That is so awesome man you literally have EVERY cool piece of swag!!!

Toppers (these were missing their antenna) - ebay.com link: itm

I would think a celebrity pinball afficionado would buy this. Perhaps Ed Robinson of the Barenaked Ladies?

Wait, is that a custom Varkon cabinet? It doesn't look original. I've played a couple different Varian's and the sides don't look right on that one.

that's varkon art for sure. i own one.

It wasn't the art. I thought the cabinet looked odd. However, upon further inspection, it matches the other pics that I could track down the interwebs.

Soooo....surprised this hasn't sold yet. I remember when the game itself was bringing this much money, let alone with all the extra stuff. Personally I think he's underpriced it. Good luck with the sale.

John

You really think Ed is pulling in BBB money?

Yes

Too many new and interesting games coming down the pipeline. BBB is great and has cool history, but it's also just another pinball machine, and while it's a hell of a looker, the game itself is average. I haven't missed mine much at all.

Interesting games...?? Hmm......

John

Alien, Dialed In, Aerosmith all look quite interesting. Also waiting on Spooky #3.

For the cost of a BBB, one could buy a TWD Prem, and any two of MET Pro, GOT Pro, GB pro, ST Pro... If you're looking for *gameplay* it's a no-brainer IMHO

This particular collector piece deserves more than a plunge in the typical family home.
And at this point, I'm the typical family home.
Thanks for sharing and hope you find that lucky buyer!
Beautiful.

There's nothing special about TOTAN, it's a beginner level game and boring as hell. CV isn't much better, you spend the whole game shooting three shots - ramp, left orbit and ringmaster. SS has awesome presentation but is too easy. MB is good, although a bit shallow. TZ is a great player overall and the only game in this list I still have (I've already owned and sold the other four...)

The last three you mention are definitely special, but again, aside from 2P Joust, gameplay is far too limited for the price. Once you get to Varkon's LPF a few times, the novelty wears off and it's just a small boring pinball game. There's a reason only a hundred were made - it wasn't compelling enough even back then to make more.

Larry, please don't crap on the man's for sale thread

Wait a second Larry, I thought you said "interesting"?

John

Sorry, but I'm not one who considers for sale threads to be sacrosanct. If you don't want people replying to your ad, don't create a thread. If he's going to post things like:

..on a discussion forum, then I'm going to discuss it with him. Not to mention, I dropped most of my load on TOTAN and CV, not the game he's selling. FWIW I think his price is fair, but the fact it hasn't moved yet supports my opinion that people are looking ahead, not behind...

Hard time of the year to sell games. People are Xmas broke and it's too early for tax time but when it comes it will put some extra cash in there pockets so they can start buying games again. Timing is everything.

John

To each their own.. Don't forget - JJP now has Ted Estes working alongside Keefer, and Stern just hired KME. Yea, I'm definitely looking forward to some new material.

Completely disagree. BBBs will always be for sale at one point or another for various reasons I don't need to list. Also there are many great games that were made in the past several years IMO. That said, beautiful game and GLWS

Not really as this is one of the games that does change hands more often than others.
It does not stop predominantly because it is an easy source of quick cash flow.
Many IPB machines have changed hands up to 2-6 times since 2006-2007.
Quite a few changed hands 2-3 times in the first year after it was produced.
Another reason this happens is not that the "wow factor" wears off quickly, but rather what is called in the collector world a "turn and burn", a pinball collector wants to say they HAVE owned the game either for the novelty or bragging rights.
Remember the price of this game has actually DECREASED not increased proportionally to many games of the same era after the price finally equalized around the $15K mark as it exceeded the threshold of market.
It went up from 2006-2012, and started dropping thereafter.
This is what Mr. Dayduff was referring when the same game was going for nearly $18-20K.
It simply is not being sold for this price now for the game alone, no extras.

I may decide to buy mine in the next year, and I would be the fourth local owner of my "lineage" game.
The BBBs that do not change hands frequently are the prototypes, that average an additional $6-8K above IPB prices even though the quality on prototypes is lower in terms of construction.
People that can afford a $24-26K prototype, do not need to worry about buying another game or costs. They buy pretty much whatever they want all the time.

I don't know of a lot of family buyers that want a BBB. It is a collector type machine.

GLWS though, I thought the "goodies" were a good bonus incentive.

I was considering pulling the trigger on this, but currently my garage is full.

Yeah, that's the best way to do it. Selling on Pinside seems to bring out the worst in some people. GLWTS.

Original cabinet. The light behind the camera gave it an odd look.

It is not "shitty" or "hating" to disagree with your opinion on the value of this game. Everyone who has disagreed with you has been polite, and have backed up their opinion with real data. I owned one of these BBBs. I got bored with it and sold it for better games, like many other former BBB owners did, and apparently like you're doing right now. Key difference: I didn't try to squeeze top dollar out of my game. I sold it for a fair price, quickly and with no fuss. I sold a HUO MB right here on pinside, priced it fairly, sold it quickly and with no fuss.

Sellers who whine about comments are worse than the comments themselves. If you don't want a discussion, don't create a thread with your ad.

No, but it is shitty to do it in the guys for sale thread.

Owning this game is not about the game play (which is decent); it is about the history and bragging rights. I think the price is fairly reasonable, not as much because of the extras but the history. I would buy it but the title doesn't interest me. It is sitting because there aren't a lot of buyers for this level of pin, not because it is priced too high. I was the first offer on the house I bought last year after two years on the market. It was at a good price but there just weren't many people looking to buy 7 figure houses. It's just the nature of elite purchases like this.

GLWS and great job on your preservation of this piece of pinball history.

You'd abandon your own FS thread rather than read opinions that are different than yours?

It's hating to have a different opinion on the value of a game?

Or maybe you're just overreacting a bit?

Just because someone disagrees with the OP in a kind and logical fashion is no reason to get bent out of shape. This is a discussion forum where we discuss the relative value of things along with the reasoning behind it. As a relatively new person in the pinball community, I appreciate the discussion and learn a lot from it.

Fantastic humble brag.

*bows*

It's great to still be spoiled in your thirties by rich parents.

I could accept being spoiled in my 40s or 50s too...

Man,i would pay the 20k cash in a heartbeat if this ocean wasn't between us.
Damn you ocean!
It sucks,i am the right person for this collection on the wrong continent.

Economically speaking, if you are pricing and selling your games fast, you would be under-pricing them.

Is it the cost/duty of the shipping turning you off or the risk that comes with handeling (potential damage during the shipping) that concerns you? Just curious which is weighted higher in the eyes of the Europeans.

sending $20.000 in an envelope to the usa turns me off...come on man,what a dumb question.(respectfully )
Just think for a bit...how about customs..$20.000 insurance on a crate won't pass customs without import duty.
Not possible.
I ship pins to the usa,i know the drill

I understand your concern.

maxresdefault (resized).jpg

NIB one on Ebay?!

ebay.com link: NIB Big Bang Bar pinball by Illinois Pinball

That particular game has been for sale since 2007 (thereabouts), not always on Ebay though.
The history on that machine is quite simple, and has been somewhat of a "running joke" in the pinball community for those that are aware.
It is not "special" in any way.
He bought the game from another original owner after IPB was finishing up the shipping on the game.
He has speculated the market and always adjusted the price of the game upwards of $5000 more than it was worth since that time, hoping to "cash in". It has never worked, and even went as high as $30K at one point.
He has never been in a rush to sell the game.
If the game continues to sit, the price will probably return to $30K in less than 5 years.

Essentially, a buyer is paying an extra $9000 right now for a damaged cardboard box and that "new pinball smell experience".
(I think the smell has perhaps dissipated)

The equal cost of a high end game or NIB premium machine.
The purchase price on "new" BBB is not $17.5K right now (I really have no idea how this this figure was generated as the prices have dropped again through 2015-2016 and Mr. Price Guide actually lagged), although I know of at least two others that are still "new", meaning NIB, but they are not for sale. "New" is not pristine, mint, or any other ambiguous term, new is new, and are there just not that many.
People might as well keep using the term, NOoB (New out of box) as it is nearly as useful, but at least that is funny.

Additionally, the battery is still on the MPU board, and the seller cannot even guarantee the game works.
That would be a problem for me as a senior collector.
Some tuning and "burn in" is required after 10 years in the box.
Things people should consider before buying any type of NIB game regardless if it was just built.

He did add this quote though to the ad (which I thought was amusing):

"One additional BTW, this item could be remanufactured at any time by those companies that have a mind to. If this listing helps make that remanufacture happen, then that is great for the pinball community."

I really have no idea how that statement helps the sale in reference to the market and industry, and it is still potentially feasible that PPS could remake the game.
It is not like they need his game to do it, there are plenty of examples to choose from, and PPS would most likely not use the same MPU and board architecture anyway as additional reverse engineering would be required.
Any remotely educated speculative buyer would simply be turned away.

"Keeping this BBB FS ad alive!"
GLWS

"Pinball machines are designed to be played, not treated like gold, speculated, sat in the corner as decorations, or kept in the boxes like children dollhouses. Take them out and use them. Let them roam free!"
- TBK

The Ebay seller would have done way better to sell the pin for a lower price and take the proceeds and invest them in an index fund. He would be way ahead of the game. Greed in this case has made him poorer.

EBay one is for sale on Pinside as well.

More surprised that someone could leave it in the box that long rather than enjoy it. Besides the other problems you mention, possible corrosion and likely needs way more tuning than a played game, seems such a shame that no one has really enjoyed it.

The real tragedy in the whole thing is that it has sat in a box all these years and no one has been able to enjoyed it. Basically held for ransom with the dream of someday cashing in for a purely ego driven premium price. I say ego, since as stated above, had he cashed out years ago and invested in the markets, he would be way ahead. So the hold out must be ego driven.

We all buy games for different reasons. Clearly this guy just LOVES owning this thing its current state so I'm sure he's getting more enjoyment out of it than he would a higher performing index fund or playing the game.

I am surprised this thing hasnt sold yet!

Oh, n/m.. its 20 G's