Hi all -

So I'm a few weeks away from finishing my basement, and I've always wanted a pinball machine. I used to watch my dad play when I was growing up, but was never really that interested. However the first time I played Revenge From Mars at a local bar, I fell in love. I still don't play much because there aren't many around, but whenever I see a machine I drop a few bucks in.

So now I'm thinking about buying one, but I have a few concerns. Reading this forum, I see people modding, fixing broken things, etc, but I have no experience in that. Is that going to be a problem? How hard is that stuff to do? I'm not very handy in general, but when it comes to technology I am. For example, I never buy pre-made computers, always build them from individual components, so that seems similar to some of the work I see on pins.

Second, the overall cost is very high and I'm worried I won't play it enough to justify the price. I know I'm in the wrong place to get advice on that one though.

So if I do decide to buy one, what would you recommend as my first machine? Should I go NiB? Or find a local HUO? Or something else? Should I get a new table or an older one?

I'd be interested in hearing suggestions for a first table. I really enjoyed the new ST, and my wife liked TWD. We haven't play GoT enough to know if we like it. I only played WOZ a couple of times but actually hated it which surprised me. Haven't tried too many others.

It's such a big purchase, and I don't want to screw it up.

If this isn't the right forum for this question, let me know - I lurk but there's so many different forums, I wasn't sure where to go.

Thanks everyone!

Hey, I've been there several times and that's where I've played most of the tables (that and the Minnesota State Fair). I just thought it was the bowling alley's tables. In fact, I've never seen anybody else by the tables when I've been there, although I did notice the posters for tournaments and such -- figured I'd get crushed if I tried that! LOL

EDIT: Huh, it looks like I did know about East Side Pinball, based on a post I made in this thread, but then promptly forgot about it. Weird... https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/east-side-pinball-saint-paul-minnesota/page/3 And OMG, according to the FB page, they have Revenge from Mars?! Do I dare try it again... Maybe the memory is better than the actual game... Or maybe after work tomorrow, I'll stop by..... Hmmm.

I've never heard of that but will check it out.

That's a very good question, and I don't know the answer... Probably one, but I've been lurking enough to know that many people have said that in the past and now they have 30.

Overall, I'm not concerned about the price (ie: I don't really have a budget as much as I just want to get the best machine that I'll enjoy for a long time), but obviously saving money is good too. Looks like I have some research to do....

Thanks for all the feedback everyone (and feel free to share more!). I especially like the comment that I can always sell it later and make much of the money back; that's actually a great point and makes me feel quite a bit better.

Yeah, it was me who didn't like WOZ.

I haven't had much time to dig into what pin I want to buy because finishing the basement theater is taking a bit longer than expected.... Down to just carpet, a counter for the bar, and a screen wall (with screen), so really almost done this time. Then I can switch to researching this potential hobby more. I'll definitely run down to East Side Pinball and see if I can meet up with Chris and Tony sometime (http://www.eastsidepinball.com/), maybe pick their brain. I know I've dumped a fair bit of money into their machines already.

Appreciate all of the continued responses! And congrats to NewMan911 on his first (and second) pin!

Hey everyone - wanted to give an update. I started this thread 5 months ago and although the home theater/basement took longer to finish than expected, that was completed about a month ago. When I had some friends over a couple of weeks ago, one of the first things they asked when walking in was, "What's going against that wall? It looks empty." Well, that's where the pinball/arcade/bubble hockey/etc are going to go is what I told them!

To that end, I purchased my first table last week and the winner is.... TERMINATOR 2! It fits the movie theme perfectly, I've played the table before and liked it, the price was reasonable, and most importantly, the person I bought it from has a good reputation here (a must, or I would've kept looking). Here's the listening: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/classifieds/archive/45776

I talked with Rob a bit on the phone last week before ordering, explained it was my first one and that I wanted something I could learn how to maintain and grow with. He said this was a great table for that, and I know it was recommended in this thread as well. He did warn me that I'll probably grow bored with it in 8-12 months, but that I could look to sell it and recoup most of my cost at that time. He's also going to do some clean up on it for me for a little extra cash so that I won't have as many initial problems. Hopefully will ship late this week so I'll have it sometime next week.

I've been reading random threads on Pinside ever since because I feel like I might be in over my head, but we'll see how it goes! I also contributed to the site since it's been so helpful for me.

Thanks for all of the words of wisdom! I'm sure I'll be back with tons of questions (in other threads) later.