Your biggest problem will be actually locating one of those titles in project condition. Add the fact that many folks are looking for those titles in a project state - you are going to be fighting for them - and because of demand the price will likely be more.

I think patience is the key.

I have waited 12-15 years to find the last 2 games on my list.

A shadow that was restored exceptionally by Phatchit, Kevin here on the board,
(...and when he fixes the flashers, I want to share pics/vid)
That was $2100 over the summer, and a WH2O for $2500 this week.

We see projects for a couple hundred dollars in Florida on the boards
a Mata Hari for $350, an 8 Ball for $150.

http://www.villagebbs.com/forum/index.php/topic,26674.0.html

The 5 titles you are looking for are in high demand, so a little harder to find so fast, or "reasonable".
Not only because they are great games, but profit to some, when restored.

So your last sentence is key....

Thats the tough part....unknown parts, and how do you value your time....

Tricky to accomplish all, but perhaps you can find joy in restoring another title, while you keep your eyes and ears open for your "most wanted list"

Craigs list, Ebay notifications sorted by distance and/or price,, etc...

Good Luck....and Id love to see some pics of how your Space Shuttle came out.

I don't know, I saw a pretty rough whirlwind at MGC a couple years back. Don't remember what he was asking, but it was easily under $1700 (but certainly not in the $500 range)

Finding a Whirlwind or Dr Who for under $1500 is highly unlikely. Over the past 4 or 5 years "cheaper" project machines have really dried up or are bring way too much money.

I love fixing up project machines but over the past 3 or so years we have only been finding early SS and EM machines that are still cheap enough to be bought as projects. It seems once you get into "ramp machines" most in the project stage have already been grabbed up or are grossly overpriced.

Yeah, I've heard of rough Whirlwinds popping up years ago. Saw one in Alaska pop up once, might as well been on Mars. I really haven't seen any in my area, and one I saw was grossly overpriced for the condition and 8 hours away. Demand has grown for all the System 11s, it's just that this title is one of the better ones and they made less of them compared to blockbuster titles like PinBot or F-14 Tomcat.

Sounds like just about all my System 11s. I'd call it at $1000 +/- a couple hundred (...of course, that's if you can find it.)

A $1500 Whirlwind would be a parts machine.

What you should do is keep buying cheaper games, fixing them up, then selling them for a slight profit. Five or six of them and you'll have enough to just buy a decent Whirlwind without having to restore it.

Thanks for sharing the link...nice Job on the shuttle....A lot of hard work you did.

(Also, thanks for the kind words, I didnt realize you were the same person I spoke with)

I think in fairness, it is possible based on the condition of Space Shuttle to find a project like this in your titles...just harder, again. Prices will be everywhere, but because you are open to playfield issues, parts, cabinet, board work....anything is possible on price.
Some people are just happy to dump a hard project and move on.

Great Work, Creative and you persevered. I cant speak for value, because you did put in so much time, but ignoring that, it appears you enjoy the challenge, and I enjoyed reading about it.

Whatever makes you happy, I am sure you will enjoy the process again....

Art