Dirty Pool or Business as Usual? (Kind of a long Rant)

MonsterBash

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Dirty Pool or Business as Usual? (Kind of a long Rant)

So a pin I've been wanting for a LONG pops up on CL at a reasonable price. Now there are only 2 guys I know of in this area that would go after this pin other than maybe a Christmas buyer. The one guy is a collector and the other claims to be a collector but flips most of his stuff. The flipper also isn't to internet savvy so if something pops on CL I usually text him and let him know what's out there..he has bought quite a few of these games.


Anyway I call about the pin and make arrangements to see it right after the owner gets out of work. I also text both the guys above to see if there is any interest , the collector says no and the flipper say no as he already has 2 of them.

I go to check the game out which is supposed to be completely working. On the way I get a text from the flipper asking how the game was..I told him I was on the way and would call after (and yes.. the flipper and I are friends). When I get to the location, I realize it's the same house I looked at the same pin about 5~6 years ago before I was really into this stuff…and the price of the pin has doubled..from $350 to $700. The fully 'working game' has no scoring as none of the 4 displays work but the game was in REAL nice shape as far as playfield and cab. Being I'm not a repair guy per say I play a few games (without scoring) and it did play nice. The guy that owned the machine wanted to get the scoring working..i told him I was going to grab a bite to eat and call him in a half hour. So I text the flipper (who obviously is good with repairs) and tell him the game is super nice but the scoring doesn't work and that I was going to offer him $500 for the game if they didn't get it working…or buy it for the asking price if it was just a cable or something.

So I grab a bite to eat and call the pin guy in about a half hour and get his voice mail. I hang in the area (about 30 minutes from home) and hit the local Target for a couple last second Xmas present..I call again from the store..VM again.

About an hour goes by from the time I left and the owner of the pin calls, he said the game is sold. I thought was strange because when I got there he had said I was the only one that called on it.

So who bought it..the same guy who would have never known about it if I didn't text him…the flipper!

Oh well.. no real biggy..just gonna learn to be a more careful in the future and of course..you find out who your REAL friends are
 
It's not a super big deal...
I'm the farthest thing from a flipper..in fact I've sold one pin in 11 years. Thus when a deal did show up on something I wasn't interested in I would text this guy (who can chime in anytime he wants) and let him know about it.

I just may go on a mission to grab everything in the area..my job lets me surf and leave the building anytime I want. I do know that said person is no longer getting the 'heads-up' anymore.

And you are 100% correct...I should have completed the deal without leaving. It's really not a matter of losing the game as I'm sure another will come up somewhere...but when ya think you know a 'friend'...
 
I think it's dirty pool, but sadly it's also business as usual when it comes to CL. I wouldn't blame you a bit for not giving the flipper any more heads up.
 
"Dirty Pool, old man". I'd think twice about this "friend". And nice pin collection you got there.
 
thats not a friend you said when you called him he said he had two already?? thats messed up i would never do that to someone even if i liked them just a little bit, the fact that you let him know than he tells you no and he knows you are going to look at it. wow he let you do all the work. to me thats burning bridges i try to stay on everyones good side in this hobby because you never know when you will need something or someones help. if you lived closer i would help you remove that knife from your back.
 
Ok, curiosity has the best of me, so I'll bite. Which pin was it? By the looks of your list of pins, I can't imagine which pin would be $350 originally that would fit with the others you have.
 
You snooze you loose. You should have made an offer and sealed the deal. Not being able to repair your own machines is a hinderance in this hobby. I would suggest you learn the basics.
 
NEVER tell the flippers in your area about a game you are interested in. Best case scenario they will pick it up, hold it for a month, and then offer it to you for double what they paid. AND they will truly believe they are doing you a favor when they do it.

Flippers are also the reason you shouldn't post about any known games for sale that you aren't interested in until you contact the real collectors. I have a list of games that other collectors are looking for and if I come across one of them I contact the interested collector first, and if he passes I then will post it publicly. I have helped som of the local collectors pick up some pretty rare pieces, most recently a Taito Wild Western.
 
My advice to you MB is to start by learning how to do pin repairs. There are many tutorials out there with Pinrepair guides, Topcast videos and posting questions here and RGP.

Definitely sounds like a douche maneuver by your *flipper buddy*, but don't understand why you just didn't wheel and deal with him there; especially if it's a pin you really wanted, and haven't seen in awhile...

For all intensive purposes, what pin was it by the way?
 
You're too kind.

I guess you were being in 'friend' mode when you called the flipper to tell him about condition and even what you were going to offer. Maybe it sounded like too good of a deal at that price and NOW the flipper was interested. You gave too much info. He sure as hell shouldn't have snatched it up while you were waiting to see if the owner could patch it up though.

When the seller answered and said it had been sold, why didn't you say 'Hell yeah MF- TO ME!' Here's 500 bucks, now help me load this thing onto my truck.

Seriously- you were in the area- you should have at least went back by and given him hell about selling it out from under you. DUDE!! I got DIBS!! I didn't LEAVE- I just was giving you some quiet to put the finishing touches on it!

Maybe you can bitch a little to your flipper friend and make him aware that you feel wronged. He may see the light and sell it to you for what he's got in it.

I think I would feel a little wronged, but I would have hashed it out with the seller that night and with the buyer if that failed.

Maybe you were expecting too much from the flipper and you two don't see things as similarly as you thought.

Sorry about that-
 
I read your post and I can certainly feel your pain. Basically, you are scouring CL, etc. and finding EVERYTHING yourself. You are driving out to people's homes to check out the games. You are literally doing all of the leg work.

That is YOUR time. Time is money.

You are then handing ALL of this information over to your 'friends' at no charge. In a way I am glad that this happened because now you can see everything for what it is. You are obviously a really nice guy. But what is the point of finding all of these great games, taking the time to see if they are OK, and then handing over all of the information to other people who never have to lift a finger?

Lesson learned.

Beyond that, if somebody flips machines, it doesn't matter if they have 15 of one particular machine. If it is a good price, they will flip it. No mystery there. Now it is time for you to flip games to your friend. You're doing the hard work. Time for him to pay a premium for YOUR time, not the other way around. :)
 
Funny... when I confronted him on it last night (not completely knowing he was the 'the guy with the same name as my friend' that bought it) I said..."looks like you have 3 of them now". He said.. "yeah.. you know how much I like the game"

Almost as if to say he's gonna set up all 3 in his basement...






.

Beyond that, if somebody flips machines, it doesn't matter if they have 15 of one particular machine. If it is a good price, they will flip it. No mystery there. Now it is time for you to flip games to your friend. You're doing the hard work. Time for him to pay a premium for YOUR time, not the other way around. :)
 
Wow, that guy is a total dick mole but why tell anyone any info on what you are getting.
Post an ad for a "sweet pin deal" he can't resist and send him to f-ing New Jersey.

Funny... when I confronted him on it last night (not completely knowing he was the 'the guy with the same name as my friend' that bought it) I said..."looks like you have 3 of them now". He said.. "yeah.. you know how much I like the game"

Almost as if to say he's gonna set up all 3 in his basement...
 
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