So I took the kids to Silverball Sanctum in Sterling, VA last night. Nice little spot with 10 machines. Mainly I wanted the kids to see The Shadow, which will likely be my next purchase, but also wanted to check out Star Wars and stuff. Turns out my 11-year old daughter fell in LOVE with Royal Flush. She says it’s her favorite pinball ever, over all the other ones there and the two I have. So I came on Pinside to see what they’re selling for. Average around $900, let’s say. One was listed a few months ago for $1100. Ok, maybe I’d go that high if it were pristine... Looking on eBay, I find this:

ebay.com link: Vintage Pinball Machine Gottlieb 4 player Royal Flush

$2800 starting bid???? Are you f’ing kidding me??? And that BIN it now price?? I mean MAYBE if it’s HEP restored or something, but it’s just in DECENT condition. C’MON!!!

I’ve seen T2’s on eBay being offered in the high $4K’s... Seriously??? I happen to love T2, mostly for nostalgia’s sake, since I played it a lot as a kid, and I love the movie (which is why I own one), but mid-2’s is the most I’d pay for one, because I’m not a moron!

I can’t imagine he’ll successfully sell that to anyone at anywhere close to that price...

Thanks, looking at reviews, I’d have to say I’d rather stick with the EM version, unless I found a RFD that was pristine, which that one clearly isn’t per the guy’s pdf. Can’t imagine buying a pin sight-unseen, unless I had 1000 pics... I’d happily drive anywhere east of the Mississippi to pick one up, though.

Hadn’t heard of adhuntr. Used to use SearchTempest. I’ll check out adhuntr.

It’s true that eBay has jacked their transaction fees in the last few years.

Agree completely! It used to be awesome! Been a member since 1999...

Yes, I can see that. I bought my T2 from a Pinsider. When I saw it in person, it was even nicer than he described.

Yeh, it’s a cool little place, despite the odd location (industrial office park). Most of the games are $.75 or $1.00, so that adds up quickly. The guy working there, Tim, was a real nice guy. Silverball does have odd hours, but it’s the only place nearby that’s kid-friendly, other than VÜK. Their machines were pristine. The list at their website (http://www.silverballsanctum.com/location-games) is accurate, with the exception of no GOTG. The Pinball Map app showed they had Monopoly, but they didn’t, so I updated that list, and it’s now accurate. If you don’t have the app, I recommend it. Not the best interface, but lots of great info on local machines, and user editable.

VÜK is cool, but it’s pretty dark in there, even during the day, and none of the pins have lighting mods, so the playfields are a bit hard to see. They desperately need PinStadium lighting! VUK’s pizza is terrific, though, and they have great games and a really nice staff.

Pinball Night? Sounds great! My son is a sophomore at MHS, and the girls are in 6th and 7th at Haycock and Longfellow. Do you have kids in the McLean pyramid?

$5K for that K&Q?? That “patina” is worth at LEAST that!!! Hahahaha!!!

Ok, cool! I’ll check it out.