I love the guys that don’t have the inclination or cash to buy something and instead disparage what others collect. If someone has the cash and interest to spend on parts of rare pinball history, then all the more power to them.

A similar argument happened in the world of comic collecting back in 1976. A now famous (infamous) dealer found a golden age collection no even dared dream existed. Thousands and thousands of immaculately preserved books from the late 30s and 40s. At the time, there was outrage over the asking of muliples of guide for copies. The animosity directed at the seller and those paying the prices was unreal. People ridiculed them, but meanwhile behind closed doors these books readily changed hands. Instead of being the predicted end of the hobby, this collection turned into a seminal event in the hobby and set the standard for truly rare and exceptional books

So, if someone wants to spend silly money on a marked up and hacked up game that is part of history, let them.

That said, I think the price is high and some provenance would be nice.

If you’re alluding to the fact that this machine ain’t immaculate, the parallel to this situation still holds. 35 yrs later, some books from this collection have had the misfortune of being mistreated, poorly stored, or the victims of small accidents. They are no longer perfect or near perfect, but still command a dramatic premium because the collection was so important

Similarly , the “pay copy” of Action Comic 1 is written all over and was used in court cases defending DC’s trademarks. It commands a premium over similarly graded copies because of its importance.

Everyone should stop being offended and let people collect and spend what they want. You might be suprised where the market leads to.

The parallel doesn ’t hold up. Traditionally the first issue of a title is worth more. Conversely, it also has the largest print run and is often more common

And if anything pinballs are exactly like comics. They were meant to be used and abused and were disposable, and only the affections and passion of collectors (sometimes this included ops) saved them from the garbage pile. Sounds exactly the same