Considering first pin, these good choices?

jcar302

Well-known member

Donor 2011, 2024
Joined
Aug 22, 2011
Messages
1,841
Reaction score
600
Location
jackson, New Jersey
Hey guys, think i'm ready to buy my first pinball machine.

My short list would be cyclone, hurricane, high speed.
Through my searches these seem to be on the lower priced side.


I like roller coaster/amusement and auto themes.


Cyclone is literally the top of my list (one i remember from the boardwalk most), but as i learned with arcade games, you gotta look for more than one at a time, or you may be waiting forever.

Any reason i shouldn't be looking at this bunch?

Am i correct in assuming that these are all about $1000-$1500 pins in fair working condition?

Any others you guys recommend for a starter that aren't going to break the bank?

I don't mind paying less and doing some mechanical work, i'm a licensed electrical contractor and all my hobbies are all hands on, but i suck at anything that requires artistic skill like painting. So i should assume i pay more for one with a good cabinet over one that works better?

Parts plentiful for my choices?

Thanks for any input.
Joe
 
Parts except for the ramps should be moderately easy to find for those games. Ramps and plastics should be in good condition. CPR did the cyclone plastics reproduction, I believe, so there may be more-than-normal replacements floating around out there, but I wouldn't bank on it unless you plan on buying a whole set (usually around 130 bucks).

Hurricane can usually be found pretty cheap as far as a DMD goes. It's got a HUGE ramp that hasn't been reproduced, so make sure you check that sucker for chips and cracks, especially around the mounting screws/tabs.
 
Hurricane can usually be found pretty cheap as far as a DMD goes.

Thanks for the pointers frax.
Could you elaborate on this comment?
A google search said DMD is dot matrix display, is cyclone dmd too?

Thanks,
Joe
 
DMD is dot matrix, a grid of pixels usually 128x32 in size. Earlier games had alphanumeric or simply numeric displays that are like clock LCD segments in appearance.

Cyclone has the older style, Hurricane has a DMD, which allows for animations and such on the display, but I think most would argue that Cyclone is a better game.
 
Cyclone and High Speed are non- DMD games. They have seperate display panels for each player.

Hurricane is a slower paced game than the other 2, in my opinion. Cyclone and High Speed are from the System 11 line of machines from Williams, which, to me, is some of the best pinball ever. Most of my favorite games came from that era.

High Speed is 3 ball multiball. Personally, I feel High Speed is the fastest playing of the 3 machines.

This would be a tough choice if these were my 3 options. Strangely enough, Hurricane could probably be bought for the least amount of money, even though it is newest.

My order for these titles would be:
High Speed
Cyclone
Hurricane

As Frax said, be sure to look at the ramps carefully. One of the Cyclone ramps has not been reproduced, and I have seen used ones go for $300 and more.


Good luck with your search.

Chris
 
Thanks guys, i think i'm going to put a wanted ad up here for starters.

Unfortunately over the past month while waiting for the toy fund to be replenished, i missed 2 cyclones fairly local.

Never seen a hurricane for sale period, but cyclone and high speed seem to come up.

Am i right in thinking a fair condition cyclone is worth $1200 and high speed between $1000-$1200?
Hurricane i've never seen for sale locally, so it may be best i leave that one be for the moment, don't want to get too spontaneous and over pay.

I'm not going for collector condition, just want decent machines. For sure they will get played by friends.
 
Cyclone is the best of your picks IMO but I'm biased, it was the pin that I first played back in the day. High Speed is a great pin too. Both are on my wish list.

I passed up a Hurricane last yeah. I have never heard much good about it. Comet is basically a base version of Cyclone and a bit boring, while Hurricane took it too far the other way with more ramps and double ferris wheels. Never played one but I hear the double ferris wheels really kill the flow of the game. Cyclone seems to be the real gem in that line of games.

Just remember as others have said, Cyclone ramps can be expensive. Play fields can be had but if your buying one with broken ramps you might be in for a lengthy and expensive search.

A great place to look is Mr. Pinball classifieds. http://user.xmission.com/~daina/classified/index.html

Also try http://pinside.com. They have a marketplace. You will have more luck there finding pins than here.

Good luck with your search.
 
Last edited:
I have the high speed and Cyclone, cyclone is my pick of the two. As stated though, that main ramp takes a serious beating and is almost impossible to find
 
I actually passed on a high speed down south jersey.
Seemed like it was pretty restored but the cabinet had a half assed stencil job.

My main issue was that it was on ebay and i don't like bidding on something so expensive without seeing it. Too far to drive and look at for something i had no idea what the price it was going to.
Didn't help either it went off a 5 a.m.
 
all 3 of these pins are good titles....but.....

theme wise and fun factor i think you would love HIGH SPEED II THE GETAWAY. great pin, with sweet music and fun ramps. more in the 2k range ish, but def worth it! i would love to own a nice example of this pin someday.
 
all 3 of these pins are good titles....but.....

theme wise and fun factor i think you would love HIGH SPEED II THE GETAWAY. great pin, with sweet music and fun ramps. more in the 2k range ish, but def worth it! i would love to own a nice example of this pin someday.

I don't doubt it, but for a first pin i don't think i want to go that deep financially.
We'll see how i enjoy a cheaper pin (that happens to be from my childhood), then move up in pin world if i like it.
 
Back
Top Bottom