Thursday, June 6, 2019

Williams Upper Deck Pitch and Bat

Is there such a thing as "binge repairing"?



My First pitch and bat machine...
1973 Williams Upper Deck... 
Last EM Pitch & Bat by Williams.
19 years after I started collecting these crazy machines.
It's about time. I was ready.

The problem was that I was waiting for the right machine, 
at the right price.

I picked up this machine on a Friday.
On Saturday, I rested.
Sunday, after my first morning coffee,
I started working on the machine.
Slowly at first, 
then faster and faster until I was in the repair flow.
I didn't pause. 
Not for coffee. Not for beer. Not for food. 
I just kept on working. Replacing a jones connector, 
splicing cut wires, cleaning switches and de-gumming stepper mechs.

I worked like a Madman...

By Sunday evening, I had a "working game".

By Monday night (or the wee hours of Tuesday),
I  had a perfectly working and playing game,
having worked on it from arriving home after work till 1 am.

I've been intrigued about why I binge worked so hard on the game.

The answer, I fear, is that I'm fed up about working on games.
I just wanted to get it out of the way. Out of my system.
The Upper deck being a coin op bucket list thing.

I hope this "fed up with EM repairs" thing is just a passing phase.