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Renovation in 2018 for the 20th anniversary

Joe's Bowling Center in Wetzikon, Switzerland

 

It is important to us to spread concrete information and experiences about the current bowling technology. And who can do this better than a bowling alley operator who works with these products on a daily basis. Today Pascal Stoessel (Owner Joe's Bowling Center) has his say to explain to you why he chose NGT.

But we also want to describe the history.

For this reason we are starting from the beginning and let Pascal Stoessel tell the story:

airOsetter
P. Stössel

After the successful conversion of the pinspotter (pin setting machine) of lanes 1-8 in August 2016, I could hardly wait to tackle the 2nd stage. Now the time has come, in November 2018 the last outdated 8 cableless Pinspotters will be exchanged for new NGT AirOsetters. Some of the main reasons are the expensive stocking of spare parts, the high energy costs and the constant need for mechanics with ropeless machines. All of this was one of the reasons why I chose modern, contemporary bowling technology. Where previously 48 motors (50kw) drove the bowling equipment, from the end of November only two 400 volt motors (8.5kw) will be working, driving the compressors for pinsetters, ball returns and automatic bumpers. The second, but much more important reason why I pushed ahead with the conversion quickly, is to change the outdated scoring for the new NGT-Pro Scoring II. When it comes to cable machines, the AirOsetter is the only one I can consider, the "Pinmix" of the AirOsetter, is absolutely not comparable with conventional cable machines from any other manufacturer and comes very close to that of a cableless Pinspotter. The gaming experience is even better with uninterrupted gameplay! Look forward to a new trouble-free bowling experience at Joe's Bowling Center for another 20 years!

I have been the proud owner of 8 NGT airOsetter Pinsetters since August 2016 and in November 2018 I doubled this to 16. Before that I had AMF 82-70 machines for 20 years.

The NGT airOsetter

The advantages:

  • In December, January and February we only had to lend a hand 50 times and these were just small things. That was an average of 1.5 times a day. (Monday rest day). I even had busy Saturdays and wasn't even in the engine room!

  • The low maintenance work and costs. There is hardly any wear, we had the first rope tear after a year. From then on, we checked the rope once a week to avoid a rope break during peak hours.

  • An excellent pinfall, customers who have already played on other conventional rope systems are enthusiastic about the airOsetter!

  • Very low power consumption.

  • If it ever needs to be repaired, it can be done in no time at all. - Nobody slams the ball against the sweep anymore.

  • Nice ambience with the colored LED lighting. - Fast, smooth conversion.

The disadvantages:

  • Hmmm think about it :-)

  • Now, of course, my regulars would mention the pinfall, but I'm not convinced it's any worse than a ropeless machine, it's just a little different. I'm convinced and I've seen it myself that it's possible to play high scores without any problems.

  • The only thing that bothers me is that if a pin stays in the ball pit or in the gutter next to the pin deck, or leans from the pin deck onto the kickback, it is not counted as a fall.

  • Around 3 seconds slower than the AMF 82-70 in the cycle, but it is hardly noticeable, 7 games per hour are possible.

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In summary: The airOsetter enables a flawless bowling game with satisfied customers. I have much less effort and cost savings in spare parts, employees and electricity. Was the best decision of my life and probably the best pinsetter in the world!

Joes Bowling
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