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Episode 69 - Vari-Targets

For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·7m 44s·held·May 19, 2015
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.018

TL;DR

Deep dive into Gottlieb's Vari-Target mechanism: history, mechanics, and troubleshooting.

Summary

Nicholas Baldridge explains the Vari-Target mechanism, a Gottlieb innovation from 1969 that uses a spring-loaded ratcheting arm to score variable points based on ball strike force. He details the mechanical operation, troubleshooting tips, and traces its use across D. Gottlieb & Co. machines and later adoption by Williams and Stern in solid-state games.

Key Claims

  • Vari-Target was invented by Gottlieb in 1969 and first released on either Airport or College Queens

    high confidence · Nicholas Baldridge, host, presenting as established historical fact with minor uncertainty about which game was first

  • The mechanism uses a ratcheting arm that scores different points based on how hard the ball strikes the target

    high confidence · Nicholas Baldridge, explaining core mechanical principle

  • Williams copied the Vari-Target design in the 1980s solid-state game Bad Cats

    medium confidence · Nicholas Baldridge, noting Williams adaptation with caveat about solid-state implementation

  • Gottlieb continued using Vari-Targets through 1992's Operation: Thunder

    medium confidence · Nicholas Baldridge, identifying last D. Gottlieb & Co. machine with the feature

  • Stern used Vari-Targets in Ripley's Believe It or Not

    medium confidence · Nicholas Baldridge, noting Stern's adoption in solid-state era

Notable Quotes

  • “Very Target was invented by Gottlieb in 1969 and was first released on either Airport or College Queens. I'm not sure which was actually released first but airport shows a date one month before College Queens so we'll just call it airport”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~0:40 — Establishes the origin point and uncertainty about which game debuted the mechanism first

  • “the very targets principle is pretty simple there is a target on the playfield that you strike with the ball and depending on how hard you strike it it will score a different amount of points and then return the ball to you”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~1:00 — Clearly summarizes the core gameplay mechanic and player experience

  • “It works in a similar way to a search disk, if you've heard my 9,000 podcasts on search disks”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~2:30 — Self-referential humor about extensive prior coverage; signals recurring theme in podcast series

  • “The easiest thing to check, though, is if your leaf switches are adjusted appropriately to touch the rivets on the little wiper disc.”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~3:15 — Primary troubleshooting advice for non-functional Vari-Targets

  • “In typical Gottlieb fashion, for most of their mechanisms that relied on coils, be it interlock coils for something like A-head or GG, or the very targets here, you have an adjustment.”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~3:50 — Explains Gottlieb's design philosophy and standardized adjustment approach across mechanisms

  • “The very targets were typically used in pairs on the left and right side of the play field, but there were some exceptions to that, and machines like Gottlieb's Minicycle only used a single very target.”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~4:50 — Documents standard playfield layout and known exception

  • “One of the most popular games that used the very target was Baseball, wedge head Baseball used the typical paired very target setup”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~5:15 — Identifies an iconic game featuring the mechanism in standard configuration

Entities

Nicholas BaldridgepersonGottliebcompanyWilliamscompanySterncompanyVari-TargetproductAirportgameCollege QueensgameMini Cyclegame

Signals

  • ?

    historical_signal: Comprehensive historical documentation of Vari-Target mechanism from invention (Gottlieb 1969) through late-era adoption by Williams and Stern, showing cross-manufacturer design adoption and technology transition from EM to solid-state

    high · Detailed timeline from Airport/College Queens (1969) through Operation Thunder (1992) to Bad Cats and Ripley's Believe It or Not

  • ?

    design_innovation: Detailed technical explanation of Vari-Target's ratcheting spring mechanism, leaf switch configuration, coil activation, and score motor integration; demonstrates elegant early pinball engineering

    high · Multi-minute segment explaining coil ratcheting, leaf switches on wiper disc, spring tension, and adjustment methodology

  • ?

    restoration_signal: Practical maintenance guidance for restoring non-functional Vari-Target mechanisms; covers common failure modes and adjustment procedures specific to Gottlieb design standards

    high · Section on checking leaf switch alignment to rivets, coil plate positioning, cleaning requirements, and two-screw adjustment procedure

  • ?

    content_signal: Episode continues established podcast pattern of deep-dive technical education on specific EM mechanisms; host references extensive prior coverage of related systems (search disk) suggesting systematic educational approach

    high · Host's self-referential joke about '9,000 podcasts on search disks'; structured technical presentation format

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Reveals Gottlieb's consistent approach to coil-based mechanism design across product line; standardized adjustment methodology (two-screw system) demonstrates engineering consistency

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.023

0:00
what's that sound it's for amusement only the em and bingo pinball podcast welcome back to for amusement only this is nick baldridge tonight i got my glasses in so i'm excited i can actually see stuff again I'm interested to tear back into ticker tape but I'm taking a couple days break and then I will get back into my search disk problems but I promise no more search disk podcasts I will share whatever the fix is going to be for that I have a couple ideas we'll see But for now, I wanted to talk about Very Targets.
1:03
Very Target was invented by Gottlieb in 1969 and was first released on either Airport or College Queens. I'm not sure which was actually released first but airport shows a date one month before College Queen so we'll just call it airport the very targets principle is pretty simple there is a target on the playfield that you strike with the ball and depending on how hard you strike it will score a different amount of points and then return the ball to you So the way that this works the ball will hit the target and it will ratchet a small mechanism under the playfield attached to a long target arm and then a coil will pull in and release the target arm, pushing back against the ball.
2:12
After it has ratcheted to the appropriate position, the score motor will engage and score the appropriate amount of points.
2:22
Now there are two leaf switches, and instead of making physical contact with each other, they make contact with two evenly spaced contacts across this bar. It works in a similar way to a search disk, if you've heard my 9,000 podcasts on search disks where you have a contact plate that is full of rivets and then switches that run across them.

  • “Williams copied the very target in its own special way in the 1980s game Bad Cats but that's a solid state”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~6:30 — Notes cross-manufacturer adoption and transition from EM to solid-state technology

  • “Gottlieb continued using them up through the 80s and up until 1992's Operation: Thunder. Sam Stern even got in on the Very Target action in Ripley's Believe It or Not.”

    Nicholas Baldridge @ ~7:00 — Establishes timeline of Vari-Target use across eras and manufacturers

    • Baseball
    game
    Bad Catsgame
    Operation: Thundergame
    Ripley's Believe It or Not!game
    For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcastorganization

    high · Discussion of adjustment methodology being 'typical Gottlieb fashion' for A-Head, GG, and Vari-Target mechanisms

    2:52
    So the only other thing that's really on one of these mechanisms is a spring that's attached to the bottom of the target arm that ratchets. If your vary target isn't scoring correctly, you have a few different possibilities of things that might be going wrong. The easiest thing to check, though, is if your leaf switches are adjusted appropriately to touch the rivets on the little wiper disc. The other thing is the coil plate could be in the wrong position, which will prevent the switches from ever making contact appropriately This will also cause uneven wear on the contacts themselves and eventually cause arcing and all kinds of other problems
    3:58
    So, in typical Gottlieb fashion, for most of their mechanisms that relied on coils, be it interlock coils for something like A-head or GG,
    4:09
    or the very targets here, you have an adjustment. And the adjustment is in two screws which attach the coil to the mechanism. And you loosen those and then you can manipulate where the coil plate engages that ratchet.
    4:30
    So, other than that, there's not a whole lot that can go wrong on the mechanism itself. As long as it's clean. the score motor can have issues but that's a whole other subject and if the target arm is not clean and the spring is not clean then it may not snap back appropriately when the coil plate is pulled in so you do want to clean each part of this mechanism just like any other mechanism and once you do so, it should play just as it always did.
    5:17
    The very targets were typically used in pairs on the left and right side of the play field, but there were some exceptions to that, and machines like Gottlieb's Minicycle only used a single very target. One of the most popular games that used the very target was Gottlieb's Baseball, wedge head Baseball used the typical paired very target setup Now the amount of points that were scored on a very target were indicated on a plastic which normally sat above the very target arm itself The very target arm was typically just metal, bare metal, and didn't have any markings of any kind on it. I'm sure there are exceptions to this I've never seen them but it's likely that they're out there Williams copied the very target in its own special way in the 1980s game Bad Cats but that's a solid state Gottlieb continued using them up through the 80s and up until 1992's Operation Thunder. Now Stern even got in on the Very Target action in Ripley's Believe It or Not. These are all solid state machines though. There are many, many, many Gottlieb Very Target games that were made in earlier years.
    6:57
    With the beautiful chime sounds that at least I know and love. I'm not sure again. Everybody has their own opinion and I'm no exception. Alright, well, thank you again for listening. My name again is Nick Baldridge. You can reach me at 4amusementonlypodcast at gmail.com and you can listen to us on iTunes, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, via RSS, on Facebook, and now on Twitter.
    7:29
    I've hooked it up so that it posts the show to Twitter as well. And on our website, which is foramusementonly.libsyn.com Thank you again for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.