U raise some good points Daz, but if I raised any questions and upset the man, I may never get the chance to talk to him again, so to speak.

I mean, I could ask about cost cutting with pegs replacing slide rails and plastic aprons instead of metal ones etc etc, but i already know the answer will be because of the global financial situation, and Stern is doing what needs to be done to keep the costs down. If they have some of these items as "upgrades" that the consumer pays for, then its not so bad. I mean overall, I would approach an interview wth Gary Stern so to  speak, from the point of view that its an honour to sit down with the man, and his time is valuable. You could ask some tough questions (like cost cutting etc) but as long as he isnt backed into a corner and not made to feel bad, then u might be able to ask a few questions like that.

If I wasnt a fan of Stern (which I am 100 % a fan these recent times) and if u only liked say Jersey Jack Pinball, u could go hell for leather til the man throws u out.lol  

But I think sitting down with Gary Stern these days would be a really interesting and enjoyable chat. Just thinking of walking around the Stern factory would give me goosebumps. That would be a really lot of fun. I am thinking of selling a few more pins to fund a trip to the factory. That would be a blast.