Quoted from CLEllison:
You simply wont be disappointed. Dimples arent normal
Ron charges $575 for the clear and $75 shipping back. Btw, I bought starship ramps as well. FYI the steps ramp is 1/4" short at the bottom (ramp flap). DONT drill your ramp until you set it in and see where the holes should be.
I am not sure if this info on the FH ramps are common knowledge, but this is a great thing to know ahead of time. I think if someone is doing research, they should find this. This is a great example of how helpful pinside is. Doing a pf swap is the equivalent of swapping the motor in a 97 subaru outback. We found a bunch of helpful info in the net before and during the job.
With Funhouse, I think it is either a IPB, NOS or mirco. Mircos are obvious by the clearcoat being thick. Nos will have dates on the edges, and sometimes t nuts. if you see t nuts, its nos.
The way I tell if a Bally playboy is repro or nos, the nos has the white primer from the top side sprayed around the inside of the ball holes, and it has overspray on the back around the ball holes. All of the old ballys have this.
On DMD bally williams pfs, I also watch for the upc sticker at the bottom left side
AS for my prices there is one more charge that is significant. After I work on a pf it has to be shipped in a sturdy wood crate. Some people who have the facilities and time, send them in one, if not I sell them for 70 including the packaging. They last over a dozen round trips without problem. Usually around that time, or whenever necessary. I put a new top on them. I have had so many pfs damaged and destroyed from shipping in cardboard. I sold a used pf this month and shipped in cardboard, (since I didnt work on it I didnt insist on the wood crate) the package was exposed to so much water, they not only had to relabel it for the address, they taped cardboard around it. This was not just left out in rain, it looked like it was under a downspout. I cant figure out how it happened, but, that is just the latest example.
And a warning to people who think just because it is insured, it will be covered for how much I insured it for. All of the shippers are different when it comes to claims, I have strong opinion of that, but one thing they all have an issue with is how a piece of plywood can be worth 300-3000. They do not just hand out checks for how much you insured it for.
Way back in 1989 while in school, I loaded trucks at ups for the christmas season rush. That experience was an opportunity to see how the packages get handled, and what to expect if a pf is not wrapped properly..
Anyway the shipping crate is expensive. But it is necessary, and its a good investment. Once you have one you will be able to pack up a pf in less than 5 mins, and for the most part, not have to worry about it getting destroyed in its travels. In some cases when a client needs to ship a pf to me, and dose not have a crate, and doesn't feel comfortable sending the pf in a cardboard box, I will ship them a crate, with packing. The shipping cost for the crate when empty is $30.
Most reproduction pfs dont need paint work, although there are a lot if IPB repros that have plenty of screening issues to be cleaned up. This is why gene liked to sell them at shows so people could inspect them. He would have 10 lined up and it took so much time to play" find waldo" If there is work on the average repro pf, it is hairline cracks around inserts. There are several different shades of black that the different manufactures use. I have it down to basically 4 paints. Then, even if it is not an exact match, I paint the whole line so at that point it wont matter or show. If it is a couple inserts and black I dont charge. If it is more than 4, I have to charge hourly paint or shop time (40 per hour)
Galesburg, MI
111011 (resized).JPG
Winnipeg, MB
Auckland, NZ
