Chubbie

Chubbie, manufactured by Stoner Manufacturing Company of Aurora, Illinois, in November 1938, is an interesting addition to any collection of pre-war pinball. Designed by Wendell Bartelt, it is a flipperless, single-player electro-mechanical (EM) game from the era before flippers transformed pinball into a game of reflexes.

The most distinctive feature of Chubbie is its array of 15 spring bumpers. These mechanical bumpers, which relied on metal springs to register the ball's hits, were a hallmark of late-1930s design and provided the game's scoring action as the ball bounced its way down the playfield.

This listing covers the novelty model of Chubbie, which includes an extra ball feature and has a shorter backbox than Stoner's free-game version of the same title. Little else is known about the game beyond its specifications, but for pinball enthusiasts, Chubbie represents an opportunity to appreciate a piece of early gaming history from a lesser-known Illinois manufacturer.