# Episode 129 - The Story of the Coil Burner

**Source:** For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast  
**Type:** podcast_episode  
**Published:** 2015-07-18  
**Duration:** 5m 32s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://foramusementonly.libsyn.com/episode-129-the-story-of-the-coil-burner

---

## Analysis

Nick Baldridge recounts the origin of his nickname 'The Coil Burner,' stemming from an incident at Steve Smith's Golden Gate bingo machine where a known bug in the magic screen timing mechanism caused a coil to overheat and catch fire, damaging the transformer. The episode is a personal anecdote about a mechanical failure in vintage electromechanical bingo machines, with a teaser for a future technical deep-dive into the bug's cause and remediation.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Certain magic screen bingo machines (including Bikini and Golden Gate) have a bug where the timer continues stepping while the game is scoring, causing the game to time out and lock a coil that should not be locked. — _Nick Baldridge, episode host, explaining the technical bug that caused the incident_
- [HIGH] The bug can be remediated by adding an extra switch that allows the machine to stay active until scoring is finished. — _Nick Baldridge describing the known fix_
- [HIGH] Steve Smith's Golden Gate bingo machine caught fire due to the locked coil, damaging the transformer and other parts. — _Nick Baldridge's firsthand account of the incident_
- [HIGH] Jeffrey Lawton provided spare transformer and search index coil parts to Steve Smith shortly after the incident (around York show time). — _Nick Baldridge recounting the rescue and parts provision_
- [MEDIUM] A coil also burned out on Steve Smith's Malibu Beach machine during the same visit, which Nick attributes to natural failure timing. — _Nick Baldridge anecdotally noting a second coil failure during the same session_

### Notable Quotes

> "Well, the coil catches fire like any good coil will do. And its position in the head ensures that it'll take out things like the transformer and various other parts of the machine if left on too long."
> — **Nick Baldridge**, ~2:30
> _Explains the cascading damage risk from the locked coil in the magic screen bug_

> "Steve walks in and he says you smell something burning? I did not uh... I don't have the most sensitive nose uh... Steve uh... quickly turns the power off the Golden Gate he runs around to the back of the machine and we hear the wax inside the transformer bubbling and popping and uh... the coil has in fact caught fire"
> — **Nick Baldridge**, ~4:00
> _Vivid moment of discovery when Steve Smith realizes the transformer is burning_

> "So that's why they call me the Coil Burner, because I happen to have that effect on machines."
> — **Nick Baldridge**, ~6:00
> _Direct explanation of the origin of the nickname_

> "In a future episode I'm going to talk about that particular bug, how to remediate it, and what causes it."
> — **Nick Baldridge**, ~6:15
> _Teaser for technical deep-dive episode on the magic screen timing bug_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Nick Baldridge | person | Host of For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast; self-described 'Coil Burner'; collector and enthusiast of electromechanical and bingo pinball machines |
| Steve Smith | person | Bingo machine collector; owner of Golden Gate and Bikini bingo machines; experienced with bingo machine mechanics and bugs; based in area near York show venue |
| Jeffrey Lawton | person | Bingo machine parts supplier or collector who provided spare transformer and search index coil to Steve Smith following the Golden Gate fire incident |
| Golden Gate | game | Magic screen bingo machine owned by Steve Smith; affected by the timing bug that caused a coil fire; requires transformer replacement after incident |
| Bikini | game | Magic screen bingo machine; also affected by the timing bug that causes coil lockup during scoring |
| Malibu Beach | game | Bingo machine owned by Steve Smith; experienced coil failure during Nick's visit, though attributed to natural wear rather than the timing bug |
| For Amusement Only | organization | EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast hosted by Nick Baldridge; focuses on electromechanical and bingo pinball machines |
| York show | event | Pinball/amusement machine show occurring within a week or a few weeks of the Golden Gate fire incident |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Electromechanical (EM) and Bingo Pinball Machines, Magic Screen Bingo Machines – Technical Bug, Coil Failure and Transformer Damage
- **Secondary:** Machine Remediation and Parts Sourcing, Collector Community and Peer Support
- **Mentioned:** Pinball/Amusement Machine Shows and Events

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.75) — Nick tells the story with humor and affection, treating the incident as a humorous origin story rather than a disaster. He frames the 'Coil Burner' nickname as endearing community recognition. The tone is nostalgic and self-deprecating. Steve Smith's quick response and the community's support (Jeffrey Lawton providing parts) reinforce positive peer relationships.

### Signals

- **[product_concern]** Known bug in magic screen bingo machines (Golden Gate, Bikini) where the timer continues stepping during scoring, causing coil lockup and potential fire damage to transformer and other components. (confidence: high) — Nick Baldridge's detailed technical description of the mechanism and consequences; Steve Smith's prior knowledge of the bug; physical fire damage to Golden Gate machine
- **[restoration_signal]** Golden Gate bingo machine required transformer and search index coil replacement after fire damage; parts sourced from Jeffrey Lawton. (confidence: high) — Nick's account of Jeffrey Lawton providing spare transformer and search index coil; machine returned to operation before York show
- **[community_signal]** Bingo machine collector community demonstrates peer support through rapid parts provision and shared technical knowledge about known bugs. (confidence: high) — Jeffrey Lawton's quick provision of critical parts; Steve Smith's willingness to share knowledge of the bug with Nick despite not having remediated his own machines
- **[design_philosophy]** Steve Smith was aware of the magic screen timing bug but had not remediated either of his affected machines (Golden Gate, Bikini) prior to the incident, suggesting a trade-off or resource decision. (confidence: medium) — Nick states: 'Steve had informed me of this bug long before that in an offhanded comment... Now Steve has not remediated either of his machines to prevent this bug'
- **[event_signal]** York show occurred within approximately one week of the Golden Gate fire incident; timeline used as reference point for when parts were sourced. (confidence: medium) — Nick states: 'The York show was just a few weeks or maybe just a week that fateful day'

---

## Transcript

 The End What's that sound? It's 4 Amusement Only, the EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast. Welcome back to 4 Amusement Only, this is Nicholas Baldridge. Tonight I wanted to tell you a story about my nickname. My nickname is The Coil Burner. And the story involves Steve Smith and his Golden Gate bingo machine. I went over after the bingo bug had bit. I was talking with Steve about the game and was playing on Steve's bingos, which of course were working great when I got there. Well Steve had told me of a bug in the mechanism for timing on certain magic screen bingos which happened to include both of his bikini and the golden gate This bug causes the timer to continue to Step up while the game is scoring So the game will actually time out leaving a coil locked on that should not be So what happens after a period of time? Well, the coil catches fire like any good coil will do. And its position in the head ensures that it'll take out things like the transformer and various other parts of the machine if left on too long. Well, Steve had informed me of this bug long before that in an offhanded comment when I was just getting into him and I had completely forgotten it. Now Steve has not remediated either of his machines to prevent this bug. There's an extra switch that you can add which will allow the machine to stay active until it's finished scoring. So, what happens? I get a fairly big win on Golden Gate, not a huge win, but a fairly big one, and push the R button, it starts counting up credits. Steve has to use the restroom He leaves he comes back and doing what I thought was right I left the machine alone It did not count my credits properly and in fact stopped and it timed out but I wasn't aware of what really was happening behind the scenes. I just thought, hey, it didn't count the credits right. I'm gonna stop and let Steve know when he gets back. Steve walksIn and he says you smell something burning? I did not uh... I don't have the most sensitive nose uh... Steve uh... quickly turns the power off the golden gate he runs around to the back of the machine and we hear the wax inside the transformer bubbling and popping and uh... the coil has in fact caught fire that nickname comes from that fateful day where i burned out the search index coil in steve's golden gate the york show was just a few weeks or maybe just a week that fateful day and uh... jeffrey lawton came to the rescue with uh... spare transformer and Search index coil so steve got that and uh i can remember now if i helped him put it in or not Next result for each question But while I was there, I tried out his Malibu beach and a coil burned out there too. It was just that coil's time to die. So that's why they call me the coil burner, because I happen to have that effect on machines. In a future episode I'm going to talk about that particular bug, how to remediate it, and what causes it. Thanks for listening. My name again is Nick Baldrige. You can reach me at 4amusementonlypodcast at gmail.com or you can call me on the bingo line which is 724-bingos1 . You can listen to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, via RSS, on Facebook, on Twitter at Bingo Podcast. You can follow me on Instagram at nbaldridge, or you can listen on our website, which is foreignamusementonly.libsyn.com. Thank you very much for listening and I'll talk to you next time.

_(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

---

*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 1f022b67-aafa-4f37-9636-b830ce979ce8*