Trading/letting things go is how I try new things. I have a hard limit of 5 or 6 at a time, because I can't really enjoy or maintain more than that at once. It also eventually gets the point that you can fund pretty much anything you want by buying/trading for it. My exception to that rule is the P3 I got as I can have multiple machines in it, but will still limit the number of models and sell older ones as I get newer ones (once I hit a few). I have 3 long term keepers (P3/Weird Al, STTNG, and LOTR) one tempting to become permanent (Whirlwind) and 2 I rotate (currently one empty spot and a Bond Premium). That Bond Premium is my dedicated "loaner/temp trade" and I plan on doing temp trades with it once code is more mature. It took the spot of my Deadpool I had for similar purposes.

What it boils down to, so long as you are not a NIB guy you can buy/sell/trade these all for about what you have in them. I am a firm believer in, "its not having what you want, its wanting what you've got". When something doesn't register with me, I let it go. Despite rotating so many pins, its been pins in a few slots that get rotated the most as I'm looking for something that perfectly fills that opening. I like "breadth" in a collection more than just the latest and greatest. I've rotated Medieval Madness, R&M, G&R, Weird Al, Godzilla, lots many considered the greatest but none of them hold a candle to STTNG as far as I'm concerned.

At the same time I've been to houses on trades with more pins than I have years. I am limiting myself on space to keep myself under control and to keep things manageable. I'd want to be able to play each of my pins at a minimum every week. I work and don't want my pins competing with my nest of kids so that limits how much I can play and when I can play (I'm a 5 a.m. pinball kind of guy).

Health issues that are not improving
After 5 years of health issues, suddenly this year a new problem started
I do not want my games to be a burden for my family, so the sell-off has begun

When you’re out of room.

I’m pretty much at that point now. By this time next year I’ll be one in, one out. Been preparing for this for a while. I’ll have 4-6 rotator spots, the rest will be keepers.

Haven't started selling or trading very much in 27 years of collecting. Ran out of room and put 33 on location. Ran out of room again and here I am. I just get real picky on what to buy next. I've got a while until Pulp Fiction shows up.

I've never traded a game in 25+ years. Thought about it, talked about it, never done it.

I'm one of the lucky ones that suffers from both buyers AND sellers remorse, so I hate to sell anything too. That's how you end up w 20+ games. Not complaining - if you have the space, knock yourself out.

I have gradually bought 7 pins over 20+ years. Never sold or traded one. I’ve tried to collect the all-time greats which makes it harder to let them go. This year I’ll probably start selling. I have three NiB pins on order and when they start coming in I will have too much $ and space tied up on them. I think what changed is I’m getting older and feeling life is too short not to experience as many games as I can. Also I moved two years ago to a house where it’s much easier to move them in/out. I’m steeling myself for the sales. There’s a few I’m no longer super excited to play and those will likely go, even though they are considered some of the greatest. But I figured out I have to go by what I’m excited or not excited about and “collection rep” be damned. Im not running a museum here. Need to have fun.

Always looking to trade/sell . I've did both to top 5 games on here and don't miss them at all. They are fun but there is so much to experience in this hobby I'm always looking forward to getting something new in the house. Plus " room" is a big factor. Wife always says " You good now"? after we get a new one......I always says yes. But with pinballs Yes means no.

When I was young I used to buy/sell/trade a lot. It started to slow down 2020ish when I got to the point that buying a NIB game wasn't that hard to swing.

I have a hard limit on machines owned and eventually I found that I was having to sell all time favorites to get a new game. Sort of a weird change to experience, walking down a row of games at an arcade and realizing I wouldn't trade anything I had for anything they had.

Now a days I probably swap out one or two machines a year.

I'm about to slowdown buying as my wife and I are having a baby this August haha. Just need to get a Godzilla Premium in the house this year and I'll be ready to hold off buying for a while. Oh if a new Back to the Future pin is released I'll need to get that, oh and the same for a Harry Potter pin, well there's a couple others too but will see. Damn it lol.

Congrats on your new addition!

When you are out of room...or realistically, when you are out of room and have 3 games folded up too!

When I started buying the pins as a hobby, I bought barn finds, cheaper pins - some needed a little TLC, but nothing major. Slowly worked my way up to newer titles. Mostly selling more than trading, but with the intent to replace. Never a flipper, but mostly made just a little bit here and there with each deal (always sold for fair prices) and got something better. Had a local friend heavily in the trading/selling side and sometimes we'd work together for combo deals (i.e. he'd sell mine and his to get a better deal on a couple of different pins). He had connections, I'm an electrical engineer and could repair - so we benefited each other. Fun times.

Fast forward to a couple of years ago: I retired. Goal over the years was to build up the collection to the point it was mostly 'self sustaining' (i.e. own a newer title that I could trade for other newer titles, so any +/- cash outlay was minimal or zip). Likely mostly dumb luck, but I seemed to have gotten there.

I don't think I could repeat that, given today's prices. One barn find was a EM Freedom that was rather minty (needed just a little electrical work) for I think was few hundred dollars - and that had sat on Craigslist for quite some time before I decided to go look at it. Times have definitely changed.

But overall, I'm content with the lineup (Mando might go up for trade in the near future). One thing I wanted to do during retirement was keep them longer and learn the rules better (mostly still a fail at that). Plus I've gotten more picky over the years, not as many to choose from compared to when I started and everything was new to own for me. Wizard's World Pinball is not far away from me, so I can always play ~150 other pins when I want a change.

I've never traded; only bought and sold. My last buy was in 2021.

Out of space, and prices went completely bananas. I still have plenty of games in the repair queue to keep me busy a while, though.

I've only traded one game in my life

Best answer ever ...

For newer games buying outright generally works just fine. Lately I have been on the hunt for some of the less common older games. Trades using those as bait and to get that type of games seem to be a decent option. I know quite a few folks don't want to let a rarer game go unless something is ready to replace it.

But if something in your head is a $3,000 game that goes for $5,000 now (example: Whirlwind), you can always swap it for another game that $3,000 in your head but worth $5,000 now.

Also... we all wish it was cheaper.

Never traded a game and I hate selling, my suggestion is to make friends with the local heads who have massive collections, there's a few in every city.
Just keep an open space or two and tell them you'll shop out a game for them if you can keep it for a while and play it after the shop job.
I recently told a friend/operator that I enjoyed playing Starship troopers, he said, " got one that's been folded up in my warehouse for 15 years, you wanna shop it?"
Next day that game was in my line up. After dude saw the work I did he said, "make a list of games you want and I'll bring one by"
Easy.
One of my buddies has over 1,200 games set up in a warehouse, always something that needs work, just offer to help and be respectful of others property and you'll have more games to rotate through your collection than you can imagine.
B

I’m new to the hobby but I have a hard limit on space of 4 machines. So I won’t have any choice but to trade up if I want to experience new pins.

Nothing wrong with that at all. Once a game gets to where you don't want to constantly play it, get something that will make you want to play it. Nearly all these machines can be obtained again. All the "you will miss it" talk.... I get it, but there are lots of games out there.

Sold a few but will start trade when the gameroom is full.

I dont like the idea of trading, but I am running out of room. Wish some of you guys were closer to where I live so I can store some of my machines at your house. I think I would need something in writing in case something happens to my machine though

I slowed down once the drug dogs found all that cocaine.

Always been slow here. In the hobby for about 20 years and have only bought 7 games over that time. Our house has room for 4 setup at a time. We have a storage closet off our game room that the other 3 reside in folded on end. Rotating games a few times a year really helps and prevents selling a game if we tire of it, rotate it out for a few months and when it’s back feels fresh. Our collection is WPC and System 11 only, short ball times setup steep and tough.

Grateful to have the machines we have, they’re just toys after all.

AFTER nib GAMES WENT OVER 5100 FOR A PRO OVER 6400 FOR A PREMIUM AND WENT TO A HOMEPIN SPIKE PROPRIETARY SYSTEM WHICH ONLY BELONGS ON non commercial grade games. that is when .

see! Make friends with this dude.

I have a close enough friendship with the guys who's games I have that we never had to worry about writing anything up. I have everyone over for league type night every few months, make everyone dinner and they play their games, see how the shop jobs went etc. All good. Don't loan games to questionable people or mooches, done.
B

I enjoy the thrill of the hunt waaaay too much and have owned games multiple times. Keep thinking I’ll slow down or lock a few in place, but I’m always after something new.

That said…recent Sterns have really deep code and it’s hard for me to let go of a game before I beat it entirely and I’m still very far from that goal with Iron Maiden, Rush, Godzilla and Walking Dead.

Dude you will be able to find a godzilla and get it back no problem if you get the itch. Move it on without worry.

That happens with me occasionally. Starting to get a little bored w/a pin then somehow I manage to have good game and the code lights up w/new stuff I never saw before. Then I keep it longer.

Only hesitation about getting GZ back is that even though they have made and will continue to make a TON of them, the price of new Sterns (even for older titles) goes up every year, driving up the secondary market, so you may have to pay more in the future to get it back.

That said if you do miss it..it gives you the chance to upgrade to a premium next time.

Shame on you. Don't talk like that.

While I used to have more projects than working games, it was easier to store them folded up and house all 40 at home. My space issue came about as I got more of my games to playable state.

So now my balance of working games is more than folded projects, I have been lending out some games to family and some friends and even rotate them. I currently have 10 on loan.

So even during this time of lending games, I have sold a few, but ended up buying a few to replace them. While I never intended to have more than 15 pins, it is just too damn hard to let some of these games leave my hands.

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I do like the idea of sharing games with loved ones. I might do just that for 1 of mine.

One thing that’s helped me is sticking to the mantra of, “never more than one project at a time. All games must be setup and working.”

While some of the hard to let go of games that I sold, I made sure to sell to friends who would I feel would hang onto the for a few years. That worked out so far on the two I would miss the most

I’ve traded. As long as the two parties agree on value, it’s no big deal. No transaction is perfect. For the most part, I’ve been pleased with the deals.

Space, got none no more, if I need to change or want new, well guess it's trading time.

I am to the point where I am trading more. Both for keeps and temporary trade. I've also become the guy that is loaning out pins to friends because space is an issue. However, my pins are mostly for public consumption and we rotate often at the arcade and gallery. I absolutely love working on pins though, EM's to the new stuff. If you don't like or love working on pins, don't let them pile up. Nothing worse than going to a collectors house where over half of them don't work and they are all dusty.

Same. Downside of living in a big city is that I'm kinda lucky we have room for ONE machine. Getting a new one means finding a home for the old one, whether finding a friend who wants to hang onto it for us or trading/selling it.

Pins are a reflection of me… something always broken, if we’re on the health issue topic ;-p