I guess I'll have to attend this year.

You have it backwards. Comfort Suites is a lot less than Holiday Inn Express (or at least is was).

The rooms at the Holiday Inn Express are a little newer but if I had to pick between the two I would pick Comfort Suites hands-down. Unlike Holiday Inn Express, Comfort Suites has a nice bar/restaurant and now they have a brand-new indoor pool too.

When I first moved to Allentown last year I spent several months in both before I found a house.

An awesome kick-ass restaurant to go if you want the ultimate feast that is a block away from the Brass Rail is the Rodizio Grill.

A Brazilian steakhouse that keeps it coming until you say "Uncle".

Whenever customers come to town for my company, they always want to go to Rodizio.

http://www.rodiziogrill.com/

The Brass Rail is a good place too and I usually either take customers there or to the Titled Kilt for lunch which are both right that area too.

My favorite pizza joint in Allentown is Palumbos.

They also have awesome spaghetti and other traditional Italian favorites. Basically, everything on the menu is primo.

http://www.palumbopizzaandsubs.com/menu.html

What they could do is have a raffle prize awarded at the end of the show open to all who purchase a ticket. A pinball machine perhaps. Maybe a gift certificate to Marco or something like that.

The catch? The person must be present to win.

It's very-nice. The playfield looks like it's been restored. Has it been clear-coated?

It is nice. I wasn't aware that Playmatic did that (probably because I never had a Playmatic).

Since I usually don't go to these shows just to pick up a machine and leave (I can do that anytime), I prefer Saturday to Friday because I can spend the entire day there.

Once again I will be offering all my parts (plus a few extras this year) with no shipping charges to anyone who wants some.

My house is 3 miles from the Fairgrounds.

I was thinking of possibly selling a few backglasses and maybe a playfield or two.

I'll list what I plan to have available before the show. Since I live 3 miles away I don't have to drag everything to the show unless someone wants it.

I also have a Chevy Express cargo van and a big house with lots of storage space.

I think he meant the "smoke" from their beer farts.

lol

I've had several Pinsiders contact me about picking up parts are the show. Here's a chance to get them for no shipping charge.

Here's my current parts flyer. Everything is in stock.

You can PM or email me with your orders and I will add you to the list. All I will need in addition to your order is your name, dates you plan to be at the show, and phone # to contact you. You can pay in advance via PayPal or cash at the show.

See you at the show!

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That hotel is definitely the Ramada in Whitehall and it is about a block away from my house. I've stayed there before. Supposedly they just remodeled all the rooms a couple months ago. It's a good deal and a decent place to stay. It's also right across the street from the big Lehigh Mall and there are lots of restaurants in the area too. It's actually 3.6 miles away from the fairgrounds.

Yes, the Comfort Suites just put a small indoor pool in a few months ago.

The rooms there are OK and the they have a bar and decent breakfast. It's a little less expensive than the Holiday Inn Express next door. The location is real nice in the summer if you plan to go to Dorney Park which is right across the street and you can walk there.

Comfort Suites is 3.5 miles away from the Allentown Fairgrounds.

I stayed at the Comfort Suites and Holiday Inn Express for several months last year before I moved and if I had my choice I would pick the Comfort Suites. The rooms in the Holiday Inn Express were a little newer (and nicer) but it doesn't have a bar/restaurant. A lot of people in the Comfort Suites bar walk over from the Holiday Inn Express.

The Holiday Inn Express is $106 per night and Comfort Suites is $95 per night.

I can stay at Comfort Suites for $70 per night (king bed) with my corporate discount.

It's a possibility. I only have three of my machines up right now but I have a kegerator.

I'm an engineering consultant and travel a lot. I'm going to try real hard to be home for the show. I think I will be. I'm currently working on a job in Tennessee for the next 90 days but get to come home once per month.

Is the dual regulator setup so you can use both CO2 + Nitrogen for Guiness?

I have a Beverage Air kegerator. The reason I asked was I saw the Guiness mat on top of yours in the craigslist ad and know it takes two gasses.

I used to have two regulators for my previous kegerator because I could run two separate kegs in it if I wanted to with dual taps but it didn't look like yours was setup for that. Doesn't mean you couldn't get a dual tap later and do it though. You would need to got to the smaller skinny kegs though to fit them in the cabinet.

I only run one keg at a time now though. I like the Dutch and German beers the most and they just require CO2 as do most domestic brews.

That's a decent price for a nice-looking kegerator if anyone is looking for one.

Yeah most people who are serious about buying anything check out the entire show. There are no bad spots.

No it isn't. Comfort Suites is less expensive unless you get some special discount at Holiday Inn Express or something.

Without any discounts applied the Holiday Inn Express is $106 per night and Comfort Suites is $95 per night.

They are both probably booked up now though.

I would recommend the Ramada Inn in Whitehall as the next best budget motel to look at for those attending the show this year, although it may be booked-up by now too.

The thing that sucks about the Holiday Inn Express is unlike Comfort Suites and the Ramada Inn, the Holiday Inn Express doesn't have a bar/restaurant. The rooms are a bit nicer though.

There is a better selection of restaurants and shopping near the Ramada than near Comfort Suites and the Holiday Inn Express though. All are about the same distance away from the fairgrounds.

There are two big malls right next to the Ramada as well as tons of restaurants. I live a couple blocks away.

There is an awesome Mexican restaurant within walking distance if you like Mexican food.

It's called "Fiesta Ole". There are also many more within a mile including just about all the fast-food chains, Golden Corral, TGI Fridays, The Olive Garden, Longhorn, Mission Barbeque, Country Buffet, Flaming Grill & Buffet (Chinese), and tons of others. Two big malls and several smaller shopping centers as well as diners and other food places.

I have an expensive bottle of Tequila that I bought in Mexico City that I'm saving for Cinco de Mayo.

They must have jacked the rates up at the Comfort Suites just for Pinfest. I "lived" there for 6 months until my house was ready here just a few months ago.

I received an additional corporate discount on top that further reduced the price to $70 per night for a king bed.

I also stayed a few nights at the Holiday Inn Express and Ramada during that period so I got a taste of all of them.

I think that so-called "Pinfest Discount" might not be that great of a deal......

https://www.choicehotels.com/pennsylvania/allentown/comfort-suites-hotels/pa117

I was there last year during Pinfest. I "lived" there from April until October 2016. I still had my house in Illinois until I finally moved to Allentown last November.

The rooms at Comfort Suites aren't that much different and the breakfast there is just as good - plus they have a bar and a pretty-good restaurant. The Ramada isn't bad either. They just remodeled the rooms and they also have a bar.

Did you send them your $250 or are you going to wait until after you see it?

They are both decent. A lot of people staying at the Holiday Inn Express walk next door to the Comfort Suites "Lynx" Bar/Restaurant. It's a only a few hundred feet away.

Wow, that's surprising but if you would have booked a little in advance I bet you could have got the better rate. I know my rate didn't go up during the week of Pinfest last year. And normally, the Comfort Suites is less expensive than Holiday Inn Express next door.

It looks like some serious price-gouging to me. Almost twice as much as normal!

I have a spare bedroom at my house I should rent out! lol

For that price the Ramada is a much better deal for the money and it's in a better area as far as shopping and restaurants.

Just a reminder that all of my parts are in stock and can be delivered at the show for no shipping cost.

If you need to have lift channels cut down to shorter custom lengths please let me know in advance.

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Is there a list of the games that have already been registered for free play?

You lost me with this statement. Lots of climbing with a lift gate truck?

You roll the machine onto the lift gate and pull the little lever. The gate rises and you roll the machine into the truck. No climbing involved. It doesn't get any easier.

My friend's father who is 80 years old has a lift gate truck and a warehouse and loads stuff up in it all the time. About the only easier way you can move stuff would be to hire someone to do it for you.

Bring it and place it in the free play area. You'll get in free for the entire show and it will most-likely sell too. There are usually no shortage of people looking for EBD.

Every time I've ever brought one to a show I've had a lot of people bugging me to sell it. More than any other machine from the era.

Just think how shitty the show would be if everyone felt like this....

I can see it now. They open the doors at noon and the "show" ends at 12:30.

lol

That's the truth there. Like I was telling the guy with the nice-looking EBD in an earlier post who doesn't want bring it unless someone buys it in advance. He is asking a decent price and it would almost certainly sell at the show. As was mentioned earlier, the majority of the people who attend the show aren't on Pinside. Those who are on Pinside have already seen his ad and the posts about this machine. Like a used car, most people don't buy $2,300 pinball machines from people they don't know without "kicking a tire". Especially people who aren't on Pinside or know the seller.

I would be willing to bet that this machine sells for the asking price at the show if it is as nice as advertised. The only issue I would foresee would be if the buyer would want to yank it out of the free-play area early.

These shows are a golden opportunity for people who want to sell pinball machines. They can bring the game and put it in the free play area and get free admission while supporting the hobby and then have the machine exposed to the largest group of buyers they will ever have for no charge. If the machine sells there is no "consignment" fee.

Cash sales. No PayPal or eBay fees. It doesn't get any better than that in this world.

Now I can see why someone wouldn't want to bring their HUO $8,000 pin to the show but if they really want to sell quickly it they aren't going have a better opportunity so you have to weigh the options.

Well hopefully from your description of your EBD it is nicer than that one was. I saw the one you are referring to last year and it was a beater IMO. Not that it wasn't worth anything but it definitely needed a lot of work. It was probably worth about $1200 at the most.

You on the other hand have a $2300 machine which means it should be twice as nice (or one would think that). I've restored and sold probably 10 EBDs over the years and never had any problem selling them. Some sold for over $4,000. It's the most-popular Bally SS title there is.

One thing is for sure. No one at the show is going to buy it if you don't bring it and if you are planning on coming anyway you can even get in for free. A chance for a no-commission sale at an event where lots of potential buyers will be present.

It's up to you though. A highly sought-after machine like EBD will eventually sell one way or another.

If anyone buys a pin for hundreds or thousands of dollars, the $40 penalty for early withdrawal is more than reasonable since there is no consignment fee. eBay consignment fee is 10% and so are most auctions so unless you are selling a machine for less than $400 it's still not that big of a deal for the buyer or even the seller.

Personally, I ALWAYS require that if a buyer wants to remove a pin they purchased from me early that they pay the penalty since it's up to them. They can wait until the end of the day and pay no penalty.

It's almost unbelievable how cheap some people are though. They get in for free, sell a machine and then whine about $40.

The $40 early withdrawal fee is the right thing to have in the best interest of the show and shouldn't be a deal-breaker. Without it some people would abuse the system and the show would suffer.

Wow dude, you really need to tone it down a notch. If you feel the rules are so unjust, no one is forcing you to bring a machine. It doesn't get much more simple than that. Pay to get in, do your business and leave whenever you want.

It really isn't rocket-science to most of us. If there wasn't the $40 early withdrawal fee, some cheap-ass bastards would inevitably bring machines to the show and place it in the free-play section just to get in free and then have the buyers from their pre-arranged sale yank them right out. The show would then lose the admission fee of the cheap bastards plus all the games from the free play area. In other words, a few bad apples would ruin it for everyone else who paid to get in. There has to be some "incentive" (or deterrent depending on how you look at it) to encourage people to not game the system and support the show.

The rules are there for good reason.

Last year there were still plenty of machines on Saturday. I actually enjoyed myself more on Saturday. More time to shoot the shit and walk across the road to the Farmer's Market too.

I think more local people come on Saturday. I saw a lot more families with kids.

Everyone knows how much EBD is worth. If you have one to bring to the show I encourage you to bring it.

Yes I'm still around and will be at the show. Here's my parts flyer. It's an excellent opportunity for anyone who plans to order anything to pick it up at the show and pay zero shipping. I'm taking orders in advance and you can either pre-pay via PayPal or cash at the show.

Send me a PM or email if interested with the items you want, your name, phone # to contact you at the show, and I will add you to the list.

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wtf is a rfm?

I have a framed NOS Bally Eight Ball Deluxe Backglass for $400 I can bring to the show. I purchased this years ago. The guy I bought it from said his father had it professionally-framed when it was new in the early 1980's. I have never had it out of the frame or even looked at the backside but it appears to be good from the front. The frame alone is worth $100.

Although this could be removed from the frame and used in a machine, it would kind of be a shame. It makes an awesome wall decoration for a game room or mancave.

Sold as-is. I will not remove it from the frame or separate.

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I've had several people ask for game-specific backglass lift channels and edge trim and I am always hesitant to tell them they need one size or another without being 100% certain it will fit. Especially with some of the CPR reproduction backglasses that are thinner than the originals so I usually ask that they measure their backglass thickness before ordering.

As most of you know, I manufacture trim for 1/8" and 3/16" thick backglasses.

Here's a list I have been compiling for a few years that I know the sizes for.

Note: These are the factory backglass thicknesses. If you have a repop it may not be the same.

Pinball Backglass Thicknesses 2-page-001.jpg

My trim is an exact fit for the machines listed above but will also fit many other EM and SS machines. The lift channels are 28.5" long but can be cut to shorter lengths for no additional charge.

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It's the original 1981 version.

(Luke 6:37-42; Romans 14-12)

Do not judge, or you will be judged.

For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

I just got home from the fairgrounds. There are plenty of machines there this year. I brought two myself. I played the Aerosmith pin. It's pretty-awesome. The show looks like it will be just as big as it was last year (maybe a little bigger). Tons of machines for sale.

I will be delivering parts to those of you who ordered some for the show and will have a limited supply of extras too. If anyone needs any give me a call. If I run out I can always go get more from my house which is only 3 miles from the show.

I had some barbeque ribs and a milk shake at the farmer's market across the street for dinner. Awesome stuff.

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I don't need nice weather to play pinball. It's not like we're going to see a baseball game.

It's not a show-stopper though. It shouldn't have any bearing on anyone's decision as to whether or not to come. After all, it is primarily an indoor event.

lol

I got a lot of comments on my badge.

I tried to be a forum "uniter".

Check it out. Custom neck band and everything.

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I have to admit though that I didn't see very many other attendees with badges on. I saw a couple but not as many as I thought I would.

It was a nice game but when I played it the right flipper was a little weak. I think the switch needed a tweak. Definitely one of the nicest Joker Pokers out there though. I looked to see if it was for sale but it wasn't.

There were other machines that weren't quite ready for the free play area though. By day two there were several that were either totally out of order or working sub-par. I'm kind of anal when it comes to that. I've had some of mine break at shows before but I usually take the extra time to make them as robust as possible to ensure they operate as perfectly as possible and have the best chance for zero issues. I hate having to work on them at a show.

The two I brought were solid this year and they got a lot of plays. No issues except I had to replace three bulbs. Everything else was 100%.

Yeah I noticed that too. It was missing half of the playfield parts so I didn't bother trying to play it. It's a great machine though. The owner probably couldn't find the plastics he needed to put it back together. If he would have he probably could have gotten more for it. Plus it would have gotten a lot more attention in free-play area rather than an incomplete project.

I just wish CPR would have made the playfield and plastics sets they were planning to make for Globetrotters. I was on their pre-order list and actually sold my last NOS playfield I had last year to a guy on the forum that needed it and then CPR announced that after all that waiting on the list they decided not to make the Globetrotters because of some licensing issue or something. Now I wish I would have kept the playfield.

Globetrotters is a decent machine though. I have a real-nice HUO one that I guess I'll just have to strip the playfield and have the inserts re-leveled and clear-coated one of these days. It's a keeper.

Here's mine. I scored this machine a few years ago. It's basically NOS. It was a HUO machine with very low plays on it that was sitting in a guy's basement under a tarp. He said he bought it brand-new for his kids but they barely played it.

Check it out. When I picked it up it still had the protective coating on the side rails. This sucker is mint.

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The first thing I did was to remove that battery.

In the future I would probably let the individuals book their own rooms at whatever hotel you all plan to attend. That way if anything gets screwed-up, you don't bear any of the blame. Just a suggestion. I don't see any real advantage of booking as a group other than if anything is screwed-up, all parties involved will have one person they can blame (even if it wasn't your fault).

If you read my post you will see I didn't.

The sooner you book your hotel room too the cheaper it will be. The rates were a lot higher for the so-called Pinfest rates than they normally are.

If you plan on going book months in advance. You can always cancel 24 hours before if something pops up and you can't make it.

Comfort Suites staff is pretty-lame though. I remember once when I stayed there for 5 months last year as I was working as a consultant in Allentown before I moved here that they removed all my luggage and locked me out one night. I went down and raised hell and they finally gave me another room.

If you filed a Police report and the hotel gave your room key to another person you can sue the Hotel in small claims court.

You don't need a lawyer and for $500 the hotel is almost certain to settle. When they do settle, make sure you get the $500+ the fees for filing the claim.

I don't blame you. There are plenty of other hotels in Allentown.

It's normally $70. They gouged you Pinfest guys.

That's Thursday afternoon and those are my Star Trek and Playboy pins I brought to the show that the guy is looking at.

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