(Topic ID: 126124)

Help me get into pinball ownership

By kingpotato

8 years ago


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  • 32 posts
  • 27 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 8 years ago by chuckwurt
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    #1 8 years ago

    Hello all.

    I am a long time fan of pinball machines and am finally going to soon have a little extra spending money. I was wondering what you could tell me about getting into pinball ownership.

    I have no repairing experience but understand maintenance is a factor.

    Should I look for a new machine? Buy a restored one? Repair one myself?

    Any advice for what to look for? How much I should spend and are there any other concerns that aren't obvious to a first time owner?

    Thanks for your help

    #2 8 years ago

    Get out there and play some games
    Find out what type of pinball machine appeals to you

    Old game, new game, they all need maintenance

    You need to be willing to take the glass of and know how your game works

    #3 8 years ago
    Quoted from PopBumperPete:

    Get out there and play some games
    Find out what type of pinball machine appeals to you

    Completely agree with this. Just because a machine is popular, does not mean it will click with you.

    #4 8 years ago

    I started by finding a cheap non-working machine and brought it back to life.

    You're going to have to deal with repairs withe any machine.

    Games from the late 70s and early 80s have plenty of parts available, and they are simple enough to learn the basics on. Once you're familiar with the fundamentals of how a pin works, it's easier to work your way up to newer and more complicated pins.

    #5 8 years ago

    Where are you located?

    #6 8 years ago

    Don't do it

    #7 8 years ago

    Budget largely dictates what you options are. Getting a brand new machine or a popular title in great shape costs the most. Project pins or less desirable pins much less. Then you have the different eras from the old em's, to the early solid states, dmd's, and modern Sterns. Maintenance is a part of pinball so best not jump into the deep end on your first pin. Find out what pins you like that are in your budget and then find one that is in good working order. All pins have built in diagnostics that can tell you if something a switch is out or something is not working. Play a few games and if everything seems in order and the machine looks like it has been maintained then you should be fine.

    #8 8 years ago

    Yes tell us what kinda $$$ you have to play with. If you got the cash buy a new game. If you are cash strapped might be best to start with a System 11 game from $800-1500 and learn how to fix things as they break.

    #9 8 years ago

    Here's my story as quickly as I can tell it.

    Used to find a place to play every year. Finally found a local group, and went to a gathering that one of the members was awesome enough to open his collection up for the night. Decided that I HAD to have a machine. Cleaned out the spare room. Asked locally who had what for sale in the $500 range. Purchased a Laser War in good working order, with some minor problems. And have spent the past year learning everything about pinball maintenance that I could from the machine. Fixing switches, replacing entire pop bumpers, rebuilding flippers, and cleaning everything that I can.

    It's been a great hobby. Not just playing it, but working on it as well. And my local pinball group and the guys here on Pinside have been a great help! Wouldn't have been able to figure out some stuff without them.

    Find a cheap machine that's in working order, and learn from it by making it better. Unless you really want a challenge, then get a non-working one.

    #10 8 years ago

    Location.. ?? A lot of pinsiders are great hosts... Let us know and come by and play some. NT.

    #11 8 years ago

    To find out if I liked the hobby I bought an inexpensive LW3 that needed work. It was a good starter machine that I could learn maintenance on. Worst case senario was that I would sell it in 6 months at a loss. Now, 6 months later I have 3 pins.

    #12 8 years ago

    Buy a game advertised at least as "working". You will absolutely find enough things to work on if you just fix issues as you find them, or even just start doing basic maintenance/improvements like rebuilding flippers, pop bumpers, fixing burnt connectors, and cleaning it up. I've bought a dozen games that were advertised as working, and every one has had at least minor issues that I needed to address. That's just part of the hobby. I thought I wanted machines to play, but I spend more time working on games than playing them now which I enjoy just as much. I started without much experience. The amount of information on forums, repair websites, books, videos, usenet is insane. Really not hard to get the basics down.

    Buy two games so you have one to play while you tear the other apart $1500-2000 is the price range where you can get a really excellent bang-for-buck. System 11 games, early solid state Bally games, some of the top budget DMDs like Demo Man and The Getaway. There are plenty of good games under $1500 if you're into simpler games too.

    #13 8 years ago
    Quoted from NicToria:

    Location.. ?? A lot of pinsiders are great hosts... Let us know and come by and play some. NT.

    Yup. You're welcome to come to my place if you're in the area. A lot of other Pinsiders would say the same. I wish I had known this when I started out. It's easy to waste money when you don't know what you're doing.

    #14 8 years ago

    First I would add your location to pinside. It would help fellow pinsiders help you find a machine near you. Second: theme, theme, theme. Theme is key for your first pin, especially if you want to keep it for some time. I've kept a south park, which most consider a turd, because i really enjoy the theme and i've learned to enjoy the game. Third: get a working game. Like others have said, its good to start with a working game but be ready to learn. Use pinside, this fourm has helped me fix my pins countless times. Finally, get out there play some pins and that will help you decide.

    Good luck!

    #15 8 years ago
    Quoted from fisherdaman:

    First I would add your location to pinside. It would help fellow pinsiders help you find a machine near you. Second: theme, theme, theme. Theme is key for your first pin, especially if you want to keep it for some time. I've kept a South Park, which most consider a turd, because i really enjoy the theme and i've learned to enjoy the game. Third: get a working game. Like others have said, its good to start with a working game but be ready to learn. Use pinside, this fourm has helped me fix my pins countless times. Finally, get out there play some pins and that will help you decide.
    Good luck!

    Argh, T2 was my first game which I bought for theme and it's the exact opposite of a game I like. I wish I had learned what types of games I like before diving in. I wouldn't have even considered something like WCS94 or Jungle Lord for my first game, but wish I had.

    #16 8 years ago

    My primary advice is to get in touch with a local 'pinhead'. Many of the guys on here will be happy to help I'm sure.

    The last thing you want is a sour experience, and there are a number of things that can do this, ranging from a bad purchase to wrong expectations.

    It will be tremendously helpful to even just have a phone conversation with another pinhead. But if you can visit someone with a collection you will A) be able to get a feel for the kinds of games you like, and B) get a tour of the inner-workings and what is involved with maintaining/restoring a machine.

    They'll also be invaluable in helping you buy your first game and ensuring you don't get a lemon. Buying a lemon is the quickest way out of a new hobby IMO.

    Good luck!

    #17 8 years ago

    Location?

    #18 8 years ago

    Give us some details on your price range, location, what kind of pins you like, and we will help you out!

    It's an awesome hobby with a great community, and Pinside is definitely the right place to start.

    If you have a mobile device like an iPad, try out The Pinball Arcade -- they have recreations of about 60 machines, including most of the popular ones, available and you can get a decent general feel for whether or not you'll like a game. Of course, nothing beats going out there and playing one in real life.

    Anyway, welcome aboard! Good luck!

    #19 8 years ago

    I recently bought my first pin. I looked for a game that I had played that I knew I liked. I over paid ( and knew it going in) because I wanted something that was 100% functioning. I've fixed a couple minor things myself ( which felt great), but I know I have the 90 day warranty that I can fall back on if I need it.

    Really it's taught me to be self reliant, and has been an amazing experience. Good news is you have found this site, which can be incredibly helpful and welcoming ( will be donating shortly, as soon as I can figure out how).

    Pinball can really be an addiction however. Already looking for my second one, with planning for my third. With that said, it has been incredibly rewarding thus far. This is both from a playing perspective and a repair perspective (even though I'm still struggling to figure a few things out).

    Unless you live in BFE, and even you'd be surprised, you'll find the most welcoming and open group of people around you to help you along your way. All in all this has been a fantastic endeavor, and I hope you find the same.

    As others have suggested, I would recommend playing before you buy. There inebitAbly will be leagues around you, laundry mats, etc. that will have pins that will pull you in. Whether those are 70's, 80's, 90's or if it's NIB. Find something that you think will interest you and make the jump, you won't regret it. If that pin isn't your end all be all, sell/trade it and move on...there's always another pin around the corner.

    #20 8 years ago

    I live in Phoenix AZ and would like to spend around $1000 to get started.

    I tend to gravitate to the older machines that didn't have elaborate video displays on the headboard. One I really liked from a few years back was Striker Xtreme. I am also a big X-Men fan and liked that machine.

    (Please excuse my ignorance with naming conventions in my descriptions)

    #21 8 years ago

    If you have about 1000$ to spend your best bet would be a working system 11. May have to kick in a little more but games like Pinbot, High Speed, F-14 Tomcat... May have to put in a little over $1000 for a nice working one though.

    Buy something that works but maybe needs cleaning and adjusting. I had zero pinball repair experience when I started but I had a willingness to learn and I learned as stuff came up.

    #22 8 years ago

    meet local collectors first.
    they will be the best to help you.

    #23 8 years ago

    *I* prefer to buy a new or substantially new game. My PotC is 8+ years old but I bought it new, and so far my issues with it amount to a few burned out bulbs and rubber needed replacement.

    I'm not adept at fixing games, I feel as if by fixing a pin I'm almost as likely to break it worse.

    I'd pay more for a new or nearly new pin, rather than getting a 10-20 year old pin that may heve issues.

    My 2c

    #24 8 years ago
    Quoted from rai:

    *I* prefer to buy a new or substantially new game. My PotC is 8+ years old but I bought it new, and so far my issues with it amount to a few burned out bulbs and rubber needed replacement.
    I'm not adept at fixing games, I feel as if by fixing a pin I'm almost as likely to break it worse.
    I'd pay more for a new or nearly new pin, rather than getting a 10-20 year old pin that may heve issues.
    My 2c

    Agreed. But if you have a budget of $1k you wont be looking at new in box pins.

    #25 8 years ago

    you should drive all they way to ohio and over pay for my games

    But seriously like practicalsteve said it will have to be an older SS game but those to me are great to learn simple repairs and maintenance

    #26 8 years ago

    Get an early SS game for sure. Buy one for 700-800 and use the rest for any replacement parts you may need in the near future. Welcome, enjoy!!

    #27 8 years ago

    I think giving advice to purchase early ss it kind of bad. IMO
    I think he said no repair experience which could end up costing hundreds if he goes down and starts buying replacement boards. Flipper reuilds alone are 50-70 not counting coil. And a 30plus year old game is just that. Old and you have expect it to fail.
    He claims he likes older and then mentions dmd and x men. Which is it. Big price difference.
    I would agree hook up with a local pinsider. I am sure they could help get you started.
    Be willing and wanting to learn and repair as pins are high maintenance. It is a physical game not a video game. If you just want to play and have a little more realistic feel get a new video pin. The guys building and selling them seem to be doing better all the time.
    It is definately not the same but it is an option.
    Wishing you fun no matter what road you go down.
    Get flipping!

    #28 8 years ago

    I found out the hard way you need to be willing to learn a lot to be a pinball owner...............Joey

    #29 8 years ago
    Quoted from kingpotato:

    I live in Phoenix AZ and would like to spend around $1000 to get started.
    I tend to gravitate to the older machines that didn't have elaborate video displays on the headboard. One I really liked from a few years back was Striker Xtreme. I am also a big X-Men fan and liked that machine.
    (Please excuse my ignorance with naming conventions in my descriptions)

    You should be able to get a Striker X-Treme for $1000 or so. It's an early Stern game that most collectors don't want. X-Men's gonna be around 4k or more

    #30 8 years ago
    Quoted from kingpotato:

    I live in Phoenix AZ and would like to spend around $1000 to get started.
    I tend to gravitate to the older machines that didn't have elaborate video displays on the headboard. One I really liked from a few years back was Striker Xtreme. I am also a big X-Men fan and liked that machine.
    (Please excuse my ignorance with naming conventions in my descriptions)

    I'm coming out to Phoenix at the end of the month and I know of a Stiker Xtreme for sale. It's been routed for awhile so it will probably need a good cleaning, flipper rebuilds, and maybe some switches replaced. Send me a PM if you're interested.

    #31 8 years ago
    Quoted from CNKay:

    I think giving advice to purchase early ss it kind of bad. IMO
    I think he said no repair experience which could end up costing hundreds if he goes down and starts buying replacement boards. Flipper reuilds alone are 50-70 not counting coil. And a 30plus year old game is just that. Old and you have expect it to fail.
    He claims he likes older and then mentions dmd and x men. Which is it. Big price difference

    You can like both older games and newer DMDs.

    If you buy from marco or someplace, yeah, then the flipper rebuild kits will be expensive. PBResource has the for around $35. A coil can be $7 to $10. You should pretty much expect to rebuild the flippers on any game--older or newer.

    Boards can be a little expensive for older pins, but wpc era boards are easily triple the price.

    Yes, repairing pins will cost some money, no matter what pin you buy. Older pins are simply easier to find, simpler machines, easier to repair, and have plenty of new and used parts available. The last thing I would have wanted in my first project pin was to find out there was a critical part that was unobtainable, which is common on newer pins that had a much smaller number of them manufactured.

    #32 8 years ago
    Quoted from ForceFlow:

    You can like both older games and newer DMDs.
    If you buy from marco or someplace, yeah, then the flipper rebuild kits will be expensive. PBResource has the for around $35. A coil can be $7 to $10. You should pretty much expect to rebuild the flippers on any game--older or newer.
    Boards can be a little expensive for older pins, but wpc era boards are easily triple the price.
    Yes, repairing pins will cost some money, no matter what pin you buy. Older pins are simply easier to find, simpler machines, easier to repair, and have plenty of new and used parts available. The last thing I would have wanted in my first project pin was to find out there was a critical part that was unobtainable, which is common on newer pins that had a much smaller number of them manufactured.

    I agree with this 100%. If you want to own a pin and don't want work on it at all, then don't get any. You will be paying way more than 1,000 bucks to get one and keep it working nicely. But, if you are okay with paying someone else to do everything, that is definitely an option too. Especially if it's going to be the OP's only pin. But we all know that it is very difficult to just have only one. Haha

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