(Topic ID: 230892)

Looking for Advice on Beatles Pinball...Diamond or Platinum?

By BackFlipper

5 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

You

Topic poll

“What would you do? Please read the post first.”

  • Keep the Platinum and sell the Diamond immediately. 6 votes
    30%
  • Keep the Diamond and sell the Platinum immediately. 5 votes
    25%
  • Keep the Platinum and store the Diamond for a while. 8 votes
    40%
  • Keep the Diamond and store the Platinum for a while 1 vote
    5%

(20 votes)

#1 5 years ago

Full Disclosure (sorry for the long post):

I have been a fan of pinball and The Beatles for over 40 years. When the two came together, it was a lifelong dream come true for me. I wanted to purchase a Diamond or Platinum Beatles game. I had purchased a Batman SLE as a big fan and was willing to spend some serious cash on the Beatles. I called my distributor. I have spent over $200K with them in recent years and thought I would get a good deal. Boy, was I wrong. $25K plus tax and shipping for the Diamond and $18K++ for the Platinum. I then went on the Special K program. I just randomly started calling distributors. More of the same thing.

I was pissed. I really thought the Diamonds and Platinum's were not rewards for the distributors; I thought they were rewards for loyal customers. Wrong again.

So I then sent emails to Stern Pinball asking for help. Zach was kind enough to actually respond to me. I was moved by that and asked if I could go on a factory tour. Zach obliged and I can't thank him enough. I got to see all three versions on the line. I was blown away.

In the meantime, I called back some distributors who were not getting 10 packs and asked them why? It always came down to money so I made an offer. I would split a 10-pack with them and closed a deal (I will not say who - If they want to disclose themselves, it's up to them). Here is how we settled. I would pay $38K and they would pay $32K for the 10 games. I would get 1 Gold, 1 Platinum and 1 Diamond for $38K. They would get 6 Golds and a Platinum for $32K. My understanding is that they sold the Platinum for $14K and got 6 golds for $18K. Pretty good deal for the distributor.

So, I got a Gold for $8K and a Platinum and Diamond for $30K. My estimation is that I paid $12,500 for a Platinum and $17,500 for a Diamond. I can live with that. The Gold is going in my office at work. One of the other two will go in my permanent collection. The other one I will put in storage as an investment or possibly flip. Does anybody feel these games are going up in value in the future?

What would you do in my shoes?

(I am leaning towards keeping the Platinum and selling/trading the Diamond immediately)

#2 5 years ago
Quoted from BackFlipper:

Full Disclosure (sorry for the long post):
I have been a fan of pinball and The Beatles for over 40 years. When the two came together, it was a lifelong dream come true for me. I wanted to purchase a Diamond or Platinum Beatles game. I had purchased a Batman SLE as a big fan and was willing to spend some serious cash on the Beatles. I called my distributor. I have spent over $200K with them in recent years and thought I would get a good deal. Boy, was I wrong. $25K plus tax and shipping for the Diamond and $18K++ for the Platinum. I then went on the Special K program. I just randomly started calling distributors. More of the same thing.
I was pissed. I really thought the Diamonds and Platinum's were not rewards for the distributors; I thought they were rewards for loyal customers. Wrong again.
So I then sent emails to Stern Pinball asking for help. Zach was kind enough to actually respond to me. I was moved by that and asked if I could go on a factory tour. Zach obliged and I can't thank him enough. I got to see all three versions on the line. I was blown away.
In the meantime, I called back some distributors who were not getting 10 packs and asked them why? It always came down to money so I made an offer. I would split a 10-pack with them and eventually closed a deal with one of them (I will not say who - If they want to disclose themselves, it's up to them). Here is how we settled. I would pay $38K and they would pay $32K for the 10 games. I would get 1 Gold, 1 Platinum and 1 Diamond for $38K. They would get 6 Golds and a Platinum for $32K. My understanding is that they sold the Platinum for $14K and got 6 golds for $18K. Pretty good deal for the distributor.
So, I got a Gold for $8K and a Platinum and Diamond for $30K. My estimation is that I paid $12,500 for a Platinum and $17,500 for a Diamond. I can live with that. The Gold is going in my office at work. One of the other two will go in my permanent collection. The other one I will put in storage as an investment or possibly flip. Does anybody feel these games are going up in value in the future?
What would you do in my shoes?
(I am leaning towards keeping the Platinum and selling/trading the Diamond immediately)

#3 5 years ago

OOPS! Tried to edit and accidentally duplicated.

#4 5 years ago
Quoted from BackFlipper:

In the meantime, I called back some distributors who were not getting 10 packs and asked them why? It always came down to money so I made an offer. I would split a 10-pack with them and closed a deal (I will not say who - If they want to disclose themselves, it's up to them). Here is how we settled. I would pay $38K and they would pay $32K for the 10 games. I would get 1 Gold, 1 Platinum and 1 Diamond for $38K. They would get 6 Golds and a Platinum for $32K. My understanding is that they sold the Platinum for $14K and got 6 golds for $18K. Pretty good deal for the distributor.
So, I got a Gold for $8K and a Platinum and Diamond for $30K. My estimation is that I paid $12,500 for a Platinum and $17,500 for a Diamond. I can live with that. The Gold is going in my office at work. One of the other two will go in my permanent collection. The other one I will put in storage as an investment or possibly flip. Does anybody feel these games are going up in value in the future?

Why are you telling us all of this?

#5 5 years ago

Sounds like you have no problems when it comes to finances -- if that is the case just keep what has value to you/makes you happy.

#6 5 years ago

"Money is no problem"

#7 5 years ago
Quoted from CrazyLevi:

Why are you telling us all of this?

I figured that explaining what I paid for them would help in getting some educated guesses on whether I should sell or hold right now. What is your guess? Will these games be worth more or less in a year or two?

#8 5 years ago

Its hard to tell at this point what will happen to this Pin in the big tomorrow!! I wanted a Diamond,but when I saw what it looked like I got a DP/LE instead! However,I would keep the higher priced pin for "later" better resale,if at all!!IMHO Good luck!!!!

#9 5 years ago

What an interesting situation to be in. Sell whichever Pin has the highest production numbers and keep the rarer title for yourself.

Was your intention to make money or just get one of these titles?

#10 5 years ago

Are the games different at all in game play or on the playfield? If not I would think the pure limited factor won't hold up over time.

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#11 5 years ago

Definitely hold, diamond will be worth 100k by next Christmas.

In reality, I dont think that these machines are going to hold value. To me it feels like the next generation wont even know who The Beatles were and wont care.

That being said, hold and play which one you love and dont take pinside comments as sound investment advice.

#12 5 years ago
Quoted from BackFlipper:

Full Disclosure (sorry for the long post):
I have been a fan of pinball and The Beatles for over 40 years. When the two came together, it was a lifelong dream come true for me. I wanted to purchase a Diamond or Platinum Beatles game. I had purchased a Batman SLE as a big fan and was willing to spend some serious cash on the Beatles. I called my distributor. I have spent over $200K with them in recent years and thought I would get a good deal. Boy, was I wrong. $25K plus tax and shipping for the Diamond and $18K++ for the Platinum. I then went on the Special K program. I just randomly started calling distributors. More of the same thing.
I was pissed. I really thought the Diamonds and Platinum's were not rewards for the distributors; I thought they were rewards for loyal customers. Wrong again.
So I then sent emails to Stern Pinball asking for help. Zach was kind enough to actually respond to me. I was moved by that and asked if I could go on a factory tour. Zach obliged and I can't thank him enough. I got to see all three versions on the line. I was blown away.
In the meantime, I called back some distributors who were not getting 10 packs and asked them why? It always came down to money so I made an offer. I would split a 10-pack with them and closed a deal (I will not say who - If they want to disclose themselves, it's up to them). Here is how we settled. I would pay $38K and they would pay $32K for the 10 games. I would get 1 Gold, 1 Platinum and 1 Diamond for $38K. They would get 6 Golds and a Platinum for $32K. My understanding is that they sold the Platinum for $14K and got 6 golds for $18K. Pretty good deal for the distributor.
So, I got a Gold for $8K and a Platinum and Diamond for $30K. My estimation is that I paid $12,500 for a Platinum and $17,500 for a Diamond. I can live with that. The Gold is going in my office at work. One of the other two will go in my permanent collection. The other one I will put in storage as an investment or possibly flip. Does anybody feel these games are going up in value in the future?
What would you do in my shoes?
(I am leaning towards keeping the Platinum and selling/trading the Diamond immediately)

Thanks for the info on base pricing.

I would sell the platinum right away. In your scenario I would set up the gold at your office but expect to sell for about $5000 in a couple of years. Since you got such a good price and it is your dream theme, keep the diamond.

#13 5 years ago
Quoted from CrazyLevi:

Why are you telling us all of this?

Quoted from chad:

"Money is no problem"

First world problems. Wish I had this type of problem.
If it's investment then sell the diamond when its being asked for next year. You would probably double your money.
Or just keep/sell what makes you happy if money/machine cashing in was not in the plan.
-Mike

#14 5 years ago

Here is what I would do in your situation. I would sell both the diamond and platinum, immediately. In doing so, you'd basically be getting a gold for free (plus some cash). Then play the heck out of it and enjoy it without fear that every ball played is lowering the value of your "collector's item". Is the plaque on a machine really worth the money? To me that's just manufactured rarity, something I try not to support. Keep a machine because you enjoy how it plays, not because you think it's an investment. Hell, you might even be able to score a mirrored backglass at a charity auction or something from Stern. Whatever you decide, it does sounds like your method of purchasing was a great way to get the machine(s) you wanted at a price below where you would have otherwise gotten one. Bravo.

PS: If you are for sure keeping either the platinum or diamond, I would list them both and keep the one that doesn't sell.

#15 5 years ago
Quoted from TechnicalSteam:

What an interesting situation to be in. Sell whichever Pin has the highest production numbers and keep the rarer title for yourself.
Was your intention to make money or just get one of these titles?

My intention was just to get a Platinum or Diamond at a price I could live with. I don't think I have ever made a profit on a pinball machine. I usually buy an LE at about $9K and end up selling it a year later for $7500 with a topper and extras.

#16 5 years ago

Do what makes you happy, I’ll play either one you buy

#17 5 years ago
Quoted from BackFlipper:

I usually buy an LE at about $9K and end up selling it a year later for $7500 with a topper and extras.

I never understood your username until right now.

#18 5 years ago

Never buy a pin as an investment. If the game itself is worth the price TO YOU, AND ONLY YOU at the time you are ready to buy, then do so.

#19 5 years ago
Quoted from BackFlipper:

My intention was just to get a Platinum or Diamond at a price I could live with. I don't think I have ever made a profit on a pinball machine. I usually buy an LE at about $9K and end up selling it a year later for $7500 with a topper and extras.

I am trying to avoid that Buy a LE or Premium and sell at a loss cycle.

#20 5 years ago

Damn. I wish I could afford just one of these let alone 3.

1 year later
#21 4 years ago

Can we get an update, please....

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