jdubb350
Well-known member
So it's been a few days since the intial post, any updates on this one yet?
Found a Taxi pinball that is local....
- Thread starter Syngefinger
- Start date
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Syngefinger
New member
I'm actually going to see/play it this evening. With some luck and a bit of bartering I'll be bringing it home yet this weekend. It's only about 8 blocks from my house. If successful I'll be sure to post and put up some more detailed pictures.
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Syngefinger
New member
Got to see/play examine the Taxi tonight and made an offer. He says he think he'll accept my offer but wants to think about it a couple days.
Aside from the Jackpot display hanging loose I found a few other problems upon playing it. The Pinbot drop targets seem to be stuck in the down position. They seem to want to reset but never do. Any ideas as to what is causing this?
Secondly the upper left pop bumper is inoperative, the other 2 seem to be fairly strong. I've never messed with a SS pop bumper before. Do they work in the same fashion as a EM's pop bumpers? Or are they more involved.
Other then the broken plastic piece on the right slingshot the rest of the plastic is in good shape with nothing else visibly cracked/broken. Both balls will have to be replaced as they are both pretty scratched up. The rubbers are all pretty filthy.
The playfield itself is quite dirty but I didn't see any major wear spots and the game played nice and fast, in spite of being so dirty. I can just imagine how nice and fast it'll be when cleaned up and waxed/shopped.
I hope to hear from him by this weekend. I'll keep my fingers crossed until then. It'd look awful nice down in my gameroom.
Aside from the Jackpot display hanging loose I found a few other problems upon playing it. The Pinbot drop targets seem to be stuck in the down position. They seem to want to reset but never do. Any ideas as to what is causing this?
Secondly the upper left pop bumper is inoperative, the other 2 seem to be fairly strong. I've never messed with a SS pop bumper before. Do they work in the same fashion as a EM's pop bumpers? Or are they more involved.
Other then the broken plastic piece on the right slingshot the rest of the plastic is in good shape with nothing else visibly cracked/broken. Both balls will have to be replaced as they are both pretty scratched up. The rubbers are all pretty filthy.
The playfield itself is quite dirty but I didn't see any major wear spots and the game played nice and fast, in spite of being so dirty. I can just imagine how nice and fast it'll be when cleaned up and waxed/shopped.
I hope to hear from him by this weekend. I'll keep my fingers crossed until then. It'd look awful nice down in my gameroom.
jdubb350
Well-known member
Well good luck fingers are crossed here as well.
As for the drop targets the planet advance targets on my pinbot do the same thing, I reach under the table and push up on them and they pop right back up and usually work for quite a while before the drop for good again. I am not that educated on working on pins yet so I am not sure but I think the motor that raises them back up may get weak or stuck in the down position, because you can hear it trying to raise them back up on mine just won't do it without assisstance.
The pop bumpers I have no experience with one not working before so I can't help ya there.
Dang you are making me want to go out and buy that one I know is waiting for em and put myself in an even better financial position lol.
As for the drop targets the planet advance targets on my pinbot do the same thing, I reach under the table and push up on them and they pop right back up and usually work for quite a while before the drop for good again. I am not that educated on working on pins yet so I am not sure but I think the motor that raises them back up may get weak or stuck in the down position, because you can hear it trying to raise them back up on mine just won't do it without assisstance.
The pop bumpers I have no experience with one not working before so I can't help ya there.
Dang you are making me want to go out and buy that one I know is waiting for em and put myself in an even better financial position lol.
yugffuts
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1) No power/ground/switch to the bumper. Could be the wire(s) is/are just disconnected. If the wire is connected, check with a meter. Also, check that the switch is working and registers on the driver board (test mode or meter). Check all fuses and the transistor for that coil on the driver board.
2) If you have power & the switch registers, but no pop, the coil itself is most likely burned out. This is a fairly cheap/easy fix.
The point is, neither are expensive to fix. So, I wouldn't worry too much about how it impacts your potential purchase from a monetary standpoint.
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Syngefinger
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Thanks for the responses guys. I was reading up on Marvins Pinball repairs and he mentioned LED sensors for the drop targets that just might be dirty.
First things first. I need to wait for his decision. It's only been one day but I'm itching to contact him, but I don"t want to bug him too much. I'll have to be patient and give him a few days.
And jdubb, it's only money. We can always make more.
First things first. I need to wait for his decision. It's only been one day but I'm itching to contact him, but I don"t want to bug him too much. I'll have to be patient and give him a few days.
And jdubb, it's only money. We can always make more.
cadillacman
Well-known member
most project pins i wouldnt spend more than $300....
now if it was a revenge from mars, star wars, or a eaptm, addams family,star trek tng etc thats a totally different story but this would be in my 200-300 range..
now if it was a revenge from mars, star wars, or a eaptm, addams family,star trek tng etc thats a totally different story but this would be in my 200-300 range..
I'm with you. Problem is, most of the rest of pin buyers feel it is worth more and I can't seem to find the good System 11 titles at that price range.
Lindsey
Well-known member
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Syngefinger
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Don't get me wrong...I'd LOVE to find pinball machines (projects or not) for the $200.00 to $300.00 range. My problem involves demographics. As was stated earlier in this thread by a Canadien KLOVer, who'd be happy to pay $1,000.00 for a similar Taxi to the one I'm looking at, solely for the fact that we collectors that are a ways off the beaten track and don't come across many local machines.
Cadillacman, I see you are near Chicago. I imagine you have a huge variety of games come up for sale near you or can have them cheaply shipped to a major airport near you. Because of the law of supply and demand, with many choices nearby and the fact that you probably don't have to travel very far to get them, it lets you be choosier and probably pay less for games. Especially when you don"t have to pay for long distance shipping of games.
Now for myself it's VERY rare for any type of game (arcade or pinball) to come up for sale in my hometown. In fact, I've only been able to buy one, my first EM pinball locally. Every other game I've had to drive a minimum of 5 hours roundtrip and a maximum of 12 hours roundtrip to pickup on purchases from Craigslist and E-bay.
It's even rarer for a highly rated, popular game, such as Taxi to be found for sale anywhere in Northern Michigan let alone 8 blocks from my house. Just the fact that I don't have to waste a day of my weekend in travelling downstate to pick up a game, that I've never seen in person, which may or may not be as portrayed in the ad, is worth an extra $150.00 - $200.00 to me over what you might be willing to pay.
If you come across a $200-$300 project Taxi game in similar shape near you and want to drive it 400 miles one-way up to me or ship it to me free, I'd be happy to take it off your hands. Otherwise I'm stuck with what's available to me nearby and have to pay accordingly.
shardian
New member
The true deals will not come from advertised listings. They come from local contacts, and people knowing you fix these things and have a gameroom.
My last few vids and my Lethal Weapon pin came from a local unlisted contact via fellow local KLOV'er Wade Lanham.
I had to badger the guy to finally sell the pin, and I was pleasantly surprised at the price.
Another local gameroom guy works at at a DirectTV data center. He put the word out to everyone at the place and all his friends/family. He's finding unlisted deals all the time! I have him to thank for my dart board. He's picking up an old EM pin this weekend for free through a family friend connection.
Bottom line, try to get the word out through friends, family, and work. You never know what will come your way.
My last few vids and my Lethal Weapon pin came from a local unlisted contact via fellow local KLOV'er Wade Lanham.
I had to badger the guy to finally sell the pin, and I was pleasantly surprised at the price.
Another local gameroom guy works at at a DirectTV data center. He put the word out to everyone at the place and all his friends/family. He's finding unlisted deals all the time! I have him to thank for my dart board. He's picking up an old EM pin this weekend for free through a family friend connection.
Bottom line, try to get the word out through friends, family, and work. You never know what will come your way.
jar155
New member
I haven't tried it, but I've heard of people having a lot of luck posting wanted ads in the newspaper. Yeah, not many people read the newspaper, but that's why it works because not many people are competing for the space there. Some old timer who refuses to go digital will see the ad, remember he has a warehouse full or a storage shed crammed with pins and games and will give you a call.
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Syngefinger
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Just talked to him tonight. He accepted my offer and I'll be picking it up on Tuesday after work. I'll post some more detailed pictures when I've gotten it home and cleaned it up a bit. I'm psyched to say the least.
jdubb350
Well-known member
Sweet! Congrats on the new aquisition, even if it is a little bit of a project. So what did you end up getting it for if you don't mind me asking?
Good news on my lead, I haven't found out exactly what the guy wants for it yet, but I did find out since its from a friend of a friend, it's really only going to be for sale to me, so there's no pressure, just whenever I am ready to commit, it is mine!
Good news on my lead, I haven't found out exactly what the guy wants for it yet, but I did find out since its from a friend of a friend, it's really only going to be for sale to me, so there's no pressure, just whenever I am ready to commit, it is mine!
Steelhorse
New member
It's Tuesday
Ok where's the pic's? It's tuesday already now!
Ok where's the pic's? It's tuesday already now!
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Syngefinger
New member
Picked it up last night late. Didn't get a chance to get to clean it up at all and probably won't until this weekend. Once cleaned and such I'll be sure to post many detailed pictures.
Steelhorse
New member
before and after pic's
post up them before and after pic's? What was your total cost for the purchase. Taxi is fun!
post up them before and after pic's? What was your total cost for the purchase. Taxi is fun!
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Syngefinger
New member
I'll try to post some pictures tomorrow night. And we agreed on a price of $600.00. Given the few minor problems and relatively good shape of the play field and plastics I think it was a fair deal.
jdubb350
Well-known member
Based on what I see pins go for around here in the Detroit area, and the fact that somebody has been posting a Taxi on Detroit Craigslist for the last couple of months for $1795, I think you got a fair deal as well.
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Syngefinger
New member
Got a lot of pictures tonight and cleaned things up quite a bit. Have some Novus 2 on order and a couple new balls as well as new rubbers. Hopefully will be here tomorrow so I can clean everything up right and switch the old rubbers out for new. The old ones are basically falling apart from age.
Upon examining things closer I've found the blue wire is detached from the pop bumper that is inoperative. Hopefully resoldering that will solve the pop bumper problem. It's the most critical pop bumper as without it working it's a lot more difficult to hit the pick up customer target.
I've also found that the Joy Ride drop hole almost always sends the ball right down the middle of the flippers. Is there an easy way to adjust this so it fires it more to either side?
Holy crap it's a fun game to play! I found myself playing game after game. It'll be a lot fun when I can get the minor problems corrected and new rubbers in place.
Here's a few of the before dirty pictures.
Upon examining things closer I've found the blue wire is detached from the pop bumper that is inoperative. Hopefully resoldering that will solve the pop bumper problem. It's the most critical pop bumper as without it working it's a lot more difficult to hit the pick up customer target.
I've also found that the Joy Ride drop hole almost always sends the ball right down the middle of the flippers. Is there an easy way to adjust this so it fires it more to either side?
Holy crap it's a fun game to play! I found myself playing game after game. It'll be a lot fun when I can get the minor problems corrected and new rubbers in place.
Here's a few of the before dirty pictures.
