You can tell by my profile that I am a newb. I've been thinking about getting into pinball for a long time. I've frequently lurked this forum and others over the last few years. I'm starting to get the itch and really want to jump in to the hobby. I'm fairly comfortable working with electronics and built a MAME machine several years ago and really enjoyed it.

I've been looking for a pinball machine off and on for the last year or so. I've come across a Lethal Weapon 3 that isn't too far from where I live. I'm am thinking about going to check it out over the weekend. But I am wary about what I may be getting myself into! Here is what I know about the machine from the seller.

*$650 for the machine
*Needs a new DMD (I didn't ask what was wrong with the current one)
*Has one broken plastic (not sure which one)
*Game powers up (not sure if playable)
*Switches work
*Needs some soldering work (He says that on the coils some of the wires have come off and others are just kind of poorly done. He also says, I'd assume they still work, but they look kind of bad.)

I've gone through the forums and looked at a lot of old threads about this machine. Is there anything else that I should ask before going to look at the machine? Any advice in general? Thank you for any help!

Thank you for all the advice so far everyone!

For those wondering I am pretty good with electronics. I wired up my MAME machine from scratch, not that it means much in my eyes. My Dad is also an electrician and when I was younger we had an old pinball machine called Butterfly. I remember it had a rotary score area on the backglass and you could play up to four players on it. I wish my folks still had it!

Here are some pics the seller sent me. Not sure if they'd help anyone identify any potential issues.

image.jpeg

image2.jpeg

image3.jpeg

Thank you for the reply. I'm not in a hurry to play a machine right away. I am more interested in learning how to fix a pinball machine. I love working on projects. I think I had more fun building my MAME machine then I do now actually playing it! My issue is I have no idea how much it will cost to fix. I looked up DMDs and see that I can expect to pay $150-$200 for one.

Could the playfield lights not working is be a bigger issue than a fuse or connector?

Wow! I cannot believe all the great advice in here already. Thank you everyone for the advice so far.

dgoett, thank you so much for the offer on the DMD! I am floored! I really appreciate the offer... wow. I think I am going to go and check it out this weekend. I will let you all know how it goes. If anyone has any other advice please feel free to post!

I am concerned about the board that looks smoked. Would that require a replacement board or is that something that can be sent out and fixed, or something that I can fix? Does anyone now of average cost on that? Of course it could be a bad pic. I think I want to check out the machine or see if the owner can send me some more pics.

Thanks again for the advice everyone. And please keep it coming!

The image with the wire nuts and possible smoked area appear to be right above the DMD, correct?

Thanks again for all the comments and advice. I'm still debating about going to look at it over the weekend.

Jalpert, is it meaningful because there may be more wrong with the machine than advertised?

I am planning to go and check it out tomorrow sometime.

I did end up buying Lethal Weapon 3. The playfield has 2 broken targets, the seller gave me 4 replacement targets. The playfield looks good. There is one broken plastic piece in the upper left area. The score seems accurate when I tested different parts. The cabinet will need some paint but it is in good shape. We got home very late last night so I haven't gotten it moved into the house yet. Once I get it moved in, if anyone is interested I'll post some more pics. I ended up paying $525 for the machine. I'm really excited to start digging in.

Thanks all for the well wishes! I've started a thread with some questions about the machine. The thread isn't getting much action though. Did I post it in the wrong spot or am I doing something wrong?

http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/lethal-weapon-3-flipper-and-plunger-issues