I think 6-12 games is a really good number to be in. Enough to have lots of variety.

If you have games you are not playing sell them for something different. Just because they are in the top 10 on average does not mean they are in your top 10.

I hope to find this out someday! I do think keeping an open mind and being willing to rotate your pins in and out is important so the collection doesnt stagnate. I get that there are untouchable pins in one's collection, so I think 6-10 pin collection is perfect so that you can lock up a few and then rotate/trade/have empty slot for that awesome/cheap pin that pops up.

Unless you have lots of free time or a family who loves pinball, I can't figure out how to play more. Something always comes up and Pinball is not one of them. I end up playing only about twice a month. So yes, a smaller collection(5-10) works well for me! Also had 20+ at one time.

I only have room for 1 setup at once, with room for another folded to swap out...
Personally I think that 3 would be a perfect number, with diminishing returns after that.
Massive collections look better, but when I visit friends, we usually focus on only 2-3 titles in any 1 afternoon.
Still, a huge collection allows you to host large groups if that's what you're into.
I do feel that one benefit to having fewer pins is getting to know them better. A game like ACDC is deep enough that it's tough to truly appreciate it unless you spend a lot of time with it.

Great point! I own AC/DC and because of lack of play, I haven't gone too deep to fully appreciate the game.

imo, 4-6 is probably a good number... that allows a pretty good variety of machines to play...

of course that is all i have room for, and i would choose a bigger number if i had more room...

Thats just it, once you get more space you tend to fill it to the max or atleast I did.

John P. Dayhuff
Battle Creek, Mi.
269-979-3836

yup, and don't think i haven't spent many hours thinking about how to get "more space"...

10-12 is a good variety number. Plus it's a nice number to keep them properly maintained. But I do like being able to play a lot of diversity. Some days i'm in the mood for EM or Early SS, sometimes new sterns. Just depends. So more is better. Especially if you like to collect rare niche type games that are awesome and unique to have and play once in awhile, but not always great to play every day.

I'll help you out by starting the depletion of your collection. For starters I'll take you MET-LE. I'm here to help. I hope you're close

I've been thinking about this subject lately. My gameroom seems to be averaging around 15 games. I have a hard time giving up machines, especially the EMs that I like. Selling an EM only brings in $500-1000 which is not enough money to compensate for the loss. A Stern Premium or LE on the other hand is worth too much to have it sitting around when I can use that money for something else. What I am thinking is having two or three DMD positions that I rotate a little more frequently and try to move most of the new Sterns through here at one point or another.

So basically 10-13 keepers and 2-4 rotating spots. Best of both worlds as far as this poll is concerned.

There are two reasons to sell a pin: funds for the next pin, or space for the next pin. Only sell the EMs if you need space

This is the way I'm going from here on out buy nib if its a title that I like and move something out
Went through pretty much most of the b/w games time to move onto something new !!!

Q: Is Less Better?

A: No

I'm not a collector, I'm a player. If it doesn't get played, or I get tired of, it's gone! Samething goes for women!

yea, but how often does a woman not get played? Around here, it's more used than machines.

I have my 4 favorite machines (limited to 4 by space) but my perfect collection would be approximately 10 pins. Still maintainable but allows all the other must-have games I crave.

Lol! Yes!
I had a tuff guy keyboard moment. Oh shit I gonna go the wife is hollering for me, she sounds pissed!

Having a good mix of EMs SSs and Moderns allows for changes in attitude and lattitude. I go through plenty of times when all I play is EMs or SSs. It also makes for a great party and tournament setting. We had our family Christmas Eve Party this year here so everyone could play pinball as well as eat and spend time with family. It was great!

Several great comments in this thread. I think about this subject quite a bit too.

As someone who has more games than I really need (I don't collect, my wife and I just ended up acquiring more and more games over the years because we had the space) I think 10 machines is a good number. If you collect, then I say get as many as you have space for.

for you, i think a couple games will work out- your taste is very narrow. you really need to think about spending more time on location, with the new games. just keep a couple pins at the house for when location is closed.

I think having around 10 games is the sweet spot for having pins in your home. That way they won't take up a ridiculous amount of space, will be easier to keep properly maintained, and with less games you can focus pimping them to the fullest.

Less is more in everything as long as you get what you really love~

It depends on what you are looking for and why. I currently have about 10 machines set up, and it isn't right because I don't have enough space to comfortably host anyone to play them. I'd love to do more so I could host big get togethers, but I need a larger space for that no matter what.

No matter what too, I wouldn't want just two or three. I play everything in my basement regularly enough.

A topic I often contemplate myself. I've recently starting to thin the herd some myself - sold two games in last two months. It's very very hard to figure out which one to vote off the island for the very reason Neo pointed out. I like the variety based on my mood, etc. But, maintenance is a pain in the arse on 20+ machines.

10-12 seems like a right number. But, trying to determine what stays versus what goes is ridiculously harder than it seems. Especially, when you've painstakingly found excellent condition games over the past 12 years you know will be so expensive to ever rebuild if you miss it. Good problem to have but tough.

Max I have had is six. We found that only 2-3 tended to see much play. The people I now with large 20+ collections tend to have constant issues with games. Not only that but most of the games see little play, so it is a waste.

But it is so cool walking into your full gameroom with all the games lit up. Flashback to fun times in the past. Plus when you have friends over, no one has to wait to play.

I agree,a very large collection is not always more fun,I have had 30 plus game collections and down sized and enjoyed the ones I keeped more but collectors creep can happen and you can go up Easley again.

everyone will have their own perfect number
some people can maintain a collection of 50
others can find satisfaction with 5 games

why must there be a predetermined number that will (supposedly) satisfy everyone?

Perfect number = space available + 1.

I'd prefer to have more because it gives lots of diversity plus it's great for throwing parties

But of course, space restrictions are preventing me from doing that at the moment.

This seems to be true; I have 8 currently and one "in reserve"

Couple thoughts to consider . If your individual titles are nice and working well time may not be your friend to get another in similar condition . Vast majority my games not played often . If I am in mood for a particular title its nice to have it awaiting some play time . Also you should think about the work keeping a large collection running . That can be a big task . Shane

Zero in my collection. Haven't had a breakdown yet.

I'm beyond my max at 32....yes, I need counseling.

I'm looking forward to having more working machines than having non-workings ones.

Super happy with 3 (one is non-functional and will be gone to a family member on loan once it is going).

I'm good with this too. I thought 5 was my max. Now I have 6. Always will be looking for #7 I feel and if I get one, I'll figure out the space issue later

I maxed at 13, now have 3 and a bunch of money!

Like others, I spent too much time working on them.

Also, having less makes me appreciate going to a fellow pinsider's house to play pinball that much more.

Pinball, for me, was becoming an antisocial hobby. By reducing my collection, I now have to go out to play new games. Great bonus is you get to talk to other pinball players too.

Best regards,

Tom

Having "collected" things in the past, I think it's good to take stock of what you want out of life, and if you really want a hobby to consume all of your space, time, and money. At a certain point, having a lot of one thing becomes more of an obsession than something you do for joy. This is my experience. Yours may vary and I'm not passing judgment on anyone with a lot of games, obviously circumstances differ person to person.

Having a small selection of tables will at least let you widdle it down to the games you truly appreciate, or may encourage you to rotate games out more often. The advice I gave to a recent "new owner" of pinball was "Have one keeper, and make your 2nd game be one that you'll want to play and trade away."

I'll soon be back up to either eleven or twelve. Personally, the minimum number of pins is dictated by the maximum number of people we have over, which is 25-30. The maximum number of pins is determined by space. Only with effort can I cram in a dozen. Were they solely for my use, however, I'd probably have five or six. (Enough for reasonable variety, in other words.) I'll have to downsize someday, but hopefully not for a while yet. It really is fun giving people a chance to play pinball who either haven't done so in one or two decades or, almost as often, who have never touched a real pinball table. That gives me as much or more pleasure than playing the pins myself.

I've had up to nine. Six is my number. Even then, it seems like too much. I have a Banzai Run in storage to keep the number at 6. I'm enjoying the buying power and the money from downsizing. I have cash in hand for that special game if it pops up.

Im not sure if you understand how forums work son? People exchange ideas on a variety of topics within a common interest. It's the journey not the destination. thete however is a re determined number that s right, I won't spoil it for you but it's a prime.

I used to think this way but more and more I think multi-player gaming and waits between games allow for more socialization anyway - and in my opinion that is needed to balance the fun. My 6 pins tend to be a sideshow when we have company that help keep the good times rolling... but they aren't the only reason anyone comes when invited. Net-net, I think I agree that less is more.

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

My collecting interests are quite different so it's hard to compare. With that said I have recently discovered that less is more. For me anyway. Of course we all dream about having enough space to warehouse every game we could possibly be interested in. For me though I came to the realization that the last one in is always the most fun. I find I'm most happy finding a cheap project, cleaning it up and playing the crap out of it for 3-6 months. Cut it loose and start again. Having constant turnover keeps my short attention span interested. There are a few that I have sold that I miss a bit but if those titles turn up again affordably I'm not opposed to revisiting them.

This is just not right. Hoarder!

Thats what I did. Dumped all the old stuff and going nib or huo 1 owner stuff from here on out. Could care less about what i may or may not lose, this is a disposable income hobby as far as i'm concerned.

We have begun to see collection dumping here on pinside, craigs list, etc...Thoughts on this trend gaining momentum??

5-6 pinball machines seems like the right amount for a small collection. It allows for a nice variety and for one or two pins to be down. 10-12 is probably ideal for most people, especially if they are able to contain them to one room. I sold down to 11 machines and tried it for awhile, but ultimately found that was not enough. I expect to settle in at 15 to 18 pins.

While the decision of how many is a personal choice, most people end up in the 5-6 or 10-12 categories. As long as you avoid having all two flipper / fan layouts, you probably will gravitate to one of these sized collections and it will be right for you.

ahhh, that is how forums work
ignore the original topic and troll

I've only got room for 3 and all 3 are keepers (once MMR gets here). I wish I had room for a fourth so that I could rotate it out periodically. Instead I'll be looking for a bar top mame or megatouch at some point.