Here is another one using the same wording as mentioned before, they also have an instagram account but I have been blocked on it and cannot longer see it. The IG profile is new like the site and only has a few posts.
They have most of the games priced according with 2 or 3 priced VERY well, to get you in and hook you up. Everything on the site is fake and all photos stolen, a quick google reverse lookup shows the photos on other sites.

arcadedeluxegames.com

I wish somebody reported this and get the person behind this, this is certainly an operation that runs multiple scams and the pinball scam is just one of many.

I'm a newbie looking for machine #2. I had no idea there were so many scammers out there!

Pinballsarcadegames.com = scam! CA address, WI phone. Uses fake alias scott andrew leonhart, which is also a Facebook profile disguised to be a pinballer. Watch out people

I had an ad for a game on the marketplace and someone immediately reached out to me about another game in the picture. He agreed to asking price. The guy had quite a drive, over 700 miles, so fuel expenses would be a factor. Was kind of surprised we mas he didn't try to haggle with me on price at first, but he did later on. Anyway, he seemed nice enough and he requested a phone call. So I called him and we agreed to all terms of the agreement, except he had an issue with paying cash, like is stated in all my ads. The game is only $2800. He went back and forth with me for a couple of minutes and asked questions like "Why are you still doing cash?" and "What are you trying to protect yourself from?" He also went on and on. "There are 50 different ways I can pay you in today's modern world." "Will a cashier's check, money order, PayPal, or wire transfer work?" "I can pay you today but can't make the drive until later this week." Etc...

Folks, I'm not saying this guy was a scammer. But he used all the language and agreed to a sale sight unseen aside from some pictures (that can be faked). $2800 for a pin is not a lot of money. Just go to the bank and do a withdrawal, it takes maybe half an hour at tops. Not sure if he was just lazy, or if he had a motive to take the money, take delivery of the game later on, then file a fraud claim stating I took his money and didn't deliver. That scenario would open me up to being scammed because the buyer would have legal recourse to do a chargeback, because I would be taking his money and he would not be getting the machine at the time I took the money. Who in the world pays for a game sight unseen in advance, wants to drive 700 miles for it, and refuses to do cash??

You did the right thing. I don’t trust anyone

Some of these stories have me thinking it's just not worth it, but what if there is a pin that you've been waiting for for awhile? I'm new on the site and read through this entire thread. I'm going to give it a go, using everyone's advice. Wish me luck.

If you can see it with your eyes, pay with real bills and leave alive. It most likely won’t be a scam or a problem

I’ve had people reach out by pm about buying and when I tell them they must provide information regarding who they are before I enter in a dialog they disappear.

Perhaps a standardized Pinside form -must supply info prior to conversation.

Domain registration lookup yields a creation date from a month ago: "Creation Date: 2021-01-07T09:36:38Z"

Remember, anyone can register ANY DOMAIN they like.

Between this topic, and other topics I have read here, as far as the tracking # stuff that a lot of folks have problems with paypal during a scam, I was just wondering:

Back when all the seeds were being shipped, I wonder if that was some sort of scam to just get something delivered to several zip codes.

arcadedeluxegames.com

Good news is they appear to be shut down now. One less bad guy out there (for now).

A scammer.

He'll get the pin. The payment method, for what ever reason, will probably not go thru. Worse case, he figures out your bank account number and starts to drain that too, in addition to getting the pin.

I’m looking at buying a machine and selling one to afford the other. So my question is if I have paid the choice of subscription for pinside who is watching these sales to protect us consumers using this service? I paid the $35 fee to be able to post pictures to someone interested in buying.

It's a donation to help keep the site running. Pinside+ gets you a few extra features & perks.

https://pinside.com/pinball/donate

Pinside members do not need Pinside+ in order to add images to threads or marketplace ads. However, what Pinside+ does is give you the ability to send images in PMs to other members.

There is nobody who manually reviews every single ad that gets posted. Us moderators usually keep an eye on the ads in our geographical region simply because we're looking at those ads anyway, but we also rely on reports from individual members like you. If you think an ad looks fishy, hit the report button, and that sends a notification to the moderation team that it needs to be reviewed.

When corresponding with other members concerning an ad, you'll have to use your best judgement. There are also some good information within this thread and within the links in the first post of this thread. But, most people fall back on the near foolproof mantra "cash on the glass"; meaning, inspect the pin you're interested in buying (in person), then pay for it in cash (or if you're selling, invite the buyer to inspect the pin in person and only accept cash as payment).

Biggest scam ever.

I got some similar lines a year ago from a guy pretending to want to buy an old Les Paul from me from CL.

Scammer: I can pay you with Paypal or wire the money straight to your bank.
V: Like the ad says, bring cash.
S: I don't like to carry that much cash!
V: Think of carrying such an expensive guitar.
S: Why are you still doing cash, it's 2019 man??
V: I got my ID stolen. My bank account, my credit cards, my Paypal - everything got hacked and closed down by scammers!
S: Oh. How about Visa cash cards? Those are better than cash!
V: Who would you rather have fnck you in a gas station restroom, Ted Cruze or Obama?
S: Whaaaa? I'm a boy!
V: Choose right now.
S: [hangs up]

If you get paid by Bitcoin, wouldn’t that be safe?

Thank you for your reply ForceFlow. I understand I saw the post and should have realized there really are scammers everywhere! I’m in Windsor, Ontario most of us have to travel to Michigan (5 minute drive) or London/Toronto (2 to a 4 hour drive). We kind of have to trust during COVID I think that is what scared me about the thread.

Yes. Provided you wait for 6 confirmations. At that point it’s considered irreversible for “normal” transactions.

If you’re moving over $1 million it’s recommended to wait for 60 confirmations.

In that he can't reverse the transaction, yes.

But bitcoin is exceedingly volatile, and can easily be worth half today's value by tomorrow.

Also trying to turn bitcoin into real money can be problematic (most exchanges make it easy to buy bitcoin with money, but selling tends to be quite a bit harder).

Has anyone every bought anything from moneymachines.com I ordered some parts on January the 19th have revived nothing sent a email to them and no reply.
Raff

This is probably a question that is better served in its own thread, rather than this one.

I was searching last night for some of the pins on my list and found pinballshore. They have my White Water CHEAP! I almost bought it but did a search on pinside for the company, and found them to be scammers! Quite happy to be part of pinside right now!

I find it best when it doubt to atleast sleep on it before jumping on it.

Had three of the same machine for a project. From the parts of three, I got one working and all polished up. Put up an ad on Craigslist for the finished project and another one for the parents scavenged from the other two.

Folks on Craigslist post their phone numbers in code, like s*v@n instead of 7. Seemed like an idea that looked like it worked, so I did it that way.

A text came in almost immediately. They were on their way to come get it today! No matter that it was after five and it would be at least a five hour drive from their area code. Not to mention they were on the way without the benefit of an address.

The first message was stiff, but might have been plausible. I asked which part they were interested in. The script just continued. Asked again. The script continued. Didn’t try to parse my response or anything.

So, either writing your phone number in code doesn’t work at all, or a live human input the number into their bot. A really dumb bot.

C92E3DFF-697F-4AA7-84A4-E51E237547E7 (resized).png

E940DF92-36E9-494B-BF6E-1E25736AE7E8 (resized).png

It's pretty easy for an automated scraper to parse those. You're only making it more difficult for real people to read the contact info.

Just enter your contact info in the proper fields that craigslist provides. Or if you don't want to publicly list your phone number, either don't list it at all, or just use a google voice number.

These days, area codes are pretty much meaningless. Lots of people don't end up changing their cell phone numbers when they move to a new area, so they end up having an out-of-area area code. Or, they could be using a google voice number.

ALWAYS say "Voice calls only" in your ads.

This gets rid of 99% of the scammers

Total scammer. He posted some spam ads on RGP today. When you go to his Web site it looks pretty dodgy. His FB pages and Instagram the same. If you go to the Scott Andrew Leonhart FB page you'll see he and his family look whiter than Casper the Friendly Ghost, but 99% of his friends are from Nigeria or Cameroon.

Same experience here. So many red flags but a high end restoration Addams Family for $4,500 got my juices flowing. A search on Pinside saved me. Now looking back there were so many red flags. Stay vigilant my friends!

artifexsp.com

Scam!

They had a Tulsa address on their website, so I chatted with them to see if I could pick up that EHOH Premium they had in stock. They were total sketch in the chat and English was poor.

I feel retarded for typing in my phone/email in the contact form, I should have used a fake number. I was just hoping they were a legit retailer since we don’t have one in Tulsa.

Here was the transcript of the chat:

Thanks for chatting with us!
This is your chat history with Artifex S.P - keep it for your archives.
How did we do?

Terrible Poorly Okay Good Great

Looking for a pinball in Tulsa,OK
Ok
Artifex sent this
Where are you located
Artifex sent this
I’m in Tulsa

(RED FLAG #1 ASKING MY LOCATION AFTER I JUST GAVE IT)

Which Pinball do you want ?
Artifex sent this

(RED FLAG #2 POOR ENGLISH)

do you have new ones in stock?
Yes
Artifex sent this
We have new machines
Artifex sent this
Which type do you want
Artifex sent this

(RED FLAG #3 NOT EVEN SURE WHAT THIS MEANT - ASKING FOR TITLE MAYBE?)

I like a lot of the new ones - Elvira, Star Wars, Guns and Roses
Ok
Artifex sent this
We have mostly Star Wars
Artifex sent this
Are you collecting this machines for a show room or private use

(RED FLAG #4 - WHY DOES THIS MATTER?)

Artifex sent this
private use
Ok
Artifex sent this
What’s your telephone number so that we can call
Artifex sent this
918 (I'm a total dumb*ss at this point for giving this out - I'm sure I'll get 5x SMISH now)

(RED FLAG #5 - &#*&^!)

Ok
Artifex sent this
And you are the same person who has been calling to see the show room
Artifex sent this
??
Artifex sent this
No - I called once today but didn’t leave a message
I see
Artifex sent this

(RED FLAG #6 - STRANGE QUESTION)

Browse through our Listings
Artifex sent this
You’ll see the machine you want
Artifex sent this
Then notify me
Artifex sent this
We can arrange for drop off at your address
Artifex sent this
Do you have new games in stock at your Tulsa location that I can pick up?
Not at the moment
Artifex sent this

(RED FLAG #7 - AT THIS POINT I'M WISE ENOUGH NOT TO GIVE MY ADDRESS TOO)

Shipment will come from Dc
Artifex sent this
ok - I’ll browse around and see what all is on your website
Ok
Artifex sent this
We mostly have Star Wars
Artifex sent this
which versions do you have? pro/premium/LE or comic pro/premium?
artifexsp.com/?s=Star+Wars

Artifex sent this
ok - thanks
We have all
Artifex sent this
Anything you want just type on the search bar
Artifex sent this
ok - thank you

Your conversation is still available online.
view conversation

You received this email because we automatically send transcripts of chats you (may have) finished.

Lol I noticed that also!

So far, this proves how valuable it is for me to travel the distance to get the machine. Having gone from never owning a pin, to now working on #7 and #8, it shows me the value of connecting with the seller (email, text, ph calls), then going out and working through the machine to verify its asking price.

In a couple days, I will get behind the wheel for a 1,000 mile trek due north, to hopefully come home with a pin that I have been wanting since my days of youth!

Youthful, but not born yesterday!

Hi all, new to the forum and very long time pinball fanatic... used to play all the time at Malibu Grand Prix if any of you folks are familiar with the 80's / 90's arcade. I used to have a decent collection before my last divorce and now I'm trying to build it back up again.

I've already come across a couple obvious scammers (I can give you details if you like).... can't believe this guy hasn't been shut down yet (you wouldn't believe the crap he tried to pull). pinballsarcadegames.com (Scam City!!!)

Anyways, long story short... anyone have any experience with bestpinballmachines.com
I was thinking about buying a machine from him but couldn't find any real info on the company / website.

Also, any advice on whether to avoid or the best ways to have a pinball machine shipped across country would be appreciated.

It looks pretty much the same as the other scam sites that have been regularly popping up. The domain name is pretty much brand new as well. I think it's safe to say that it's another scam site.

Work with an established seller with a good reputation.

Just wanted to say thanks for replying to my post. Appreciate the help.

Has anyone heard of Pinball theater dot com that sells pins the prices seems to good to be true I’ve been trying to dig around n make sure it’s for real thanks

I don’t understand how I can get screwed on a wire transfer deal (as a seller). If I get paid via wire transfer and then wait the day or two until it is proven to be in my account then my bank told me that it cannot be reversed. If I don’t allow the game to ship until after that point then I feel I’m covered. Am I wrong? I understand the BUYER is taking a risk by sending me money that cannot be reversed but I don’t know how I’m taking a risk as a seller. Please help me understand. Thanks.

pinballtheatre.com

No, it's yet another scam site. The domain name was only created in December 2020. It uses stolen photos and even links to a promo video from another company.

I think something like escrow.com has this figured out (not a plug!). For a nominal fee, both parties are protected. If not a cash in-person transaction, I will be considering this path in the future for significant purchases. Heck, maybe even work the fee into the deal?

Thanks that’s what I thought knew it just didn’t look right

One of the best scams is the bank wire scam

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/how-to-not-get-ripped-off-in-pinball-vids-guide#post-1813449

Your can learn a lot about a person from talking to them.

Once your bank verifies it’s there, you’re in good shape.
I have seen the inverse, where someone wires money to a legit account in California but the catch is the account was set up via bad credentials and identity theft. Either way do your due diligence on the seller.
I use true people search dot com to reverse look up and match phone numbers, verify addresses, and the person I’m dealing with. It’s been pretty reliable. Trust your gut; it’s a great fraud barometer.

Additionally, check the contact us page. Anyone not using an address is messed up.

CEB9DF01-544C-4DA0-99E9-B8CA00B20C29 (resized).png

No, there's a requirement for having to make funds available. Just because the funds are *available* doesn't mean that they have actually cleared. That time is vastly shorter than the time it takes to actually clear a payment/transfer with a banking clearinghouse. That's how the scam happens--you think you got paid, when in reality, it was a bogus check that bounces later when the banks attempt to reconcile it, and the guy who scammed you is long gone.

I've seen companies not list their street address. Sometimes there are valid reasons for not listing it publicly.

I wouldn't use it as the *only* data point for determining legitimacy, but it's certainly one piece of information that can help fill in the bigger picture.

I do not want to be rude or offensive, but its 2021, but still banksystems in the "modern world" (USA) make these kinds of exploits possible?

Why is that?

So what I understand is that wires utilize the FedFunds system. They are considered "guaranteed" funds transferred directly between financial institutions. Most of the wire frauds I'm aware of tend to be when people send money, realize its a scam and the money is no longer there as the receiver immediately withdrew. Because the owner authorized the transfer, their is minimal recourse except filing complaints. It would be like giving a stranger money and then demanding it back a few days later. The other is attempting to submit fraudulent wires while posing as account owner. Most commonly attempted by sending email to bank hoping an employee will act on the email without verifying identity.

With all that being said, the escrow route seems the most ideal situation sans the cost.

Pin-On!
BH

The most ideal situation is cash on the glass. Anything else comes with some risk.