Damn Damn Damn....original Tempest got away

ClarkWGriswold

Active member

Donor 2017
Joined
Oct 1, 2017
Messages
205
Reaction score
30
Location
Midlothian, Virginia
Found on Craigslist for 900.00. All original and working with a cab in fine condition as well. Basically begged the guy for o sell it to me but he did not seem to want to deal with an out of towner and a door to door shipper. Slander and calumny!

An original Tempest cab in working condition is the number one game on my list. Dammit!
 
Found on Craigslist for 900.00. All original and working with a cab in fine condition as well. Basically begged the guy for o sell it to me but he did not seem to want to deal with an out of towner and a door to door shipper. Slander and calumny!

An original Tempest cab in working condition is the number one game on my list. Dammit!

I'll have one for sale soon. I'm sure others may as well.

I got the board rebuilt and upgraded by andrewb, and I need to rebuild the monitor in the next week or two. Then she's outta here.
 
Don't have any issues with PayPal or door to door shippers do ya??! That cabinet was going to be my Christmas present to myself! Are you planning on posting it on here for sale eventually? If so, I'll be on the lookout.

Carter - Va
 
One thing you learn in the hobby is that with more common games like Tempest, one will always pop up for sale near you a week after you had one shipped from across the country.
 
There was a robotron for $300 nearby months ago. Called to see if it's available and when i could pick it up the same day. He called me later that someone offered a lot more than his asking price.
 
I know Tempest is not a particularly rare cabinet in the grand scheme of things but it would seem that an original unmolested example that is complete and working well.... with minimal cabinet damage...for 900.00...might be somewhat rare. Am I wrong?

Most of the ones I have seen have not been in as good of shape overall and the price point always seems to be near 1400.00.

I prefer 900.00!
 
bro, i dunno if you're early on in the collecting hobby but you'll learn you gotta be PATIENT. IMO, the #1 rule in this hobby

you could find at least a few dozen KLOVers here that just this year alone have gotten the most random and awesome deals. i've been fortunate enough to grab a couple myself.

hang in there, man. and who knows ... you might find one for even less

1506814294094.gif
 
One thing you learn in the hobby is that with more common games like Tempest, one will always pop up for sale near you a week after you had one shipped from across the country.

Apparently I need to spread more rep around before I can rep this statement for truth.

Either way, repped for truth.
 
One thing you learn in the hobby is that with more common games like Tempest, one will always pop up for sale near you a week after you had one shipped from across the country.

This is pretty much how I ended up with three of them at one time...

Of course, I was getting really anxious, so I overpaid a bit for the first one (not much). The third one was a straight-up smoking deal, so I figured the costs averaged out. :)
 
One thing you learn in the hobby is that with more common games like Tempest, one will always pop up for sale near you a week after you had one shipped from across the country.

True dhat. You just got to learn to be patient. I always wanted a Tempest cabaret and waited for quite a few years while owning a cocktail and two uprights during that time. Eventually one popped up within 45 minutes of me. Just be careful what you wish for. Tempest is an awesome game, but if it stops working it can be such a pain in the ass to fix.
 
Yes, I am new enough to this pursuit that I have not developed the patience required. Having said that, I am becoming keen to the pricing structure and 900.00 for a fully intact and working Tempest seems to be a pretty damn good price.

As far as the repair scenario is concerned, I face the great conundrum any classic arcade owner who does not have the technical knowledge to fix them faces. Do I only seek out cabinets that have been upgraded with modern, reliable technology, forgoing the enticing glow of a crt monitor while drastically reducing the potential for a dead machine.....OR....

I have a few hobbies, one of them is owning a little British roadster. There are two types of Triumph owners...wrench turners and check writers. I am a check writer. It seems there is a direct parallel to classic arcade owners. There are also wrench turners and check writers here. I sense there are far more wrench turners on this forum, and that makes perfect sense; however, there are also a smattering of check writers. At this point, I am one of those.

I acknowledge the risk associated with Tempest ownership, specifically with its color vector monitor. Fact is, if and when it goes down, I will most likely write a check to someone else to fix it. Sad but true.

I only have room for about 4 cabinets total. The first and only cabinet I currently own is in an original cabinet but has been JAMMA-tized and has an LCD and a 60-1. Blasphemy, I know...BUT, not nearly as likely to go down either. I want several cabinets that are reliable plug-in and play. I also want one or two originals in the row so I don't get pelted with rotten fruit.
 
I am becoming keen to the pricing structure and 900.00 for a fully intact and working Tempest seems to be a pretty damn good price.

After paying to ship it would have squashed that good price and not seeing it in person is sketchy sometimes because pictures do not show everything.
 
I have a few hobbies, one of them is owning a little British roadster. There are two types of Triumph owners...wrench turners and check writers.

As an ex-Spitfire owner (and someone who is both a wrench-turner and cheque-writer depending on the situation), I know exactly what you mean ;)

Cars are actually a pretty good parallel to the arcade hobby. In both cases you have old, cranky machinery that has surface commonalities with other old, cranky machines of the same type, but each one does things in its own ways and has its own set of strengths and weaknesses as well as personality.

Getting to know those strengths and weaknesses is part and parcel of either hobby, regardless of whether you're doing your own maintenance or shopping the work out to someone else. If doing your own, you need to have at least a rough idea of what's up before turning wrenches or breaking out the soldering iron; if shopping the work out, it helps to know why you're sending it out so that you're writing cheques for the smallest possible amounts :)

Here's what I'd recommend: for now, look for a Tempest for sale that's in a radius you're willing to drive to pick it up. Figure out what you're willing to live with condition-wise before looking at one so that you have some idea of where you're comfortable starting your maintenance learning curve - some stuff is well within the DIY range for novices, and not worth shopping out if you can fix it yourself in an hour or two. When you look at the machine that might be The One, see if it's within that comfort zone. If it is, pull the trigger and good luck :)

Note that I'm saying this as someone who has bought cars and arcade games sight-unseen before, sometimes at great distances. The experiences have been good, bad, and indifferent; it's just luck of the draw. But for starting out, I really do recommend going and looking at machines in person. Just try to keep the 'shut up and take my money' instinct in check when you do ;)
 
you're asking many (good!) questions here, and i will attempt to be concise:

fully working, and solid body? yeah that's not bad at all.

Yes, I am new enough to this pursuit that I have not developed the patience required. Having said that, I am becoming keen to the pricing structure and 900.00 for a fully intact and working Tempest seems to be a pretty damn good price.

the arcade "game" is a long game, friendo. unless you're sitting on piles of cash, you'd be wise to begin the learning experience :) many here have done it, and i'm one of them. i have no electronics experience/background, but i'm able to do some basic repairs, and i'm constantly learning more and more.

As far as the repair scenario is concerned, I face the great conundrum any classic arcade owner who does not have the technical knowledge to fix them faces. Do I only seek out cabinets that have been upgraded with modern, reliable technology, forgoing the enticing glow of a crt monitor while drastically reducing the potential for a dead machine.....OR....

I have a few hobbies, one of them is owning a little British roadster. There are two types of Triumph owners...wrench turners and check writers. I am a check writer. It seems there is a direct parallel to classic arcade owners. There are also wrench turners and check writers here. I sense there are far more wrench turners on this forum, and that makes perfect sense; however, there are also a smattering of check writers. At this point, I am one of those.

EVERY arcade game breaks eventually, so don't let the "color vector" thing scare you. it's just another thing to learn ;)

I acknowledge the risk associated with Tempest ownership, specifically with its color vector monitor. Fact is, if and when it goes down, I will most likely write a check to someone else to fix it. Sad but true.

you do you, man. i get the appeal of the "quick fix" via LCDs, but, i'd wager that the deeper you get into this, you'll lose some of the CRT-trepidation and begin to go all classic (original PCBs, CRTs, etc)

I only have room for about 4 cabinets total. The first and only cabinet I currently own is in an original cabinet but has been JAMMA-tized and has an LCD and a 60-1. Blasphemy, I know...BUT, not nearly as likely to go down either. I want several cabinets that are reliable plug-in and play. I also want one or two originals in the row so I don't get pelted with rotten fruit.
 
I'd recommend focusing mainly on the condition of the cabinet and the completeness. If you have a boardset, it can be fixed, and mostly likely you WILL end up wanting to ship it off to andrewb or one of the repair guys, as there are sockets that may need to be replaced. A cabinet can be restored, but to initially get a solid one (no swelling, artwork intact and not peeling, smoked glass intact, a control panel overlay you can live with) is a giant plus.

The monitors can always be repaired, as long as the tube isn't broken. Flybacks are available and my experience has been that once rebuilt, the monitor will hold up where the boardset may flake out.
 
Okay, so I think this is the last question I will ask regarding Tempest. Obviously, I am in the market for an unmolested Tempest cab. What is (are) the most universally accepted problems with a Tempest....board issues, power supply issues or x-y vector monitor issues?

You guys rock, this is a great forum. Learning every day.
 
Back
Top Bottom