Now that I have a few games - more than will comfortably fit set-up in may garage, and with my decision to be more careful about my public contacts through Craig's List, I thought I might set up a booth at the flea market and sell some games out of there. Maybe it could double as a "Pinball Museum" or something and people can pay to play them, and if someone wants to buy one, that'd be just ducky. By the way, my games are of the early solid state variety. I think my newest game is 95. So it's not like I'm not thinking of taking a bunch of $5,000 pins to the flea market. Thought I should clarify that.

I went to one of the local flea markets this last week, and a booth with an AC, and enough power to run maybe 5 pins and maybe a 60-in-one. Might be about $300 a Month. I like the temporary aspect of the flea market, that is you aren't required to sign a long term contract. Heck, I can set up for a single day, then pack my stuff up and go home! But they have security, and I thought I might make a go of it for a month to test the waters. I'm in a unique position with my day job where I can get my job done in the first part of the week, and then be available for this Fri, Sat, & Sunday. Apparently they require you to have your booth open on the days they are, from 9-4. That seems reasonable I guess. Looks bad to have a bunch of booths not open.

My girlfriend and I disagree about the popularity of Pinball, and the current zeitgeist surrounding it, but it seems to me that antique pinball machines are just the sort of antique things they sell at the flea market. Just a little bigger. The people one sees typically wondering around these flea market are on the average - not all ways, but there are many older people in this group, and my premise is that now they have retired, this will give them a chance to relive some of their youthful pinball days - like before all those video games came along. And, maybe something for some of the husbands to do while their wives examine the depression glass.

Anyone else do anything like this? I mean, I know there are lots of storefronts as arcades, but I mean a sort of Sales/Arcade mashup. I asked them and they said at this particular flea market they didn't know of anyone having any pinball machines, video games, etc since they opened some 50 years ago. I find that a little hard to believe, since my recollection was that the things were fairly ubiquitous in the 70s. I KNOW the flea market I went to as a kid had an bunch of pins. Whenever we'd go to the flea market I'd spend my time in there while mom shopped.

Maybe it's just me wanting to live MY glory days. My girlfriend may be right, I might be projecting. It's sort of a nitch thing, these aren't the multi-level zillion-mode games.

-B

Funny you should say that. When I was there last week scouting the booth, I was talking to the people that work there, custodians, and other adjacent vendors and such, and I struck up this conversation with a guy selling beds I guess.. Next he tells me about two pins for sale down the street. What's the new-fangled word? Networking? Heh.

-Brian

Talked to the Revenuers.. Heh.. And apparently if they don't take quarters, you don't need that sort of license. Use pay your usual sales tax on your proceeds. If you start taking quarters, that is when things get kind of - well harder. Up to 35 machines, and they're in one spot, you can just post a license saying "We've paid the tax on x machiens blah blah blah.." and it's like 150 + 30 per machine or something. I think there is some weird July-June thing. But I don't see why I need to take quarters, I could do it with blocks of games, or, if I did it on a timed basis, I guess that takes some of the reward out of the thing- If winning the free games don't mean anything- I guess it's the same thing at home. Games not being worth anything leads to things like- Starting a new game when ball 1 doesn't meet your expectations.

I thought maybe I could sell other mancave items- Jukeboxes, Slot machines - who knows.

I may just do this. I really wish it wasn't Friday Saturday & Sundy- I'm not sure how much traffic there is going to be on a Friday.

-Brian

Too many pins- Friday Huh? Okay. And yeah, that's sort of what I was thinking - how bad could it be? Play Pinball all weekend?

See the thing is, when I play MY games, as I'm playing and I see little problems or things I can adjust or fix it's hard for me but to instantly rip the glass off and get to it- I forseee dragging maybe more than a few tools with me- and the caps, and connectors, rubbers and diodes, solonoids, and leds and flipper kits, solder, sucker, and then dad pointed out if I leave my leaf adjustment tool there one weekend.. I'd be out of luck.

Preliminary Flier idea I was fooling with.

Put in the app for sales tax use, I called it Silverballs.

IMG_5276 (resized).JPG

It's official. I'm booth 55 at the USA flea market. Right across from the business office. I'll be open sporadically - or as my friend Ray used to advertise, "by Chance" for the first couple weekends.

I was thinking Black Knight, Meteor, Future Spa, laser ball to start with

I guess I anticipate that. When I wear my Pin-shirts out in public it's all anybody wants to talk about. At least older poeple. The lady across from my booth says to me, "I've been saying they should open an arcade in here for years!"

Time will Tell if it's a profitable venture, just something that keeps the doors open and not much more, or if it's a flop.

Gotta go start haulin' games. Black Knight is the first one!

-B