The problem with Spirit is finding it. Almost all were exported to Europe. I have a friend that found his over there and had it shipped back to the US. He will never sell it. That's part of the problem as well, those here in the US the owners won't give them up. I would say the price is stable, being as there aren't many around. Most pinheads haven't ever played it, therefore it doesn't get hyped up like other titles. Which is fine by me. If you really want one, I would say you have to find one in Europe and ship it over. I want one myself, but haven't been actively seeking it. Good Luck.

cant say much about the spirit machine, but right now it seems the sky rocketing prices all seem to be late period dmds. Alpha numerics have stayed stable other than a few like Funhouse and Whirlwind.

I've had my Spirit for years and it's not going anywhere either. It'll be at PAGG to play if you happen to go there. Yep, most of the Spirit games are indeed in Europe, JRK in France used to help get then back here but the hastle of shipping has risen too much for him to deal with it.

Is that BH a game you owned? Below is a pic of my game. It's been converted to 7 digit and has other mods. If you look closely at the spinning disc, you'll see Cliffy there.

Good afternoon. I just joined pinside yesterday. I haven't played pinball since the 80s, but have recently gotten interested in it again and would like to build a small collection. Thankfully, almost all of the favorites from my childhood appear to be available on the market and reasonably priced (Black Hole, Black Knight, Haunted House, Gorgar, Sorcerer, Space Invaders, Fathom). I will just watch the market and find local deals as they arise over the next few years.
However, it looks like Spirit, which I only played a few times but have vivid memories of, will be much harder to find.
For those of you that have been collecting for a long time and know the price trends, is the price on this one stable, or continually rising? I am reading posts about the skyrocketing prices of AFM and MM and getting nervous. It is already priced beyond what I can really afford (from what I've read it looks like I'll have to pay around $4000-6000 for it, assuming I can find one). If the price is somewhat stable, I'll just pick up the other ones on my list as they become available and hope that I find a Spirit a few years down the road. However, if Spirit has been continually climbing in price over time (beyond the pace of inflation of other games), I'll probably have a more targeted approach, start a Spirit fund, and try to hunt that one down first before getting the others. If my memories of playing that one weren't so totally awesome, I'd just take it off the list, but I think this is a must-have game for me if I'm going to start a game room.
Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

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I doubt you will find one under $6k.

Once I found mine it took 2 1/2 years to actually receive it. I talked with John Trudeau and he said very few stayed in the states, most were exported so the game is in short supply and demand is high. Once people get one it's hard to get it out of a collectors hands. Mine is not leaving

I bet you sell it within a year

BH remains a favorite of mine.

The last time we shipped games from France it was around $1000 to the SFBA (a little cheaper break if you ship two games). This was several years ago, not sure what it would cost now. Still, the price might be cheaper to get one there and ship it here (it helps to have someone in Europe dig one up for you first). Good luck with your search, I have a list of people looking for one in case another gravitates my way.

At the PAGG show several years ago, I got 4 Spirits together, there are 7 Spirits in the SFBA now. I'm hoping to get them together (maybe next year) for a reunion.

Pin37, I'm in the same boat as you...

I've been looking for one for a few years now. I actually played one in the late '80s, it was one
I wanted to own because of nostalgia for me. Unfortunately I waited wayyyyyyy to long to achieve
this!

I did find a fella out in the west whom has one for sale. But, to me, it comes down to is Spirit a 5k pin? It's a tough call and believe me - I LOVE Spirit!

I was talkin to 'Blownfuse' about importing one (might be my route). I was told Spirits are out there. But the problem is, now people are seeing them selling for 5-6k, it's going to be hard to find one under that price range!
I was hoping one day to stumble on a OP whom had one tucked in there warehouse collecting dust!

Welcome to the WTB: Spirit club!

Edit: There was one on Chicago's CL some years back that I *thought* was a hoax - it was not!

I sold one for $1800 three or 4 years ago.

Now you tell me!

My buddy just sold one for around $4500.

Looking forward to that, I had never even heard of this machine and would love to try it.

I played Spirit for the first time a few weeks ago
Interesting game, but it is a game that would fit in a larger collection, rather than in a room with only a couple of other games

Hi,
i sold my spirit 2 months ago, but even here in europe it`s a very hard to find game. the game is extremly good looking but i sold mine beacause of the lame gameplay..the playfield is way too crowded! BH is way better. i know several people owning a Spirit, dunno if they are willing to sell it...you should find a game in france..best place to find sys80 games!!

I've never played one, but Spirit looks like it has a lot to offer play wise. I have always loved the look of BH, but I'm the opposite, in that I find BH play to be blah and boring after a bit. I would probably own it just for the look of it, as it's just so stunning lit up.

I'm actually suprised, given you owned both, you sold Spirit.

It wasnt an easy decision. We moved to a new house and i had to say goodbye to some gamescause the space is rare AND i wanted to have some newer Stern games as well.. i got good money from Spirit (well..not that much you guys are willing to pay..i didn`t know, that this pin is soooo rare in the US..) and the beast is very heavy..like the most sys80 games..hello from my intervertebral discs
yeah - i like the gameplay of black hole more..fast and mean..Spirit was for the eyes, Black Hole is to play

Lack of space is the devil at work.

I had all 3 of the big Sys 80 machines together, B.H. , H.H., & Spirit. One had to go due to space. I really disliked the small "save" side flippers on this game. To me the best part was the aesthetics of the spinning backglass and the sound. I only had Spirit for a short time. Bought it, shopped it out, and played the heck out of it for a couple of months. I kept H.H. & B.H. That Spirit machine ended up on the East Coast and last I saw it ended up on E-bay for $7k in 2011. Yes, this was the famous Chicago C.L. Spirit, but how I ended up with it is a long story.

To all of those who believe I bought that thing for $500, you are wrong. I had to pay more due to the seller being deluged with e-mails from some familiar RGP names with selfish opinions and offers for the seller to not keep to his original price. I was lucky enough that he did choose me to be the one to come over and look at it even though I must have been about 5th one down from the original replies.

Here, I still have all the pictures of it in my basement:
https://picasaweb.google.com/110727098916438319276/20101115?authkey=Gv1sRgCJXs6pWIqN-zBw

agree! i had all big three games as well and kept Black Hole and Haunted House, just like you did. just like i wrote before..Spirit is a beauty but was no winner in my collection. i paid 1200 $ for mine..good price, perfect condition!
I´ll wait for the HH multiball modification

Jack, I can assure you I wasn't part of the lynch mob.. in fact, I thought it was a bogus ad!

I wish I knew it was real and you picked it up - I would have gave you a good offer!

I thought it was a bogus ad too! The guy didn't answer for 2 days. I figured it was a dead end. He e-mailed me and said that it was no longer for sale for the original price, and would I still be interested. I told him yes, but instead of discussing price, I asked him if I could come see it. He was only 30 minutes from me.

It was after I got there that he showed me the 60 plus e-mails he had, many multiple e-mails from single individuals. Some of the names were very recognizable, and were very ruthless in their content. I got to read some of these and my jaw dropped. One quote that sticks out "You're stupid if you don't sell it to me for more money!" The guy was genuinely confused as to what to do.

After looking into doing this years ago, I doubt that mod will come to pass for everyone to do. It would take too much playfield rewiring, adding of coils (main and lower ball gates) to slow down the log jam of extra balls and most won't do it.

Also, the game ROM rules would require more space than the ROM currently has to use an existing board, converting to an 80B type piggyback board board might be the way to go but I'm not sure that will get you enough space.

If that isn't enough, rewriting the rules on a expensive modified guinea pig game (that might have to be converted back if it can't work) will also take a lot of trial and error to get a bug free ROM. IMHO, whoever tries it might be the only person that does it. I know it won't be me even if I'd like to see it too.

I still have all 3 and HH is the game that isn't set up at the moment, it's too slow for me for the reason you mention (it should have been multiball).

@blownfuse: it will come - be patient sure, some parts must be added but there is already a genius @ work.

Am I in the minority saying that Spirit is the best of the three?

No, by far the best.

I lucked into finding my Spirit via Kijiji Saskatoon for a good price but it was missing the backglass. The seller had disengaged the spinning disc motor and butchered a Counterforce bg to open the display windows. I accepted that I would likely never find a backglass but I just wanted to play the game. It took two nail-biting months for the game to finally be delivered 3000 km to a local terminal.

But I did find a backglass ... 4000 km away in Seattle, Washington! It's practically perfect. I still re-thank the seller for answering my WTB every now and again.

I had a Black Hole briefly and did enjoy the gameplay. Tough game but not as varied in ball flow as Spirit, imho. I played a few games on HH but, again, not really impressed with the flow and as long as you can keep the ball up or down, you won't lose your ball. Great looking though.

I think Spirit is a great game for newbs and pros. Overall, it isn't a blistering fast game but an enjoyable experience nonetheless and there's a great variety of shots and neither multi-ball, extra ball or getting all the 'S-P-I-R-I-T' letters is that easy. The 4 lower slingshots can really speed things up at times. I add GLM starpost lights to mine for added flash when hit. The 2-ball lifting 'Stargate' ramp multiball is cool. There really isn't any wasted space on the playfield and another unique design from John Trudeau. Also, the sound is awesome. Too bad a bit of weird/spooky speech wasn't included.

I won't be selling mine any time soon. Great game.

Great looking game, love the backglass! I hope someone does have it in the kc area.

I've been in the hobby a couple of years and I don't know off the top of my head of anyone owning a Spirit around here. And I've never seen one for sale.

I'm in Shawnee, but as you can see from my collection I mainly have games from the late 80s on up. Drop me a PM if you'd ever want to play any of them.

i had 3 spirit's, gave one to a friend sold the second one and mine is in restoration now
awesome pinball machine , very hard to find these days even in France were the most machines did come

I had a practically HUO Spirit nearly 20 years ago. Loved it, but bills came along and I sold it. Immediately missed it and have searched for one ever since. Finally got one about two years ago and absolutely love it once more! Spirit is an extremely challenging game for novice and pro alike. The looks, sound and game play are all exceptional!
I have it between a Monster Bash, Addams Family, and a Scared Stiff, and I'm not sure which one I love the most.
But I probably of all of them wouldn't sell the Spirit because it is so hard to find at any price. I could make a few calls and get a MB or an AF or a SS, but I couldn't tell you where to buy a Spirit if my life depended on it. For now, I plan to keep it to the bitter end!