Is that the one Brady (Soulrider911) restored? He did a great job...

a·bom·i·na·tion

Rusty bulb sockets to match the rusty transformer, etc.

Yep, nice catch.

Yours is a much nicer restoration IMO. It’s not even close.

Wow this thing looks like lipstick on a pig. Rusty coil soldering pads and all.
$9k for FT sounds like some STONK action.

I like the orange captive ball! I'm gonna have to see if I can find a red one for mine, maybe a bobber look. Never thought of changing that out, and the glow rubbers on those boat posts look pretty cool too. Some nice ideas, but the key start seems like it doesn't "go" with the theme to me.

Mezel Mods sells the glow balls. The glowing post rubbers are nifthy.

Thanks, just found the balls. They have "radical red" and I have some leftover glow post rubbers from my afm

Mine is a FULL restore that a fellow pinsider put his blood, sweat and tears into-a true masterpiece.

I usually do not like to talk about pricing in a fs thread but here is my opinion. The OP's game is probably a re-import with the rusty socket's etc. There still was a decent amount of work performed and it might make a good project for someone who wanted to take it to the next level. The replacement playfields are affordable and available and sockets and other parts can be polished or replaced. It is not a 100% restore and I do not believe the op stated it was, looks like he is mainly using it as trade bait or obo to me-no biggie. I have a folder with valuations of my machines in case anything ever happens to me for my wife to comprehend valuations. In this book I have $11,000 as the value of my Fishtales, people may think that is crazy but compared to what other games sell for(20k GNR, 20k POTC?) and the amount of work put into it-that is what it is worth to me today(not going anywhere). One thing I will also say is how great a true restored game plays. It is so dialed in and tight-it plays like it was just taken out of the box. Not only does it look good but most important is the gameplay is amazing.

Considering how many games you have, I'm kind of surprised you think the "amount of work put into it" effects a games appraised value. Not my experience. I had a gorgeous, restored Fishtales that I sold for 4k back in 2015. The market has certainly increased, but there is no way that game would sell for 7-8k today. I'm sure your game is gorgeous, but very skeptical that it would fetch 11k.

7EA65155-C349-4435-B9F9-8A35D19CF80F (resized).jpeg

D563DFB9-DEE9-4BE0-8B55-60D643CED1C6 (resized).jpeg

D6EF31BB-9A51-4E60-AD30-C8519D307D65 (resized).jpeg

Yes the amount of work directly correlates valuation. Years ago I did not get the people willing to spend money on HEP games, I kinda scratched my head? Now I totally get it. These classic Bally/Williams games are getting harder and harder to find in good condition, most are routed turds. When you play a restored dialed in classic it takes the gameplay to a whole other level. Honestly it spoils you and playing routed turds-starts to turn you off. Some people see the light and some don't-and that is ok.

I've played (and owned) a fair share of high-end, restored games that played like shit. Fortunately, with work, fixing the less-than-great gameplay was possible.

There is absolutely no guarantee aesthetic beauty equates with great gameplay. I have a "survivor" STTNG that plays just awesome...would put it up against ANY restored STTNG.

Only for the person doing or paying for the amount of work.

Man I bet you are kicking yourself now-that is a 10K game you have in that picture-pinflation is real

I'll take the middle road. A nice example that just needs a little cleaning, maybe even change rubbers and adjustments. They can still be found for decent prices. I don't need the bling to make it sing.

Not at all, since pinball is a hobby for me, not a way to make money. I make much more money in both the stock market and real estate. In 1998, I built a pool/cabana for my kids...total cost $100,000. If I would have kept that money in Apple Stock, I'd be 15 million dollars richer. No joke. Do I regret the decision to build my kids a pool/cabana? No way...it's called LIVING!

Just making a true comparison-comparing selling something in 2015 is irrelevant in today's market. Honestly it would be hard to find a routed Fish Tales turd for less than 4k these days-apples and oranges. People also make more disposable income from 2015 to 2021?

Also I love your background where you live-looks really nice. We want to do the Rose Day parade one day(bucket list)-and I may need to look you up when we visit.

I agree. Now what I look for in a game is collectability. Collectability to me is a basic criteria. 1. Low play wear. 2. Nice original pf and cabinet with no or little fade in the artwork. 3. Original board set. 4. No damage from the elements. I just found a WH20 and FT that were just that. They are very nice examples and I feel very lucky to have them in my collection. Now for bling: color DMD, pinblades, LEDs, sound upgrade, sometimes armor and topper.

I have bought from Dave and he is a great guy! He did innovative things to the game that others have not done. The button on shooter is made to look like a real reel. It does have radcals and not next gen on it thus the gaps to the corner. Less it appears a partial restore but in great playable condition. It sold quickly! For top dollar. If the new crap that is being produced is selling for $10-12k these well done original WB games have a market. There are only so many good ones. It is amazing when we all buy we get mad if priced high but some of our games we won’t sell unless we get silly numbers. Maybe the seller feels the same way. GB premium listed for $11,500 and kiss le for $14,500 this looks like a deal to some. I like original but many like the powder coated Armour. Dave innovative ideas and well done. Can’t wait to look at the next one he does. Maybe a white water or another fish tales. Laugh is on everyone as someone liked enough to pay $9,000. I am not a restore, mod or topper guy. I do have all of the above on a few but I prefer HUO original across the board.

What's funny is when I sold my FT for 4k, I got flack for asking too much! IIRC, I still made a small profit on the sale. I rarely sell games at a loss. In fact, the biggest pinball loss I've ever taken was on a HEP AFM (because of the remake). Sold for 10k, had 13k in it.

Actually, that photo was taken in a Florida home that I no longer own. My place in Pasadena is actually right on the Tournament of Roses parade path! If I still own it when the parade comes back, happy to host you. Here is a photo of the parade going past my place...

IMG_5615 (resized).jpeg

Funny because now some people are ditching their remakes to find HEP originals(probably could sell for $14k now)-lol

One thing about the pinball market is you can wait a week-month-year and things change considerably.

Wow looks like sale pending only after one day listing-drops the mic

Mic drop.gif

Not really.....at the end of the day its still a Fish Tales...most people who restore these do it for themselves, and as a hobby. Restoring games and expecting to make $ and a return on your labor rarely happens.

Yes I agree, and most do not log their hours spent-it is a labor of love. If the pinsider who restored my Fishtales logged his hours it would probably be over $15,000 worth of labor-not even joking.

amen!

If this really is pending anywhere near the asking price then I might be posting my legit HUO Fish Tales soon that I never thought I would part with.

Congrats to the OP if it's really pending. The market is so crazy now I guess the sky is the limit.

A HEP restored FT sold in the high 7's less than a year ago (I almost bought it).....I guess you can put whatever value u want on the game, but its not worth close to $11K

I was offered $8500 for my HUO STTNG, so don't leave money on the table...a true HUO FT may fetch $7K+? Routed turds are selling for $5k

Dude seriously put down the crack pipe-do you really want to know how fast a $7K HEP Fish Tales would sell for in today's market-seconds

FT to the moon!!!

Sorry, calling this a high end restore is deceptive. One shaky photo showing rust and grime is enough to determine that.

Classic Pinside. Dorks arguing that they know the price better than the OP. Meanwhile, game sells.
Good for OP!

pasted_image (resized).jpeg

yea maybe...I thought it was over priced at that price...at the end of the day its still a FT....fun game, but its not a Williams IJ

Seller can claim sold for any amount. Doesn’t mean it happened. They likely took a reasonable offer if it sold at all.

I have no problem spending 9k on a beautiful pin, but it isn't going to be a FISH TALES FFS.

Meh-I would take Fish Tales over IJ any day of the week(I actually think IJ is overpriced)

In fact I would take my Stern IJ4 over the Williams version(here come the down votes-lol)

I am a huge IJ fan and Williams IJ only lasted a few months in my collection and I do not miss it or want it back.

Now we know whose actually smoking crack...

That you just happen to own - LOL!

Doubling down eh?
I like your confidence!

True, but my point is a Williams IJ historically sells for high dollar, and is typically loved by most (for good reason). I have a lot of nice games and its at the top of my play list.

I took your post to mean IJ is funner than FT which is subjective, not a fact.

This is the funniest thread I've read on here in a LONG time. ...genuinely LOL over here. And, yes, I have the nicest HUO FT you can imagine (like just out of the box condition), but that's BESIDE the point! haha...

...anyone can have it for $25K Fish Tales to the MOON! haha...

You aren’t going to take a reasonable offer the first day you listed it.

May the tallest coin stack win.