Cool story bro

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A f...... men!

I know a guy that bought two but he's routing both of them.
I'd bet he does well.

Wow great post thanks for the thread...drain

I bought a GB pro and am very happy with it. The true sucker here? The person buying the LE for an inflated price IMO. With the premium right around the corner and a very nicely optioned Pro available, I just don't see the need to pay a cent over what I should have paid for an LE from a dealer.... period.

That being said- it's a free market and I could care less if people bought 2 just to sell 1. The risk is also there for them to lose big! I know of a collector that made out very well on buying an extra MET LE (traded it straight up for a Tron LE and then sold the Tron LE).. but I also know someone that bought 2 Hulks and lost money. So buy at your own risk and congrats if you happen to make $ instead of lose it! Personally, I can think of better things to invest my $ in!

It's a tough spot. I'm all for supporting my local dealer, but I can only afford so much and the regular price of GBLE already pushes that envelope (bigtime!). I understand both sides, but since I'm a buyer I certainly don't want to pay a premium for a GB LE because others are trying to flip the games for quick profits. I'll just have to opt out at that point I guess.

Rob

For sure if the next Stern game ( Aerosmith ) is color lcd, prices of red dot games will fall. 100%. All of them, over time. Go back to 1990 and the same happened.

I would 100% take a profit if I had a GBLE on order!

There are more issues involved right now in the market than GBLE "Pre-Order Resale Resales".
Price speculation has been around for years by distributors buying for stock, but not private owners, which makes this situation a little unique now.
Attaching the letters "LE" to any game is not a guarantee of "pinball investment speculation success" anyway, its foolhardy.
There are more examples of Stern LE mediocracy than successes, Tron was an anomaly.
It does not always work, and buyers get burned, if they are buying for the wrong reasons instead of FUN!
If an owner does not have a game in his hands, and another buys "the slot" they are even more foolhardy.
NOBODY for example has tested a GBLE or Premium, unless directed connected through Stern or sample games.
If an owner want to keep their game in the box for a "rainy day", that is their prerogative, I prefer to invest in the stock market, not pinball machines.

History is repeating itself for most than are understanding of involvement in the hobby before Williams closed its doors in 1999.
A secondary market stall (not a collapse bubble) will occur in less than 5 years, due to a decrease of overall pinball owners again for those that want later model SS machines, not very early SS or EMs.
People are going to feel pretty stupid in the long run, but until then distributors, brokers, and dealers, and individual "preowner resellers" are capitalizing accordingly on new owner ignorance.
Especially, if they take the game out of the box, and don't try and "flip it" by keeping the original box, and then trying to sell it "NIB equivalency" again (which happens), hence the development of new pinball jargon, "new out of box" methodology, if the owner is even honest.

No one is being "had", just blinded to directions of the industry price testing driven not by owners but by only a few specific industry controllers, who are trying to get income before the next drought.
Stern did not survive the industry by being stupid, they are just acting in response to "feeding the monster".
JJP opened their eyes to how much they could charge, and people would still buy games, for now...
Most of the older collectors just watch and laugh, as we have seen this in the past.

Secondary manufacturers are going to have a hard time maintaining production.
JJP already floundered once by overreaching their limits, and almost took a U-boat dive.
A fair number of buyers backed out of sales, and reimbursed their TH pre-orders based on economy inflation to recoup their down payment because they could not afford the final cost of the machine, especially overseas orders.

Prices will rise until the limit of the economy and wallets are empty, then it settle, deflate, and start again.
Once base "premium" (not LE) games hit the MRSP of $10k USD in the next two years, sales are going to tank fast, production will cease, reruns will cease, and the number of titles will begin to slow down again.
Overseas that translates over $16-18k NIB games, which is not "chump change" for many collectors.
LOTR would NEVER have sold as well as it did, if the base cost was $7000.

Used games of high quality already dried up years ago from Bally/Williams/Capcom, unless you are willing to fork over $$$, which even for "B Titles" constitutes between $2000-5000.
"C Titles" are running around $1500 and rising.
"Top 10" machines generally keep their value steady.

"Let the pinball freight train continue."
Choo Choo.
I have been on the ride since when it was a steam engine locomotive.
The bigger question is how many others will get off at the next stop?

I hate pinball bubbles and prices. These tous shpuld be free!!

I think the OP is as much to blame as anyone. Why so desperate to get an LE? Buy a fricken premium. You know your going to spend atleast 2k more then a premium in a best case scenario at this point.

Or just go with the Pro/

Seems like a great idea! As long as there are those wanting to pay that hefty premium it will continue.

Sounds like the op is bitter because he didn't get an LE at the original msrp.

Get a premium and don't look back.

Knowing KKlank, I don't think that is the case. More a commentary on the dog-eat-dog world these days....even in this relatively small circle of supposed friends. To each their own, and I doubt the big guy above is going to judge us all on whether or not we gouged someone on a pin or tried to make ourselves feel superior by anonymously criticizing someone on a web post for no reason.......or will he?

Get any version and don't look back. They're all great and it's only money!

seems so obvious.

I still do not understand the whole Stern LE thing since they offer a premium. Limited is nothing but a name with a $2500 up sell. I think the real suckers are anyone buying the LE model at all. You can double down on being a sucker if you are buying a LE for even more than the 8k they originally sold for!

my issue isn't so much with the flippers... (it is a free market and all.) but I don't understand how you can sell a "SPOT" that is being held for you. Ok, so I give a distributor my "deposit" for two LE's and then I can "sell" my spot for 10k or more when in fact I only have a couple hundred dollars holding said spot? doesn't seem right to me. The buyer really isn't taking any risk, correct? what stops them from changing their mind if they cant flip the machine? or am I missing something here? do the distro's require full payment to honor said "spots" for le's?

am I making any sense here? LOL, I know its early.

p.s. I am a premium buyer, don't own any stern LE's... so I do not have a dog in this fight. so I am not upset about not getting an LE.

I just love the exaggerations on Pinside. Who paid $2500 more for an LE over prem? 1 person? MSRP was $1200 more for an LE and very few paid MSRP.

I only buy LEs - because I enjoy the fun mods that are factory installed. I appreciate the beauty of the games as much as playing them - so custom armor, mirrored backglasses, etc is appealing to me. Having said that, I've never sold an LE so I don't really care what the secondary market is on them (although space is an issue, so it might happen someday).

For the record - I've never bought an extra as an investment - too much hassle/risk.

And this is truth - I paid $1000 over the premium price.

Nah, it's ok if someone wants the LE for the right reasons, especially if they offer extras like ST LE. But even with GB, some might like the green stuff a lot, so why not buy the LE?

What I really don't get is the fake "limitation", the ridiculous plaques and the PFs messed up by the manager of a mid size company scribbling on it. I'm a big fan of REALLY limited stuff (be it because the company building it is out of business or because the product never made it to production). But just making less of a modern consumer product, calling this "limited" and thinking that value is created by that is a bad joke.

Im selling my Pro to buy a Premium as soon as my distributor has them in stock. 2 months of Pro gameplay then $2k extra for upgrade seems like im a sucker or am i...

What is the difference between this and the guys who buy off CL or Pinsiders who buy off each other and then post on here with a 800-1200 plus markup? Then have their buddy's chime in with the Great price, good luck with the sale, wish I was closer... I know of several who do that on this site all the time.

What I do not get about all this talk about Premium LE is this: People just do not get the fact that the LE is not much more worth than a Premium if you just look at the game.

The extra worth lies in the fact that it is LIMITED. Everything in this world that is hard to come by is more expensive than something that is readily available, be it cars, metals, medicine etcetera. That is provided the thing in question is in demand.

Also fact is that many LE's are just more beautiful. Look at ST LE or the premium. The extra's that are on there are just great. The same with MET. That mirrored backglass is just much better. I had them here standing next to eachother but liked the LE much more. Same game, I know, but they are not always turned on. I can enjoy them also when they are off, just like a nice painting.

To the OP: who cares if people buy an extra LE (or 5) to try and flip?

Stop worrying about the little stuff.

Fire?

Few Good?

Help me out here.

I don't understand why people feel the need to make the next level up feel like they spent too much money. It's their money. Why do you care? Is it your duty to save people from themselves?

If you bought a pro, good for you. No need to say you can't understand why someone would buy a prem.
If you bought a prem, good for you. No need to say you can't understand why someone would buy an LE.

This was my first LE and I didn't buy into it for speculation or thoughts of making money. I wanted to be the first owner, really love the color, love the artwork and the game play looks like its going to be good. I'm actually more worried about losing money on the game than making any. I'm not real happy the speculators helped to push the market up, but loved the others items so much I chose to buy into it still. I don't expect to make money on the hobby, I'm just worried I will lose a bunch when it comes time to sell this one. I didn't pay MSRP, but I didn't get the normal discount.

I second that!
As for flipping LE machines, I could care less, can't afford one anyway! So I will stick to buying used premiums! Which the woman says I am at my limit now!

6100 for prem

I know people that have paid 8500 for LE from distributor

just a rounding error, not exxagerations really

That's a load of crap. Maybe a few people that buy tons of games might be getting a premium for $6100 but there cannot be many if any at all. $6700+ is the new premium price from just about every distributor out there.

I call BS on anyone getting a GB Premium for 6100. Maybe 6500, I was quoted more.

If you know someone who got a premium for $6100 good for them, but the reality is that premiums havnt been $6100 for a long while.

whether he did or he didn't he's a dope for posting it...

I have a pro, so no ideas on what the premiums are in reality. 6100 is what I was told from a friend that paid for his premium. He did order before the game was official so maybe that was pre bump?

I figured that was the standard price on Sterns

4500 pro (now 5k with the new pricing model?)
6100prem
8100Le (or in the case of the GB hype 8500 like some supposedly paid once distributors pushed up prices)

Sucker? I only bought one, but I could care less what it is worth 1 year from now. I just paid $8k for a STLE that the original owner paid $8k for 2 years ago. My LOTR is worth more than I paid and so is my other machines. If someone can get $10k for GBLE - good for them. Mine is not for sale at $10k. It will be the brightest and best looking machine in my gameroom.

If you sweat losing a couple of grand on a machine it is probably best to buy a virtual pinball with 20 games in it. The most you can lose is $100 per game at that point.

Ghostbusters sucks ass!

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You are right - 6100 is lower than dealer cost.

Not me I'm not even sure I'll buy GB. IMHO the only pin worth those kind of numbers $8,500+ is Woz.

An LE can be a really good deal on the used/HUO market. I was planning to buy a GOT Premium and add the Stark rails to it. But then I found an HUO LE for just a few hundred more. As much as I like the Premium art, the LE art was worth the extra cash to me (plus, the LE was available NOW and convenient to pick up).

But yeah, there's no way I'd buy an LE straight up NIB. Unless it's a dream theme for me.

to me that makes sense.

Buy the LE on the secondary for a discount. The majority will drop dramatically. Some will go up.

IF it really is your dream theme then I can see shelling out for the LE. For example a Good friend really loves GB and has 2 young boys. He got in early on GBLE because he will never sell it and it is his first NIB experience. That makes sense, but he is buying with emotion and not with logic. Splurging on emotion is all good.

If you buy a brand new game you don't plan to play, you're gambling that the price will go up. If you don't buy a brand new game now but you know you "have to have it" some day, you're gambling that the price will go down. Historically, the "price will go down" folks come out ahead, and they get to enjoy a game with finished code and all the issues sorted out (or at least well-understood).

But someone has to buy NIB LEs, so I'm glad that not everyone thinks like I do.