first pin

PacAttack13

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Am wanting to own one pinball in my gameroom...was wanting your guys opinion on what would be a good pin to own if I only owned one? I really dont know anything about fixing pinballs so are there pinballs that require less maintenance than others that would be a great choice? Money really isnt an issue. Thanks.
 
Don't do it.. I just got my first pin a week ago and want more. I was warned and all the guys were right its an addiction.
 
Am wanting to own one pinball in my gameroom...was wanting your guys opinion on what would be a good pin to own if I only owned one? I really dont know anything about fixing pinballs so are there pinballs that require less maintenance than others that would be a great choice? Money really isnt an issue. Thanks.

If money isn't an issue get Medieval Madness. That's what I would do.

Seriously though there are a couple hundred games that probably meet your criteria. Start looking at what's available in your area and ask here about prices and opinions (always mention the price in "price check" posts). Otherwise there are about a dozen threads just like this one that you can find with the search function.
 
You can't just have one....

What type of theme do you like? There are literally hundereds of machines out there, and I am sure that there is one that you will like. Go Here:
http://ipdb.org/
and look at all of the machines available. Go to a local distributor and see what they have. Go to a Pinball Show (might be a drive for you) and see what you like. There is always the Pinball Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, and other places around the country that have lots of games to play.

Good Luck with your search.
 
if money isn't an issue, this is your first pin, and you're not gonna get another one, why not get a NIB stern? you'll likely not have as many problems to deal with...at least not for a while. and there are some great ones still available NIB.

just a thought.
 
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There are a couple of ways you can approach it in my opinion. You can do research and play several different pins to narrow down what you'd like, and then buy what you plan on keeping and be done with it.

Or you can pick something up that looks interesting, play it for a while, see if you like it, and if not get something else. As long as you don't overpay, you'll generally have no problems selling a pin and breaking even. Or you can often trade straight across or add a little extra money.

I think it is kind of hard to form an accurate opinion of a pin without spending some time with it and learning the shots and rules. And if you haven't played enough pinball to know what kind of game you generally prefer, you are shooting in the dark as far as which game to get. And nobody else's opinion is necessarily going to help you with that, it just takes time and playing the games to figure out what you like.

I fall into the second category. I didn't really know what I liked and wanted so I just jumped in and I'm learning what suites me. I've already sold the first pin I bought last year.

As for maintenance, there are some games that are going to take more work to keep them going, but any pin needs periodic care and upkeep. You just have to realize that if you own a pin, at some point you are either going to have to work on it yourself or pay someone else to do it.
 
it'll never stay with one pin - either you'll buy more pins or you'll sell your first and replace it with another

so as for titles, just check what popular games are but especially look around if you can find a good deal local on a pin.. it's better to buy any pin that's a deal and you can sell without loss when you're tired of it, than fixate on 1 title and overpay for it because you think you need to have it..
 
First rule - don;t buy something you haven;t played. I don;t care if you play it on the Wii, xbox360, pinmame or search them out locally at bars to play. Don't ever buy a pin solely based on the fact it fits your price range or because someone tells you it's good. Buy it because you KNOW YOU LIKE it.

Second rule is to not over pay. I'm amazed how many people buy their first pin and have over paid and when times comes to sell it you have a miserable time getting rid of it. The reality is your first pin will most likely be the first sold. Visit sites like pinpedia.com or bostonpinball.biz

Third rule - do your research (download the manual) and know how to get into the diag menu. Make sure you either do it or ask the seller to do it. If there are issues this allows you some bargaining power.

Fourth rule - research common failure items and know how much it'll cost you to replace it such as a display, CPU or driver board. When looking at a pin remove the traslite and inspect molex connectors (burned or not) and LOOK HARD at the battery holder. If it's a battery leak victim and the acid made it to the PCB, you can safely assume an expensive fix is due.

Pinball is an expensive hobby. Most people start off expecting to pay $800 - $1200. BTW you didn't mention of you wanted an EM or a SS. An EM be had fairly cheap while SS's typically run much more (depending upon title of course).
Price doesn't mean a GREAT machine. Lindsey pointed out a MM and those are one of the most expensive. While I personally like the game, I know several people who think the game sucks. Back to more money doesn;t always mean more fun.

The bottom line is YOU need to FIND what YOU like. There's soooo many titles out there and thank god for that.

It has been my observance that there is typically two types of groups. Stop and go OR flow.
Let me explain. Using commonly liked titles - LOTR and AFM. I find that the people who dislike LOTR like AFM and vice versa. Why? Because those people want a fast paced game with FLOW and LOTR is more stop and go. All my pins are Stop and go titles.
For me personally, I KNOW what my "IT" factor is. With more time on different titles you'll eventually figure out what your "IT" factor is too.

It's not to late to walk away and save yourself from this disease. ;)
 
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LOTR really isn't a stop and go game (in my opinion), almost all shots come back to the flippers. TSPP, TZ, Stargate would all be stop and go games.

Taylor34
 
LOTR really isn't a stop and go game (in my opinion), almost all shots come back to the flippers. TSPP, TZ, Stargate would all be stop and go games.

Taylor34

Most people refer to LOTR as a clunk fest. Don't get me wrong I have one and love it. But stop and go is Orthanc shot on both sides, the shire, sword ramp, Bal-Dur and let's not forget the amount of time th ball spends bouncing around in the POTD or the lanes. The ball spends a lot of time away from the flipper compared to others and is why I mentioned it.

If I changed my wording to slow and go would that make ya happy? ;)
 
I was being facetious with the Medieval Madness comment. As a first game $7K+ might be a little much. Price can become an issue quickly with pinball. A lot of people who say the game sucks are haters. I can definitely agree with not liking the price. I think it sells for double what it should but it would be hard to come up with reasons why the gameplay sucks. The price on the other hand SUCKS.
 
If your looking for an easier game to keep running I would get a system 11 Williams. For a good title, I've always thought High Speed was a good game, as long as it is clean, it is a smooth game to play and its loads of fun. You can always get people to play it too because the objective is so simple, change the light from green to red and run it. All pinball will need some work sooner or later but any mid to late 80's game from Williams will be easier to keep going than a DMD game.
 
Am wanting to own one pinball in my gameroom...was wanting your guys opinion on what would be a good pin to own if I only owned one? I really dont know anything about fixing pinballs so are there pinballs that require less maintenance than others that would be a great choice? Money really isnt an issue. Thanks.

My recommendation: Stern Spiderman.
 
I agree with Deadly. Figure out if you like flow or stop-and-go machines. This will give you a great indicator as to what machines you will prefer. Then play as many titles as you can to find the right machine for you. Reviews of machines are a good start, but just because a machine has a good rep doesn't mean it is for you, and vice versa, don't let a low rep keep you from pulling the trigger on a machine you really like.

I also agree, one leads to more. So be ready.
 
Unless you are really in love with a specific NIB game, I suggest also considering part availability if you go with used. This assumes you buy a used one that is not minty fresh and may want to restore it.

If you are into repairing as part of the fun (like me), I would go with a Williams WPC and not consider a NIB as a first pin.

... Altan
 
I'm with Altan on this one: you must decide whether you want a project or a solid working machine first. I got my first pin from CraigsList, a non-working SS mystery machine for $600. I only had to put $20's worth of coils into it to make it work, and another $50 to do the upgrades recommended at PinRepair.com. The result was a machine that was about 98% right.

So ask yourself: do you want a pinball machine to play, or one to play WITH? My inner geek prefers the latter.
 
^


he stated in the OP that he didn't know anything about fixing pins and preferred "less maintenance." i'm guessing he doesn't wanna tinker and would rather pay for working.....at least for now.
 
What parts of a DMD equipped machine do you think makes it more difficult to keep running VS say a WPC or a Sys11?

They generally have less mechanical systems. I don't mean that the DMD display decides the reliability but a general rule of thumb is that a DMD machine has more toys, and the more moving parts the more there is to keep running. A System 11 game usually has ramps and target but not a million toys. Just something to think about not a true deciding factor unless you have no clue on a pinball.
 
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