Real Pinball Table Questions

[LMA]

Are real pinball flippers analogue or are they just on or off?

 

[Mayuh]

No, well, yes, well no, ahhh yes

Depending on your skills

Theoretically the plunger is attracted by a power coil with the press of a button. Which is then switched off and the hold coil keeps the flipper up for the rest of the time you press the button. A brief tap on the button causes the coils to power up for a friction of a second, thus moving the finger just a little bit (tapping). When I managed to make my first tap pass, I couldn't believe my eyes.

Practice, practice, practice
http://papa.org/play/techniques/

 

[danivempire]

really impressive !! ^^

 

[morenoquinteiro]

No, well, yes, well no, ahhh yes

Depending on your skills

Theoretically the plunger is attracted by a power coil with the press of a button. Which is then switched off and the hold coil keeps the flipper up for the rest of the time you press the button. A brief tap on the button causes the coils to power up for a friction of a second, thus moving the finger just a little bit (tapping). When I managed to make my first tap pass, I couldn't believe my eyes.

Practice, practice, practice
http://papa.org/play/techniques/

Could this be reproduced by any chance on TPA? And which buttons do you guys use for the flippers? I use a Xbox joystick and for the flippers I use the standard options (the L and R triggers)... I tried to use the shoulder buttons, but it didn't feel right. Maybe that's not the way to improve my skills, since the triggers, teoretically, takes too long to be fully pressed.

 

[norbert26]

i run on iOS and use the touch screen no buttons.

 

[smbhax]

Could this be reproduced by any chance on TPA?

Certainly. The better tables in Visual Pinball do it.

 

[Sumez]

Theoretically the plunger is attracted by a power coil with the press of a button. Which is then switched off and the hold coil keeps the flipper up for the rest of the time you press the button. A brief tap on the button causes the coils to power up for a friction of a second, thus moving the finger just a little bit (tapping). When I managed to make my first tap pass, I couldn't believe my eyes.

The possibilities of this is much more limited on "newer" tables, ie. anything from WPC with the "fliptronics" board and forward, as the flipper coil is controlled electronically by logic in the backbox, as opposed to the flipper buttons powering the flippers directly, like on older SS tables.

 

[Mayuh]

True, at least for us mortals. If seen a guy on a Creature from the black lagoon tap passing all day long. I have no idea how they do it with flippers that use opto switches instead of EOS, but those players definately proof that it's doable.

I can't tap pass on DemoMan or STTNG, but I can on MB, RBION and FT. But it really, really depends on the actual machine you play, not the model itself. Anyway I wouldn't dare to attempt a tap pass in tournament, without having five minutes of training on that particular machine - and then I'd fail

 

[LMA]

Thanks for the info.