Episode 98 - Evolution of the Flipper

Wedgehead explores 75 years of flipper evolution from Humpty Dumpty to modern solid-state design.

Synopsis

Wedgehead A Pinball Podcast hosts Alan and Alex explore the 75-year history of the flipper, from its 1947 invention by Harry Mabs on Gottlieb's Humpty Dumpty through modern solid-state designs. They trace technical evolution across manufacturers including voltage transitions (AC to DC, 24V to 48V), coil design innovations (dual-wound to single-wound), and control systems (mechanical switches to MOSFET transistors). Key discussion includes Gottlieb's slow adoption of industry standards, Data East's 1990 RoboCop debut of solid-state flippers, and alternate designs like banana flippers.

Highlights

• Harry Mabs invented the flipper in 1947 on Gottlieb's Humpty Dumpty game
• Humpty Dumpty had six flippers facing backwards, controlled by only two solenoids
• Gottlieb's Just 21 (1950) was first to orient flippers to face each other (modern orientation)
• Williams introduced three-inch flippers on Hay Burners 2 in 1968, replacing two-inch standard
• Gottlieb remained on 24-volt AC flipper power until 1989 System 3, while other manufacturers switched to 48-volt DC in late 1970s/early 1980s
• Data East debuted first single-wound flipper coil in 1989, using MOSFET transistors for voltage control
• RoboCop (1990) was first Data East game with solid-state flippers using 40-millisecond pulse and no end-of-stroke switch
• Williams switched to Fliptronic system in 1992, mimicking Data East but continuing dual-wound coils
• Banana flippers came on Williams games Time Works and Disco Fever; were curved and expensive to manufacture
• Solid-state flipper transition eliminated tap pass finesse control available in mechanical switch era

Entities

• Data East· company
• Gottlieb· company
• Stern· company
• Wedgehead· company
• Williams· company
• Disco Fever· game
• Hay Burners 2· game
• Humpty Dumpty· game
• Just 21· game
• Nip It· game
• RoboCop· game
• Time Works· game
• Internet Pinball Database (IPDB)· organization
• Alan· person
• Alex the Waterboy· person
• Harry Mabs· person
• Nikola Tesla· person
• Russ Jensen· person
• Steve Cordick· person
• Ted Zale· person