Yeah, 80 years from now on Antique Roadshow 2100:

Host: You can see that at some point, this pin was sanded down and a decal was applied.
Owner: Yes, I noticed that.
Host: Do you have any idea of it's value?
Owner: Well, one guy told me he'd buy it for 10,000 Yuan, but then I saw on the Fibernet maybe 15,000 Yuan.....
Host: Well, you will be glad you did not take his offer, because even with it's condition issues, this pin is worth 25,000 Yuan !!!!!
Owner: Really?????? Oh, I wish my granddad was still alive to hear that !!!!!!!
Host: Had the cabinet had it's original finish, at auction, one could expect 900,000,000,000 Yuan.....

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I think it goes both ways. It's worth whatever a buyer will pay for it. It's true that a clear coated playfield doesn't feel like an original game. I wish repro pf's were made with a thin layer of varnish (or whatever was used) like the originals.

You can use Rottenstone to knock the finish back to the semi-gloss that the original had.

Takes about 15 minutes.

Lol! I read somewhere how some parents were starting to hire Chinese language tutors for their children after school.

What machines that are labeled as "all original" don't have some counterfeit parts in them? I mean all original would be all NOS parts including mechs, electronic parts with correct manufacturer and date code, even lamp sockets, rubber and balls. If I went to all the trouble to keep my games all original, I'd probably never want to turn them on, much less play them.

I still have genuine Williams flipper rebuild kits for my serious collector clients, but they sure are not $25 a kit....lol

But right now in the hobby, many **restorations** might be better termed re-manufactured.

New cab, playfield, backglass, boards.....90% fake.

Which is fine with me. I want my games to be played, which would not be the case if I did concours restorations.

I don't want any games to be played, ever.

LOL

Don't think I saw it anywhere in this thread, but who owns this beauty anyways??