In my view, the main reason that you purchase a pinball machine is so that you can fix everything on the machine that is not working, so that it functions 100%. Locations near me that have pinball machines had a machine or two with no rubber on the flippers and the tip broken on one flipper bat because the rubber was missing for so long. I don't have to play machines like that because I can make my own machine work perfectly. I called the people that owned the neglected machines and asked if they wanted to sell them. I was told that they "go over" the machines once a week and that they don't sell machines on a route. I just giggled and told them that they looked pretty neglected to me. I did not suggest that they might make more money if the machines worked properly, because obviously, they are not really too concerned about that.

I put a sticky note on the machine with notes on minor things that don't work. If a light goes out, I will continue to play, but make a note of it for when I work on the machine again. As things get fixed, I just mark those things off the list on the machine. If something major happens that makes the machine play differently, I will likely stop and address that, if I have the parts to fix it.