Pandemic.

Have you tried to buy a bicycle this year?

The racks are completely empty.

Just a few children's bikes and a unicycle
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Trying to get anything that is not run of the mill easy to slap together is a difficult task. Try buying a new boat or a good used boat. Forget it. Not going to happen. There are backlogs on many things that one would think would not be affected but it seems many are. Stock up on all things that you use routinely when you can. Business wise I see the high that the county is on now coming to an abrupt end within 6-12 months! Oh well it was nice while it lasted!

As said, there are shortages everywhere. I repair pins for a living and there are a LOT of items that I cannot get right now. I go to the grocery store and many of the things I buy every week there, are also out of stock.

I don't think a lot of pinball people realize that specialty pinball parts are more often than not made by individuals as a side gig, and then sold to places like Marco who distributes them the masses. It is a great system, and Marco is an awesome company to work with. BUT, we as consumers are at the mercy of those individuals being able to meet demand and make parts. The little guys are last in line for materials from the big suppliers. There are people out there making parts who are quite old, and age is eventually going to catch up with them. There are a couple small part manufacturers I have heard of where the sole person doing the manufacturing is around 90 years old. Sometimes people have other issues in life, and making those spare parts as a side gig has to be put on the back burner.

I can tell you right now from making ramps, that Pinball part demand is huge right now, and has been for the last year. I work my day job for 9 hours a day and come home and put another 4-5 hours in every night and a 8-10 hour day on Saturday most weeks. I still can't keep up. I worked this schedule for about 4.5 months straight earlier this year before taking a break, and I am barely able to build stock up. After Pinfest, I am probably not going to be doing any production in September-October, only shipping what I have on hand. So if you see something...don't wait around- buy it when its available, because you may be waiting a bit until it comes back into stock.

I left my email address with Marco on notifying me when these door skins become available again. Does anybody have experience with Marco actually notifying you when they do come back in stock or should I just constantly check the website?

Bally coin doors are back in stock at Marcos.

Sometimes you’ve got to be the squeaky wheel! Thx