Less of a game room than a game corner in my multi-use condo basement (office / pinball / laundry / storage). It's been pretty cold down here of late and so I've taken to turning on the games to throw a few more BTUs into the room and play an occasional game throughout the day. So grabbed a quick photo.

When I bought my first game I chose a traditional EM (over a wide-body Genie) because I thought I would not have the room for the wide body. Obviously I worked through that issue.

I've got wire racks behind the games (to store all the junk I needed to move to make room for pinball), took down a folding table (which had become a bit of a horizontal surface catch-all, and shoved my desk back quite a bit, to make room. It's a little like playing Tetris when I need to work on the games.

And yeah, definitely pinball on a budget here as compared to many. Fortunately, I like the older games (both playing and tinkering), and find that some of the less popular games can be had in decent condition at a reasonable price point.

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Very proud of the finished product!! Took a lot of work. Lineup has and is changing significantly though.

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Hey there neighbor

Nah just finished 2 others by myself all good

Nice! Is that real brick or paneling? I ask because we're building our gameroom as we speak (converting our garage really) and we're gonna do the brick paneling from Lowes over the drywall and I'm always looking for tips on how to hide the seams.

Closer than you know. The back property line of my condo is the New Britain / Berlin town line....and I'm in Berlin pretty much every day for banking, coffee, lunch, etc. Duotron came out of the United Coin Op warehouse in Berlin (formerly Newman Brothers Amusement & Vending)

I've heard a rumor that they will be closing up / clearing out soon - wonder what treasures will be uncovered in that place. There were a handful of pins in there when I visited about 18 months back, some video games, but mostly old jukeboxes, pool tables, etc.

My kind of game room there. That’s all u need!

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/what-do-you-do-for-a-living

This is actually poured concrete walls that are stamped to look like brick. We painted the individual "bricks" and left "mortar" gray to get this look. Very tedious, but love the way it turned out!

--Jeremy

If I can also make a recommendation. The PEX should be going through the center of the 2x4. You have yours really biased to one side. I can see a drywall screw going right into it.

I'd at least put up some metal blocking plates to protect them from puncture.

It's not necessarily the job. It's sometimes simply the persistence put into the hobby. I've been collecting for over 40 years.

Yep, I think it is probably a split between people who can just throw money at the hobby and people who can't. I started collecting vids around 2012 when things were still pretty cheap. Built up a nice collection and sold/traded it for pins and money for pins in the last decade. Learned how to fix projects and do board work myself and a good number of "right place, right time" FB/CL deals and trades is how I built my collection. Whatever market value my collection has, I probably have about 30% of that in cash I've actually put into the games, but it takes time and patience to do it that way.

I’m hanging the drywall also and mudding.I’m just working by myself so speed is everything if I want to have time for a couple games at night :)But that is a good idea for whomever buys this house when we’re done with it .I have a 2nd kitchen going on back side of that bathroom things got hectic on that wall .Thanks for the tips though

I wasn't trying to rain on your parade or anything. I just didn't want to see someone plow a 2" drywall screw right through your PEX.

No not at all .These are my first 2 pecs jobs I been teaching myself .i always look for tips to be better .I ordered a GnRLE n the pressure was on to come up with the balance so I did a complete basement myself .Then went back to mine now I need to buy theatre seating ,tv,sound system and cabinets for kitchen area so I took another basement to pay for that :)I’m a grunt I’ll get my finished eventually I got more time than $$

Wow, just WOW!!!!!!

love buck hunter shooters; jelly.

Lol. Won't lie. This picture made me say WTF??? Venting, stud notching, plumbing,....... They definitely do things different in IN. lol

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Will it be inspected?

Would it Pass! Lol

Those who can't do teach, if you can't do either those are the inspectors.

I havnt tightened up yet but no I don’t like inspectors they slow me down .Usually theyre the mayors nephew that wants to red flag you as much as possible so he can start getting commissions on them .I’m mostly a carpenter but with YouTube I’m doing it all now and getting better every day .The funny thing is nobody mentioned the ceiling you’ll never see one like this because I just invented it .In Indiana if you drywall your ceiling in basement it becomes taxable .If you have acess to your ceiling it’s not .Most people here spray paint the ceiling open like some bars do .I installed 2x4 blocks across the joists to make equal rectangles .Then used door stop 1/2 inch up to picture frame each opening .Caulk it up n paint with a flat black .Cut drywall panels and painted n installed like ceiling tile .Makes a 8 foot ceiling look 8foot 3.tedious but real cheap to do

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The ceiling looks really nice.

Thnx Dr pin .I didn’t want a typical grid ceiling .Killed 2 birds w 1 stone :)I’m proud of that one

I'm all for DIY, but I guess I'd be nervous not of the wiring and plumbing physically working, but of the off chance something did happen (small fire/flood damage) and insurance company sent out an inspector post mishap but refused the claim based on work that wasn't code.

Within 8" of the box if the box does not have cable clamps (i.e. non-metallic boxes). There are lots of nuances to the code like that so I recommend erring on the side of overkill. I don't use 14 gauge even for lighting circuits, rather I just use 12 and I don't need to calculate the line drops (in a residential setting). I use insulated staples, cost a little more but I don't have to worry about over driving/pinching the wire. And for DIY, I recommend getting a good reference book or two, like Black and Decker or Tauntons, especially for three-way/four way circuits. One of the best and least expensive is Wiring Simplified. Though I don't need to refer to it much anymore, I keep a current copy in my electrical toolbox as it is a small format book.

https://www.amazon.com/Wiring-Simplified-Based-National-Electrical/dp/099790531X/ref=sr_1_14

My main recommendation of what not to do that is a huge hazard and that I see wrong in many DIYs projects - Don't splice a wire and tape it - all wire junctions must be in an accessible, approved electrical box/housing.

About thirty years ago when we built our new garage, my father-in-law came over and did the wiring. During the inspection, when the building inspector noted that something was not done right, my father-in-law quoted him the section and the section number in the building code that, in fact, said that what he did was permitted. After the second or third time, the building inspector whispered to me, "What does this guy do for a living?" I replied, "He's a lawyer." The inspector rolled his eyes and never noted another problem.

I have a buddy that gets a work bonus a few times a year. He buys a Williams project (usually)... He is up to 9

that's okay, there's only like 9 plus connections that can leak - I Agree on the WTF comment!!!

Maybe the Pipe only came in short sections for the Plumber

I ran all the electric for my basement myself, but I paid a certified electrician to come in, inspect my work and then terminate it in the panel box.

I remember this screen saver from earlier versions of Windows!

I'd recommend these for diy crowd.

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That is absolutely not true. I dealt with inspectors my entire 40 years as an electrical contractor, as well as seeing them interact with all the other trades.

Are there some bad ones? Sure there are, just like there are in every profession. But for the most part, they're just like you and me just doing their job.

I don't know what it's like in other states, but in MN, I would advise taking out all permits necessary, especially on newer homes. The older the home, the less of a paper trail. Let's say you wired your own basement and did not take out a permit. When you go to sell your house, the third party inspection service (if they're any good) will call the city and also the state to see what permits are on file. Let's say the state says the only electrical permit was when the house was built and it did not include the basement. Yes, the inspector will always make that note. He will also always note how many circuits were in the panel on final inspection. The city building permit will also show the basement was not finished at the time the house was built.

Guess what happens now? You've just opened the ugliest can of worms at the worst possible time. And yes, as a contractor, I was involved in a few of those type jobs. It wasn't pretty and it cost the homeowner WAY more than than if he had done things the right way. It also delayed the selling of his house by months.

Didn't mean to derail the thread, just fair warning.

Not so sure some yes maybe. In general though an inspector simply wants to make sure you don't burn down, flood, or sewer gas your or your neighbors house. Nothing wrong with DIY but Some consideration to proper system function should be observed. The venting in that picture Below drain alone to that diameter make me suggest Don't close that wall anytime soon.....

Bottom line, this image only gives me a scare as (while a Great guy) he has noted several times that he is doing these types of renovations (many) as a side job around the area. IF doing so with this "inspectors slow me down" attitude more then likely this Will come back to haunt him and his family via liability. This is no longer a "they won't catch me" thing. They will!

Good write-up. Here in CA (at least in my city) EVERY electrical job requires a permit. The homeowner is allowed to do their own electrical work here (but not in all places), but if you are doing it yourself, you are still supposed to get the permit and have your work inspected.

Even use caution when using licensed electricians who are pulling the permits for you. I had a shithead contractor who started the permit for some spa wiring. But unbeknownst to me, he never got the final inspection on the electrical, which was done in a trench. Like an idiot, I assumed he did everything right. Some years later I sold the house. During that process it was turned up that the electrical permit was not completed. A final inspection was required to confirm that the wiring was trenched to the proper depth. I had to pay to have things dug up so they could come out and measure that.

I have had a few experiences with our city inspectors (who in general seem to have a bad rep) that went off without a hitch. I attributed this to using solid contractors. I recently had a fairly big electrical job done (entire panel replacement) and I found a really good electrician. I could tell by the way he acted and worked that he was professional. When the inspector came and saw who did the work, he immediately said "OK, good, I've seen his work, this contractor knows what he is doing". He gave everything a quick once-over and signed it off no problem. Same thing when I did a major replumb, I hired a solid reputable company and the same thing happened, the inspector came, saw it was them, and said yeah, these guys are pros, they know what they are doing. Another quick inspection and it was done.

On the other hand, I would guess that during the course of their work day in and day out, they see all sorts of stuff that is no good. And if there is one off thing they spot then most likely that will trigger a close inspection of every little thing.

Not to be a killjoy here, but can we get more pictures of game rooms and take the contracting conversations to a "how to build a game room" thread? lol

Here are a few pics of some of the neons in my game room, in which all pertinent permits were pulled.

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We are a rare breed! Only 2 pinsiders that enjoy Red Dog!

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Needs more dog

Haaaaaaaaaa! Red Tick Beer!!! Love it.

I got the dog! Old pic but love the sign!

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Time to create a club! I’ve got a ton of merchandise and like 4 neons (none hanging yet). I drank this beer all the time in the 90s.

I used to really enjoy Icehouse. Never see it anymore though....