omg! thank god i don't live anywhere near you. i'd be out almost 10G's. unbelievably nice.

Wow, that is nice!

Sweet looking original machine. Very jealous.
Glwts
-Mike

Holy sh*t!

Wow, I've owned a few Paragons and that one is amazing. Are the inserts cupped or pretty flat? Recommend whoever gets that puts a playfield protector or clears to keep that great original finish. Amazing the blacks around inserts are pretty much in tact. GLWS.

everyone calm down, it is still a paragon.

I’m sure you could offer him 500 less and that would cover shipping.

He knows that!

Wish I were closer is a respectful way of both praising the game but saying it’s just not quite right for you.

Also some people
Don’t want to get a game like that shipped.

while you're negotiating for the seller, would you take $2500?

Crazy nice machine wow

Wow that is nice.

This and that near mint Shadow make me ask

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Beautiful machine. You don’t find games from this era in this condition very often.

I had a very similar condition Black Hole which I sold recently and was blown away every time I looked at it. Stunning.

I also have a HUO Paragon, but yours looks a tad cleaner. Gorgeous. Even tough my original boards worked fine, I believe I put the Altek boards in mine...

I totally agree the reproduction back glass for this title is awful. The repro PF is actually quite nice...I have a beauty, but will likely never install it (since the original PF is so sweet).

Will be interesting to see what it sells for. GLWTS.

Thanks for asking...I just snapped these. Since it's in the corner, I didn't move it (so the cabinet isn't in full view). I think you can likely see the original reds are still pretty bright. Mine has likely had many plays, but you wouldn't know it from the condition. I don't see any real insert wear, but there is some cupping (from the heat of the bulbs). The plastics were warped when I got it...I flattened them in the sun A small red button was installed by the original owner to allow him to start a game without fiddling with the coin door/mech. There is no mylar installed in front of the slings! I thought the games shipped with mylar from the factory, but apparently not. I actually prefer no mylar (which can cause the ball to jump a bit). Even without the mylar, there is no sling wear I can see.

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Drool on both of these gorgeous games. I just started my Paragon shop job today. Not nearly the condition of these gems.

snaroff Classics_Master

Can you guys please just get into an offering war already, so I can get this machine for closer to $5k?

Thanks...they do look very similar. I picked mine up 10 years ago...paid 2k for it and 1k for an NOS Paragon Playfield. Sold the Kruzman restored PF to a Pinsider - decided to stick with the original PF (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/fs-nos-paragon-pf-restoredcleared-by-ron-kruzman-in-june-2013). When I purchased the pair, I really didn't know quite how beautiful the example was (since it was stored in a warehouse and needed to be shopped). At the time, I remember other collectors saying I paid too much for it I never have a problem paying up for quality...these pristine examples are rare beasts, indeed!

Stunning example of the game. I have a Black Knight that's similar to this, was one of the Time Travel Warehouse batch of NIB Black Knights. No longer in the box when I found it though (and what a story that is), and I've never played it so as not to put any wear on the playfield.

9850 is ridiculous.

True for a lot of games, for sure...but not ALL. The crazy money is usually focused on a handful of titles...before the CGC remakes, AFM/MM/MB were the darlings of pinball. I had a HEP AFM, Keller MM, and original MB...all good games, but they all got old to me. Of the 3, AFM lasted the longest (8 years). Despite being a loved title restored by a beloved restorer (Chris Hutchins), I lost 3k when I sold it in 2018 (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/for-sale-hep-attack-from-mars)! The most I've ever lost on a game, and I've had many.

Right after selling the HEP AFM, I purchased a TRON LE for $10,500. At the time, the price was considered quite high. It "sat" on Pinside for many months before I decided to buy it. Sold it 2 years later (at the height of COVID hysteria) and got full price soon after listing it. Here is the ad (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/for-sale-tron-legacy-le-249)...notice the 28 "thumbs down" on my $21,000 listing price Considering it sold quickly for full price, if Pinside rating were smart/fair, all this thumb downs would flip to thumbs up PS: If you look at my TRON FS ad, you'll notice kklank busting my balls as well (so don't take it personally...some folks are perennial, virtual "Karens" when it comes to FS ads).

Back to beloved 80's games...the last 80's game I sold was Fathom (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/for-sale-fathom-19). This game also sold very quickly for full price. Considering this sale is over 3.5 years old now, I imagine this example would easily sell for 10k today. This isn't necessarily proof that your pricing it right, but I think it's close. You and I admire the rare beauties/survivors from this era, but a lot of the money today gravitates toward the new Stern titles. God forbid Stern builds a game without ramps (like Beatles)...people freak out, saying it's old/cheap/etc

In any event, it's cool you haven't received any downvotes on your pricing...a good sign! Paragon is a stunning game, and we have 2 of the best examples for sure. Personally, I will never sell mine. It will be handed down to my kids when the time comes

Wow I thought my Paragon was the fairest of them all! I wish my inserts looked that flat! Glwts and Dennis go hit the start button on that Black Knight and enjoy her!!

You have a beautiful collection! Kind of surprised you would worry about wear on the PF (and avoid playing it). Most games (especially from that era) are pretty darn resilient and don't wear easily! I have a NIB LOTR that likely has 10-20k plays (was in a free play arcade for 1 month, been to shows, etc.) and still looks fresh/new. These games are incredibly over engineered for home use!

My pleasure...just sharing some of my pricing experience, which I know is unusual. Nevertheless, it's fun to look back at some of the transitions/decisions over the years. Pricing is an art, and I think I've learned a lot over the years and enjoy sharing it. Too often, these threads become a useless shit show...really glad this thread isn't turning out that way.

I'm with you on preferring original survivors over restorations...they might not look quite as sharp, but they almost always play better. I don't regret commissioning my HEP AFM restoration (or losing the $$), but don't think I'd ever commission another high-end restoration. My Centaur is a gorgeous restoration done by a hobbyist. My experience is hobbyist restorations can often be nicer than going to the pros. Not because they are more skilled, but because they are often doing it for themselves...taking extra time to dial-in the game (and go the extra mile). Mike Dallas is a wildly talented restorer - I was fortunate to own is TOTAN for years.

Hey look there's a lot of games out there an anyone claiming a legacy game is the best of the best need to look at this game as a standard that's set yes I've been around a lot of paragons and it really pops out..

Everybody is looking for an original game that is a time capsule one that has the original paperwork 1 that hasn't been molested 1 that hasn't been on route 1 that has been a survivor and someone's basement with the blanket over it I've had the privilege of playing on a few of these time capsules and I appreciate those that have allowed me to play on this the only thing I could say is I pay a $100 to play on this game for an hour..

Whether or not the game's got a few 100 plays or limited to thousands the fact is this is the best in the best and the best there ever is and the best there ever was and the fact is hes not asking a million dollars for who's not asking a $100000 for it hes not even asking a $10000 for it what it's worth is you're buying a diamond in the rough and if you go out and buy a Paragon now a junkie game is gonna cost you 3000 to 4000 and buy the time you work it up it might be 8 or $9000 so that's what he is priced is at So I don't call it the price police I just say that if you are close by I would be willing to pay you a $100 to play the game for an hour take my picture with the game.. If you buy the game and your close ....my $100 offer still stands..

A beautifully restored paragon was on here last year and sat forever at 4k if I remember correctly. The problem is that yes, this is a rare spectacle, but still a paragon. For that money you can get a Godzilla premium. That's gonna be a hard comparison, for the money.

If you gave me an opportunity to buy games last year for what the price is TODAY. AND that it has occurred in the last 12 months I would have bought all the games I could last year many of the games have doubled in value and they're here on Pinside at double the price..

So people get sensitive regarding price and they're sensitive because they don't have the Hondo the money or the dough to enter into the best games there ever was but the reality is if you could find a better looking Paragon for a lower price whereas where is it today?

I've been to a lot of high end game collectors that don't normally go to any tournaments or expos..they just have 2030 40 machines in the basement many of them came new out of the Box the fact is everybody wants to have something that nobody else has I'm not saying that Paragon in this price is the one but it's just a beautiful looking game in the condition it's and the condition it's at and the reality there is that in the future I'll have a game collection and I'm looking for a game that nobody else has in the condition nobody has...

I passed up on a lot of unique games games and I made mistakes in the past and that was when I listened to other people telling me that the target alpha alpha that just came out of the Box is not worth $1800 that I could buy one for $1200 then looking at a Galaxy that I could have bought for $2200 said I should have just paid 1500 for it or I could have looked at the other games that I messed up on all across-the-board for the last 12 years And wish I would have bought certain games for the price that I could have.

I graduated from high school in June of 1979 I'm not a programmer or a computer expert in the high world of software I just happened to be a normal typical type of engineer with a typical salary but if I was I'd be the 1st person wanting to negotiate this Paragon to be placed in my basement because I know that there is something that nobody else has in the condition that it's at.

Of course I would be immediately buying the wide glass clear glass it's clear glass either from Stern or Michigan or Germany to make sure that it was the best of the best.

I would also install additional speakers in sound attenuation so when they play that game and it hits a replay it would rock the world..

When my friends would come over and play this game I wouldn't dare ask them a $100 to play the game I would say yes you could play my game for free because I'm your friend all you have to acknowledge that it's the best there ever was!!!!!

It's doing knowledge that anybody with a wallet in their pants their pants can go out and buy a godzilla pro or godzilla premium or with the big enough wallet of godzilla LE and you could always play on the same game with somebody else's wallet but in this particular case this is just a unique game a unique title that everyone knows but it just tells everyone that if you have something that nobody else has it's gonna come at a price.....

So my $100 offer still stands for one hour play but now I'm gonna up the charge I'm only gonna play it if you have the clear glass on it and upgraded speakers...

The volume would have to be turned way up when I play because all I'm trying to do is play it for replay or a match.

I play to hear that "knocker" always have. Always will...

Truth is… a beautiful survivor isn’t going to demand the top dollar when there are better restorations out now.

This hobby doesn’t put the value on originality like other antiques.

People want perfect looking and playing games… original isn’t the best path to that. Rarity of kind instead of rarity of the example’s condition is valued.

Maybe in another generation originality will be king… but we are in the resto-mod era for pinball

Beautiful game, it’s rare to see one as nice as this. Thanks for sharing and GLWS

There are many collectors that value originality, though I agree they are likely the minority. Your implication that restorations play perfectly is a misnomer. Many, many restorations don't play great...I've owned a fair number. In almost all cases, the survivor plays better...again, just my experience.

More than survivor vs. restoration, 80's games don't get the love they use to. People hunting for them are also in the minority. Recent example: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/for-sale-hep-medusa. This Medusa took quite awhile to sell and it was fairly priced - and it was restored by HEP!

Like all things… some are good, some are not. Simply having a box of parts does not make a good playing machine. Not sure where you got that from my post

Plenty of survivors that played like crap too because they got no love in 40 years

Hep medusa had that cabinet issue looming over it- but i did tell others to buy it…

When you commission a restoration by a professional, they don't typically play it much (for fear of disturbing the perfect aesthetics). It's also time consuming. I think the Pro restorers (and their customers) and typically more focused on aesthetics and less focused on dialing the game in. I've personally spent weeks/months dialing in restored games. When I was more of a newbie, I was horrified that you could pay so much for a game and not have it play perfectly! Just my experience. That's why I prefer hobbyist restored games...i.e. games that are done for themselves. If a finicky player/collector owns and restores a game for their own collection, the game will in most cases play perfectly.

The folks that grew up in the 70's/80's obviously have a fondness for these games. Many younger players today only want the latest/greatest tech. I don't really know why LCD's excite the newer players so much, but they do

I guess, but it's not as common in my experience. For an extreme ground up restoration, the risks of not nailing everything is much greater than a beautiful survivor not functioning properly in obscure ways. Sure, you might need to tweak/fix survivor parts, but the entire game hasn't been taken apart and put back together again.

Well, on Paragon that would be a waste...the sounds it emits are quite basic The year after Paragon was designed, the "Squawk and Talk" board was developed which added some speech (Xenon, Centaur, Fathom).

On the newer titles, a PinWoofer amp/speaker upgrade is awesome...especially on the rock and roll pins.