For sale: Rare 1980 Stern NINE BALL

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Game - for sale

For sale: Rare 1980 Stern NINE BALL

Added: 2018-07-09 13:23:13 UTC • Ended: October 27th, 2018
Condition: Partially restored (almost original)

Price

$ 3,500 (OBO)

Open for offers

Selling my beautiful Stern Nine Ball.

This is a great example of this rare classic Stern. The machine is in awesome original condition with several updates + upgrades. The game originated from Arizona and has been in my collection for a couple of years.

Here's some of the work that has been done:

-Cabinet is original in great shape. I cleaned it thoroughly and performed a few touch-ups. It looks awesome.
-Original door also in really decent shape too (new start button decal).
-Playfield was in good shape but middle area had typical wear around 9 ball insert. I did a spot touch-up and clear. Hand blended it to look original (not too shiny). Also did some basic touch-ups all around the rest of the game. It shows and plays great.
-New CPR plastics (old plastics also included. Many in perfect shape)
-correct NOS stern bullseye drop target added
-Repro drop targets installed throughout
-New rubber, post caps, bulbs etc. Game is shopped
-Original backglass in nice shape. One small crack area in the art but not obvious (see photo)
-All displays bright and working
-All boards are clean and battery removed from MPU (replaced with cap)
-New rectifier board installed
-New legs
-New Glass
-Rare spinner target was recently powdercoated and silkscreened

Looking to get $3500 USD o.b.o.
Willing to pallet and pack for shipping as long as buyer arranges transport.
Not looking for trades at this time.

Please feel free to PM with any questions.
Thank you.

Item photos

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Contact

Note! This is an archived ad. No longer for sale!

Seller insights

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Positive % 100.0%

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Listing result

The seller marked this ad as "not sold". The item did not sell through Pinside so there's no listing result.

Item location

Mississauga, ON, CA

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#2 5 years ago

SAP

seshpilot

Pinside member

11y 112K 2,528 169 4

MapleSyrup you could buy this and sell me mine back?

#3 5 years ago

JPJ

Frippertron

Pinside member

Gorgeous game! You do nice work. It's such a fast and fun game, this will make someone very happy. Your price is completely justified, I'd even say a good deal. They just don't come up for sale that often, most definitely not looking like this. Glwts! Christmas is coming early for someone!

#4 5 years ago

CAH

FLpinball

Pinside+ Frequent

Safety Harbor, FL

11y 84,800 892 5

Beautiful game! A classic case of “wish you were closer” for me. GLWTS

#5 5 years ago

HRG

poppapin

Pinside member

12y 135K 11,303 6 7 1

Rare? 2279 produced....

#6 5 years ago

JAS

Sinistarrett

Pinside member

Freeport, FL

8y 81,850 1,623 3 12

Wow thats nice! Awesome work.

#7 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from poppapin:
Rare? 2279 produced....

I guess it depends on your definition of "rare".
It's certainly not Stargazer at under 900 or Quicksilver at around 1200, but certainly less than games like Seawitch at around 2500. I won't chance a guess at typical survival rates for these games. I certainly don't see them popping up all over the place.
I can change it to "uncommon" if that makes you feel better

#8 5 years ago

???

jkashani

Pinside+ Frequent

Greystone Park, NJ

9y 119K 3,589 6

Rare in that they never come up for sale. I wish I was closer, would love to have this.

#9 5 years ago

GUM

pinlawyer

Pinside+ Frequent

Paradise Valley, AZ

11y 122K 2,199 4 59 2

Gorgeous work! I love my NB. If anyone has or knows of a new "spot #" (upper right) dead-bumper cap, I need one badly!

#10 5 years ago

MAT

snyper2099

Cincinnati Pinball

16y 103K 7,644

It's rare in that condition. I've seen about 15 of them over the years and this is the nicest original one (with touchups) I've ever seen. I'd say it's a rare example for certain. High price? Possibly a wishful thinking type price but you could always make an offer.

-14

#11 5 years ago

HRG

poppapin

Pinside member

12y 135K 11,303 6 7 1

OP
Quoted from Drano:
I can change it to "uncommon" if that makes you feel better

Your ad, call it whatever you want. If you don't want comments, don't post as a thread.

#12 5 years ago

CRD

chad

Game Guy

11y 140K 15,113 9 5

Quoted from poppapin:
Rare? 2279 produced....

Estimates are 5 -10% of a pinball production are around 30 plus years later.

#13 5 years ago

???

Shoot_Again

Pinside member

Vancouver, WA

12y 83,400 8,453 2

That is the nicest 9 ball I have ever seen!

Condition always costs more!

GLWS

#14 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from poppapin:
Your ad, call it whatever you want. If you don't want comments, don't post as a thread.

My attempt at humour is obviously worse than my descriptive ability

Comments are always welcome

#15 5 years ago

DOC

TractorDoc

DPS

Ashland, OH

7y 245K 2,923 33 106

Having just gone thru one and playing around a hundred games on a Nine Ball myself it has quickly become my favorite game. Pure pinball at its best -- spinner, pop bumper, and drop targets with enough variability on rules/goals to keep it interesting. If only I could replace the sound card with Pinsound but even the 80s effects are growing on me.

Don't think I'd sell mine at the asking price or even above, the new owner should/will be be pleased.

Best of luck finding a new home.

#16 5 years ago

SBS

o-din

Pinside+ Addict

11y 158K 58,774

Quoted from poppapin:
Rare?

pendant05-large_large (resized).jpg

#17 5 years ago

TWP

rollitover

Pinside member

South St Paul, MN

10y 76,550 2,070 5 19

OP
Quoted from Drano:
I guess it depends on your definition of "rare".
It's certainly not Stargazer at under 900 or Quicksilver at around 1200, but certainly less than games like Seawitch at around 2500. I won't chance a guess at typical survival rates for these games. I certainly don't see them popping up all over the place.
I can change it to "uncommon" if that makes you feel better

Yes, rare. Your description is accurate.
And Classic Sterns are becoming increasingly hard to come by. Does anyone currently have their choice of which one to buy? The options are few. You want one 'ya gotta snatch 'em while you can cause they move fast!
That's one beautiful machine you have there OP.
Won't last.
Gone by the end of the week at the longest.
Actually I give it two days max.

#18 5 years ago

DJB

brenna98

Pinside+ Frequent

Wind Point, WI

10y 132K 2,244 59 54 1

What does it typically cost to ship a game from Canada to the US?

Last time I looked into it, it involved a shipping company and a customs agent.

#19 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from brenna98:
What does it typically cost to ship a game from Canada to the US?
Last time I looked into it, it involved a shipping company and a customs agent.

I would imagine that it's a big pain TBH. The best approach would be to ship it to the nearest border town and have the shipper hold it at their local depot. Then you cross over, get the game, and clear it through customs yourself. This usually entails telling the US border patrol that you went to Canada and bought a pinball machine. "have a nice day!"
In that sense, American citizens have it a bit easier than Canadians. We generally get hosed with a lot of questions and taxes on any purchases we bring into our country from the US.

If you're within striking distance of the border, this is what I would do... and exactly what I have done in reverse. I have shipped games to Buffalo or Rochester NY and then just popped over to collect them. Paying for brokerage on top of shipping would suck... especailly when you can do the same by just driving it across.

If anyone is interested in this approach, I can recommend a couple of Canadian shippers you can reach out to.

Worst case, you could always sweet talk a Pinside buddy from Buffalo to come up and get it and hold it for you

#20 5 years ago

LTG

Pinside member

Hopkins, MN

12y 191K 56,936 24 7

OP
Quoted from Drano:
This usually entails telling the US border patrol that you went to Canada and bought a pinball machine.

Bring a flyer with for the game to show it was manufactured in the United States and returning.

LTG : )

#21 5 years ago

SMK

TheLaw

Pinside+ Addict

Wish you were closer.

#22 5 years ago

MIK

Cobra

Inactive member

Vaughan, ON

11y 46,800 836 2

Quoted from TheLaw:
Wish you were closer.

What are you like 4.5 hour drive...road trip...l left once to get a pin at 6am and got home at 10pm.

#23 5 years ago

SMK

TheLaw

Pinside+ Addict

Quoted from Cobra:
What are you like 4.5 hour drive...road trip...

Fair point...can't remember if I got one of them enhanced drivers licensees or not.

#24 5 years ago

LEV

CrazyLevi

Crazy Levi's Pinball

New York, NY

10y 148K 33,524

Quoted from poppapin:
Your ad, call it whatever you want. If you don't want comments, don't post as a thread.

So he's not allowed to snark back at snarky comments?

Let's be fair, if you don't want comments in a for sale ad, don't post as a thread.

At the same time, if you don't want replies to snarky comments in a for sale thread, don't post snarky comments in a for sale thread.

#25 5 years ago

DirtyDeeds

Pinside member

Werribee

12y 70,800 983 8

Wow. Wasn't familiar with this one. Beautiful. Efren Reyes might like to buy it. I sure would.

#26 5 years ago

JPJ

Frippertron

Pinside member

Quoted from DirtyDeeds:
Wow. Wasn't familiar with this one. Beautiful. Efren Reyes might like to buy it. I sure would.

Nice billiards reference.

#27 5 years ago

JPJ

Frippertron

Pinside member

Does anyone know the story behind the 173,000 point shot? Always wondered?

#28 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from Frippertron:
Does anyone know the story behind the 173,000 point shot? Always wondered?

I think it was just Steve Kirk being Steve Kirk.
The guy had a weird thing with numerology in general and loved prime numbers from what I can tell. That doesn't really explain the 173K but I did once hear someone say that Steve used Nine Ball to push Stern's (then) platform to it's limit and, in effect, show it's weaknesses. People have told me the game seems incomplete as a result, but I can't figure out how.
I find the rules and various scoring opportunities pretty engaging and smart. The game seems complete to me. The fact that he also made certain shoots more attainable via a billiards-inspired bank shot than from a direct hit, is just brilliant. Spinner rubber rebound to 8-ball target and locking balls off the pop bumper are two of my favorite.
The one thing that bugs me is how (if you have two balls locked at end of game) it won't kick all of the balls out. It'll only kick out 1 and leave the other when you start a game. This was a conscious decision by stern to illicit more coin drops via the promise of an easier multiball experience. F2K is similar.

#29 5 years ago

DAV

InfiniteLives

Pinside member

10y 125K 4,555 283

OP
Quoted from Drano:
I think it was just Steve Kirk being Steve Kirk.
The guy had a weird thing with numerology in general and loved prime numbers from what I can tell. That doesn't really explain the 173K but I did once hear someone say that Steve used Nine Ball to push Stern's (then) platform to it's limit and, in effect, show it's weaknesses. People have told me the game seems incomplete as a result, but I can't figure out how.
I find the rules and various scoring opportunities pretty engaging and smart. The game seems complete to me. The fact that he also made certain shoots more attainable via a billiards-inspired bank shot than from a direct hit, is just brilliant. Spinner rubber rebound to 8-ball target and locking balls off the pop bumper are two of my favorite.
The one thing that bugs me is how (if you have two balls locked at end of game) it won't kick all of the balls out. It'll only kick out 1 and leave the other when you start a game. This was a conscious decision by stern to illicit more coin drops via the promise of an easier multiball experience. F2K is similar.

wow that is very sneaky! never even thought of that as being the reason!

#30 5 years ago

ERW

chuckwurt

Pincinnati

10y 193K 31,342 16 13

OP
Quoted from Drano:
I think it was just Steve Kirk being Steve Kirk.
The guy had a weird thing with numerology in general and loved prime numbers from what I can tell. That doesn't really explain the 173K but I did once hear someone say that Steve used Nine Ball to push Stern's (then) platform to it's limit and, in effect, show it's weaknesses. People have told me the game seems incomplete as a result, but I can't figure out how.
I find the rules and various scoring opportunities pretty engaging and smart. The game seems complete to me. The fact that he also made certain shoots more attainable via a billiards-inspired bank shot than from a direct hit, is just brilliant. Spinner rubber rebound to 8-ball target and locking balls off the pop bumper are two of my favorite.
The one thing that bugs me is how (if you have two balls locked at end of game) it won't kick all of the balls out. It'll only kick out 1 and leave the other when you start a game. This was a conscious decision by stern to illicit more coin drops via the promise of an easier multiball experience. F2K is similar.

F2k remembers locks. Every player has to earn their own. Or at least mine does.

#31 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from chuckwurt:
F2k remembers locks. Every player has to earn their own. Or at least mine does.

Sure. But what happens to those locked balls at the end of the game? Generally they stay locked to entice another person to drop a coin

#32 5 years ago

DOC

TractorDoc

DPS

Ashland, OH

7y 245K 2,923 33 106

My NB will leave one ball as Drano describes if two are locked at the end of a game. Turn the machine off then on again (as I imagine a lot of locations would at the end of the day -- the turning off part) and that ball will be kicked out. . . I think that kickout fires whether a ball is present or not at startup so leaving one there while the game is left on makes sense as a lure/temptation.

Interesting pinball psychology!

#33 5 years ago

ERW

chuckwurt

Pincinnati

10y 193K 31,342 16 13

OP
Quoted from Drano:
Sure. But what happens to those locked balls at the end of the game? Generally they stay locked to entice another person to drop a coin

They stay until the next power cycle. Can’t steal the locks is my point. I guess I’m missing your point too. Haha. Probably meant that the point was that if a person walking up and sees the locked balls they think they are that much closer to MB when they are really not. But too late! I already have your quarters. Haha

Btw, this game looks incredible.

#34 5 years ago

JPJ

Frippertron

Pinside member

This game had some of the most innovative spinner and drop target rules of the time as well. A masterpiece all around.

#35 5 years ago

TWP

rollitover

Pinside member

South St Paul, MN

10y 76,550 2,070 5 19

Quoted from Frippertron:
This game had some of the most innovative spinner and drop target rules of the time as well. A masterpiece all around.

Couldn't agree more.
Many, not all, Classic Sterns do not get the credit they deserve for the innovation they displayed.

#36 5 years ago

DOG

Whysnow

Pinside member

12y 187K 35,338 30 1

Quoted from seshpilot:
maplesyrup you could buy this and sell me mine back?

Sorry,I have dibs on buying yours back

Still pissed I missed it!

#37 5 years ago

MAX

mbaumle

Pinside member

Gloucester Township, NJ

8y 119K 4,200 18 32

Incredible looking game. What was the story behind the 60 software revisions? It's crazy to think a game with a mediocre sales performance having such dedicated software support behind it--especially in the 80s!

#38 5 years ago

LTG

Pinside member

Hopkins, MN

12y 191K 56,936 24 7

Quoted from mbaumle:
What was the story behind the 60 software revisions?

They kept trying to fix it. Had bugs.

LTG : )

#39 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from mbaumle:
Incredible looking game. What was the story behind the 60 software revisions? It's crazy to think a game with a mediocre sales performance having such dedicated software support behind it--especially in the 80s!

Yeah, the game had plenty of issues on route and was unreliable.
The key for a properly functioning/playing Nine Ball is the proper adjustment of the trough and ball lock switches. They can be finnicky, but if they are properly adjusted, the game plays great. In a home environement, keeping these up to par isn't a huge problem.

#40 5 years ago

TPR

frunch

Pinside member

Point Pleasant, NJ

11y 135K 3,637 10

Quoted from Frippertron:
This game had some of the most innovative spinner and drop target rules of the time as well.

Completely agree. One of my favorite discoveries was that when the Nine Ball is lit, hitting the spinner cycles the chasing lights faster (basically every spin advances which light is the Nine)... Which makes it even more awesome when you nail the spinner and still manage to bank the ball into the Nine. One of my other faves is when you have both WOW and Special lit and manage (by some miracle) to collect them both at the same time by hitting the target they're both lit next to. I've only ever done it twice, but what a rush when it happens!

Nine Ball was a grail game for me for years, and i finally landed one a couple years ago (well, 2 actually!)...safe to say it'll be in my collection for a very, very long time. To me, it's the complete package--gameplay, art, and even sound... Hearing the maxed out bonus count after an amazing ball is sooooooo cool! Glws!

#41 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

Quoted from frunch:
Completely agree. One of my favorite discoveries was that when the Nine Ball is lit, hitting the spinner cycles the chasing lights faster (basically every spin advances which light is the Nine)... Which makes it even more awesome when you nail the spinner and still manage to bank the ball into the Nine. One of my other faves is when you have both WOW and Special lit and manage (by some miracle) to collect them both at the same time by hitting the target they're both lit next to. I've only ever done it twice, but what a rush when it happens!
Nine Ball was a grail game for me for years, and i finally landed one a couple years ago (well, 2 actually!)...safe to say it'll be in my collection for a very, very long time. To me, it's the complete package--gameplay, art, and even sound... Hearing the maxed out bonus count after an amazing ball is sooooooo cool! Glws!

Damn man! Now I don't want to sell it

#42 5 years ago

DIC

Dicky

Pinside member

Brisbane

8y 31,550 190

Wow damn nice game there

If there was a cheaper option to get this to Australia,I would take it without question

One day I hope to have one of these in the line up

#43 5 years ago

SMK

TheLaw

Pinside+ Addict

Just played the shit out of a nine ball the other night. Great game!

#44 5 years ago

BEN

MMP

Inactive member

12y 78,550 1,130

I keep coming back to this thread to look at the pictures. Absolutely beautiful pin.

#45 5 years ago

SMK

TheLaw

Pinside+ Addict

It's not perfect but it's still awesome. I'll keep waiting and see if there are no takers.

#46 5 years ago

TWP

rollitover

Pinside member

South St Paul, MN

10y 76,550 2,070 5 19

There's a buyer lurking.
Like a tiger in the tall grass,
he's just waiting to pounce.

#47 5 years ago

AJA

Drano

Pinside member

There's been a lot of interest, but of course the border is a logistic, financial or even mental block to many would-be buyers.

If it were Spring and I had the ability to bring this down to a show like Pinfest, things would obviously be much simpler.

I'm happy to work with anyone who's genuinely interested and willing to drive up.
We're only an hour north of Niagara Falls... could make for a fun road trip

#48 5 years ago

PWN

jahbarron

Pinside member

You Bet, CA

12y 69,050 1,464 8

If I lived on that side of the country and within 8 hrs of that border, I'd have that in my truck. I've never seen a nice Nine Ball.

#49 5 years ago

SMK

TheLaw

Pinside+ Addict