For as long as I've been collecting pins I've heard how great the spinners were on classic Stern machines. I didn't really get it, they all seemed pretty much the same to me, but there did seem to be a different element of satisfaction when you'd rip the spinner on these games.
I stayed away from them for a long time until recently picking up a 1979 Stern METEOR. It's turned out to be a fantastic game with simple yet challenging game play and some cool scoring features. But I was a bit bummed to see that my game came with an old Gottlieb spinner. I got it balanced just right and reduced as much drag on it as possible by adjusting the switch tension. I also buffed the wire arms and even applied a small dot of teflon lube where it entered the two holes at the bracket. It spun pretty well, but it still didn't quite feel the same. So, off I went to find an original stern spinner.
For anyone that has looked, they're not that easy to find. Repros are based on the old GTB/Bally standard and I wanted to make sure that, if I was going to go to the trouble, I had the real deal.
I could not find any online references as to why the Stern spinners were better or different, but I went on faith.... and when one popped up on eBay, I happily paid $30+ to purchase and ship the part to me post haste!
And then it arrived.
It looked like any other spinner so now I was sort of peeved that I might have just spent $30 on a used spinner for no good reason.
So, to settle the issue, I embarked on a small comparison test.
Submitted for your approval, from left to right, my new (old) classic Stern spinner, an EM era Gottlieb spinner, and an 80's Williams spinner from a High Speed. These are what I had on hand. I'm going to assume that the GTB is interchangeable with a classic Bally of the same era.
First, we have to look at the size.
I used the highly scientific method pictured below. When stacked on top of each other, it appears that there is almost no difference between the three. Although, you will notice that the wire on the Williams spinner is a bit thicker gauge and follows a slightly different bend. It's also located a little closer to centre than the other two. Otherwise, they are all the same height and width.
Next up, how thick are they?
My handy dandy caliper shows the following:
Gottlieb: 0.115"
Stern: 0.127"
Williams: 0.145"
I figured the Williams would be thicker simply because of the heavier wire... but I was surprised to see that the Stern was thicker than the GTB as they looked very similar.
The final thing I had to test was the weight.
I placed each of them on a digital kitchen scale and got the following readings:
Gottlieb: 22g
Stern: 27g
Williams: 31g
While it was no surprise that the beefier Williams target was the heavyweight, I was surprised to learn that the Stern was a full 5g heavier than it's closest cousin.
I don't know if this is conclusive evidence, but it certainly lends some weight to the argument that classic Stern spinners feel and spin a lot better than other games of that era. They are heavier than Gottliebs (and likely Bally) of similar era and their wire is slightly more off centre than the next closest Williams example. Not to mention that the thinner gauge wire on the stern (although maybe less durable) probably produces less friction than the thicker Williams one.
I have also heard that the Stern software calculates each opening and closing of the switch as a separate hit, so you are essentially getting double the spins vs. a Bally or GTB of the same era. Factor in the cool sound effects for each spin and that could greatly improve the overall experience of ripping that spinner!
So, armed with all this new info, I was finally satisfied that my money wasn't totally wasted and I proceeded to refinish my original Stern spinner for METEOR... and have been very happy ever since.
The End
I stayed away from them for a long time until recently picking up a 1979 Stern METEOR. It's turned out to be a fantastic game with simple yet challenging game play and some cool scoring features. But I was a bit bummed to see that my game came with an old Gottlieb spinner. I got it balanced just right and reduced as much drag on it as possible by adjusting the switch tension. I also buffed the wire arms and even applied a small dot of teflon lube where it entered the two holes at the bracket. It spun pretty well, but it still didn't quite feel the same. So, off I went to find an original stern spinner.
For anyone that has looked, they're not that easy to find. Repros are based on the old GTB/Bally standard and I wanted to make sure that, if I was going to go to the trouble, I had the real deal.
I could not find any online references as to why the Stern spinners were better or different, but I went on faith.... and when one popped up on eBay, I happily paid $30+ to purchase and ship the part to me post haste!
And then it arrived.
It looked like any other spinner so now I was sort of peeved that I might have just spent $30 on a used spinner for no good reason.
So, to settle the issue, I embarked on a small comparison test.
Submitted for your approval, from left to right, my new (old) classic Stern spinner, an EM era Gottlieb spinner, and an 80's Williams spinner from a High Speed. These are what I had on hand. I'm going to assume that the GTB is interchangeable with a classic Bally of the same era.
First, we have to look at the size.
I used the highly scientific method pictured below. When stacked on top of each other, it appears that there is almost no difference between the three. Although, you will notice that the wire on the Williams spinner is a bit thicker gauge and follows a slightly different bend. It's also located a little closer to centre than the other two. Otherwise, they are all the same height and width.
Next up, how thick are they?
My handy dandy caliper shows the following:
Gottlieb: 0.115"
Stern: 0.127"
Williams: 0.145"
I figured the Williams would be thicker simply because of the heavier wire... but I was surprised to see that the Stern was thicker than the GTB as they looked very similar.
The final thing I had to test was the weight.
I placed each of them on a digital kitchen scale and got the following readings:
Gottlieb: 22g
Stern: 27g
Williams: 31g
While it was no surprise that the beefier Williams target was the heavyweight, I was surprised to learn that the Stern was a full 5g heavier than it's closest cousin.
I don't know if this is conclusive evidence, but it certainly lends some weight to the argument that classic Stern spinners feel and spin a lot better than other games of that era. They are heavier than Gottliebs (and likely Bally) of similar era and their wire is slightly more off centre than the next closest Williams example. Not to mention that the thinner gauge wire on the stern (although maybe less durable) probably produces less friction than the thicker Williams one.
I have also heard that the Stern software calculates each opening and closing of the switch as a separate hit, so you are essentially getting double the spins vs. a Bally or GTB of the same era. Factor in the cool sound effects for each spin and that could greatly improve the overall experience of ripping that spinner!
So, armed with all this new info, I was finally satisfied that my money wasn't totally wasted and I proceeded to refinish my original Stern spinner for METEOR... and have been very happy ever since.
The End
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