I think that this has almost as much to do with rising pin prices as anything, especially considering how many new people appear to be getting into this hobby.

It seems that there have always been both components involved. With the recent increase in demand, I think there has been a similar rise in the number of people who sell pins purely for profit.

I was not making any particular negative aspersions one way or the other, but my comments didn't have anything to do with "hoarders".

I've bought several pins from a "flipper" as many would call him and I will continue to do so if I can't locate a better deal. It should be noted that a better deal involves a lot more than just the lowest price, and the service and support that I get means a lot as well. It's all about developing relationships and knowing who you respect and can trust. Some people don't care about that. They think that *any* "flipper" is born of the devil himself, which is ridiculous.

That said, I *do* know flippers that I have absolutely zero respect for and will call them out whenever given the opportunity. These are the dishonest morons who don't know crap about pinball, hold themselves out as just a fellow "collector", and misrepresent the pins that they sell.

WTF are you talking about?

You bought your one and only pin from a Retailer!

You probably could have mentioned that in your original post, instead of saying "BIG no!" don't you think?

Your response seemed to imply that you would never buy from a retailer, and that was a false impression.