Recent Arcade Repro Trends

[Takeman]

I've been collecting for about 14 years now and I think there are more things available than when I first started. You can find almost anything needed compared to how it used to be. Plus there are more people contirbuting in various ways.

On another note, repros are very time consuming and the average joe that wants to run something they need is cost prohibitive. People like Darin, Rich, Anthony, Mikes Arcade & even arcadeshop can take years to break even or show profit on artwork they've run. Anyone who has done a repro art project can vouch for this. Probably the reason the same pieces are not rerun if they were not a money make. Repro artwork is a long term investment.

This is why preorders are being done. With a preorder, there is less out of pocket and a shorter time frame to get your money back out of a project and make a couple bucks for all the time spent driving back and forth to screeners (or metal fab) place approving parts, colors ect.( or the shipping of proofs back and forth) Plus if the part/art is a total loser, you can refund everyone and you dont lose your ass. Speaking of lost ass, anybody want a Zaxxon cpo?


And lets face it, screen printers dont wanna run 25-50 of something, they want hundreds to make it worth while. Although they may take your project, its used as filler when they have time to spare from working on their big money makers. This is why it takes so long to get small runs of artwork done.

The above are my opinions and mine alone based on my experiences reproducing several art projects and metal parts.

 

[cleverlyj]

the thing i don't get is why there are problems with the larger guys in the hobby. like arcadeshop, for example. they are (or were?) out of their tempest cpo's for a while. that is an item that is generally gonna get more demand than others, so why not make another run of them... i understand with an item that has less demand they don't want to get their money tied up in it, but with stuff that's gonna sell, why not?

and then, on the other side, stuff that is on its way to being repro'd but hasn't yet. i don't really know why stuff takes so much longer to show up these days. i know a couple guys have art and whatnot that i'd love to get for one of my machines, but is on the back burner enough that only a lot of demand will get it done soon at this point, so it's a crapshoot. maybe it's the economy thing being tied into this, i don't know. i would generally assume that most of the collectors in this hobby are going to tend to have more liquid cash available for purchasing stuff like art or parts, same as people that collect cars or whatever. i don't know.

 

[darinjacobs]

What I have noticed is that still nobody makes a accurate Galaga CPO. And when I go to order parts they are always 1 or 2 available. When I just got a 4 restrictor plate for my DK it said that, and when I got it, it came with a note saying they they ran out of the repos and they sent me a NOS one instead!

This has been covered before. Galaga, like countless other titles, especially high production machines had many revisions. There are probably 5 different versions of Galaga cpos out there from the factory, maybe more. Who is it to say which is the accurate one? Because its on your game? Because its on the flyer? Not in my book. I know many flyers where the art shown is different than the "most common" version you see. You cant please everyone and have to make a decision on which version to run.

It seems this is important to you so I would suggest hiring an artist, send them your panel, have the project done and since its the accurate one according to you, sales will be great and you'll have made all your money back quickly and perhaps a profit. That's exactly how I started my first repro 11 years ago. I would be willing to your Galaga cpo on my site with a direct link to you.

Having been collecting since 1980 years there's no question more repro artwork is available today than ever before. However too much of it is inkjet, but it does serve a purpose when no other option is available. I've been banging the drum since day one that people keep supporting the inkjetters who copy screen printed repros arent doing the hobby any favors. You will make screen printing repros go the way of the dinosaur. I do fondly remember the days of calling Atari-Bally-Williams directly and speaking to a person on the phone and giving them my credit card and buying all my art and parts from them. Thats how I assembled a pile of NOS. The Atari people were a blast to talk to.

If you have a game and its a keeper, buy 2 of each piece you need. Many of these runs sell so slow its not worth reprinting. If it sold slow the first time around and I've already saturated the market with 200 of them sales will be even slower the second time around. Id rather do a new project with no market penetration and take my risks there.

Since the market has been flooded with all the most popular titles being done for years and years each new project is riskier for the lower production or less collectible titles. Some projects take years to build enough interest and it gets done. Others fall to the side. Preorders help get projects off the ground. The "ram-effect" shouldnt (but it has) have an effect on long time legit sellers who have track records of getting projects done or refunding money. Preorders also became a necesity because of the "build it and they will come" outlook that rarely happens. I used to do polls all the time and when I got the project done many of those people were nowhere to be found.

People also expect perfection when in fact even lots of NOS art was littered with flaws. It seems screen printers are held to a higher standard. Ive seen a high % of inkjet repros whose art was off and colors not accurate but they get constant praise from some, "hey it looks equally as good as the screen print and I saved myself $10!". It seems once a week I get someone asking if I would take a trade in of inkjet art for my screen printed art. What could I really give them on trade? Just had one 2 weeks ago where a fellow KLOV'er bought from an inkjet and even praised the piece by posting about it, only to email me and complain about it when he compared it to his machine and ask to trade it in. He bought the art from me but got really shitty with me because I didnt give him anything for the trade.

I just ask that if a screen printed version is available please support them. They have invested a signifigant amount of money in production costs and inventory and time to get it done. If one isnt then by all means inkjet is the way to go. I send people to the inkjetters all the time. Equally important is anyone who makes any repro part for a game you have or plan to get. Support them now and buy it. That way you have it in case they sell out and you will likely be helping fund new projects.

My .02c if anyone cares. Believe it or not I typed something much bigger than this but cut it back so as to not bore you guys.

 

[komodo]

I thought I would throw my 3 cents in here. I have always tried to support the hobby by purchasing things that would not get off the ground unless there were enough preorders. I thought I could always use it later or use it for trade bait for something else. I have a lot of artwork I know I will never use now. I have narrowed down my focus as I just don't have enough time or space to do the things I want to do. Perhaps others are in the same boat as me. I do get the feeling of dread if I don't order something when it comes out because I know that it is usually a long time before replacement artwork/parts become available. Take Spyhunter sideart for example. I started in this hobby when it had recently been finished. I never purchased any and then spent years trying to acquire some. Despite having an issue with a recent reproduction run (which was ultimately resolved fairly), it took about 10 years for this to become available again. If you snooze you lose. So where does that leave me? Torn between purchasing an item that may only be available once or taking a gamble and purchasing it later? Look at the ZVG's, Lunar Lander thrusters etc. Fortunately the ZVGs were rerun but it is doubtful we shall see thrusters and other LL parts any time soon.

I think I will stick with purchasing what I think I will use and taking a risk on the rest of the items. Yes, support those that are making repros if at all possible, but don't end up with a huge inventory of stuff you will never use.

 

[Phetishboy]

I just ask that if a screen printed version is available please support them. They have invested a signifigant amount of money in production costs and inventory and time to get it done. If one isnt then by all means inkjet is the way to go. I send people to the inkjetters all the time. Equally important is anyone who makes any repro part for a game you have or plan to get. Support them now and buy it. That way you have it in case they sell out and you will likely be helping fund new projects.

I've used several of yours and Rich's screened repros, who else is there? Brian seems to be out of most everything and hasn't done a new run of anything for quite a long time. Anything Arcadeshop sells they seem to have gotten from you. I guess Anthony has done a few runs of select CPOs, but otherwise he either resells your stuff or the stuff he bought out from Arcade Renovations. Other than you and Rich, who else is there to support?
-Takeman (Zaxxon CPOs)
-Tanman (Your Multi Williams artwork)
If there is anyone else I'm missing, list them so everyone knows where to take their business.

 

[Malice95]

I've used several of yours and Rich's screened repros, who else is there? Brian seems to be out of most everything and hasn't done a new run of anything for quite a long time. Anything Arcadeshop sells they seem to have gotten from you. I guess Anthony has done a few runs of select CPOs, but otherwise he either resells your stuff or the stuff he bought out from Arcade Renovations. Other than you and Rich, who else is there to support?
-Takeman (Zaxxon CPOs)
-Tanman (Your Multi Williams artwork)
If there is anyone else I'm missing, list them so everyone knows where to take their business.

Well actually tanman is me now.. for the multiwilliams stuff. I am also doing others (burgertime, berzerk, galaxian) but they take a LOT of time and money to get out the door. I agree with Darin's comments. Please support the screen printers where possible. Unlike an inkjetter, I need to shell out thousands for just one piece up front. If I was in it for pure profit.. I probably shoulda gone and bought an inkjet.. but I am not. Nothing beats the quality of a screenprint and I only want to offer the best to this community.

 

[modessitt]

People are broke and some are out of work. When you have no money, you tend to buy less. When items aren't bought as much, retailers lower their stock and are leery of replenishing unless they get a lot of demand. Since they don't order replenishments, manufacturers of said products move on to other items and sometimes never get back to production.

Unfortunately, a lot of people are still broke. IF the economy ever gets back to the way it was, you'll probably see a lot of this come back as more people have the ability to buy it...

 

[Jeff F]

I'll throw a different perspective on it than that... I used to think I *needed* to buy as much reproduction art as possible. I'd get a game and buy a overlay and sideart and possibly even a marquee and/or bezel.

Now I get a game and there's a 50/50 chance I'll replace the control panel overlay, if it's torn and pieces are missing or it's extremely worn down it gets replaced... otherwise I clean it up and move on to more important(to me) stuff.

I'd much rather have monitors that are rebuilt and dialed in and controls that work the way they should than "a piece of art". They wifey and kiddos were instrumental in changing my thought process and I thank them for it. With our games, there's no need for them to look perfect because we play them. If they don't get played, they go on the list of "games we'll sell when something funnerer comes along".

Not saying this is the reason for less reproduction stuff selling... but I doubt I'm alone.

 

[Mike Doyle]

Maybe as your collecting palate has gotten more diverse, those obscure titles are harder to source parts for? I can't think of a time when there was more art & parts available then there are now.

I'd like to echo Darin's points however, he is exactly right when it comes to supporting quality parts and artwork. If you wait until "someday" to buy what's available now, it may not be available that particular "someday".

I'm sitting on reproduction parts and artwork for several games I don't even own because a) I know someday I'll need them when the right deal on that title comes along, and 2) I wanted to support those that stepped up and put the time and money into the projects.

The life-cycle for parts, artwork, and multi kits are pretty much the same, when they're widely available they don't sell with urgency since everyone figures they'll get one someday. When the stock is limited to a single run or fixed interval, they sell out.

I remember Clay talking about his Multi Tempest a few years ago, he'd been sitting on the last 5 kits for months, when he posted on RGVAC that he was down to 5, they sold within hours.

 

[Roadrunner000]

I have supported the reproductions to a fault...

I buy way too much and in some cases don't even need the art or repro part that I've purchased...but I appreciate the effort that goes into doing this stuff...

I also like to stock the stuff in case something I need comes up..then I have stuff to offer back in trade...and like mentioned previously some titles I'd like to get someday so if quality repro parts come up for the game I'll grab what I can.

I actually need to inventory my parts and art since I have so much that I've forgotten what I have...every once in a while I will be looking for one thing and come across something else that I forgot or didn't even know I had.

One of the cool things I've found is that all those years of hoarding these quality repro parts has finally paid off as I have a building to finally house all the projects I never thought I'd complete. I'm finding that I have most if not all of the stuff I need already to restore and complete my projects.

I like the idea that its now possible to reproduce anything if you have the right person working on it...nothing seems out of the question if someone has the passion for it..if its done strictly for money then it strictly limits what gets done..that is why is so important for everyone to get involved no matter how small a role they play.
A few examples...

Nintendo flat t-molding/ Nintendo off-set t-molding
Punch Out bent tinted plexi's
Quantum PCB's
New powder coated panels and metal parts for just about any game
New cabinets matched to any original
The list goes on and on...

Even the big guys do runs of stuff knowing they aren't going to make anything or even risk losing money for the love of the hobby sometimes....Darin and Rich can attest to this I'm sure.

Great time to be in the hobby...kind of sucks that the economy blows or who knows what else would be getting done..