Falcon Crest is GO

TL;DR

This Flippin' Podcast reunites after 9 months to discuss pandemic pinball, rail manufacturing, classic restorations, and speculation on Stern classic remakes.

Summary

Key Claims

• Taylor Reese has the most rails in production he's ever had due to pandemic-driven demand for restoration work

  high confidence · Taylor Reese states 'I have the most rails in production you've ever had. It's been crazy' in response to host asking about his business status

• A fully restored classic Fathom with new playfield, chrome trim, and modern parts costs approximately the same as a Haggis Pinball new machine ($10,000+)

  high confidence · Taylor states 'with the whole restoration, all the parts that I did, and, like, doing the chrome trim and everything, I spent very close to what a Haggis pinball machine costs' starting from a $2,000 base game

• Building a custom Stargazer from scratch (without base game, collecting parts) would cost approximately $4,000+ in parts alone

  high confidence · Taylor mentions 'without a base game and like definitely not all the parts yet, I'm already at $4,000 in parts' when quoting a spreadsheet he created

• Ron Cruisman's clear coat service takes 3-6 months due to thin layering process and waiting between coats

  high confidence · Host explains Cruisman's process: 'it takes like three to six months because he does really thin layers and he waits like two weeks in between each coat'

• Cruisman's clear coat service costs $500-$550 on top of base playfield costs (CPR playfield ~$800)

  high confidence · Host states 'I think his clear coat is like $500 or $550' and discusses CPR playfield pricing at '$800'

• Taylor's location-based Jurassic Park has 2,100 plays; his home Jurassic Park has over 4,000 plays

  high confidence · Taylor says 'I checked my audits on my Jurassic Park that's been on location since it literally was brought home, and it's at 2,100 plays' and 'I have probably over 4,000' for his home machine

• Stern sold 750 Mandalorians, suggesting strong demand for limited runs of classic remakes

  high confidence · Host states 'They just sold 750 Mandalorians, which we're going to talk about, guys, where the new game was just announced before it was ever publicly announced'

Notable Quotes

• “I think my big thing was, like, for me, pinball is so much about, like, hanging out with my friends that when I no longer could really do that, I just kind of, like, went to a – I just became kind of disinterested in talking about it.”

  Taylor Reese @ ~3:00 — Explains the 9-month hiatus as pandemic-related social isolation rather than loss of interest in pinball itself

• “I finally figured out my material issue. I so I was able to source material, and I just been making crazy amount of rails.”

  Taylor Reese @ ~8:00 — Describes resolution of supply chain crisis that had nearly forced closure of his rail manufacturing business

• “It's so beautiful. I love it. It's a literal work of art. I think the only game with better art is Fathom. But, like, gameplay, I get why they were all beat to share out on location back in the day because it is super multiball heavy.”

  Host (Tommy) @ ~25:00 — Assessment of Centaur's art vs. gameplay balance, contextualizing appeal of classic games

• “do you want good and expensive or cheap and fast?”

  Host (Tommy) @ ~35:00 — Frames the trade-off between artisanal, high-quality restoration work and mass manufacturing efficiency

• “if they're going to sell a base game – but look, Fathom at $5,000, that somebody then has to throw in another $4,000 to get to a new in-box game, it doesn't make any sense. Like, you've got to work back.”

  Host (Tommy) @ ~42:00 — Articulates pricing logic problem if Haggis Fathom is priced too high relative to restoration costs

• “I cannot imagine that Stern didn't see that announcement and see how many they sell and isn't like, well, start getting Stargazer and Sea Witch playfields ready because we're making them.”

  Host (Tommy) @ ~45:00 — Prediction that Haggis's Fathom success will trigger Stern to greenlight other classic remakes

• “If they were like, hey, we're going to do five classic titles. We're going to limit it to 200 to do an LE. They would sell out. They just sold 750 Mandalorians.”

Entities

Signals

• ?

  manufacturing_signal: Taylor resolved material sourcing crisis that nearly forced closure of rail business; now at highest production capacity ever

  high · Taylor states 'I finally figured out my material issue. I so I was able to source material, and I just been making crazy amount of rails'

• ?

  restoration_signal: Ron Cruisman's clear coat process uses thin layering and extended curing (3-6 months) to achieve dimple-resistant finishes; confirmed through impact testing

  high · Tommy explains process and Taylor confirms testing: 'I did it under the apron area, but I just like legit threw pinballs at it...And it did not dimple'

• ?

  product_concern: CPR mirrored plastics do not provide visible gameplay benefit and are not worth the premium cost

  medium · Tommy states 'you don't really see or notice when you're playing a game at all. You have to really point it out for someone...So don't waste your money on them'

• $

  market_signal: Pricing gap emerging between Haggis Fathom remake (~$10,000) and restored original Fathom (base $5,000-6,000 + restoration $7,000); hosts predict gap will drive buyers toward new rather than restored machines

  high · Host states 'if you're trying to sell a base game – but look, Fathom at $5,000, that somebody then has to throw in another $4,000 to get to a new in-box game, it doesn't make any sense'

• ?

  rumor_hype: Strong speculation that Stern will announce Stargazer, Sea Witch, and Quicksilver remakes following Haggis Fathom success; hosts note Mandalorians sold 750 units suggesting demand for limited runs