I'm right there with you. We only live once, my as we'll enjoy the ride!

I have a newer Chase Freedom that is 0% on both purchases and transfers until next June, and there was a $200 sign on bonus so my husband and I got separate accounts and used the bonus $ to pay for his PS4 for Christmas. I also have a 3% cashback on everything and 0% APR Discover, but I have had the card for 15 years (got it when I turned 18) so they pretty much give me all the perks on that one. I put everything on a credit card and then pay it off. Not only do I get cashback that way, but I can track all my purchases and have buyer protection. If anyone doesn't know about Mint.com, check it out. You can at-a-glance see all your accounts, mortgages, car loans, 401K, etc, get alerts and set budgets, and also categorize all your bank/credit transactions so you know what your are spending and where. Not affiliated in any way, just a fan since it helped me curb some excess spending habits. I have a pinball category on there so I can see what I am spending on bulbs and parts.

And if you never grew up?

I watched both!

It looks like you caught up quick once you got out of rehab. All of your pins/avatar are either TV shows or movies. Congrats on the new kid by the way. We're expecting our first, a boy, on July 4th.

Steve

Even for NIB I pay cash (personal check, wire transfer, whatever). Even with 1-2% rewards for using your CC, you still lose because you don't get the 3-5% cash discount from the seller.

Then you'll burn in flames!

Steve

Your house isn't paid off because you have 3 pins!

I always like to use other peoples money like that too and when they think they got you for the 28% interest....WHAM...I pay it off. Done it many times over the years AND it helps your credit rating.

I too pay everything I can on my credit card. Rarely do I pay cash for anything. I pay off the card balance in full every month and haven't paid a penny in interest in years. The more I put on the card, the more rewards points I get and cash out every few months. This last month, I received $950 in credit after cashing in. That is free money and I can't understand why everyone isn't doing this. It's probably better for me that more people aren't doing this because credit card companies would probably stop doing this and I'd lose out.

Pinball collectors I have found as a general rule are very "fiscally responsible" so my guess is 90% or more just buy with cash. Also, I truly don't know any pinsiders that take credit as it is always cash and carry for any of the games I have bought and any of the games people have bought from me. I guess you can use Credit when buying from a retailer but from a collector I don't know any that have a credit card machine in their house to process anyones transaction.

My belief is any hobby should be cash based. I am not a believer of spending major money (pinball collections in excess of $5K for instance) on pinball machines unless you are debt free but that is my conservative nature and not many agree with me but I believe in taking care of obligations before making major purchases (again over $5K) on "unnecessary items". That philosophy has served me very well in life as postponing a little fun can sometimes pay-off big time down the road.....the current generation seems to need to have everything yesterday and spend more then they make has been my observation. For example, to charge $8K or more on a NIB game when someone is living paycheck to paycheck seems very foolish to me.

I bet I haven't got a serious credit card offer in the mail in something like at least 5 years or so. RIght after the housing/economy bust I stopped getting card offers. When I do now, it is some BS 19% interest rate.

I used to get a new zero percent card every spring. Load up on parts for resale from my distributors when they had the annual sales. Pay off those purchases with card. then let the card float my stocking orders. Then when merchandise sold. Paid down balance. And I would get cash back rewards too. Had a 2.5% cash back card back then. YUMMY! My sales rep was like " ready to place your spring order?' ..Not this year, friend. ( or the next etc.)

Things have changed. Things have changes a lot.

I have used credit to pay for pins...but I always pay it off every month. It is nice to get the cash back rewards when they can be redeemed. However, I was on a mission prior to this addiction to pay my house off by the time I was 35 which helps tenfold. This took me eight years to do and I did make a ton of sacrifices along the way.

Loans never. I hate interest or any sort of monetary penalty. The only time I would take out a loan would be a home addition, car or something substantial. Even then it would have to be 0% for a while. Pins would be out of the equation.

If you are putting your hobbies before everyday life then that is your choice. After all you have to have some sort of fun. Personally, I couldn't deal with the stress of having an extra bill coming every month.

I would think with this hobby most of us are some sort of financial planner in a sense....

Credit union. I get 12 months on purchases over $1,000 and get 1.5% of the amount when I pay off the balance in the form of cash rewards. I get paid to use their card. Last year alone, I recieved close to $800 in cash back. A good credit union is a godsend. I also got a car note for 1.45% for 4 years on $50k. The dealerships hate credit unions.

Everyone can preach cash only and in some transactions that's the only way. Me, I prefer to use the bank's money. Smart credit is better than cash so long as you can pay of the balance before the interest kicks in. The key is discipline.

If you owe anyone any money and buy a pin with cash, isn't that the same as borrowing to buy a pinball machine?

Rush1169 nailed it

His delivery was a bit cleaner & more precise than mine lol

Only if you are paying interest on that money. Mortgages don't count in this rationale though. 2nd mortgages do though.

Depends on the appreciation/depreciation rate of the pin.

Best advice for you in particular is to take a step back. It makes no sense to go from posts searching for the most expensive pins out there to how do I finance.
None of this makes any sense.
You should buy a $2000 pin and make sure you are comfortable changing rubber, fixing switches etc. Then assess you budget and decide if you want to chase a larger budget game.

Getting a little off topic, but I disagree with your statement.
Every car dealership I have ever dealt with trys to put the loan through a credit union due to the great interest rates they give customers.
I understand why you said what you said, meaning a dealership stands to make more money, but I think you will find they want the sale and credit unions are their best bet to make a sale work.

Funny, I have found the exact opposite.

Any finance expert will tell you its crazy to spend 50k on games.

I have a Hobbit pre-order on CC and I just am paying the charged amounts off as each payment goes through. Of course what sucks is, not counting the pin, I still owe 8k on the card, so its not all rosey, but as far as the pin goes for, it's technically paid for.

If you spent 50k on games two years ago, you're doing pretty well.

Why are mortgage backed loans excluded from the essence of "If you owe someone money and buy a pin with cash, it is the same as borrowing to buy the machine"?

I should not be interpreted as saying that borrowing money to buy a pin is bad - circumstances are everything. In fact, anyone who has a house payment is essentially borrowing money for everything they buy - you just scribble the numbers differently.

If I had $100K in the bank and owned nothing else and used that $100K to buy a $100K house, I would need to borrow $3,000 for a pinball machine and that's fine. Contrast that with: I owe $100K for my $100K house and I have no cash, I would need to borrow $3,000 for a pinball machine. In both cases I borrowed for my pinball machine, but they are fiscally very different scenarios.

Consider: I own my home (paid in full). I take out a mortgaged loan of $3,000 and buy a pinball machine. I owe $3K on my house, but paid cash for my pinball machine -OR- did I borrow $3,000 for a pinball machine? Eh, doesn't matter how it's characterized and both are correct.

I have used a credit card before to order, then pay it off in full on the next bill...no way do I want a pin getting hit with interest.

Debt is debt. Stop being a consumerist enabler

Quit making payments on that mortgage & tell the bank it's not a real debt lol.

And debt is not necessarily a bad thing, especially with rates the way they are now. If I had 50k cash 2 years ago,and I bought 50k worth of pins versus paying my mortgage down 50k, I am now ahead of the game.

If I waited until I had this in the bank, I'de be 84 years old an unable to lift my arms to play. Sadly, my time on this earth is limited, and even though I may not make 6 figures, I'de still like to have some fun along the way too.

"Every now and then say, "What the f&^k." "What the f&*k" gives you freedom. Freedom brings opportunity. Opportunity makes your future. "

After I sold my WOZ and the money got used on bills etc, there was no way I could even dream of another NIB machine, so that's why I got Nascar for $1800.
I really want to know what Pat Lawlor is going to come up with, but I will have to just play it in local arcades because I am priced out of the market.

I've only done 100% cash deals for pinball machines so far, and always fresh $100 bills in a bank envelope, from a check cashed specifically for the amount of the transaction so that I have a clear purchase record.

I used credit cards on two of my purchases. You can get sunk for 2-3% in seller cc fees. But overall its not that much. I could pay cash, but why not use someone elses money with the 0% cc?

Oh, I paid them off in 4-5 months. Otherwise you start to feel like the monthly payment is dragging on far too long for 1 game.

100 % agree... I've always wanted a pin(s) but kids and paying off houses was my priority, now my kids have grown up houses paid off. Mid 40's retired now, so time to spend some money on me. Pay cash if you can if you put on credit and if you cant pay off within a short time frame I wouldn't do it.
Which ever way you go pinball should be fun and not become a financial burden.
BTW don't tell the misses how much you just spent on a pin and all will be sweet...HaHa! You spent what 9K on a pin! It's an investment dear.......

At least pins hold onto most of their value. Better than borrowing to buy a car, boat, etc.

My mortgage is the only debt I have, which I could pay off but the rate is so low and the payments are nearly all principal at this point. I use credit cards as a convenience only, paid off every month. I'd never pay interest on a toy.

Dealerships get incentives to push certain lenders, institutions and loan products. They are not, in my experience, in it to for you. They preach that they value an informed consumer but they hope that only extends to the car you want to buy and the price point. Things that are readily available on the internet anyway. Why do you think you get passed off to a finance guy after a price is negotiated? They are hustling the note and sizing you up for what they think you will bite on. Notice how they always make it about how much the payment is and not the rate offered. One of the first questions always is, "what kind of payment are you looking for." I would never recommend buying a car without an approval from a financial institution of your preference before you head to a dealership. Never let the dealership shop for a note for you. Once you have a rate from your bank approved, let them try to beat or match it. I'm guessing the majority of the time they can't or won't. On my last car purchase, they asked if they could try to match my deal. I told him my rate and he said there was no way he could match 1.45% and he didn't even run my credit. LOL. When I buy vehicles, I already have the two party check in my hand with an "up to" amount. I don't tell them I have financing up front. Haggle the price, give a drop dead number and show them the bank issued check. If they take it great, if not I walk.

I bought many pins using loan (second mortagage) or zero interest credit card loan (one year). Mostly because I was impatient but ONLY because I had good cash flow and knew I could pay them off in six to twelve months. About time one was paid I would get a hankering for another machine. It was a way for me to force savings and keep from buying other stuff first. I was always buying ahead and paying down after the fact and did it for ten years.

Don't think I could recommend it but it worked for me.

If I had stayed in my old work-a-day job, there would have been many fewer options for buying... and almost no chance of owning a decent pin (anything above "C" list) by paying with cash.

I took a risk and quit my old job, went back to college (in my 30s), and was in free fall for a while (living off savings). Went almost broke trying to pay back the college loans, got about a half-year behind on mortgage payments... but now I make a great living... am well ahead of the game financially, and have great prospects financially for the future.

Cash is the only way I go these days. Credit (for me) is unnecessary, and I wouldn't have it any other way now.

I do this as well. I am surprised more people do not do this....it is as if people do not like free money

I am such a good negotiator, people pay me to take their pins.

cash is king, credit cards can be beneficial with rewards and building credit.

think for a second tho if you lost your job tomorrow where would you be in the future....

until you experience this first hand it is a REAL eye opener.

Agreed. This is exactly why you should buy with cash as circumstances can change and they can be scary.

I dont disagree with anything you said here.
All car dealers are crooks. And your doing the right thing by getting pre-approved. My credit sucks. I was psyched to see I got a 2.25% loan and that got brought down to 1.75% because I opened a checking account, did direct deposit and commited to do 1 bill pay a month there. (back in the early 90's I recall getting a 13% rate I thought that was great for the day LOL).
None the less, I think most car dealers do try to put the loan through credit unions today.

How many people are going to admit to it? People who need to use credit cards, and need to carry a balance, know it's not responsible and probably aren't in a hurry to talk about it.

Cash. If I cannot afford to pay cash for it, I cannot afford the game. My only debt right now is my house, and my normal 300 monthly usage. It gets paid off at the billing cycle.

For me used pins are a cash purchase only. One time I paid by cheque. A new pin, I use the Credit Card then pay them right away. It is a hobby, If you rack up your credit card with hobby stuff, and carry a balance it will cost you more.

I don't know about most but I have several layers of "oh shit" insurance to cover out of work or death/disability instances.

I agree cash is king. That's why I like to keep mine in the bank and use the other guys money for as long as I can. If you're not gaming (legally) the system, then the system is gaming you.

My parents always taught us, if you can't pay for it in cash, you can't afford it. I've lived by that motto with the exception of cars and homes. Definitely some good, solid advice.

Now, some people say that there are exceptions to every rule. If there were an exception for me, it would be this... If the opportunity presented itself on a deal for a coveted machine and I didn't have the cash on the spot, but KNEW I would have it in a couple weeks to a month, I would throw a purchase on a card. But that's knowing full well that I'm going to pay it off before interest accrues on it.

As a rule the only game you should buy with a credit card is Cactus Canyon (use a CC to buy a CC).

And by the way, the correct spelling is C-A-N-A-D-A. You might want to correct your Pinsider name.