This being your first post, makes you a complete unknown, post in the threads, reach out to local pinsiders get to know them

Also, if your inquiring about a pin that is really sought after , it could be that you were pretty far down the line

You can also post a wanted ad, then interested sellers will pm you

Join a local pinball league, make new friends, network locally to find pins.

I would send another email letting the sellers know that you are a real and sincerely inquiring about purchasing their pin. We were all new to Pinside at one time. good luck

I have owned over 150 pins and never bought one from/off of pinside so, If no response to your email move on,,, there are plenty of other ways to buy a pinball machine then on pinside, Chances are you will overpay with any of the retail sellers.

I usually get a response from about 50 percent of people on here, and if so it's usually within 2 days

I will be happy to answer your actual question without a lecture.

Yes, responses are all over the board depending on how popular and how well the machine is priced. Timing is huge as well(being a 1st or 2nd reply vs being the 20th reply), especially when responding to Craigslist and/or Facebook ads. Here on Pinside, members are usually pretty good about responding in a timely manner. Other places, if they already have a deal in place, they may never answer you. Don't be afraid to send a follow-up message if you do not hear in 24 hours or so.

Were they questions about purchasing their machines or just general questions about them? If they are general questions, we call that 'tire kicking' and those types of questions may not get answered at all.

Finally a real answer. You’re new so that’s a huge red flag. Pinside actually has a warning because so many new members are scammers. You want to establish a reputation, one of the most important things is to learn HOW to inquire about purchasing a machine. Read threads, learn the lingo.
If you know how to talk like someone who’s interested in pinball then you’ll get somewhere.
If you’re just the type who wants to buy a machine and have it perfectly working and never wants to learn how to maintain it yourself then you should look into the retailers. That’s their customer base.
If you want to learn and get down and dirty on these machines, because they ALWAYS require a lot of maintenance, then do a lot of reading and learning the right questions to ask. I recommend watching classic arcade’s videos on YouTube as well as TNT

if you ask a bunch of silly questions they will probably get ignored by most on here. Sellers want a nice easy transaction and if someone is asking 500 questions about the machine then that usually will relate to a PIA process.

You'll need to be more aggressive. Get them on the phone asap offer asking price and be on the way with cash in hand.

Welcome to the world of pinball.

Non-responding OP?

If they are serious about selling and want your business they will reach out. Don't ever wait for the lazy. Continue to look for the pin you are ready to buy. If that old deal happens to get made, great. If not make it clear that you had cash in hand and were a serious buyer. Then if there is a next time they know to act accordingly.

If its a really great deal or I really want that particular machine then I MIGHT play the waiting/back and forth game giving the seller the power to say if and when. Otherwise don't sweat it.

Thanks
Blake

Nope. Not common at all ime. JJ at game exchange is great, so it Trent at tilt amusements as well as Zach at flip n out pinball. These are distributors that also have used games for sale and can ship them to ya.

As a new member, people will be cautious and may not want to deal with you. It's still rude not to answer your message. I've been strung along on sales. They want to come and look, then it's not a good week, then they found one cheaper and want to renegotiate. I still take every person serious but can see how some guys are just burnt on the process.
Getting some history on here will help. Starting a thread is a good start. Best thing you can get is a positive review on a game sale. I had a guy drive 5 hours to come look at a game just because I have good reviews.

Move along if you don't get a response the first time. Some people with games to sell think they're God or something. They're not. Don't act like you're doing them a favor by inquiring about their game. If they don't want to answer questions, be weary about what they're trying to hide.