Pinball Update for Summer 2013

Back again with another Pinball Update! I missed the end of the month deadline though WHAT A BUMMER! I have a good reason for it however. I was planning on putting the update out on Sunday, June 30th but instead Shane and I decided to go on ST. CATHERINES PINBALL JOURNEY 2013!!! Want a preview? WELL.... OK.

Is that... DEMOLITION MAN?

Only a small taste though! I'm going to be writing a trip report very soon. That's a FAQT JAQ!

Anyways, the pinball search in Toronto has been a FINE HUNT this month with a couple of new machines popping up in the wild and a couple of updates to a few locations. The replacements are a boon as the former machines at these locations were often out of order so it's nice to see that they have been put out to pasture and replaced with operational tables.

Lets get started with some new locations! This update is mainly focused on College St. as that's where the machines have seemed to pop up! That's good news as I always thought College to be kinda starved for pinball compared to Dundas West and Queen West.

I caught word that Andy Poolhall houses a couple of machines. I'm glad to say that word did not fail me and two tables actually reside at Andy Poolhall!

Two Pat Lawlor tables, NASCAR and Roller Coaster Tycoon take up residence at Andy Poolhall. 


The NASCAR is in pretty good condition. The playfield is very clean and brightly lit. A few things aren't working very well though. The Test Car doesn't seem to recognize some hits, making it difficult to raise and access the garage shot. As well, the car spinner at the top of the left ramp sometimes stops at the opening at random intervals, blocking off that shot. When that happened, I wasn't able to lock the balls for Multiball or obtain anything that was lit on the left ramp.

I spent a good amount of time and money on NASCAR when I dropped by and I gotta say, my opinion on NASCAR has really changed. I just had a lot of fun playing this table compared to other times I have played. There's a good flow to the table and many of the shots return the ball directly to the flippers so it's really easy to get some combos going. This is a pretty non-traditional table for Lawlor and the playfield design doesn't bear a lot of his usual trademarks. Instead the playfield reminds me a lot of some late-80's tables, with a focus on flow and simple shots.

RCT is pretty beat up and not really worth playing. The table is really grimy and many of the lights are burnt out. Andy Poolhall is a dark bar so it's pretty difficult to see the table. I only played one game and played pretty badly so I wasn't able to notice any defects but the table just did not feel right.

Johnny Jackson's, a new bar has popped up on College, just a few steps east of Clinton and has a Gottlieb Roller Coaster.

It's a real ol' skool EM table and I think even one of the first to feature habitrail lanes! Definitely worth taking a peek at. The table is free which is nice as well.

Now for the updates!

Ted's Collision removed their Spider-Man machine and keeping with the comic book theme, they now have Batman.

As much as I like Ted's Collision, it's a real cool bar with a great atmosphere, I can't recommend this table. It's pretty broken down and the playfield is very dirty. The Joker drop target is jammed and will not fall down so there is no way to lock balls or activate Joker Multiball. The Batmobile ramp does not work either and hitting the Batmobile Hurry Up isn't recognized very often. Play at your own risk. It's kind of in a cramped area and there's tables lined up right behind you when playing. I'm an opportunist so I took advantage of the close quarters and sat down on the table! Seeing as a table is a bit higher than a chair, I was able to play well while resting my legs, haha!

I also got an ULTRA RARE stuck ball!

Euro Sports Bar replaced their out-of-order Harley Davidson with Stern's Playboy.

It is in very good condition, I didn't notice anything broken on it. It doesn't have the adult pictures for the toys so no naked ladies for you!

Scotiabank Theatre now replaced their busted AC/DC with Metallica! I haven't had a chance to play it or get a close look at it but I imagine it's in pretty good condition.

I also got word that Done Right Inn has replaced their Avengers machine with Metallica as well! I haven't been by Done Right Inn yet though but I will definitely drop in soon.

That's the update for this Summer! I will remain ever vigilant in the hunt for pinball! I hear the Danforth calling my name and rumor has it that there are some new tables over yonder!

As well, I will be attending the 2013 Canadian Pinball Championships this coming weekend on July 6th!