Sounds great GL, can't see it working out, shit happens

I think it would be a good idea to give one OP OTB if sale were to occur. So you could pay the other half and one person is the owner and the other has no more interest.

I also think 1 week is maybe only good in the beggining. Seems a month or two would be much better IMO.

Train wreck scenario is both OP's love the game and think it is a keeper and do not want to share.

That said let me know when it is your month

I like the idea . seems like a risky proposition though

It sounds fun and it is creative. Machines in motion (moving) are more likely to suffer damage, but two 50% owners should be able to cooperate enough to carefully complete the move. I don't know about the "visitation" rights - are you going to share keys? Seems smart to limit to timeframes to guard against the 4 AM drunken arrival...

Even if you just put together a list of bullet points, put the agreement in writing.

-Rob
-visit http://www.kahr.us to to get my daughterboard that helps fix WPC pinball resets

If you're within driving distance, why not just go over there and play? I can't fathom moving a pinball that often.

Yes, too much effort, and possible damage risk to the machine.

I'd buy my own machine, then trade it/sell it when done to my friend, 1 time.

"Train wreck scenario is both OP's love the game and think it is a keeper and do not want to share."
Actually, the train wreck is when one loves it and one hates it. One wants to sell it to get something else, the other doesn't. What happens then? How do you agree to sell? Read any of the 'what is my pin worth' threads and you see huge divergence of opinion. The one who loves it reluctantly agrees to sell, but how do you agree on the price? The one that loves it, doesn't have the $ and/or doesn't want to purchase the other half. The one that hates it needs the $. Anytime significant $ is involved, it is a recipe for disaster. And, obviously, this is significant or you would each buy your own.

It's not a bad idea at all...we've talked about it locally. Right now I'm finishing my basement and don't have anything set up at home. So it really doesn't make sense to pay half on something I won't be able to have at my house for about a year.

There's a pretty big upside if you find a few people you can trust and get along well. I think problem would be when it is time to move on from the game. Say one guy really likes it...the other want to move it for the next title. Obviously each owner would have the option to buy it outright when it's ready for sale. I could see the possibility of there being some tension though.

Right now neither of us have a space or money issue..so we just buy what we want...but I'm sure that day is coming

When aspects become limiting, if you can trust someone this much, it's a good idea to try.

Split the rent on a cheap small one room apartment and put the game/future games there that way there is no arguing or moving the game if anything it would be a vacationland of sorts. Just think big tvs neon lights pinball and arcade games beer taps with a bar etc an out of the house man cave/ private clubhouse heck at that rate have a few more friends pitch in and get more pins damn now I want to do that but if I told my girlfriend I was working late that often she would think somthing else was going on lol

What is the agreement for repairs/damage?

Been over this with a good friend who lives nearby. We haven't gone through with it but were leaning close at one point. We were thinking about swapping every month or two though. Moving pins is not an easy task, especially when stairs are involved. I think at best, it would take us a couple hours.
At any rate, we were thinking along the lines of 50/50 split. Pre-determined how low you would each take the pin (1-2 months at each house), then continue until one person got tired and wanted to sell 50% to the other, OR sell to someone else and split the loss. If one of you wanted to buy out the other one, you'd pay the full 50% as the pin really hasn't depreciated from a couple months of play. -of course, all has to be pre-determined.

I think a better concept is each buying a newer machine, and then swapping them after a few months. It gives you the same ability to play more new releases (albeit at a higher price), but it's simpler as the single owner determines when to sell the pin.

I could envision a few people entering into a co-op agreement where they each buy a new pin and share 3-4 of them. It certainly wouldn't be ideal, but out of 5 good pinball friends that I have, 4 of us own ACDC and 4 own Metallica. If there were more AAA new releases to chose from, I'd probably be all over this.

My back hurts.

I wish you luck and hope it works out.

I'd never do that.

I'd rather try to trade with a trustworthy person for a certain amount of time.

When one loves the game you just bought and the other really does not dig it, then what? How do you move on from the game in the future. The one who loves the game buys the other out at half the cost minus the out of box depreciation hit.

Temp trading is the way to go. Play chess when you purchase a game. That means if you like a game, don' buy it if all your local collector friends have it. Buy your number #2 pin your friends do not have and trade with your buddies for the game you like for a month or 2.

Temp trade options are the way to go.

I hope you have good luck if/when you do it. I honestly think it would be easier to have everyone buy a machine do a trade as some of the others have said, but completely realize that is limiting with the newer more expensive games. It makes more sense on a $2K range machine than a NIB something.

Personally there's nobody even around us that does pinball except my parents, and it's too much of a pain to load/drive/move the pins for us to ever swap even 30 minutes away. However, I do highly recommend the "parents pay for everything and put it at our house" plan. My mom has her 3 in her bedroom and when she'd want a new machine and not have room, the old one would come to my house, which worked out great for me. I didn't have to pay for them, she just 'stores' them here and occasionally comes to play. There's 3 at her house, 8 at my house, and I've only paid for 3 of them.

That is a lot of moving of the pins, which can lead to a disaster.
I do believe Robin does this with his brother but all the pins are at the same location.

If you are ok with some minor cab damage during moves, this is actually a pretty good plan. I've done temporary trades before and they've worked out great. The only frustrating thing is ONE of the guys clearly takes the glass off and runs up the GC score on every game he borrows from me.

If you have a buddy that you can work this with, its fine. But I do agree, after a couple of moves you are going to be done. But that's perfect, then you throw it on CL and take a couple hundy loss..

-Wes

This. I went in with a few friends on some property a bunch of years ago and now am ready to let it go. Have been having problems with selling it now because the others don't want to let go of it, but won't buy my portion even at a big discount. This situation is a disaster waiting to happen. I will never ever own anything with someone other than my wife again. Its just not worth the potential nightmare that can occur.

i went havsies on my first three machines and i rarely see them , other than fixing them . if anything i would love to be bought out of them . im the only one that does anything to them , the other half plays only, no repair work , no cleaning , ect. hes also not happy when they dont work .

If outside financial problems pop up what is the plan? What happens when your friends kid spills a diet coke on the play field?

Do yourself a favor and watch the Simpsons episode about the comic book.

It's a horrible idea and a recipe for a ruined friendship.

I think the situation could work if both parties have very easy going personalities and are long time friends. If anything sours the situation I think damage will be game changer. Especially with new games that have no damage to start. If anything breaks or gets scratched when you're not there, it could put a strain on the situation. Do you pay for half the repair? Does the person who was responsible for it pay for it? What happens if your buddy's basement floods. or there is a fire, and the whole game is destroyed?

My recommendation is to make sure you're both aware that anything could happen and if it does you have already decided how to handle it.

threemenandacomicbook1[1].png
“Can you let me have it for forty dollars?”
“Forty bucks? You made me get off my stool for that?”

Episode also reminds me of some of the lowballers on craigslist.

This certainly can be a very good idea. It also has the ability to go pretty wrong. It's been said several times above, it depends on the people involved. Beyond the "worst case" scenarios, it may come down to the little things, that could cause some tension. (edit- I see that chubtoad13 mentioned this)

-A part gets broken (of course it'll happen at one person's house). Do both pay, or just the person playing the game at the time? It will happen, as we are talking about pinball here
-Do both have the capability of troubleshooting switch/lighting/mechanical issues?
-A scuff on the cabinet is discovered a few hours after it has been moved. Did it occur during the move, or at the other person's house?
-Are both parties going to be equally diligent with the cleaning, replacing balls, etc?
-One person triples the play time on the game over the other person, does that person take triple the loss when it comes time to sell?
-When selling, there will be one person who is willing to take more of a loss (and happy with the quicker sale) than the other (who is willing to be more patient).
-One person sees some wear and tear as acceptable, the other wants it repaired

Sometimes people get really irritated about money, even the small cost of replacing balls and such. Money, no matter how small the amount, can make people very touchy if they feel they should not be responsible. And it is completely legitimate, if they are not responsible. Nobody likes to pay for things they shouldn't have to. And make no mistake about it, everyone interested in going halfsies, is a cost-conscious person.

Good luck with it, I hope it works out for all involved. Partnerships in business always seem like great idea, but only in the formative stages. Later on, not so much.

Like I said above though, this could be a really good idea, for both parties. It may not sound "trusting" to do this, but it might be worth considering writing it out, and signing an agreement before hand on how you might handle the costs/time of maintenance/damage/repair/selling price. It might just help things from going sour, over little things, that hadn't been explicitly agreed upon. It's be a good idea to talk these things through, and form an agreement on these things as much as you can, before any type of tension has a chance to arise.

Moving machines around so.much will sour your taste on pinball soon. I don't see this working out unless it's like 3 months between moves.

Worst part about this hobby is moving these damn behemoths! All that exercise is bad for my fat! (really my back)

It seems you have injected risk where there does not need to be.
If funds are limited, NIB may not be the best option. I don't know, to each their own, but finances can tear trustworthy friends apart. I tend to keep the two separate. If I don't have the funds to own a machine on my own, or afford a place big enough, then I really don't want to real other folks in.

And just to reiterate the first point, it seems that you are taking the worst part about this hobby, (moving the machines) and making it a regular occurrence. It's a PITA and the more they are moved, the more chance for damage (especially on a NIB game)

Did I mention moving these games sucks?

Anyway, best of luck since it sounds like you've already done it and I will hope for the best. Please prove us all wrong.

I just think most people here have seen the pages turn on their own and their friends lives. Life happens. Women become wives and game rooms become nurseries. Priorities will change for some more than others. Our lives all tell a different story and turn the chapters a different pace. Its hard to keep everything as tightly aligned as it sounds like you will need to with your friends, but again. Good luck!

PDX....all the best on whatever route you take. If there is one pinsider I would consider doing this with, it would be you.

See you in a little over 4 weeks.....dude

I have a couple of friends that this would be no problem with. Especially if you had more than one in a rotation. Good luck but I think you'll be fine

The idea is a good one... At this point as most games devalue after NIB, it's good to split the depreciation Trust is paramount.

Pinball armor is nice, will definitely reduce risk of damage during transport.

I've done it and it works out great. Doing this frees up space and costs less to get a game. It also alows to to rotate it in and out so that whenever you get it back it is fresh again.

Yes, this. I've used LOTR and IM as bait to get Tron and Avatar into my home for a few months. I hope to do a LOTR/ST trade soon. Temp trades are great, as long as everything is spelled out in advance:

* How many months?
* Who fixes the game if it breaks?
* Plan for games that can't be fixed (e.g. end trade immediately)
* Where will the game go?
* What happens in the event of a total loss (e.g. house fire)?
* Who is responsible for damage during delivery and pickup?

I've considered writing up a "Temp Trade Contract" to use, so that there are no gray areas. This is especially important when trading with friends you want to keep.

OMG, I am Homer and my son is Bart.

I've traded games with my brother for an extended period of time (about 10 months?). That worked out fine. I think it would be harder to buy a machine together, though. Maybe consider each getting a new title and swapping back and forth? That way there's clear ownership for each machine?

I got a few games this way. We ended up going 3 ways on 6 games and in the end just split them up between us to get out of it. It wasn't really a bad experience though.

I currently have melody junkyard and swords of fury at my brother and his friends house, my brother has at least 5 games out at various people's houses. Anyone worried about loaning out games for extended periods to friends, must have some crappy friends.

I've also split games with my brother on 2 occasions. We sold em and split. Even though he's family, I'd probably do the same with most of my friends and half the people in my league.

I tried something like this.

I wanted to Do something like where I put $1000 Down and get it for the first year, and the Other guy can just have it after that.

It never really worked out. People just wanted free shit. That was back during the "StrikerArcade" days. I think he found Jesus or something.

If it wasn't such a pain in the ass getting pins in and out of my basement, I'd consider doing something like this.