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The Grasley Garage! High Speed, Ripleys & 6 Million $ Man progress!

Pinball Shenanigans·video·18m 23s·analyzed·Feb 28, 2026
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.024

TL;DR

Grazley Garage restoration update: High Speed, Ripley's, Six Million Dollar Man, and incoming Tales of the Arabian Nights projects

Summary

Mike Dimas visits Grazley Garage after returning from the Canadian National Pinball Championships to check on multiple restoration projects. Kevin and Dutch Pinball have been working on several machines including an original High Speed, Ripley's Believe It or Not, Six Million Dollar Man, and a newly arrived Tales of the Arabian Nights that requires a full chrome package and ramp replacement. The garage is operating at high capacity with multiple machines in queue.

Key Claims

  • Ryan Wendell sent a $27.99 CAD super thanks, described as the world record for largest super thanks on the channel

    high confidence · Mike Dimas opening segment

  • Six Million Dollar Man required four different colors applied over four different days of painting

    high confidence · Kevin discussing the restoration process with Mike

  • Andre, a new customer to Grazley Garage, purchased Tales of the Arabian Nights from Davis Stills for $14,500

    high confidence · Mike and Kevin discussing the new machine arrival

  • Andre is a former 90s pinball operator who sold his collection and is now trying to buy back 90s machines

    high confidence · Kevin explaining Andre's background

  • Rob Vieira is picking up the restored Harlem machine on Saturday after recovering from an injury

    high confidence · Mike and Kevin discussing the Harlem/Ripley's project

  • The High Speed cabinet used old stencils that were at least five years old, requiring individual detail work

    high confidence · Mike and Kevin discussing High Speed restoration challenges

  • Al's Garage Band Goes on a World Tour has only 1 confirmed machine made, possibly 2 in existence

    high confidence · Mike describing the rare machine at the garage

  • Al's Garage Band is asking price $8,200

    high confidence · Mike and Kevin discussing pricing

Notable Quotes

  • “I'm always trying to find where the rhythm is, and this season, for me, has felt like a pinball machine, where the flippers are going, the ball's going everywhere, and you never know when it's going to come back down or pop back up.”

    Mike Dimas @ Opening — Thematic framing of the episode using pinball metaphor for life rhythm

  • “He's got a hint I said John Popadiuk that's about all you're gonna get right now”

    Mike Dimas @ ~2:40 — Building suspense around the newly arrived machine

  • “This is four different colors and four different days of painting, basically, right? Yeah.”

    Mike Dimas / Kevin @ ~5:30 — Highlighting the labor-intensive restoration process for Six Million Dollar Man

  • “Poor JC I guess he hurt his arm somehow He slipped and fell and has been playing one pinball”

    Mike Dimas @ ~7:45 — Community health update about collector JC's injury

  • “There are two Tales of Arabian Nights at the Grazley Garage right now.”

    Mike Dimas @ ~13:20 — Reveals the identity of the mystery machine

  • “It's a good problem to have. Absolutely. So, Eldorado is supposed to be coming in and Captain Fantastic as well.”

    Mike Dimas / Kevin @ ~14:45 — Indicates high demand for Kevin's restoration services and upcoming projects

  • “I love the faux gold powder coating that you went with is that what you would call this uh i don't know i feel like it's just like sandy gold it seemed to go with the sort of ancient sort of vibe”

    Mike Dimas / Kevin @ ~17:30 — Discussion of aesthetic choices in cabinet restoration for Ripley's

  • “if you've never done stencils you just wouldn't really know how how much work they are and i've never done them so but every little detail there that takes some time”

    Mike Dimas @ ~23:30 — Highlighting the tedious nature of stencil work in cabinet restoration

Entities

Mike DimaspersonKevinpersonDutch PinballpersonRyan WendellpersonGrazley GaragecompanyAndrepersonJCpersonDavis StillspersonRob VieirapersonRob Edwardsperson

Signals

  • ?

    business_signal: Grazley Garage is at or near capacity with multiple simultaneous major projects (High Speed, Ripley's, Six Million Dollar Man, Tales of the Arabian Nights) plus incoming machines (Xenon, Eldorado, Captain Fantastic).

    high · Kevin: 'It is. It's a good problem to have' in response to being nearly overbooked, and Mike noting 'three major projects going on simultaneously'

  • ?

    community_signal: Bigfoot Bruce and organization raising funds for accessibility via GoFundMe for elevator installation at facility serving individuals with developmental disabilities.

    high · Mike's closing message about Bigfoot Bruce's fundraising initiative with direct link promised in description

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Cabinet color selection driven by thematic and aesthetic matching (Ripley's sandy gold to match ancient/desert vibe vs. bright yellow alternatives).

    medium · Kevin: 'This is a little more subtle and matches well' and 'I've seen people do them in bright yellow and stuff like that and it didn't seem to go for me'

  • $

    market_signal: Veteran operator Andre returning to pinball market after previous collection sale, preferring 90s-era machines over contemporary models.

    high · Kevin: 'he was an operator' and 'He has newer stuff but he doesn't really like the newer stuff Kind of wants his 90s stuff back'

  • $

    market_signal: Tales of the Arabian Nights John Popadiuk machine sold for $14,500, with additional investment in complete chrome package (legs, rails, lock bar, coin door, ramps).

    high · Mike and Kevin discussing Andre's purchase: 'Davis Stills and then immediately dropped it off here... $14,500... And apparently bought or is buying a complete chrome package'

Transcript

youtube_groq_whisper · $0.055

0:00
Julie, I'm always trying to find where the rhythm is, and this season, to me, has felt like a pinball machine, where the flippers are going, the ball's going everywhere, and you never know when it's going to come back down or pop back up. I'm every shenanigans.
0:14
I'm Mike Dimas, and this is Pinball Shenanigans. just want to give a quick shout out to ryan wendell who sent in a super thanks of 27.99 canadian which is now the world record for the largest super thanks on the channel so thanks very much brother he loves the grazily garage and as a matter of fact i sold him my high speed to the getaway that was restored by Kevin and it was a beauty and Ryan still has that and loves the action thanks again brother much appreciated I have been gone for about a week to Edmonton for the Canadian National Pinball Championships and now that I am back I gotta pop over to Kevin's to the Grazley Garage pick up a couple things including my Jurassic Park The Lost World Art Blades, they are finally in, and I got some displays I have to pick up, but of course, while we're over there, we're going to see what Kevin and Dutch have been up to.
1:20
I know, well, Kevin works fast. I've seen a couple photos. He's been working diligently on the OG High Speed. Him and Dutch were tag-teaming on their Ripley's, believe it or not, restoration and there's more. I forget what it is right now. What is it? Oh, um,
1:47
John Popadiuk
person
Chris McKinleyperson
Dave Flittonperson
Coryperson
Bigfoot Bruceperson
High Speedgame
Ripley's Believe It or Notgame
Six Million Dollar Mangame
Tales of the Arabian Nightsgame
Al's Garage Band Goes on a World Tourgame
Canadian National Pinball Championshipsevent
Harlemgame
  • ?

    product_strategy: High Speed playfield features custom clear ramp and clear bumper caps with colored skirts (green, red, yellow) instead of standard dark ramp.

    high · Mike: 'Look at that. I love the clear bumper caps with the green, red and yellow skirts. And the clear ramp, yeah right. It's normally dark. Clear is so much better.'

  • ?

    product_concern: High Speed cabinet restoration required extensive stencil detail work due to age of templates (5+ years old), with each small detail requiring individual hand extraction.

    high · Kevin: 'these decals or stencils were like gotta be at least five years old' and Mike: 'every little detail there that takes some time'

    • John Terrest's $6 million man has made some significant progress. So I wouldn't be surprised if there's other stuff. Oh, there is other stuff. I'll leave that as a surprise. A new machine has arrived at the Grazy Garage from a customer and it is an A-list title and it is going to get the full treatment we're talking new plate field chrome package new ramps in the meanwhile you can try and guess what it is between now and the time i get there i'll give you a slight hint john papaduke so see you over at the grazy garage all right back at the Grazely Garage, what's going on, brother?
    2:32
    Did you miss me? That is the correct answer. Alright, well, let's see what you've been up to. You sent me a couple photos.
    2:41
    Alright. Let's see. Ah, okay. That is the surprise. I was debriefing the people on the way here. And, um, I told them that there was a new machine that has arrived. I didn't tell them what it was. And, uh, we'll just keep you hanging here but i gave him a hint i said john papaduke uh that's about all you're gonna get right now we'll circle back around to this okay so it looks like you got uh that's the medusa right yeah so it's next up next in line all right and it smells like fresh paint in here
    3:19
    because uh wow the six million dollar man looks like formerly that was the matahari cabinet the one that had the honking uh security bracket at the front this has come a long way let's uh do a little walk around here oh that looks amazing oh you got some touch-ups to do yeah a couple little
    3:44
    oh yeah i see like a little red there just to straighten it out yeah for the most part it turned out pretty good when did you finish this in the neck black last night yeah um blue night for the night before that. Oh, wow.
    4:01
    You've got to do one coat, then wait a day to dry, and then the next coat. This is four different colors and four different days of painting, basically, right? Yeah. It looks amazing. JC, this is a John Trest machine.
    4:21
    He's probably pretty stoked about this. He's going to add this to his Grazy Garage lineup. I sent some teasing pictures to him last night. Oh, nice. He was pretty psyched. Oh yeah Poor JC I guess he hurt his arm somehow He slipped and fell and has been playing one pinball Did you hear about this No I didn see it Oh really I just messaged him last night asked him how Close Encounters was doing and he took a little spill so he's only been able to play one-handed, but hopefully your arm is healed up by the time this is good to go and then you can be playing some Six Million Dollar Man. so oh you got what for play fields by by play fields is that them right there yep I won't make you bust them all out and I won't give anybody your address are they open or no okay shall we tell the boys and girls what the mystery machine is oh yeah let's do it okay now that the painting is done this can actually get unwrapped. So another hint, this is a Davis Stills old machine. He posted it for sale recently for $16,500, I believe. $14,500. Oh yeah, that's right. And a customer, what is the customer's name? Do you remember? Andre. Say again? Andre. Oh yeah, okay. Andre. So, new customer to the Grazy Garage, Andre, shout out. He picked this up from Davis Still and then immediately dropped it off here. New customer to me, very seasoned in pinball. Oh, yeah. Okay, so this guy was collecting pinball machines back in the 90s, right?
    6:14
    Oh, he was an operator. Oh, okay. Oh, yeah, so he's well-versed. He knows his machines. It sounded like you said he sold his collection A while ago And now he's kind of like trying to buy them back Well he has newer stuff But he doesn't really like the newer stuff Kind of wants his 90s stuff back Oh yeah okay he wants to go back to the 90s OG action So he brought me this Saturday It is now Wednesday So he brought this Saturday I was talking to a guy about a Circus Voltaire On Sunday drove to go back to pick up the circus oh no shit yeah okay so back to back papadukes and is he bringing the circus voltaire here it's really nice actually he traded his uh lucy acvc oh yeah okay so yeah he picked this up dropped it off here and apparently bought or is buying a complete chrome package for this. I think he has. So legs, side rails, lock bar, even coin door, you said?
    7:19
    Brand new ramps. It has a little thing for the CPR playfield to ride. CPR playfield, Starship Fantasy ramps, right?
    7:30
    So this is going to be a pretty epic. You probably guessed by now what it is, but maybe not. There's only so many John Papaduke games, and you're not going to Chrome out a Star Wars Episode I. So that narrows it down. We know it's not a Circus Voltaire. That really just leaves either Theater of Magic or World Cup Soccer. Could be that. Or Tales of the Arabian Nights. So down to the wire here. Andre packed this up well. Oh, there it is.
    8:04
    There are two Tales of Arabian Nights at the Grazely Garage right now. so there she is packed up good yeah good job through all the moving blankets they're international movers so oh right yeah international moving company so they know what they're doing um good to have stuff in the queue there's the the other pile of machines over there so lots going on in the garage a guy messaged me last night asked if he can drop a xenon off On Friday. Oh, yeah? Is that happening? I don't know. I didn't respond yet. Oh, yeah? Okay. You're almost getting too much work. It is. It's a good problem to have. Absolutely. So, Eldorado is supposed to be coming in Captain Fantastic as well. Right. I forgot about that. And whose are those? Both from the same guy? Eldorado is somebody Dave Flitton sent my way. Oh, yeah? Captain Fantastic is Corey's old one that he sold. Oh, okay. Cool. Lots going on in here. Is there stuff happening in the arcade as well I think I know one thing Let me see what was the other thing Oh yeah okay I mentioned the other two things on the way here So let see what we got
    9:22
    Oh, there's the High Speed, and there's the Ripley's, and there's the Harlem. You know what, since I've been back from Edmonton, I've been meaning to reach out to Rob Vieira and see how he's doing. He's doing well. He's at home. He's coming to get this Saturday. Well, good to hear Rob Vieira is back at home and he's going to pick this up Saturday and he can finally get this home. So it's been a long time coming for him. And wow, look at this. I love the faux gold powder coating that you went with is that what you would call this uh i don't know i feel like it's just like sandy gold it seemed to go with the sort of ancient sort of vibe oh yeah okay yeah i see you mean sandy desert gold powder coating this looks amazing and then we did all the wire forms to match kind of got stuck without putting the playfield back together but these art blades are cool little tiki guys
    10:28
    all right on this it's pretty well ready to go let's go play field has dutch been uh working the play field yeah we were kind of stuck waiting for the wire forms oh okay so now that you got the wire forms you can uh jam that back together looks amazing and here's the play field
    10:52
    it's also a workbench simultaneously this is this is dutch's the way he works oh yeah does he take after you with kind of doing one little section at a time he does but he puts all his tools in the center and everything yeah it's a bit a bit chaotic but here's the wire forms with the sandy gold action there. He always gets it finished in the end. Oh yeah, he pulls through. Alright, well, that is some Ripley's Believe It or Not action. That cabinet job is a beauty. I like your choice of powder coating. Yeah, I've seen people do them in bright yellow and stuff like that and it didn't seem to go for me. Yeah, I can't, I mean, I can see a yellow on it, but I mean, if you put that yellow on here, it might be a little much. This is a little more subtle and matches well. Okay, this is the high speed. This is Rob Edwards, and this is looking amazing. I love the red powder coating with the matching yellow cabinet protectors that just, and the yellow flipper buttons that all just matches so nicely it looks great well let's uh do a little tour around this guy here this one give you any trouble or pretty busy art on the side here i think these decals or stencils were like gotta be at least five years old oh really working with some old stencils okay so not so much the artwork that was a hassle it was just the freaking stencils themselves yeah picking out little things oh yeah right you gotta pick out each little dot individually oh my god right so if you've never done stencils you just wouldn't really know how much work they are and i've never done them so but every little detail there that takes some time did you add a like um semi-gloss clear coat on this because it's nice and shiny and uh the play field is in the garage oh yeah oh yeah you did this a while ago oh on a side note the Monte Carlo is still for sale and it is uh what 2,500 bucks so if you are interested or know anybody that's interested in a basically new in box Monte Carlo then reach out also I noticed that your Al Garage Band goes on a world tour is now for sale so if you interested in one of these it a very rare game they made only 1 of them and this could be the nicest one in existence possibly one of only two in Canada that we're aware of this neon green powder coating it's amazing and basically a new old stock back glass too right oh yeah playfield decal set all right shout out to chris mckinley for the playfield decal set he got it like chicago pinball expo or something he found like oh allentown yeah like this and this and this the custom apron cards are awesome and um the fact that you found an og topper to go with it It was amazing. So what's the asking on this? $8,200? $8,200 for a high-end, super rare Al's Garage Band. So if you're interested, reach out. But yeah, here's the high-speed playfield. I remember showing this in a previous video or two, but I haven't checked it out in a while. And this is a thing of beauty. Look at that. I love the clear pop bumper caps with the green, red and yellow skirts. And the clear ramp, yeah right. It's normally black. Clear is so much better. So anything else going on in the garage that I'm missing? I usually like, I usually overlook something. But uh. After a few weeks, they keep me busy. Yeah I mean well, it's like what? three major projects going on simultaneously. Yeah, I ended up having to put,
    15:43
    I had to borrow your storage. Oh, did you? Oh, you're lucky you told me because I was going to go there after this because I was just going to go do an annual inspection. They're like, they sent me an email like, it's now the time to check your storage. Just make sure there's no mold or evidence of mice or anything like that. So yeah, okay. I got to go in with my flashlight check all the nooks and crannies and make sure uh everything's okay and then see what else uh you got stuffed in there well i just put uh muscle around and bag man in there just so i could assemble some games oh yeah yeah well space is available there might as well use it up all right well that's what's going on the grazy grudge we'll see on the next one oh and uh ryan wendell another shout out to him he sent a super thanks of 27.99 canadian and says he loves the grazy garage so keep it rolling okay i'm just on my way home from the grazy garage i got my art blades okay the first ones that were sent to me got hung up in the mail and after like two months or whatever it was we let the guy know and he sent a second set so i just got a text like 20 seconds ago that my art blades arrived so I guess the original set eventually did show up I'm not sure which one but I've got two sets hey fellow shenanigans I just wanted to send out a quick message here before you take off our buddy old pal fellow shenanigan or Bigfoot Bruce who's helped me out with so many different things over the years like 3d printed slot machine arms for high roller casino all kinds of custom spinner decals and apron cards and coin door decals for GammaTron, all kinds of goodies. Anyway, he just asked if I could send out a message. He and an organization, they work with individuals with developmental disabilities, and they purchased a building for this cause, but it only has stairs, and they're trying to raise money to purchase an elevator to make it accessible to everybody so they have a go fund me I'll put the link in the description if you can donate a loony or a toonie or whatever to the cause Bigfoot Bruce and everybody involved would be greatly appreciated so thanks and we'll see you guys on the next one