pins in the wild

mrgone

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there are a few pins in the wild locally. one op takes very good care of his pins. the others dont even clean theirs. there is a strange science locally that i like to play. its dirty as hell,and now the upper flipper is not working and no one will fix it. another location has an addams family that has been out of order for at least 6 months. how does a route op. make money if the pins dont work? sorry for the rant.
 
Pinball doesn't make shit for money anymore. Have you ever taken a NIB purchase price @ .50 a drop ad figured out how many play it takes to break even? Have you considered a 50/50 split in the mix? Have you considered repairs that will be made before the machine is paid in full?
Consider how much an OP will sell the machine for after it's been routed 2-3 years.
There could be multiple reasons why these machines aren't being taken of. Laziness? Take a $25 item that needs to be replaced. A lousy ass $25 and how many plays are needed to simply pay that off? The machines don;t earn shit for money so why fix it ...... as a few examples.
PUBLIC pinball is dying for a reason. The initial cost of the machine alone is a bad start.
When you have people that DO take care of their equiptment and try to make a living and are BARELY able to do that when the machines are working ...... it's just not good no matter how a person looks at it.
 
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i heard around erie, pa that operators make $250 a year on a pinball machine in an OK location. the is after splitting it 50/50 but not counting if anything breaks on it or paying a tech to go take care of problems
 
i understand that the ops dont make any money like they used to. i contacted the op with the addams family and asked if he was interested in selling it. he did not want to sell but he will keep it in a location not working for 6 months. if he sold it he would at least make some money off it.anyway he was nice enough to offer to help me find another pin to buy.
 
not willing to sell a machine that (presumably, being broken) hasn't collected any money in six months? This guy either doesn't have the authoritah, or isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

In general, I'm disappointed in the direction the whole pinball industry has taken: one manufacturer left, and very little variety from that one (all their machines look and play the same, AFAIC). I guess it's just the latest example of the buggy whip.
 
not willing to sell a machine that (presumably, being broken) hasn't collected any money in six months? This guy either doesn't have the authoritah, or isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

In general, I'm disappointed in the direction the whole pinball industry has taken: one manufacturer left, and very little variety from that one (all their machines look and play the same, AFAIC). I guess it's just the latest example of the buggy whip.



stern can't afford much more than "a little variety" or there will be exactly zero manufacturers left. i'd imagine one big stinker would sink them.
 
ah yes,however there is a new gunslinger in town. jersey jack pinball. their 1st pin is due around christmas 2011.
 
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