Patience is useful. I found a guy semi-local that works on and sells machines. Took a couple of months to get my first machine from him, took over a year to get the second. But I wasn't in a hurry and his prices were good, so I just kept in touch and kept letting him know that I was still interested without being annoying. He was apologetic and gave me a good deal eventually.

Be willing to drive and have Pin transportation. I've come close to traveling for a Pin, but wife and kids usually keep me local. But if you've got the time and means to put in 4-6 hours to check out a deal, that greatly expands your area.

Communicate. I got outbid on E-Bay on a pretty beat game that I didn't want to spend too much on, so I shot the seller an e-mail telling him that I was still interested at my price and to let me know if the sale fell through. Sure enough it did as the guy didn't want to pack it up for shipping. So I was able to grab it before he relisted.

But if you have some places local you can play, go for it. I'm my only Pin location for now, and would love to be able to check some machines on location.

Enjoy!