# Pinball Junk Drawer Episode 28 - Mods have finally been installed... or have they?

**Source:** Poor Man's Pinball Podcast  
**Type:** podcast_episode  
**Published:** 2023-08-16  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://poormanspinballpodcast.libsyn.com/pinball-junk-drawer-episode-28-mods-have-finally-been-installed-or-have-they

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## Analysis

Episode 28 of Pinball Junk Drawer features hosts discussing the passing of Shelley Sachs Eldridge from Stern Pinball, installation of Godzilla mods, the announcement of Venom pinball, and a brewery visit where they experienced broken pinball machines and weak game condition. The show emphasizes community mourning, DIY modding challenges, and real-world location pinball issues.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Shelley Sacks Eldridge from Stern Pinball has passed away — _Hosts open episode with announcement that Stern Pinball family announced the passing of Shelley Sachs Eldridge, describing her as 'jack of all trades' and crediting her importance to the pinball world_
- [HIGH] Venom pinball was announced, likely at Comic-Con — _Hosts confirm Venom announcement and speculate Stern timed release to coincide with Comic-Con to show off the game_
- [HIGH] The Godzilla King Ghidorah 3D-printed mod arrived tacky and was difficult to install — _Chris Craft discusses ordering a 3D-printed Godzilla kaiju mod from the UK, describing installation challenges and moisture issues with the printed toy_
- [MEDIUM] There are already multiple Spider-Man pinball machines in existence — _Hosts discuss Venom Spider-Man theme, questioning if Stern already has 2 Spider-Man machines, though they express uncertainty about exact count_
- [HIGH] Oktoberfest pinball has weak flipper strength and steep ramps that make it difficult to enjoy — _Foghorn plays Oktoberfest at Stack Brewing Company and notes flipper weakness preventing challenging ramp shots; both hosts express 'want to love it' sentiment_
- [HIGH] Led Zeppelin pinball at the brewery had a stuck ball in an infinite loop for multiple players — _Chris Craft describes witnessing Led Zeppelin machine unable to eject ball, playing continuously without entering help mode despite being loaded by 4 players_
- [HIGH] Starship Troopers pinball has an unusual dual-flipper configuration on one side — _Foghorn describes Starship Troopers as having 'two flippers on one side and one on the other side' with 'bottom button' requiring different button combination for certain shots_
- [HIGH] Stack Brewing Company is on the Foo Fighters machine distributor waitlist — _Brewery staff tell Chris Craft they are 'on the list' for Foo Fighters pinball after he inquires about availability_
- [HIGH] Steve Austin's Broken Skull IPA is sold at grocery stores in Wisconsin — _Bruce Alley discusses finding Steve Austin Broken Skull IPA at a festival during grocery shopping in Wisconsin_

### Notable Quotes

> "Jack of all trades... That's what she was. So deep condolences, sending all the love I can."
> — **Foghorn Leghorn (host)**, early in episode
> _Heartfelt tribute to Shelley Sachs Eldridge's multifaceted role at Stern Pinball following her passing_

> "I stood at the bottom of the machine with most of the weight on my back and I gracefully help guide it with the power of gravity. I hold the hell out of those machines."
> — **Foghorn Leghorn**, mid-episode stair safety discussion
> _Humorous recounting of moving pinball machines down stairs using unconventional technique, contrasting with workplace safety training_

> "I started looking at the many pages of instructions... I was like, nope, not today mod."
> — **Chris Craft**, mod discussion segment
> _Expression of difficulty/reluctance attempting complex Godzilla kaiju mod installation_

> "I want to love Oktoberfest... but the flippers weren't strong enough to really hit the shots"
> — **Foghorn Leghorn**, brewery experience segment
> _Common complaint about game condition affecting playability and enjoyment at location venues_

> "Unfortunately, that's kind of the experience people have sometimes with pinball on location. And it's not good for pinball on location."
> — **Chris Craft**, brewery pinball recap
> _Commentary on how poor machine maintenance and condition damages operator/location reputation and player experience_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Shelley Sachs Eldridge | person | Stern Pinball employee who passed away; described as 'jack of all trades' (J-O-A-T) and critical contributor to pinball industry |
| Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer; announced passing of Shelley Sachs Eldridge; released Venom pinball announcement |
| Venom | game | Marvel-themed pinball announced by Stern Pinball; Spider-Man universe villain; hosts speculate it was revealed at Comic-Con |
| Godzilla | game | Pinball machine that Chris Craft is modding; hosts discuss installing King Ghidorah 3D-printed toy and kaiju lighting mods |
| Chris Craft | person | Co-host of Pinball Junk Drawer; pinball collector working on Godzilla mods; visited Stack Brewing Company |
| Foghorn Leghorn | person | Co-host/main voice of Pinball Junk Drawer; played Oktoberfest, Led Zeppelin, and Starship Troopers at brewery; uses character voice/persona |
| Bruce Alley | person | Co-host of Pinball Junk Drawer; hosts Beer Journal Review segment; attended brewery visit |
| Stack Brewing Company | venue | Brewery in Kaukauna, Wisconsin with three pinball machines (Oktoberfest, Led Zeppelin, Starship Troopers); on Foo Fighters waitlist |
| Oktoberfest | game | Pinball machine at Stack Brewing with weak flippers and steep ramps; Foghorn played it and struggled with shot difficulty |
| Led Zeppelin | game | Pinball machine at Stack Brewing that experienced technical failure with stuck ball in infinite loop |
| Starship Troopers | game | Pinball machine at Stack Brewing with unusual dual-flipper configuration; Foghorn played with quarters after bill acceptor failure |
| Foo Fighters | game | Stern Pinball machine; Stack Brewing Company is on distributor waitlist; brewery staff expressed enthusiasm for the title |
| Steve Austin | person | Wrestler/TV personality; has Broken Skull beer brand; annual 3/16 fan event referenced in beer discussion |
| Broken Skull IPA | product | Steve Austin-branded beer; Bruce Alley purchased at grocery store in Wisconsin instead of traveling to California brewery |
| Poor Man's Pinball Podcast | organization | Podcast network/umbrella organization; Pinball Junk Drawer is an affiliated show |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Industry mourning and tributes, DIY modding (3D-printed toys, LED lighting), New game announcements (Venom), Location pinball quality and maintenance issues
- **Secondary:** Game difficulty and flipper strength, Pinball venue experiences, Beer culture and themed beverages
- **Mentioned:** Workplace safety training (tangential/humorous)

### Sentiment

**Mixed** (0.4) — Episode opens with respectful mourning of Shelley Sachs Eldridge (somber), shifts to humorous DIY mod frustrations, includes cautious optimism about Venom announcement, but heavily critical of poor location pinball condition (equipment failures, weak flippers, broken bill acceptors) which hosts frame as damaging to the industry. Overall tone is comedic/irreverent with underlayers of frustration about pinball quality on location.

### Signals

- **[industry_signal]** Stern Pinball announced the passing of Shelley Sachs Eldridge, described as 'jack of all trades' and critical contributor to company and industry (confidence: high) — Hosts open episode with formal announcement and extended tribute to her role and legacy
- **[announcement]** Venom pinball officially announced by Stern Pinball; timing likely coordinated with Comic-Con appearance (confidence: high) — Multiple host references to Venom announcement; speculation that Stern released info ahead of Comic-Con to drive show attendance
- **[restoration_signal]** Chris Craft documents installation challenges with Godzilla King Ghidorah 3D-printed toy mod and kaiju lighting mod; sticky/tacky condition on arrival from UK supplier (confidence: high) — Detailed discussion of mod assembly difficulties, decision to abandon kaiju lighting mod installation due to complexity of instructions
- **[product_concern]** Oktoberfest at Stack Brewing exhibits weak flipper strength preventing effective play on steep ramps; both hosts struggle to enjoy otherwise interesting game (confidence: high) — Hosts describe game as having weak flippers that don't hit challenging shots effectively; both express 'want to love it' but can't enjoy as installed
- **[product_concern]** Led Zeppelin pinball at Stack Brewing has stuck ball unable to eject, running in infinite loop for multiple player game; optical sensor likely issue (confidence: high) — Chris Craft describes troubleshooting attempt; ball won't eject despite 4 players loaded; machine not entering help mode; optical sensor suspected failure
- **[product_concern]** Starship Troopers pinball at Stack Brewing has non-functional bill acceptor requiring coin play instead (confidence: high) — Foghorn notes bill acceptor won't accept dollars; had to use quarters to play
- **[venue_signal]** Stack Brewing Company operates three pinball machines in poor condition; represents broader issue of location pinball quality damaging industry perception (confidence: high) — Multiple equipment failures (stuck ball, broken bill acceptor), weak flipper maintenance (Oktoberfest), and hosts explicitly state poor location condition 'is not good for pinball on location'
- **[market_signal]** Stack Brewing Company is on distributor waitlist for Foo Fighters pinball; venue strongly interested in title based on band enthusiasm and décor (confidence: high) — Brewery staff told Chris Craft they are 'on the list' for Foo Fighters; extensive Foo Fighters poster collection in venue
- **[gameplay_signal]** Starship Troopers pinball features asymmetrical flipper configuration with dual-button bottom flipper on one side; creates challenge and design uniqueness (confidence: high) — Foghorn describes two flippers on one side with bottom button, one on other; certain shots require bottom button; frame as interesting but challenging design choice
- **[community_signal]** Hosts discuss frustration with rumor-spreading in pinball community; advocate for consequences for spreading false information (confidence: medium) — Hosts discuss banning people from internet for spreading bullshit rumors; mention people reading rumors and acting on false information; note this is damaging

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## Transcript

 Now who's respon... I say who's responsible for this unwarranted attack on my person? I say, I say, I say, pay attention now boy. This is, of course, Foghorn Leghorn presents the Pinball Junk Draw. You all asked for it. I say, I say, you all asked for it now. You're gonna get it. And boy oh boy are you gonna get it. Go away. I say go away boy, you bother me. Oh my god and we are back it is time once again for the exciting always unique and challenging pinball chunk drawer big show 28 my name is foghorn leghorn and Whitney as always craft Bruce Alley and we're here this is a jam-packed show so much insane crap to talk about I didn't think there was but actually there is quite a bit so we're gonna kick it off with some sad talk and then that'll be the end of that then we'll be back to nonsense so What do you have? We're gonna we're gonna start out by crapFu Sally is literally gonna be pouring out $40 for her homie. Go ahead, what do you got? The Stern Pinball family announced the passing of Shelley Sachs Eldridge. Yes, and if anyone that knows Stern, Gary Stern and about Stern Pinball knows that she was the jack of all trades and she was pretty much he credited The pinball world would not be what it is today without what she has done and what she gave to our what we $ signature不用 Spoilers, $ checkout freeidenny Thank You We're not doing that. It also says that they eventually changed her title on her business card to be J-O-A-T. Jack of all trades. That's what she was. So deep condolences, sending all the love I can. I never know what to say with this kind of stuff. I don't think anyone does. I'm not very eloquent with giving condolences. I just try to... I don't like copy-pasting.adespa Ahora I I was like, today's the day. Craft Roussel was at work, I'm like, I'm doing it. So I took the glass off and it was also after playing it for a while, I like to, especially a new machine, you open it up, give everything a little tweak, make sure all the nuts and bolts are tight and make sure everything is acting as it should. Waxed it down, cleaned it up. First I put the art blades on because those make such a huge difference. You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Instagram. Thanks for watching. I'll see you next week. Bye. Bye. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The The Playfield up, but I didn't take it out like honestly You should disconnect it and pull it out and then do like very carefully put it in so you imagine I have this thing balancing and I'm trying to make sure the top and bottom are like Correct at the correct distance from the glass now most know nobody wouldn't notice unless you're really off But I don't want to be at all off So I'm like I put it in and I like ah damn it Goukhan Khayah, President of nickel The game is just the gold three headed Monster one of the main baddies in Godzilla's world and I had ordered this from the uk I Forget it was Measlemons. Maybe I don't know I forget who made it don't call me on these a monster and it arrived and it was still tacky I'm like well that's weird because I mean it literally is just a 3d printed thing it's not a nice stand and it fits really well but it's a 3d printed Gage or that fits kind of perfectly behind the pop bumpers and by one of the ramps so t al Pro gef chains as account of repetition being inches het Nope It is not And then then the third and final thing was the uh that really awesome um uh kaiju mod that uh that you put in that makes the sign real nice And I started looking at the many pages of, of instructions and I started looking at all the things and I was like, nope, not today mod. **** This Week in Pinball Kendall Stanislav Shak тысяч, St conductivity Video But uh like back then it was an expensive game even the base model so they had to like kind of put more into it so I think they were like well this comes with a powder coat and well this comes with the art blades and well we had to pay the Beatles a lot of money to do their machine. The before time. Before everything went crazy. So what now what else do we do this week what else happened in the pinball world? Venom was announced. Venom was announced I could have swore everyone was clamoring that it was all these The Universe I Think we should start like if someone Says some bullshit thing that makes up a rumor and it's not true I think they should be banned from the internet for a month. I we have to have some consequences Yeah, and then after that then it's two months Compound see yeah crap And then four months It's just the nonsense you like just read through you like Oh The Ball and oh my god, that's probably gonna happen though. Oh I'm not ready for a I'm starting the rumor Barbie pinballs coming that my friend is Some of these are even actual like people that you would turn to for honest information and they're throwing out bullshit The What is that all stuff? Come on guys get on Point the race to talk about nonsense. It's not what you're not winning any race by being the first to say nonsense We can all talk about nonsense I'm the king of nonsense. I do four shows a week. I'm nothing but nonsense All right, so the venom. Yeah, I Don't know anything about the story of venom The Key I want to say pretty much one of the key villains from the Star Wars or Star Wars Yes, remember when he fought Wookiee's from the spider-man universe Oh, we remember we watched that just recently we watched the last one where they were like he was eating some guy He's somebody's head. I don't think I was watching that. Were you drunk? I don't think I was home Oh, I think you were watching it while I was at work. I don't think so, but doesn't matter it was a it's a good The Venom is a good villain and he's interesting I'm not that into it, but I definitely think it's cool I mean the art the artwork is always very cool and it's an interesting Character in that world, you know cuz I don't think we they already have like how many spider-man machines are there like two maybe? I don't know. I know there's one for sure. I think there's two Different ones again. I could be wrong. I'm not super up on my historical The but i think there's a couple of spiderman's already out there so then it was a good choice you know it i don't know which one the i didn't see the video gameplay yet i know it's out there they're gonna get there and i have a comic on which is i think why they announced it when they did i honestly think that sternly like knew that they were getting there taking it to comic con so they had to drop the information beforehand so people knew it was a thing to go see you know I mean that makes it that's a good place to release this one. Yeah, why not right? Yeah. Yeah, so Interesting we'll see the facts We'll see that, you know, there's a lot going on at Expo I'm kind of regretting us missing it this year, but that's the way that's the way it goes sometimes Yeah, we're houseballing it on the on the Expo this year, but there's a lot going on There's gonna be a lot of good games. There are new games. So that should be one of them. I'm sure yeah, I'm sure the pre-orders already sold out But whatever. So what else we got? Now we're gonna save the pinball we saw in the wild for your craft brew corner. You also had mentioned this week about having to take a class at work about stair safety. Yes, now you started laughing. I'll tell you. Now, safety's good. I'm gonna say in moderation in my own experience. I'm not the safest fellow in the world, but I have all my fingers and toes and both my eyes are still working right at this point. So I consider myself to be a bit of a safe guy Where I work really flies the safety flag and I mean by really you couldn hurt yourself there if you tried Like there like there no sharp objects and everything labeled there signs everywhere like so it crazy And then there this monthly every month there a safety meeting that you have mandatory safety meeting that you sit in teams and watch it and they go over something And this month was first it was talking about the heat index All you need to do is go to the site of the game and click on the link in the description box. All you need to do is go to the site of the game and click on the link in the description box. and click on the link in the description box. And then the second one they highlighted stair safety techniques and like how to be safe on stairs and I started laughing and I thought you know I had a videotape us taking machines down these stairs and watch the person that leads these literally have a heart attack in front of me. First she would crap her rompers because basically what happens is What happens is... Now we have a switchback set up so it's down one half flight, switch back, then the second half of the thing. So...Foghorn stands at the top of the first flight of stairs and says, okay let me know when you're ready. I stand at the bottom of the machine with most of the weight on my back and I gracefully help guide it with the power of gravity. I hold the hell out of those machines. You don't give me any credit. I am literally holding those machines with all my strength. It sure doesn't feel like it at the bottom of the pinball. All the grace and gravity and love. I have not died or been crushed by a pinball machine. No holes in the wall. No holes in the wall. Our system works. It does. Yes. But I'm pretty sure I didn't see our technique highlighted on the safety of councils stairwells. and mantarkand经 preview patents upbeat The fans have spoken and we have listened. Beer Journal Review with me, CraftBruce Alley. So, here we are with the Beer Journal Review. We have two things to talk about today. Two? Two. So, I was going to just review a beer this week. But then we decided we were going to go to a brewery. Fate intervened. Yes. So we went to a brewery and when we walked in there were pinball machines there. Wowzers. Right. So we went to Tack Brewing Company in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. Right. Yes. And then I ordered our beers and Foghorn played some pinball. I sure did. And what did you play? Well, first the bill, none of the bill, well I went and got ones because it was, I saw the bill changer on the front and then I think I put the first one in, I put one dollar into Oktoberfest and I played Oktoberfest and I don't know how to, I want to love Oktoberfest. Everybody wants to. And I play it, I'm like this game. There's just something wrong with it I don't know what like that in this one like the flippers weren't strong enough to really hit the shots And that has some really challenging ramps shots and seven and and I like it is an interesting fun game and I would If we had a huge collection, I would definitely want to have it in there. Yes craft Bruce Alley would like that as well Yeah, but I would definitely also have to have like the highest The game is a game of the highest caliber pin flipper sets installed with those little fans that keep it cool and like it's just it's a very it's a tough game to love. I don't remember it because I didn't play it when we were at the brewery. But I if I remember correctly those that one has really steep ramps. Yeah, yeah, and some and that's not I don't hate steep ramps. The game is a fun game. It's just I don't like it as much as I want to. Yes, I'm like that with Rick and Morty, too Yeah, I want to love Rick and Morty. I love Rick and Morty That game just it's so hard. Yeah, I don't need that in my life I mean, I would I would like to play it more but it's just like yeah So then the second one while we're playing and while we're sitting there ordering beer All I hear is Led Zeppelin playing ad nauseam. And I walk up to the machine. So it was the Octoberfest was right behind us. Then the middle one was Led Zeppelin. And the third one was Starship Troopers. Remember that? Of course you don't. So the middle one is playing. And it's playing and playing and playing. I'm like, what the hell? And I walk up and there's four players loaded like there's like there's it's a four player game in progress. It can't find the ball. It like The game is not ejecting the ball it just playing like it on this continual loop and it not even going into the help me mode which means they did that since they started up it way to try to find a volunteer several idea that that you do it just sat there so I try to reset like I try to holding in the flippers for twenty seconds I tried holding in some of the stuff and I finally walked over the person I was like hey this things broke him I don't know if you if you have the keys I might be able to help you probably the opto sensor optical sensor Only the вавтакинєӼӊӘӄ� Fı decadebeforeGrивать things Bunny Ma'am Kim Okay? I'm gonna go to my computer and I'm gonna do this. Sorry. No problem. Because I'm gonna take a break. I need to finish this. And then the third one was The Starship Troopers, and then I hadn't ever played that one. And I woke up and it won't take my bill. So the bill at the bill acceptor is broken. I was like, oh crap, now he go talk to me. So then got quarters. And I put the quarters and I was like, oh, this game just I didn't care for the movie. But it wasn't the worst thing I've ever seen. Trust me. The game didn't do anything for me. It had it did have an interesting thing. The game was two flippers on one side and one on the other side. But the top flipper had a bottom button. So you had to use like two different buttons on the right side and one on the left. That's challenging. That was challenging but you had certain shots had to have that bottom button flipped. So it wasn't, I mean it wasn't the worst game in the world but I wouldn't, I would definitely not want to buy it. The game was a weird experience. Unfortunately, that's kind of the experience people have sometimes with pinball on location. And it's not good for pinball on location. The new game is broke. And then the one game is like, I don't even know, what the hell is Starship Troopers? Nobody knows what the hell that is. And then the other one was like, eh, I don't know. It's tough. They did have a lot of Foo Fighters posters. And I said, hey, and they were very, these were like, they were really into the Foo Fighters. The Distributor that there's a Foo Fighters machine they said oh no we're on the list. Oh, okay cool that which makes sense Yeah, they really loved the Foo Fighters. They had these were those were like numbered to Marc Silk screened Concert posters on the wall. Oh wow, so I didn't notice that so okay, so that's the pinball breakdown. What about the beer breakdown? Okay? So we watch this show called Steve Austin takes on America So this last episode that we watched, he was talking about a brewery that's in California that brews Steve Austin's Broken skull beers. That's his like, Broken Skull is his brand. Yeah, brand. So we're going to California so I say to Foghorn, hey, maybe we should go there because they say that about everything in California. Yeah, apparently we're going we're apparently we're moving there for a hundred years because that's what's on the list of things we're doing but Anyway, so then we were at the festival doing grocery shopping and they happen to have the Steve Austin's broken skull IPA So we bought that get to check that off of the list for yeah, so now we don't have to go to that brewery Saved us $150 since we won't be fit there for Austin 316 day The Real thing it is explain that So he goes to this brewery every year on 316 cuz that's his like I Don't know catchphrase catchphrase So and then he interacts with all the fans for the entire day drinks beer with them Takes pictures with them hollers things like hell. Yeah, can I get a hell? Yeah, and that's all catawonky catawampus Tim Khan Surry, Of Tian maniac, fenn nadea, a little bit of a trophy, you don't have to be on our show cuz I would immediately get a 100 million listeners, so I gotta get those two things done, if I can film you smashing those beers and dumping them all over yourself. I would not be opposed to doing that, I think that would be fun. He'd probably give you a shout out, I dunno. I hope so, so we'll have to try to do that. Okay, so that it? That's it. Alright, so there you go. I don't think we have anything else. No. Kind of a slow week. Yeah. PINBALL is all this exciting stuff and I know you know the Stern cornerstone is we'll see how that goes with the venom. Yeah, just gonna be good. Foo Fighters is really good. Yeah, I thought so too. Fun game. I haven't had enough time on that one. No, we have to try to find one local. Yeah, I'm sure there'll be one soon. I Guess that's gonna do it. Yeah. All right. My name is Foghorn Leghorn and with me as always, Craft Bruce Alley, and we hope to see you next week. Same pinball time. See you next week. LeCؕhan, Game over man, game over!

_(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 0058c259-4abc-4dd5-b595-3102d4567433*