I'm in the same "pinball on the cheap" boat usually. I have been finding decent newer games that are borderline ready for the dumps and most wouldn't touch with a 10 ft shooter rod . Got a re-import Bride of Pinbot a while back for very cheap, had a rats nest inside etc. But after a couple of years I brought it back to life. I'm not doing full blown restorations either. Cabinet fade, some wear on the playfield, fine with me, as long as it plays 100%. Most recent pickup was a TMNT for a couple of hundred bucks. Pretty beat, but had all Rottendog boards. After some clean up and hardware replacement, I'll have a well playing game for the kids to play.