Quick question for some with more experience than I.

Three tables went up for sale locally very recently. Not big news in and of itself, but it's seldom that any come around available for the prices listed. Here are the three tables.

Road Kings $500
http://www.kijiji.ca/v-video-games-consoles-other/winnipeg/road-kings-pinball-machine-williams-1986/586233031?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Panthera $700
http://www.kijiji.ca/v-video-games-consoles-other/winnipeg/panthera-pinball-machine-gottlieb-1980/586234405?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Hard Bodies $450
http://www.kijiji.ca/v-video-games-consoles-other/winnipeg/hardbody-pinball-machine-bally-1987/586233907?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Of the three I really only have a passing interest in Road Kings and Panthera. Road Kings because it's a bit newer than BK and Counterforce so it would make a nice (newer) addition and Panthera because it's of a similar age as Counterforce so I at least have a starting point for fixing it. Both appear to be in reasonable cosmetic shape.

Sadly, yes those are fairly common prices for project machines up in my neck of the woods.

Worth it? Not worth it? Thoughts? I know many of you have likely played Road Kings and Panthera, I've heard the sound on Panthera is comically poor, curious about your experiences with Road Kings as of the three that's probably the one that interests me the most followed by Panthera.

Hah tell me about it, hit "submit" accidentally before I finished typing it all up. Bear with me here.

If their condition is anything like the Counterforce machine I bought from him last year, it's quite possible one or all of them are disasters electronics wise.

Think battery acid parties and transistors that got so hot that they burned through and bubbled the PCBs. It ain't pretty.

More than anything I wanted to make sure that any or all of the three weren't some long lost diamond in the rough with amazing gameplay or something. I don't have a lot of interest in the Hard Bodies based 100% on the look of the playfield and backglass, so that's out regardless of its condition.

Yeah I hear you. He wasn't bad to deal with last time but you're right, the way it's being referred to assumes and implies quite a lot. I've already got a project machine in Counterforce which is purely drop targets so I think I'll give these a pass all things considered. I doubt they'll go anywhere too quickly and if the electronics are anything like what I have right now, one project is enough!

I'm becoming pretty comfortable working on the electronics so that doesn't exactly scare me off at the outset. My main concern is space and timing. I'm in the early stages of a basement renovation and I wouldn't have time or space to really dig into it for likely 6 months or more.

It doesn't look like any of the three titles are incredible finds but like you say, depending on condition (allegedly the playfields are all quite decent) one may be worth looking into.

Weird man, people like that are weird. Good luck if you do go take a look. Make sure you check the back box and the condition of the boards prior to agreeing on anything because like I already mentioned, there's a good chance that if he's getting rid of it, it's in seriously dire condition.

Wow, that's good news. Glad you were able to come out well enough in the end. I picked up Counterforce from him a year+ ago now and while I had no issues with the sale or the purchase, and knew going into it that I was looking for a purely cheap (initial cost) project machine, that's definitely what I got. Lots of work and damage to it that need repairs.