any benefit at all felt like you were more likely to break the machine, not to mention breaking your hand. It was a unique experience, but not one I would recommend for tournament play.

[@AbeFlips]

You should be able to nudge them too, like on machines with rubber feet. But I'm sure that was crazy 🤣

[@jahopokemonleaf]

went to a barcade for the first time this year while I was on vacation in Seattle! was super fun and that's what got me addicted to pinball!

[@psteady6726]

Great 👍🏼

[@PotentialEnder]

Mine is on thick carpet and really doesn't budge at all when trying to nudge. Definitely something i want to practice more.

[@musicalmystery1993]

These videos are SO awesome!! Thanks for revealing some of the science and the why, as well as techniques. A greater understanding of why things happen the way they do is GREATLY beneficial to refining live play!

[@ruaraidhmcdonald-walker9524]

Great video. Very clear.

[@bullhidebelts5274]

Good video. I have rubber feet on vinyl plank floors and they grip too much. May have to remove them.

[@Beznet]

this is amazing, thank you!

[@MrDochorrible]

Great video as always. I still struggle because of my metal feet on vinyl flooring - it just doesn't seem to move that much when I nudge it. I need to get some feet protectors on there anyway to protect the floors. fwiw the youtube algorithm penalizes you if you have videos that subscribers don't watch - for discoverability purposes it may be worth splitting the english / german ones to different channels.

[@AbeFlips]

If you "slide" the machine, thats a big move and it should just be the last resort. The better your ball prediction gets the less you need that. Subtle moves are key, and much more elegant. Thanks for the youtube hint, I`ll think about that.

[@JujYFru1T]

I'm a new player so for me it's either, figure out how to nudge the machine OR make sure I keep the flippers going, not both. Plus, even my strongest slaps haven't done much soooo i should prob find other tactics to avoid draining the ball~

[@AbeFlips]

I takes some time to predict possible drains and to learn how much of nudge is needed to save the ball. Check out the Slap Save video, there i show a nudge-pass too. Thats a good starting point, but also a big move which causes at least one warning, depending on the tilt bob.

[@theharvardyard2356]

Fantastic video man, I showed it to my grandma and even she liked it. I have a question though: am I doing it wrong if my arms hurt pretty bad afterwards? When slap saving or nudging left/right, I feel a bad strain on the inside of my arms, like mostly inside my elbow, and a bit on bicep and forearm. Then I feel like I don't want to nudge again. Is my form bad and there is a way to avoid this? Or is it just part of the game? Thanks for any advice.

[@AbeFlips]

Good question, and I feel you there. I try to minimize left and right machine slides since I also get serious ellbow pain from it. A pinball machine weights over 100 kg, and the force taking effect on your arms from side nudges is very strong and adverse. Slap saves only hurt in this regard if I try to move the machine with the slap, but thats not how you should slap. Stop the hit at the point of contact. Simple forward nudges do not hurt for me- also dont try to move the machine here. Easier said than done. Surely you cant save every ball this way. Good players dont need much force and also don`t throw machines around- they use subtile, short nudges. Also if you have to slide the machine you already failed with your ball prediction/nudging beforehand most of the time. As a rule of thumb, if it hurts, it was too much for your body, especially for persisting pain! Dont use left/right slides until your arms are ok again and build your way back up from there. Hope that helps, let me know how it went. Get well soon!

[@theharvardyard2356]

@@AbeFlips Thanks for the advice, man. Yeah, I'm relatively new and trying to get better, so really I'm trying to move on from being too timid (or slow to react) to move the machine at all. It's really hard to react both quickly, and also with a controlled amount of force, if you know what I mean. So I end up overdoing it. You're probably right that the better I get at predicting the ball, the less force I will have to use. I will have to work on not pushing "through" the machine as well. Cheers!

[@CanaanWhitston]

hell yeah

[@yabbaguy]

Is there ever a worry about SLAM tilting with those "explosive" nudges, or are you pretty safe nudging the corners? I wouldn't want anyone to accuse me of abusing the game, even though that's not the intent.

[@AbeFlips]

With ther word "explode" I was trying to say how the force should be used. You see plenty of nudging in this video. If you keep it that way, there will be NO harm to the machine. Tilting is not bad if you take care of the machine, it strongly depends how the tilt bob is set up too. The more you push through the machine the more stress you get on the cabinet, also depending on the feet and floor.

[@yabbaguy]

Good, I'm glad it seems to be a win-win! Thanks for your reply and for making this video teaching the technique, much appreciated. :)

[@anonony9081]

Any advice for hitting a shatz shot? Or are they just luck?

[@AbeFlips]

Nope, its not luck. But Its much easier on older games. Flip late and use the second flipper right after the shot (like a double slap save). This prevents the ball from a direct rebound drain of the bottom sling shot post. On some games it might be easier than on others.

[@laurent5367]

Wer bist du ins Turnier? Robbi ist genau ein nudgemeister.

[@AbeFlips]

Habe Corona-bedingt leider noch nie an einem Turnier teilgenommen, aber hoffentlich bald 🤩

[@corywestfahl1691]

No death saving ..unless it’s one of your home pins.

[@Mo_Ketchups]

The SIMPLE LINE: “Remember: You are moving the machine UNDER the ball, NOT the ball itself” is the *key* concept that’s ALWAYS left out of nudging _videos!!_ 👀 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️ That’s ALL these people need ta SAY, but they never DO, and noobs all over are thinking they’re supposed to nudge in the BALL direction. For that one simple line, accept your award-Special is LIT! 🏆 💥 🫵👍

[@ryanweaver962]

Ok for games like this… not real life. It’s also true, we can’t discount or minimize experience because of urgency. Yet… see and recognizing while working better… it’s a lot of moving parts and centrifuges….

[@jasonc2784]

Having a lot of trouble hearing you. The music may be 50% too loud. Thank you

[@AbeFlips]

Thanks for the feedback. I also noticed this on different speakers. Meanwhile you can activate the subtitles or try headphones. Cheap speakes won't work well.

[@SFtheWolf]

@@AbeFlips I'm on prosumer quality speakers I use for audio editing and I'm also having to repeatedly rewind to understand you. if I may suggest, try speaking less into your throat and in less of a monotone. great guide and information though.

[@AbeFlips]

@@SFtheWolf Thank you! On the upcoming film you will hear the professional Radio Speaker Jeff Teolis 🙂

[@mesapysch]

It doesn't work as well with my wide body.

[@AbeFlips]

I have awesome widebody nudging footage on tape for the upcoming video. There are coming different factors into play on how well a machine is nudgeable. Some games are stiff like a rock. Also the rubber material affects the rebound. Try different games and look how it goes!

[@mesapysch]

@@AbeFlips Awesome! I look forward to it. I have a Future Spa and nudging is almost a requirement.

[@AbeFlips]

@@mesapysch will be included 🤪 imgproxy.pinside.com/G7A5Mj0q7TNd_8Yl_TZ4-5dM9ijcYZ_A3V82LLVkDz8/rs:fit:2048:2048/q:85/fn:Pinside_forum_7721918_0/aHR0cHM6Ly9vLnBpbnNpZGUuY29tLzEvODQvZTIvMTg0ZTJlODQ0NjFmNmVhMDc3NTc1ZjA1NGVkNmRmYWRiMDMzMzA0Yy5qcGc

[@mesapysch]

@@AbeFlips Ah Ha! Well look at that! I came to right channel!

[@Vexcenot]

Epstein?