Baffle Ball Sr. Home Game
About This Machine
The Baffle Ball Sr. Home Game, dating to February 1932, is a non-commercial home version of Gottlieb's popular coin-operated Baffle Ball. Measuring 32 by 17 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches, it is one of three Baffle Ball home versions that differed from each other primarily in size. As an early mechanical pinball artifact, it holds a place of interest for collectors and historians studying the game's earliest years.
From a gameplay perspective, the Baffle Ball Sr. is Pure Mechanical (PM), relying on springs, plungers, and gravity rather than electricity or electronic components -- flippers had not yet been invented and would not appear in pinball until 1947. Players score points by plunging the ball through a fixed arrangement of pins and scoring holes, a simple but engaging mechanic typical of bagatelle-style games of the early 1930s.
A label on the back of the game offers a charming period detail: it warns that weather conditions may warp or twist the game, and instructs owners to adjust a brass turnbuckle on the underside to compensate. Given its age and connection to one of the earliest commercially successful pinball games, the Baffle Ball Sr. Home Game serves as a tangible link to the sport's origins.