Pinball owners - Give me the basics on buying please

sammybean

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Pinball owners - Give me the basics on buying please

So I'd like to get a pinball for my arcade room. In the past I've owned a couple EM's, but I'd really like to step it up a notch and grab something both newer and nicer. I'm thinking Theater of Magic, Phantom of the Opera, or one of the Elvira pins (I don't remember which) as they were at the local bowling alley up until a few years back and I have fond memories.

I probably won't be buying until the new year, but I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

Where do you look for pins?

Where can I find a decent price guide?

What should one know when going to look at one, or if it's getting shipped to you, what should you be sure of before plunking down your cash?

What kind of upkeep is needed outside of waxing the playfield?

Any other must-know information for solid-state/digital pins?
 
So I'd like to get a pinball for my arcade room. In the past I've owned a couple EM's, but I'd really like to step it up a notch and grab something both newer and nicer. I'm thinking Theater of Magic, Phantom of the Opera, or one of the Elvira pins (I don't remember which) as they were at the local bowling alley up until a few years back and I have fond memories.

I probably won't be buying until the new year, but I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

Where do you look for pins?

Where can I find a decent price guide?

What should one know when going to look at one, or if it's getting shipped to you, what should you be sure of before plunking down your cash?

What kind of upkeep is needed outside of waxing the playfield?

Any other must-know information for solid-state/digital pins?

DONT!!!

Pins are like vids as in you cant have just one. And they are alot more expensive to buy, fix, and maintain. So avoid it like the plague


I have 18 and im nowhere near done getting them
 
See below for answers

So I'd like to get a pinball for my arcade room. In the past I've owned a couple EM's, but I'd really like to step it up a notch and grab something both newer and nicer. I'm thinking Theater of Magic, Phantom of the Opera, or one of the Elvira pins (I don't remember which) as they were at the local bowling alley up until a few years back and I have fond memories.

I probably won't be buying until the new year, but I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

Where do you look for pins? Craigslist or pynball.com

Where can I find a decent price guide? mr pinball

What should one know when going to look at one, or if it's getting shipped to you, what should you be sure of before plunking down your cash? Dont buy a pin sight unseen for your first

What kind of upkeep is needed outside of waxing the playfield? New balls, new rubber, new bulbs, regular upkeep

Any other must-know information for solid-state/digital pins? lots of fun, more expensive to fix, and to buy
 
I'm kind of new to the whole pinball thing too, but...

Where to buy pins. Craigslist and eBay, although Buyer Beware, there's also a lot of "pro restorer" websites like treasure-cove.net if you are willing to pay restoration-level prices. Check to see if your area has a pinball club, make some connections on KLOV, etc.

For a TON of information, including approx prices from auction results, check pinside.com

For buying one, nothing beats actually playing it. Take your time and learn the machine if you don't already. My IJ I just bought has an opto issue that went reported and undiagnosed until I got it home and played it. If I would have IDed it on inspection I could have probably knocked off a few hundred dollars in the negotiation. If you are buying it remotely, get LOTS of detailed pictures and don't be shy to ask for vids/pictures if you are paying top dollar.

Upkeep. Besides cleaning/waxing the playfield, you are going to have to repair broken plastics, drop targets, rubber and lights. If you have a particular pin in mind, research that pin. Many games have "unique" issues (like my IJ optical issue) that are nice to know and be able to scope out when buying. I don't know what average upkeep is as I am just getting into it, but it seems to be somewhere between $50 and $200/year depending on the issues on your particular pin.

Expensive replacements are things like the DMD, ramps, cabinet decals, so pay careful attention to those things when buying one. Some older Data East games have DMD issues that can be VERY expensive to solve, for instance.

Again, I'm a noob so I defer to basically anyone else on this board, but that's what I know.
 
DONT!!!

Pins are like vids as in you cant have just one. And they are alot more expensive to buy, fix, and maintain. So avoid it like the plague


I have 18 and im nowhere near done getting them

Hahaha, I only have room for 3 in my arcade room in addition to my 4 candy cabs (1 neo, 2 vert, 1 hori). Thankfully my finances prevent me from going pinball mad :D. lol

See below for answers

Many thanks :D.

I'm kind of new to the whole pinball thing too, but...

Where to buy pins. Craigslist and eBay, although Buyer Beware, there's also a lot of "pro restorer" websites like treasure-cove.net if you are willing to pay restoration-level prices. Check to see if your area has a pinball club, make some connections on KLOV, etc.

For a TON of information, including approx prices from auction results, check pinside.com

For buying one, nothing beats actually playing it. Take your time and learn the machine if you don't already. My IJ I just bought has an opto issue that went reported and undiagnosed until I got it home and played it. If I would have IDed it on inspection I could have probably knocked off a few hundred dollars in the negotiation. If you are buying it remotely, get LOTS of detailed pictures and don't be shy to ask for vids/pictures if you are paying top dollar.

Upkeep. Besides cleaning/waxing the playfield, you are going to have to repair broken plastics, drop targets, rubber and lights. If you have a particular pin in mind, research that pin. Many games have "unique" issues (like my IJ optical issue) that are nice to know and be able to scope out when buying. I don't know what average upkeep is as I am just getting into it, but it seems to be somewhere between $50 and $200/year depending on the issues on your particular pin.

Expensive replacements are things like the DMD, ramps, cabinet decals, so pay careful attention to those things when buying one. Some older Data East games have DMD issues that can be VERY expensive to solve, for instance.

Again, I'm a noob so I defer to basically anyone else on this board, but that's what I know.


Sooo much information right here. I'm going to have to delve deeper into researching this. I'm hoping to find an Elvira and the Party Monsters since it's the cheapest on my nostalgia list, so time to delve into what issues it normally has I guess. :).
 
Sammy, check out www.ipdb.org for pics of games you might be interested in. Also, there's rec.games.pinball for more information. That's a newsgroup though. Yes, its the same caldwert from neo-geo.com.
 
Pinpedia.com may give you some info as well. I've been using that quite often to research my first purchase (yet to come).
 
Before I go to buy a pin I like to play it first in Visual Pinball. That helps me learn the rules, and it can also help you know if the game is behaving like it should.
 
So I'd like to get a pinball for my arcade room. In the past I've owned a couple EM's, but I'd really like to step it up a notch and grab something both newer and nicer. I'm thinking Theater of Magic, Phantom of the Opera, or one of the Elvira pins (I don't remember which) as they were at the local bowling alley up until a few years back and I have fond memories.

I probably won't be buying until the new year, but I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

The pins you're suggesting are sort of at the high end of the spectrum in terms of pricing and availability. Not bad choices, but for your first pin, you might want to pursue something more modest. It's definitely a learning experience (and quite addictive). You can typically get a nice DMD for anywhere from $1000-$1800, but if you opt for something like TOM or Scared Stiff, you'll be paying $3000+

Where do you look for pins?

Craigslist, and eBay - I wouldn't buy anything that has to be shipped, but you can set up a distance/keyword-based search on eBay so if something appears in your area, you are notified.

Where can I find a decent price guide?

Most of the price guides are not terribly useful, because in general prices are all over the place nowadays. For B and C-list machines, it's going to be heavily dependent upon region, market, and condition. A-list machines (TAF, TZ, TOM, SS, MM, CV, etc) are more stable in pricing.

Best source for pinball prices IMO is here:
http://www.bostonpinball.biz/eBay052910.htm

But still, it all depends upon who you're dealing with and the condition of the machine.

What should one know when going to look at one, or if it's getting shipped to you, what should you be sure of before plunking down your cash?

I would avoid having a machine shipped. It's too great of a risk, especially for your first attempt. Too many things can go wrong, too easy to get scammed, too easy to get into a fight about condition and product misrepresentation, etc.

Before plunking down your cash you should have a full idea of what condition the machine is in. There are a ton of things to look for, and it varies depending upon the era of the machine (EM, SS, DMD) - EMs are all about being clean, early SS are about connectors, grounding issues, corrosion, DMDs battery issues, condition of expensive parts like ramp plastics, toys, etc.)

What kind of upkeep is needed outside of waxing the playfield?

Always install brand new balls, replace the rubbers, go over the machine to make sure there are no loose parts that will bounce around and cause damage. Again this varies from machine-to-machine and era-to-era. Personally, I like to replace a lot of the GI with LEDs to reduce the voltage stress on connectors.

Any other must-know information for solid-state/digital pins?

They're like Lays potato chips!
 
Figure it is better to bump, because the info I am going to discuss is mentioned here.

Got my 2nd pinballlife order in a week today and it had a flyer for www.pynball.com It does seem like it is getting used too heavily, but not sure how well it is known. Only spent a minute or two on the site and was a bit bummed by the search function. Do any of you here use it?

I know than in VAPS you can offer games for sale.

I wanted to post a while back on where to find pins. It seems CL is the best source, and advanced search my X many miles away is a great way to find some pins. After deciding that I could drive 3+ hours to check out a pin listed in other area Cl ads I think I found a great place to search for pins.

Living in Lincoln, NE there are some decent towns, but no real big metropolises besides Omaha to search for new games. Driving will be worth it.

I am to the point where I am looking to sell a few of my machines so I can trade up to cooler machines. I will of course post here and then on CL. Just wondering if any of you professionals are willing to risk an EBAY buy now that you are in the know, and if you have some new suggestions.
 
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I always accept offers from sellers. Im a retailer and I like buying from people on here because I know the machines are probably better the half the places I get them from and usually pay a little bit more.

From a retailer stand point I only buy on ebay and CL if they are cheap. From what I gather from my customers is that if a pin is listed on CL or ebay for a high price they rather by from an online store like mine or locally because you will get some sort of warranty. For the collector most of you dont really care about that and I rarely do business with most of you guys. My main clients are the home user aka first time owner or the rich with lotsa money to blow.

BTW since I know most of you guys wont buy from myself or any other online store I will help locate pins if asked. I come across all kinds of items in my searches for different games and pins. Just shoot me a pm and Ill let you know if I know where one is or ill keep my open for one. I always know to make sure its a bargain as well. Its my way of giving back to the people on here who help me with fixes and contacts.
 
I have been thinking of maybe going the retailer route.

I think my biggest problem is that I simply do not know what I want. When I turned into a high schooler I sorta lost interest in pins and missed out on a good era. It seems I just grab what I can locally at a decent price.

Absolutely must have at least 3 ball multiball. I have been searching a lot, and not much in my price range is calling my name. By selling a couple of pins and the money I have been making repairing some pins for others I can get a moderately priced pin now. It has expanded the machines I can look at.

Are pynball.com and VAPS worth dealing with?
 
I have been thinking of maybe going the retailer route.

Are pynball.com and VAPS worth dealing with?

I avoid going the retail route. I have one exception, which is tomorrow to pick up an AFM.
I went retail on this only because individuals have a line of people waiting to buy this title and I paid close to what others are asking for theirs, plus this one has no fade and is not beat all to shit.

Pynball.com is how I came across my GnR pin.

It pays to search everywhere.
 
To be fair I did bump an old thread after a search. Also followed the other thread. Was interested in pynball from you guys.

AFM, good score. At the top for me. One of the reasons I might go retail.

I am still patient. I will wait for the good one to come around, and keep saving money along the way. Just been frustrating because I have been looking for months and only a few excite me.
 
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