Craigslist, Mr. Pinball and (only as a reference) eBay are the ones I use most often.

Oh, and of course, the Market on here Pinside

G

Those are also what I use. You really have to be patient when looking for a pin. Finding a local one is always the best due to high shipping charges that's why I check local craigslist daily. You could also look to distributors but they usually charge top dollar here are a few: http://www.monkeysarcades.com/Pinball_Machines_s/2.htm

http://www.greatamericanpinball.com/

http://pinballfun.com/

G, the market place is good here at Pinside...as long as people add and reveal their LOCATION!!! I am not a mind reader people. Throw me a bone here.

Hey Robin, is it possible to make the location of the Pin a "must fill in" data line before the Pin can be listed?

I am right with you on that one jwwhite15. That is the main reason why I use other sites because many times sellers for some reason do not list their location here on pinside.

Been there lot's of times. There's a lot of others out there looking to jump on a deal. You got to stick with it.

Copy that! Robin, I second the motion if possible.

On a different note, since there's so many of us scattered all over the country (and even the world), it would be great to know that if one of us found a machine say... 1,000 miles away, we could have one of our Pinside buds pick it up and store (enjoy) it for a while until the buyer could pick it up. I know I'd be willing to do that for anyone who sees a machine in Central FL area.

G

Excellent idea G. I would be willing to help out any fellow Pinsider if they found the right pin and needed assistance. As a buyer I would prefer someone who cares about the machine handle it until I had the opportunity to pick it up myself. This would remove the shippers from the equation altogether and thats a good thing. Pinsiders helping eachother obtain our favorite games-that my friend, is a great idea indeed.

Another source for buying/selling pins is pynball.com:

http://www.pynball.com/app/guest/welcome.do

It's much newer than Mr. Pinball, so it isn't nearly as active, but it's got a much better interface.

Sometimes just by going to google / search for pinball & zip code turns up off beat ads
in local papers that have on line listings

I also think this is a great idea. The only problem I have with it is how anonymous many of us are here. IE: I KNOW I am trustworthy but, would you send your pin to the home of a "gorilla"?

I thought Iowans are harmless teddy bears

I like going to auctions,
I get to go to gameroom auctions every month or every other month depending on the surplus...
But sometimes you can walk away with a pretty nice machine.
A heavily routed one- but cheap nonetheless!

NimblePin, is that the auction house in Anahiem? I so wish I could make it down there. Maybe we can work something out, I am up in Bakersfield and would love to either partner up or make some kind of arrangement. I usually make it down in that direction every 6 weeks or so...kids and Disneyland ya know. I was in Thousand Oaks a couple of weeks ago picking up a Pin. Let me know what you think and mail me if you are interested in any way. Thanx.

Yes it is.
i think they can take bids by phone and online if you cant make it down.
Sadly I work most Saturdays...

We have a local classified here that gets picked off nationally. It's www.ksl.com (which is a news site, but you can access their classifieds from there), and when I list games on it I get offers from all over. I've shipped stuff as far away as New York from listing on there. I'm not sure how it's being found out, but people keep an eye on it.

If you don't mind shipping, it's worth looking at once a week or so.

yup - Medusa 1725$ Salt Lake City
just never know what you will find

I know what you're saying. But, given the common enthusiasm we all have for the hobby, I would trust most of the regulars on here. Besides, if a "gorilla" has my machine, I don't have to worry about anyone taking it

puckguy... love your avitars

G

Captain's Auctions isn't a place to find a bargain. If you're lucky, you could possibly get out of there with a player's game at a reasonable price. If you're caught up in the "auction fever" you'll pay a significant premium for a routed and broken down project machine. Here's the breakdown from the previous go at the end of April...

Williams 7up $400, powered up, project
Meteor $525, decent playfield, played well but cab pretty jacked on one side
Flash $350, worn playfield, powered up but wouldn't start a game (buyback)
DE Hook $1150, worked, looked ok
Black Rose $1250, UGLY touch ups all around the canon otherwise it was ok
Cyclone $300 all ramps melted, no displays (buyback)
Special Force $500, nice clean game
Bride of Pinbot $900, tons of switch errors, bad wear at the drops and ramp entrance, cracked yellowed ramps, wouldn't fire the ball out from under the skill shot
Stern Harley $1400, no balls installed to test, powered up
POTC $2600, decent shape
DE Checkpoint $650, some light playfield wear
South Park $1100, stuck in ball search
Elvis $2500, display iffy and non-working bad upper flipper
Shaq $850, worked ok but didn't really look at it much
T2 $950, did not power up said it was missing display board, otherwise it was dirty but looked like it would be very nice once cleaned
Flintstones $1200, decent shape worked fine
High Speed $750, worn playfield around the pops, no pops or slings firing

Pretty much all the games needed extensive shop jobs and repairs. Apparently at an auction if the power comes on the game "works." Prices are hammer prices and do not include 15% buyers premium and 9.75% sales tax. I know two were buybacks (noted)... not sure one the rest.

Captain's Auctions isn't a place to find a bargain. If you're lucky, you could possibly get out of there with a player's game at a reasonable price.

I said SOMETIMES you could walk away with a pretty nice machine! Sheesh... Semantics.
I stopped in early on the one listed above jay... Pretty much you said it all.
That day was not a great example! Although POTC for $2600 not bad...
That Hook was actually in very good shape!
Plus Special Force for $500 that baby was in excellent shape!

SF.jpg

How often do you really run into one of these jay?
Sure- that day did not have the top shelf goods but "sometimes" you do get lucky!
At least I do!

That POTC wasn't even close to a good price IMO—not at nearly $3250 out the door anyway. It was a routed game and needed at least a good shop job. The Special Force on the other hand, I totally agree that was a solid buy at about $625. Cool game... LOVED those straw hut pop bumper caps.

I got to look at the guts of the POTC it wasn't that bad... Lightly routed I would say...
Hey look at the bright side! At least the ship worked!
That alone will save you a pretty penny.
I guess the cost of "shopping" a pin is a grey area for most.
A little TLC goes a long way...

The Flintstones was a surprise for me at least. Pretty fun!