Pinside price estimates

Gov

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I am wanting to get into pins and have been looking around a lot and have kind of been looking at pinside for estimated values. I have found though that unless it is a $4k + machine, the asking price for a majority of machines for sale I have seen is usually at least double what is usually stated at Pinside. I know people always ask a lot more than things are usually worth, but it seems extreme.

I am assuming these values are based on auction sale prices and not necessarily ebay.

Is there a better place to check on values?
 
Prices can vary based on location, condition, demand etc. Any game is only worth what someone is willing to pay. If its a machine you really want you may have to "overpay" for it or be patient for the right deal to come along.

Pinpedia, Boston pinball also have estimated prices though Boston is based on auctions

-Barry
 
I acquired my entire collection within the last year. The 4 of these together cost me exactly $6550 (before gas, mods, parts, powdercoating, etc), all funded from the sales of restored arcade games and other pinball machines:

DSC02583.jpg


Break that down and you're looking at about $1635 or so, which seems to be about the average cost of a player's condition B title these days. If you're setting your heart on 'A' titles, be prepared to drop at least $3500, at most about 12 grand.
 
Ya, really the only 'A' title I am interested in is Funhouse, but I doubt I will ever acquire one. That doesn't mean I wouldn't love to have a MM, AFM or a Circus Voltaire, but I am not willing to spend the kind of money required to claim such a prize.

It is a good thing I like the early 80's pins. Solar Fire is about the only one I really want to track down, but like you said, if I can find a couple of decent pins for around $1500 I will probably be pretty happy.
 
Luckily I have cheap taste. I really like the early Bally & Stern SS machines. I don't care much for the DMD pins. I have had a few DMDs and sold them off for the space.
 
Black Hole is a favorite of mine as are other games that require the precision shots and drop targets. I am kind of scared of Black Hole though after reading about the maintenance required to keep it going.
 
good that you are shopping around.
You'll notice on pinside they discuss the herd mentality where pin titles are like flavor of the month at the ice cream shop.
if this cool guy wants it, so does everyone else. yada yada.

also a suggestion that the influx of new titles with new technology will help antiquate that 90s era DMD stuff. just like the stigma that happened to 80s pins, then the 70s pinbs and the EMs prior.

If you find the right one at the right price and it's fun to work on you'll be a lot happier in the long run than if you get raped for price on the first one just because someone else said that particular title was cool. ;)

the 3 machines I've had, I enjoyed the road trip of the experience just as much as owning the pin (which interest does wane if it is only you enjoying it...)
 
Pin prices are all over the map these days.

Don't fall victim to the flavor of the week hype.
Play it before you buy it.
Don't be afraid to get dirty and fix a few minor issues
Pins and video games are not very wise investments, they are games, you may make a few bucks or you may lose a few bucks when buying and selling them.

Plain and simple, It is supposed to be fun! Once it stops being fun is the day I sell every game I own.

Rule of thumb, define your budget, pick a game within that budget and stick to the plan.

Just like gambling, don't play with money you can't afford to spend.
 
Pin prices are all over the map these days.

Don't fall victim to the flavor of the week hype.
Play it before you buy it.
Don't be afraid to get dirty and fix a few minor issues
Pins and video games are not very wise investments, they are games, you may make a few bucks or you may lose a few bucks when buying and selling them.

Plain and simple, It is supposed to be fun! Once it stops being fun is the day I sell every game I own.

Rule of thumb, define your budget, pick a game within that budget and stick to the plan.

Just like gambling, don't play with money you can't afford to spend.

I agree with all of this. The only part that is kind of hard is the "Play it before you buy it." With only 10 pins with about a 100 miles radius that I have found and are public use it is hard to try any out. 1984 has Funhouse and Grand Lizard which I greatly enjoy both. They also have Black Pyramid (ok), Black Knight 2000 (I like the original better), The Getaway (always broken when I am in there, but have played it on Future Pinball) and Judge Dredd, which is moderately fun but I have heard it is a maintenance whore. Other than that there is a Revenge from Mars, Ironman and a couple of more obscure Data East pins I can't remember the name of.
 
Visual Pinball, it's your best friend when browsing Craigs list.
It does a decent job of weeding out what you don't know about.
You are in Springfield so that'd be quite a journey but the MGC show in Milwaukee at end of March has a huge selection of pins and pins for sale at reasonable prices.

This might be a bit outdated, but it'll get you started: http://www.robotron2084guidebook.com/home/games/visualpinball/

There used to be a guy on here from the St. Louis area that had a pinball showroom, and also helped hook hobbyists up with reasonably priced pinball machines if he could help out. man, what was his name. He might be a great resource for you.
 
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Ya I have played around with Visual Pinball but it has been a PIA to get working right and it kind of looks like ass compared to FP. Some of the tables work fine but others keep crashing the program. So I have been messing around more with FP even though it probably doesn't play quite as well and there aren't nearly as many tables for it. Especially System 9 and 11 pins.
 
You never know where deals will pop up. Keep following Craigslist and anywhere else people are selling used stuff like your local paper or weekly shopper. And try to make some connections with smaller route guys. Yes it is getting harder to get these deals but it is possible.

I got all the pins I currently have from a route operator and they were far less expensive than market rate. And two of them were hardly even used on route - most of the time they were in storage. He was glad to be rid of them because they did not make enough money on route. They were smoking deals.
 
I agree with all of this. The only part that is kind of hard is the "Play it before you buy it." With only 10 pins with about a 100 miles radius that I have found and are public use it is hard to try any out.
Just go to where the pins are. There are shows and conventions all over the place. I've played most of the games I've bought first at shows.
 
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