Should I get a pinball machine ?

[Red 5]

I have a some Arcade cabs (Galaga, Star Wars, MAME).

I always dreamed of owning a pinball machine.

 

However, being a pinball virgin, what am I getting myself into?

 

Here's the deal.

I can get a Bowl A Strike for $275.00

 

The guy is great and very trustworthy. He helped me install my new Galaga monitor and configure it for almost

nothing.

 

He has a giant warehouse full of pinball machines and old arcade games. It's awesome just to go there.

He says that the pinball machine may work fine or may have some problems.

He told me to take it home and see what happens. If it works, great. If not, try to see what I can do.

If I can't fix it (if it needs fixing) he said he would come over and service it for $75.00.

 

So that would be $275 to $350 for a working pinball machine.

It's one player, and not exactly super fancy, but is it a good machine to learn on ?

 

Or am I just getting in way over my head?

[atarian63]

I have a some Arcade cabs (Galaga, Star Wars, MAME).

I always dreamed of owning a pinball machine.

 

However, being a pinball virgin, what am I getting myself into?

 

Here's the deal.

I can get a Bowl A Strike for $275.00

 

The guy is great and very trustworthy. He helped me install my new Galaga monitor and configure it for almost

nothing.

 

He has a giant warehouse full of pinball machines and old arcade games. It's awesome just to go there.

He says that the pinball machine may work fine or may have some problems.

He told me to take it home and see what happens. If it works, great. If not, try to see what I can do.

If I can't fix it (if it needs fixing) he said he would come over and service it for $75.00.

 

So that would be $275 to $350 for a working pinball machine.

It's one player, and not exactly super fancy, but is it a good machine to learn on ?

 

Or am I just getting in way over my head?

As long as it works ok it is a nice item to have, though I would suggest a 4 player, much more fun with friends.

The one you mention is an EM or electro mechanical, that is what I started with, lot and I mean lots of switches in the back of the unit, they are contact type sort of like "points" on an old car. I keep a piece of fine grit sandpaper hand in case something doesn't work. Don't get me wrong it's worth having. Mine is a Spirit of 76, you can see it in the microsoft pinball collection game.

So far this has been pretty reliable and is lots of fun. EM models can be had much cheaper than the solid state variety.

[Red 5]

How much maintenance am I looking at?

 

Is $275 - $350 a good price for a working pinball machine like this one?

 

I would like a 2 or 4 player, but I want to start small to see what I'm getting into.

 

The only thing I have ever done with a pinball machine is play it. I really have no clue

what kind of work will need to be done once I get it up and running.

I assume replacing the bumpers / rails with new rubber?

Wax the playfield?

 

Any advice would be helpful at this point.

[arcadebasement]

I'm going to say no to getting that pin. Nothing wrong with it per se, assuming it works okay at $350, but EM pins are mostly radically simple in terms of gameplay; a bagatelle with bells and whistles. If you're after a few moments fun or just like the thought of owning a pin then go for it, but they're heavy and take lots of space so it's not wise to go for something just for the sake of it. They're swines to ship for the end-user should you decide to sell it nationally - where you'll get the most money back and you should never buy a pin without playing it extensively.

 

I guarantee that if you were to get a second, more modern SS pin circa 1989 or beyond (especially if it's a major player like Medieval Madness, Twilight Zone, Addam's Family), then you wouldn't touch your EM pin again. Granted more recent pins are $1000-$5000 but they retain their value mostly and are worth it. How many pins do you intend to buy in the next ten years? If it's less than 3 then get what you want when you can rather than settle for the first good deal that comes along. JMO.

 

As for maintenance, keep it clean, replace rubbers as necessary, a bulb will burn out once in a while but are easy to obtain and replace and doesn't affect gameplay and you may have to replace a coil rarely (easy but you need a soldering iron). In other words, on the whole, you shouldn't be doing regular housekeeping - maybe give it a once-over every three months to see what needs replacing/addressing.

 

FWIW there's several EM pinballs on ebay now going for a similar price so don't consider it that much of a bargain. Currently a buyers market for pins.

[MattG/Snyper2099]

I would not buy an EM pinball for your first one. A mid 80's Williams pinball like pinbot or tomcat f-14 can be had for around $500-$600 in similar condition and is a much better investment as stated above. It would likely need serviced less, once it was 100% working correctly.

 

I own 5 pins now and can honestly say that I'm glad I did not start with an electro-mechanical pinball for my first.

[Red 5]

Great advice (as usual).

Thanks guys.

[+remowilliams]

Just get one of these.

[keilbaca]

I just got a pinball, its a project job, for $250.

 

Its a pain to work on if you dive into it for the first time like myself, with a pin that is this used (Gold wings, 1986).

 

I would say get it, I love pinball, and I would love to have a fully working one for that price. However as said above, it depends if you enjoy the pin or not.

 

Bowl-a-Strike is a *hard* pin. Extra wide bottom, no inlanes, just outlanes. VERY hard to control the ball.

 

If it was me, I would get it.

 

With that, I wish I had access to your tech. I'd gladly pay him $75 to fix my gold wings. I spent over 10 hours replacing all the rubbers, lights, waxing the table, and the thing goes from working before I started working on it, to resetting randomly, to just the lights come on and I get random sounds.

Edited November 13, 2008 by keilbaca

[arcadebasement]

Just get one of these.

 

Wow - visual pinmame in a cab with large LCD screens - nice! Probably cheaper to put it together yourself but you can't argue with the concept.

 

Shame pinmame isn't up to the job (don't get me wrong it's superb, but I wouldn't take it over a real pin). I would've like to see dedicated code for each table.