Episode 432: Kyle Spiteri
Kyle came up to Toronto, Canada this past summer to represent Stern Pinball and give a seminar at an open house at Player One Amusement Group. We discussed what goes into being able to fix pinball...
Highlights
- Kyle Spiteri is part of a seven-person tech department at Stern Pinball handling customer support
- Stern identified a King Kong production issue where the drive arm would shift and block the gong shot, solved within days with a retrofittable fix
- Kyle learned pinball repair through online communities (RGP/Rec Games Pinball Google group) and mentorship from Bay Area enthusiasts before professional roles
- Stern's service department goal is to support customers with parts, instructions, and phone/video guidance regardless of machine location or ownership quantity
- Basic pinball repair requires only basic hand tools (nut drivers, screwdrivers, soldering capability), not expensive specialized equipment
Notable quotes
“If a human built it, a human can fix it. Don't worry.”
“We are a manufacturing company that just happens to make games, right? So as a manufacturing company, the goal is to make something as consistent as possible.”
“The wow moment was the first time I went to Stern and saw the line working full bore... It's always awe-inspiring.”
“I mean, she likes to play pinball just as much, but it's like, come on, you're on vacation. Put it aside for a second.”
“The ability to respond i think is quick right we always want to make sure that the customer has a game that is usable and get those fixes them as fast as possible”
Entities
- Maple Pinball· company
- Marco Pinball· company
- Pacific Pinball Museum· company
- Player One Amusement Group· company
- Stern Pinball· company
- Ontario Open· event
- King Kong· game
- Uncanny X-Men· game
- Pinball Profile· organization
- RGP· organization
- Chris Kuntz· person
- Emoto· person
- Harrison· person
- Jeff Teolis· person
- Kyle Spiteri· person
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