Grownup Adjacent Pinball Podcast

I’m heading to Houston for the 24th annual Arcade Expo (Nov 13–15 at the Marriott Westchase) and my body is already filing a formal complaint. Hundreds of pinball machines, classic and modern arcades, consoles, and penny machines all on free play. Plus a Barrels of Fun factory tour, tournaments, late-night bands and DJs, cosplay, a free parking-lot swap meet, and the usual beautiful chaos of way too many grown adults who still get excited about skill shots.
This one’s the pre-show hype episode. What I’m looking forward to, what I’m hoping to film and stream, who I want to talk to, and the very real possibility that I will over-commit to “one more game” until 2am and regret it by breakfast. Same energy as the Pinball Expo debriefs, just with more Texas humidity and fewer excuses about being “just walking the floor.”
If you’re going, come find me. If you’re not, listen anyway and judge my life choices from the comfort of your own couch.
Watch & Follow: https://linktr.ee/grownupadjacent

#HoustonArcadeExpo #Pinball #Arcade #GrownupAdjacent #PinballPodcast #FreePlay #RetroArcade #PinballCommunity #LivePinball #ArcadeLife #BarrelsOfFun #ExpoCoverage

Part 2 of the Pinball Expo 2026 vendor report. The floor was massive, the Homebrew Village was chaotic, and my credit card is still in recovery. Some vendors were pure “take my money” energy.
Others made me walk away wondering what I was even doing with my life.Here’s the short list of the ones that actually stood out (or that I spent real money on) while wandering the aisles:

PinPal (buypinpal.com) — Wireless Bluetooth mic that magnetically sticks to the speakers so you can hear the game clearly in a loud hall. Absolute game-changer if you stream or just hate fighting the noise.

Mezel Mods (mezelmods.com) — Custom mods, accessories, and a solid marketplace. Always something weird and useful on the table.

Brian Allen / Flyland Designs (flylanddesigns.com) — Alternate backglasses and art packages. The man knows how to make a cabinet look expensive.

PinballCabinet.com (pinballcabinet.com) — Virtual pinball cabinets (flat packs and assembled). For when you want the look without the full mechanical headache.

Pinball Scientist (thepinballscientist.com) — Lighting kits and playfield illumination. RGB done properly.

Warped Pinball (warpedpinball.com) — Vector NVRAM / smart boards for the classics (System 9/11, WPC, etc.). Quietly essential if you own older iron.

Cointaker App (cointaker-leaderboards.com) — Snap a photo of the backbox and your score hits the leaderboard. Related dealer side is at cointaker.com.

Escalera (escalera.com / StairCAT) — Stair-climbing hand trucks. The unsexy tool that keeps you from dying while moving machines.

FlipperCraft (flippercraftpinball.com) — Australian maker of licensed Bally/Williams reproduction cabinets and hardware.

Flipper Fidelity (flipperfidelity.com) — Premium speaker systems and audio upgrades. Worth it if sound actually matters to you.

Pinball Dudes (thepinballdudes.net) — Florida dealer (Jupiter) carrying new and used machines.

Jackpot Joe (jpjpinball.com) — Repair and restoration work (mainly VA/MD/DC area).

Ayscrim Studios (ayscrimstudios.com) — Vintage pinball-inspired
desktop clocks. Official Gottlieb/Bally licensee. Fun desk candy.

Homebrew Village still felt like the real heartbeat of the show, but the accessory and mod vendors above are the ones that made me slow down and actually open the wallet. Some of these are heading into the shop. Others are just solid recommendations if you’re hunting parts or upgrades.Drop a comment with any vendors I missed that you thought crushed it, or tell me which of these you’re already running. Full floor walk and more thoughts coming soon.Watch Now and let me know what I got wrong.

#PinballExpo #PinballExpo2026 #GrownupAdjacent #PinballVendors #HomebrewVillage #PinballMods #PinballCommunity #LivePinball #Pinball #OneMoreGame #ExpoRecap #PinballLife #WalletDamage #BestVendors #PinballStreaming

Just got back from Pinball Expo 2026 and my credit card is still filing a restraining order. Between the Homebrew Village chaos, the Best Booth energy, and the parts/mod tables that actually delivered, some vendors made the trip worth it and others just made me question my life choices.

Here’s the short list of the ones that stood out (or that I spent real money on) while walking the floor:

PinPal (buypinpal.com) — Wireless Bluetooth mic/pickup that magnetically sticks to the speakers so you can actually hear the game in a convention hall. Game changer if you ever stream or just hate yelling over the noise.

Mezel Mods (mezelmods.com) — Custom mods, accessories, and a solid marketplace. Always something weird and useful.

Brian Allen / Flyland Designs (flylanddesigns.com) — Alternate backglasses and art packages. The guy knows how to make a cabinet look expensive.

PinballCabinet.com (pinballcabinet.com) — Virtual pinball cabinets, flat packs and assembled. For when you want the look without the full mechanical pain.

Pinball Scientist (thepinballscientist.com) — Lighting kits and playfield illumination. RGB done right.

Warped Pinball (warpedpinball.com) — Vector NVRAM / smart boards for the classics (System 9/11, WPC, etc.). Quietly essential if you own older iron.

Cointaker App (cointaker-leaderboards.com) — Photograph the backbox, get the score on the leaderboard. Related dealer side lives at cointaker.com.

Escalera (escalera.com / StairCAT) — Stair-climbing hand trucks. The unsexy but necessary tool for moving machines without dying.

FlipperCraft (flippercraftpinball.com) — Australian licensed Bally/Williams reproduction cabinets and hardware.

Flipper Fidelity (flipperfidelity.com) — Premium speaker systems and audio upgrades. Worth it if you care about sound.

Pinball Dudes (thepinballdudes.net) — Florida dealer (Jupiter) with new and used machines.

Jackpot Joe (jpjpinball.com) — Repair and restoration (mainly VA/MD/DC area).

Ayscrim Studios (ayscrimstudios.com) — Vintage pinball-inspired desktop clocks. Official Gottlieb/Bally licensee. Fun desk candy.

Homebrew Village still felt like the real heartbeat of the show this year, but the accessory and mod vendors above are the ones that made me slow down and actually open my wallet. Some of these will end up in the shop, some are just solid recs if you’re hunting parts or upgrades.
Drop a comment with any vendors I missed that you thought crushed it, or tell me which of these you’re already running. Full floor walk and more thoughts coming soon.

Watch Now and let me know what I got wrong.

#PinballExpo #PinballExpo2026 #GrownupAdjacent #PinballVendors #HomebrewVillage #PinballMods #PinballCommunity #LivePinball #Pinball #OneMoreGame #ExpoRecap #PinballLife #WalletDamage #BestVendors #PinballStreaming

We survived Pinball Expo 2026. Barely. The shoes are still sticky, the sore throat is filing a formal complaint, and the post-show brain fog is real. So this is the unfiltered debrief: who actually showed up and delivered, who made the biggest impression on the floor, and who stood us up.
American Pinball stepped up in a big way under the new ownership. Cirqus Voltaire Reimagined was on the floor for the first public plays, the booth won Best Booth of the show, and the energy around that circus was hard to ignore. Homebrew Village was stacked ,Shaolin Flow with the punch-sensor flippers, that Attack on Titan whitewood that had people (including some industry names) stopping in their tracks, and a bunch of other prototypes that felt like real future careers rather than hobby projects. Steve Ritchie dropped the retirement announcement during the Jersey Jack Sonic seminar. Stern had Fallout and the AC/DC remaster presence, Barrels of Fun had Bon Jovi, and the usual mix of manufacturers, vendors, and content people were either bringing heat or… not.
This isn’t a polite recap. It’s the zero-filter, middle-aged-dad version: the games that actually felt good, the booths that delivered, the people who made the trip worth it, and the empty spaces or missed expectations that left us standing around waiting. If you were there, you’ll recognize the moments. If you weren’t, you’ll still get the real story without the press-release filter.
Plus the content-creator panel energy, the random hallway conversations that matter more than the seminars, and why I’m already half-dreading and half-counting-down to next year.
Listen, then go play something. Or don’t. Your call. But the report card is in.

Tonight I’m interviewing the guy who draws pinball machines better than I play them and we pinky swore we would not talk AI. Brian Allen of Flyland Designs is here for Grownup Adjacent Pinball Podcast ep 3.0 and I already know my ability to stay on track for time is as reliable as my skill shots. Watch & Follow Now: https://linktr.ee/grownupadjacent
Brian has been hand drawing those packed, wild backglasses and art packages that make old Williams games look brand new again. Funhouse remakes, TOTAN, Cirqus Voltaire, the whole colorful chaotic thing. Meanwhile my artistic contribution is usually a stick figure on the back of a receipt and a flipper that dies right when I need it. We will talk process, classic pinball nostalgia, why some remakes hit and some just drain, and how a normal middle aged dad ends up sitting across from the artist who actually knows what he is doing. Expect lots of chat, zero polished podcast energy, and me roasting my AI use while he explains how he makes the art look effortless.
Drop a like, smash subscribe, hit the bell so you do not miss the next episode, and comment what guest or pinball machine we should drag in next. Tell me if you own any of his art and how badly it makes the rest of us look.
See you in the live chat where I will pretend I followed every single thing he said!
all art is copyright Flyland Designs and Brian Allen and used with written permission. All images and art used in this episode can be purchased at FlylandDesigns
Chapters (though you really want to hear it all)
00:00 Meet Brian Allen
00:00 An Artist’s Evolving Career
02:29 Behind Flyland Designs
05:01 Pinball Expo Preview
07:55 Reimagining Tales of the Arabian Knights
10:46 Criticism, Craft, and Alternate Art
18:02 Tales vs. Circus Voltaire
21:56 Original Worlds and Creative Freedom
23:19 Beyond Pinball: Discs, Posters, and More
25:45 Designing Gritty
29:15 Homebrew Pinball and Creative Constraints
40:31 Finding the Right Fit for a Project
43:30 AI, Art, and the Creative Process
56:32 Living with AI: Careers and Community
01:30:50 Pinball Expo Booth and New Releases
01:35:46 Closing: Keeping Pinball Human

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#Pinball #Arcade #retro #BrianAllen #FlylandDesigns #PinballArt #GrownupAdjacent #PinballPodcast #LivePinball #PinballStream #Silverball #RetroArcade