Who does the best restorations out there (for customers?)

[bheineck]

Quite honestly, though I would feel an enormous sense of satisfaction in restoring something to that condition - I just don't have the desire to do so.

How can you possibly not have the desire to have an enormous sense of satisfaction?

 

[Orrimarrko]

How can you possibly not have the desire to have an enormous sense of satisfaction?

Touche.

Poorly worded obviously.

What I mean is that I simply don't have the desire or time or ability to do the restores myself.

Though I'm sure it would be very gratefying to work on one and be proud of what you've accomplished when you're finished.

At this point in time, I'd simply rather pay to have it done well, than to struggle with it - especially when I don't have the time or skills.

 

[ArcRevival]

People who build near perfect arcade machine for a business are almost impossible to find.

Why because you can not making a living selling near perfect/perfect mahines. The market will not support them.

Ain't that the truth. I cannot count how many people have asked me what I charge to rebuild/upgrade an Amplifone, and when I tell them, I never hear from them again. I guess they expect me to sit at my work station for around 10 hours, , go back and forth via emails 20 times with them, spend another day testing it ( not like i can turn it on and leave the house),then pack the thing up well enough to survive anything and drive it to Fed Ex and insure it , all for around $100 , parts and labor and return shipping. It seems that only a handful of collectors understand that " you get what you pay for".

 

[jonathan1138]

Arc speaking of that - pulling my Amplifone boards tonight and sending them to you! Thanks for the service you provide.....

 

[Orrimarrko]

What's an amplifone?

(This is why I don't do them myself.)

 

[jonathan1138]

Star Wars vector Monitor boards - for the Amplifone Monitor. Mine have been shaky lately. I could fix it myself, but from i understand ArcRevivals service is top notch and I would rather pay for that level of service (kind of like the subject on this thread in a way!).

 

[Orrimarrko]

Thanks.

I don't want anyone to misunderstand what I'm saying here.

I'm not expecting ANYTHING for free.

The whole point of the thread was that I was looking for people who do outstanding restorations that don't charge $3000 for a common game.

I've seen plenty of ads for restored cabs for $1500-$1800. But the cabs still aren't in that great of shape.

I'd have no problem paying a reasonable amount for absolute quality work.

I just don't know who it is that does it.

That's all.

 

[ArcRevival]

When it comes to cosmetic restoration, it's the same amount of work for a game that is common as it is for a game that is rare. Stripping the cp, putting on side art or stenciling , doing bondo work, restoring most of the electronics. Hours are hours. And that goes back to the answer of why there really isn't anyone doing extensive restorations "commercially". People don't want to pay what it's worth.

 

[Orrimarrko]

When it comes to cosmetic restoration, it's the same amount of work for a game that is common as it is for a game that is rare. Stripping the cp, putting on side art or stenciling , doing bondo work, restoring most of the electronics. Hours are hours. And that goes back to the answer of why there really isn't anyone doing extensive restorations "commercially". People don't want to pay what it's worth.

I hear what you're saying.

"What it's worth" is always subjective.

Many people wouldn't pay more than $500-800 for a Ms. Pac-Man or Pac-Man in decent shape. Nothing special - everything works as it should, no real damage, but you can tell it's been around for a while.

However, there are people who would easily pay $1500-$1800 for a fully restored Pac-Man (for example) if it looked like you were the first to ever play it.

So, "what it's worth" is subjective. Having a restoration business, preparing games in the hopes someone will buy them just wouldn't work.

However, as I mentioned before, "on commission" means that someone is inquiring about a specific game, to be restored and purchased upon completion. Obviously, the price would be agreed upon ahead of time. In this scenario, there is no risk to the restorer. The buyer would have to front at least half the cash, and the rest payable upon completion, etc.

This is the kind of thing I'm talking about. If you think that every restore to that condition commands $3000 regardless of the game, then you wouldn't get a lot of people inquiring about getting restores done. But if you were realistic about the pricing, because you enjoyed doing it, and weren't looking to get rich, then it could work out for both you and the buyer/collector.

This is just my opinion.

 

[joeycuda]

Here's a respected high end restored of pins. You get what you pay for:

http://www.highendpins.com/about_us.htm

 

[taylormadelv]

Interesting subject that I have thinking about myself latley. The games that I actually play are in just OK cosmetic condition because I generally have not stripped apart and completely redone a dedicated cabinet that has stayed in my collection. Also, I am more interested in playing the game that having the cab be in perfect cosmetic condition. However, when I get a cabinet that I have decided to convert and sell/trade, I strip it down completely and rebuild it from scratch. So my latest Midway cabinet I am working on will be absolutley gorgeous when it's done but it will become too expensive to sell in my market. I will probably not be able to get what I have put into this cabinet back in terms of money. I really didn't want to do a quick flip on this one, so I have just invested all the time, parts and work for my own enjoyment and if I get an decent offer on it later, great.
Phetishboy does excellent work and has been a person inspiration for me. It has taken a few years for me to get "good" at this, especially bondo/paint.

 

[Alpha-tron]

I have a few customers who understand what they invest in their arcade machine, they are most likely never going to see back. They understand they are capturing a nice memory from the past and sharing or creating new memories with others in the present.

 

[schoeps]

http://forums.arcade-museum.com/member.php?u=37256

This guy does great work!

 

[ArcadeClassix]

I'm in the Houston area and I do restorations on the side. I've been looking for awhile to take on someone's project besides my own. It gets costly when the only machines you are doing are your own lol. I just got a Hard Drivin' cockpit that I am completely restoring for a gentleman who helped develop the GPU for the game, for cost plus $500 labor. I know I'll put in a lot of time into it but it is a pride and a "look what I can do" kinda thing but most importantly I am helping preserve games and save them from the dumpster.

PM me if you want to see some pictures. I've resurrected some real turds. I don't make a habit of restoring games that are relatively clean originals. I'd make some enemies in this community real quick if I did that lol.