This was a now-closed fundraiser with good intentions. I asked for free manpower help too, which many people responded positively to as an alternative, but when the time came nobody showed up FWIW. Thanks to all who donated!

A little backstory: My home with my parents back in PA is an apartment, my grandma's home where I spent about 40% of the time out here in NJ has a big basement - long story short, it is the base for my collection and I now of course spend about 50-60% of my time here and live here half the time. Well, I was out in PA for a little while and just got back to NJ to actually drop off another game I found out in PA (frequently going back and forth allows me a much larger range for seeking out games as I can come and go as I please, so while where I picked up my game would be 4 hours each way from here in NJ, it would only be an hour and a half from PA where I can come home and rest and sleep until I want to make the rest of the trip back to the collection or for when I was going to anyways - usually weekends)...

Thank you. Yeah, I'm prepared. Although I am not the guy asking for help buying a pinball machine.

If anything I would appreciate the hard labor more than the money. Pizza would be in order if I can set something up! My uncle also works for Budweiser so the house is filled with free beer...

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Thanks, I actually picked up a good model from Home Depot, one of the first things I did after vacuuming up as much as I could. Unfortunately that ran me dry, pun not intended.

Discovered the other side leaked too but didn't notice as it was behind the games and behind the heater behind the games. Looks like a internal french drain will be needed. So, tomorrow one by one up they come.

I am curious though, while the internal french drain to sump pump seems like the best solution and is basically a catch-all, how the foundation will fair without one outside. That option does not seem as good and due to the major excavation is much more pricey too. The concrete blocks inside of the basement on the side that usually gets wet already seem to have some blocks that you can touch and small pieces will fall off... I believe it does leak from the walls but this time it seems to be leaking from the floor/wall seam (which is apparently common too) instead of the walls themselves. And this time seems worse than any time I can remember except after Hurricane Sandy which was before I started collecting pinball machines.

At this point I can probably convince my family whatever is needed is needed for the sake of maintaining the home as well (considering the expensive heating system is surrounded by water) so hopefully due to the majorness of the situation it won't land on my plate after all.

Wow thank you all so much for the very generous support - I am truly speechless. It's pouring out right now and flooding is all over the news so we had no time to waste, and my Mom, bless her soul, just helped me move two games out of the basement into the dining room and more to come. Don't tell Grandma but we took her dining room table apart and put it in storage...

Is anybody free tomorrow? I'm thinking of just kind of opening the doors, ordering a few pizzas and some sodas, and getting what we can done to anybody who wants to show up. Right now we were just focused on getting some games up from the dry area so the games in the most vulnerable spots can be moved to those (dry corner is easier to get to) but I think at this point if I am going to need this french drain installed I guess everything has to get out of there, even if they can be worked around I don't think it is a good idea for the games to be around a bunch of jackhammers and whatnot.

Let me know if tomorrow works for anybody. Let's say 12 noon? Saturday is probably better for people's schedules but I think I better try my luck on Friday than wait around.

Also, right now I hope to not sell any games, and especially right now as I don't have the time for that. I am not trying to be stingy but after spending many hours inside of each of them I get really attached. Instead of buying any game I can get my hands on to flip I only try to buy what I want to keep for many years which is why I don't usually sell games. That probably sounds stupid but I hope people can understand. I will be working hard in other ways to help get money to get this pump installed.

Thank you all again for the very generous support. At the end of all this once I recover some money I would like to make a charitable donation to show my thanks.

Steven

I have the space upstairs for until we get it done. My grandma stays with my aunt most of the time due to age, so don't tell her about the missing dining room table. Nah, but they'll be fine and understanding - and my mom is onboard of course. Hopefully this will be quick and the games can "return home" soon enough.

Progress (Typical grandma china cabinet in the background for scale)

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I understand this point of view and certainly do not like asking for help, especially money. I'm not going to respond to these kinds of posts because I'm slammed with being busy as it is but I just wanted to say: I put the e-mail there and anybody who wants to chip in is welcome to. I am not being a soup beggar or reaching out to anybody in particular, just an e-mail in a post and the rest from there is done by people who want to help out.

Thanks

I also appreciate the offers of manpower and especially Boob's Escelera, which will be a major physical help in at least getting the games to safety with ease and without worry.

Great advice. Thank you.

You are not in my situation or shoes so I cannot expect you to understand.

Anyways, I started this thread more for getting some helping hands in person and threw the PayPal in as a side-thought but I can see how there are many Pinsiders more who AREN'T close enough to do that and want to help out some other way.

Anyhow, picking up Boob's generous offer of letting me borrow his Escalera (one day I'll figure out how to spell it consistently!) tonight. Got my working hands on for tomorrow.

I will have to look into it. I will give them a call. I'm assuming Charles is you. Thanks a lot!

We're looking into that as well

Yes. My basement is 4 cinderblock walls, some shitty 40 year old stick-on tiles, and pinball machines. Thankfully.

Thanks all again for the support and kind words. I picked up Boob's Esclelelelelelera (I'm done with trying to spell it) and it is charging now, and most of the water has been vacuumed up and the rest is continously filling up the dehumidifier.

I was also able to finally get that game I just picked up I mentioned in the first post out of the car after like 4 days...

Hopefully tomorrow or Saturday we will get something going. I have had so much outpouring offers to help locally that it is hard to organize to make sure nobody's time is wasted. So I'm probably just going to end up figuring out a time sometime tonight for tomorrow, order some cheap pizza tomorrow, and set up one of the machines so if there's overflow people have something to do while chatting and whatnot while we work. Unfortunately only one set of stairs and one Escalera or everybody would have a lot to do!

So, let's do a tally.

Upstairs after today's progress with Mom:

'74 Gottlieb Sky Jump
'69 Gottlieb Mibs
'73 Gottlieb Pro Football (new to me, never made it to the basement thankfully)
'68 Gottlieb Domino (head)
'69 Gottlieb Airport (head)
'79 Williams Flash (head)
'78 Williams World Cup (head)

To go:

'55 Gottlieb Southern Belle
'66 Gottlieb Mayfair
'68 Gottlieb Fun Park
'69 Gottlieb Spin-A-Card
'69 Gottlieb Wild Wild West
'69 Gottlieb Skipper
'72 Gottlieb Wild Life
'74 Gottlieb Magnotron
'82 Gottlieb Devil's Dare
'69 Gottlieb Airport (body)
'62 Williams Vagabond
'70 Williams Jive Time
'72 Williams Super Star
'74 Williams Strato-Flite
'77 Williams Liberty Bell
'85 Williams Comet
'79 Williams Flash (body)
'78 Williams World Cup (body)
'71 Bally Skyrocket
'74 Chicago Coin Showtime (got wet but still solid)
Empty Bally body cabinet for Star-Jet

(Again, nothing is for sale, sorry)

Whatever you say man I just want my games out of the danger zone primarily.

No promises that my family can afford the construction, but if that ends up being the case and if they're even interested and show up with a check to get it all going (seems unlikely) no issues giving refunds or donating to charity. Probably will go towards drylock/other sealants anyways but this in no way will benefit me in the end. Just those hunks of metal and wood I put my heart and soul into. I really want to open a museum one day even if that sounds like a pipe dream to some.

Hmmmmmm...

Your favorite Okay, that's mean Otaku LOL

Pardon my godawful sense of humor... If there's anybody I should be extra nice to it should be you but I simply couldn't resist.

I think you are dabbling a bit too much into my personal life and on top of that you're making assumptions and getting them wrong. I don't NEED to explain it to you and won't but I figure I'll dabble in a little before your comments gather alike minds:

Living at home? Well yes, I'm 18. I can detail my life further but no thanks

Uses grandparents basement? Yes. Except it's not just that, I cleaned out all of the junk that was down there for years upon years with nothing new being added, it was basically an unused space. Also removed all of the bird construction mentioned in the first post that was built into the house. The house had gotten a really bad batch of mice due to all of the birdseed probably 12 years ago now and that mixed with the occasional water getting in it was in a bad dirty state and also black mold was occuring, and at the time it was a large concern to my family and also the work they would have to do when one day selling the house. So I went in and eliminated it all for them (without being asked), taking down all of the wooden and wire mesh bird cages (deconstruction rather; these were basically little rooms built into the house you could stand in), cleaning up all of the mouse feces and the occasional mouse skeleton (eugh), and even went as far as taking a custom wall my late grandfather built down as it was moldy and no longer needed. (He did some GREAT work too - not easy stuff to take down! Really made me respect the work) Today they don't have to worry about it anymore and I have great gameroom space and to me both are gratifying and I worked hard and mostly alone for it over the course of several months. I also did the exact same thing with the garage which was unused and filled with old junk to use for housing my arcade collection under similar cirumstances. I worked for what I have, and not just the machines either. I don't own the space, no, but by working hard and helping my family the feeling of my collection being okay is mutual.

House needs repairs? Not necessarily (besides water issue), but thanks for asking... I did however install carbon monoxide alarms and LED lighting whenever a bulb burns out (not one for "shotgunning" bulbs) off of my own wallet though during my stays here as well as other occasional repairs to make sure things are safe and upkept for everybody who stays here.

There are other reasons why I am here so much that serve a functional purpose (even if it's secondary) but I've answered everything I felt comfortable answering, simply because I felt like it.

Sometimes things are not as they appear!

I do appreciate the nice comments you made though but I think you got me all wrong SunKing.

Also, yes I consider it a large emergency. Either because I love these machines dearly or because the amount of money and time I spent on them, take your pick. Since you don't care though let me know if you ever want to send Alien over this way for a swim, I'd love to have something to play in the gameroom while all my machines are stored awaiting the basement to get fixed.

Thanks all for the replies. Got a few more wedgeheads upstairs early this morning. Looks like the forecast is looking a little better so I am going to take a well needed break besides the occasional vacuuming for water that is still coming in and the dehumidifier getting a work out. As of right now after a ton of work I'm only getting slight leakage and puddles and there is no more like large puddle of terror. Still no reason to slow down but I think if I don't take a small break I'm gonna croak faster than them.

That being said, let's do Saturday at 2 PM. I can't imagine needing many hands all at once but whoever wants to come hang out, eat lunch, talk shop, and lift the spirits is welcome to come by. Just don't blame me if you don't get to break your back! Although I am sure a lot of guys will be done after 2 or 3 so maybe the more the merrier, I realize I am a little gifted in the agile department.

Shoot me a PM if you would like to come by. Refreshments and pizza will be in order for 3 PM, I'll dig my last $20 out of the junk drawer for it. Looking forward to meeting people. Sad it wasn't for a real and normal pinball party with 30 machines ringing away but of course everybody is always welcome back for the reopening celebration when all is said and done.

Time for some real sleep this time but I'll respond to PMs this afternoon. Thanks so much again. Seeing a slightly dry floor is encouraging but the battle is not over yet!

Steven

Rumor central! If I don't have a job how do you expect me to have 29 pinball machines even if they were all $100 - they were not free. Yes, I have a job. (and also a bank account, not sure where you got that idea from)

You guys having a fun time playing sherlock? Lol.

My family has no reason to necessarily care about some water in their basement besides maybe if they're worried about foundation damage. You have to understand the basement is literally 4 walls and a concrete floor. There is nothing to damage except my machines. They care about me (and my hobby) but I do not expect them to go full speed ahead to save my machines like I would. They do not understand.

Also, I don't think a loan against my car of all things is the best option here... this is getting very extreme.

Plain and simple need help moving the machines first and foremost. That was always the point of the thread. Once that is done it is no longer an emergency situation and the basement can leak to its heart's content until we get it fixed. Posted my PayPal so if anybody who wants to help but isn't close enough can contribute. Did not realize a single sentence can get so many people up in arms. I respect people's money but also respect their right to do with it as they please - and if they want to contribute I'm not "robbing" them by any means. I still disagree and felt more guilty originally for asking than I do as a result of any of these responses.

I need money for a sump pump and while I work for it myself I offered if anybody would like to help with that they can do so. A lot of very generous people donated and are still donating and I am so grateful. The "other side of the argument" (which didn't even really need to be an argument in the first place) turned into a bunch of older people discussing my life, if I have a job, my family, how much my family "hates me", and how greedy I am. Wonderful. I think the guy asking for money to buy the Rocky pinball machine because he was in debt from loans he took out and couldn't afford it got less grief than this. However somehow I am not surprised, which is unfortunate.

I will certainly pay it forward and the discussion of what I will do if I have leftover money is insane. As I said it will either go towards fixing the problem, if it's totally not needed whatsoever and my family steps in and nails out the problem it will be returned or donated, and if there's only a partial amount left the rest will be donated to a charity like the childhood diabetes charity posted on here by @Bryan_Kelly. (link for those who want to help out there: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/rob-zombie-custom-300-auction-for-jdrf, there is a regular donate link further down in the thread which helps them out)

That being said I do not want to be chastised when/if I buy more machines in the future. I still have a job, just not one that pays $2,000 in 3 days for a sump pump that is needed ASAP. It will be slightly less urgent once all of the machines are safe but still urgent in the essence that they're taking up the living space, or urgent in the fact that they're being paid for in a storage unit, etc., etc..

Thanks.

Asking for help of saving pinball machines on a pinball forum seems relevant to me. You're right, asking for help repairing your bathroom would be a little odd on here.

It's not always empty and semi-frequently gets to a decent amount. But it doesn't sometimes have thousands of dollars in it, either. Especially during a dire situation like this. I spent the last of it on the dehumidifer which I am not putting donations towards since I bought it just before them.

Re-read next time. That is insane.

Thank you for the very kind offer. I think I can find the room around here but if not I will likely get a small storage unit for the small amount of leftover.

It's true though!

A job's a job. I have monthly customers and also service businesses with a large lineup of machines that frequently go down. I don't think that necessarily qualifies as "unemployed". I make a monthly amount that is pretty consistent across each month. And no, it's not zero.

I pay for my expenses at home and my games. Not sure where I said anything different. Due to said medical condition I eat about 6 different foods, very plain cheap food with little to no extra ingredients. Not very expensive to cover myself. No fast food nor filet mignon for me!

This is the best advice I have received yet and was foolish of me to not have much saved up, I admit that. Thank you. No excuses for that. Usually I keep a few hundred in the bank but splurged a little more last month as I am preparing a few games to go out on route to earn a tiny bit extra (no split with location owner) and also let others enjoy the silver ball and get some games off of the floor which unfortunately came just a litttle too late as this trip I was scheduled to bring the game that was on the floor back to PA to get it ready for operation. Still not an excuse, I understand that.

Thanks.

I'm staying positive on this thread but excuse you. You come in here acting like you know my life. Just because I can move games around does not mean I am magically cured. Thankfully things are better than they were a little while back through very strict managament and keeping up with it but it is still there and not every medical issue is something you can see or something that makes you unable to function physically, I am still physically competent as long as I keep my issue managed very well and keep my head up through the pain. Does not mean I am doing great every day or that I can commit to a schedule. Good days and bad days. I can't expect you to understand and you should stop making assumptions because you're coming off like a prick.

Thanks for your nice words Buzz. I am not a big believer in loans or credit cards because I have seen them destroy people so I do what I can to stay away from them, loans can be good but I think not getting one and dealing with the Pinside backlash is a much more mature decision than getting one against my car and not being sure I could even pay it back in time. It something else comes up to where I wouldn't be able to pay it back I am screwed. And that is not a good decision.

Thanks all for the nice comments and donations so far. Hanging in there and still just a moderate leak going on there, dry or just moist floors at most of the basement thankfully while still getting puddles around most of the perimeter.

Thanks to Pinside together we have raised nearly $600 in two days towards my cause. I will be getting a quote from the business spfxted mentioned as soon as all of the games are out incase they have to come over. I am very very grateful and will be sending out thank yous to the PayPal e-mails if I don't know the person's number or their Pinside alias.

Remember to please join me tomorrow around 2 PM to help get these last games up. If you need the address please PM me. (Again, not selling games especially at firesale prices so please don't ask, sorry!)

Here are some photos from today, alone again as Mom had to return to PA so did what I could to start moving some games around and disassembling them:

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Dehumidifer is rated for up to 70 liters every 24 hours and have been emptying a nearly full bucket around every 10 hours or so. Not sure how much it holds but it's a lot!

Thanks guys. Good to see the thread turn around a little and appreciate the defense. Posted in the EM pictures thread of how cool the wedgeheads look packed up next to each other and linked the thread so I could explain why they were like that (a lot of my EM friends don't browse the rest of the forum/have the rest shut off) but caught the brunt of it there too for barely anything. An e-mail address linked once sure brings out people's feelings! You'd think people who didn't wanna donate enough to where it makes them angry would stay off of the thread.

Silver lining, all that posting activity from their replies and the replies they caused to their statements bumped the thread over and over over the last few days and likely helped out tons in terms of visibility on the main page. So thanks guys! (not even being sarcastic either) It helped generate lots of donations and also seems to have got me the help in-person I needed which is the best part. Thank you Pinsiders for coming together to get my games out of this mess.

The basement is doing okay (still leaking) and they are not in a lot of water anymore but now the point is to get them out of there so I can get the proper construction done even if they "might" be okay staying down there with the amount of water that is down there now. (which probably isn't true anyways)

Sent out PM replies for details of tomorrow's little get together. Looking forward to meeting some of you!

Also, question to anybody else with a sump pump in their gameroom:

I'm assuming you have some kind of cover that still allows water to drip into the sump pit (or I guess it wouldn't need to if the french drain drained in from the side)? Seems like humidity would be a concern as if I am not mistaken there is always a constant amount of water in the sump pit, and when it gets over a certain amount it pumps the extra out to bring it back to normal rather than draining the entire pit. Makes sense, but wondering about the humidity/cover. I guess they're usually left uncovered if there is no other reason to cover it like in my case.

I see some on Google when searching for covers. Just making sure these are a-okay to use. Will ask the experts but curious of other experiences while I wait.

Yeah, I just meant even during a dry spell. Luckily my dehumidifier does have a hose as previously mentioned by somebody who thought they had the same model. Hopefully it won't create a loop of the dehumidifier taking in the sump pit water and just draining it back out into the sump pit. A cover will likely help out.

Pretty much it. It's been a long battle but doing a little better these days as long as I eat food in the right order after I get up due to how bile sits in my body. I have had intense IBS since I was a kid and then a few days before Christmas in 2014 I had to have my gall bladder removed in an emergency surgery at age 16 I believe. Also have had cameras inside of me more than once and all the fun and prep that comes with it. Not very fun! My gall bladder actually died inside of me and they used the revolutionary Da Vinci robot to do it all through an small incision, very cool technology. However the expert surgeon said it was the most difficult one he ever did and that he almost had to resort to the old method of a very large incision across my side because of how difficult it was being. (Gross warning) It had actually died inside of me and somehow "grew arms" and it had to be peeled off of my other insides. (Hardcooooore! ) I was in there for quite some time, asleep of course though. It was like that for quite some time as the hospital I went to the emergency room twice here in NJ said I was just constipated. Went on two different occasions when a major pain spell struck, then finally the third time it happened in PA and I was able to go to my normal doctor and after some tests everybody was shocked, especially after I was sent home advised to just take some laxatives twice from the other hospital. Overlook Hospital, negative shoutout to you... not sure I would trust them with my life!

But yeah, that on top of the IBS which was already very severe just added another complication to things because the bile is now a consistent flow rather than having somewhere to sit. Plain toast to absorb it up in the morning (tastes good too), then some plain chicken to get a good meal in my stomach, then usually rice cakes to top it all off and then I can eat whatever of the rest of my 7-10 possible food choices (plain rice, bananas, chicken and rice soup, rice, fish, rice cakes, banana chips, canned pears - is all I've been able to eat for the last 3 years or so) - that's pretty much key, just setting myself a good base for the day because an empty stomach means trouble! If I go about 6 hours without eating and then try to eat something besides the initial toast that spells trouble so I have to constantly make sure I'm having a snack every now and then. Knock on wood, the past 2 months have been magical in terms of how well I manage it and how great I feel just because I've got the routine down finally. Minimal suffering, but still definitely there. Staying hopeful. Also taking medication to shut off the receptors in my abdomen.

I don't use it as a crutch though or feel bad for myself. I keep my head up. Just doesn't allow me right now hold a 9-5 but I am hoping one day I can build up the consistency and mental strength to go for it. I used to ask myself why me but now that I handle it I am okay with it and wouldn't wish it on anybody. Pinball and arcade collecting was a good thing for me after I had to leave school and eventually I turned it into a job that I love and here I am. Taught myself circuit board repair and all the like and service some commercial and residential clients around NJ & PA.

Thanks for your input. I don't mind talking about it as it is not very personal considering I have to tell all the sweet people who I have to politely decline's food offerings...

I'm helping myself by being on my hands and knees vacuuming up water and lugging 300 pound games up the stairs - it's a "group effort"! Surely I too will be donating to my cause once I get my next paycheck. Never forced anybody else to!

Thanks Tim. Very weird seeing some of the people I thought I was good with/friends with come out of the woodwork with the not just negative but particularly mean responses, no exaggeration. Disappointing and sometimes hurtful, but it is what it is I guess. I will likely try taking a little break after this to let all the dust settle and clear my head, being here has been met with more negative responses and than positive as of late even before this and it has caused me to not always be able to walk into the gameroom with the same excitement and smile on my face and being proud of what I have which I want to bring back. I always feel like less around here, even with the kinder responses being along the line of "he'll learn someday, he'll be good someday" (they mean well) really makes me feel like a disappointment and less of a person for my current present-day self, like I won't be good for another 20 years. The worst part is is that I have begun to believe it, time to cut that out. Some people are so misunderstanding. I am grateful and owe a lot to the people who were kind enough to chip in. Just different eras of upbringing I guess (I think if it were age I would have figured it out by now), not begging for money and I know that is sorry but doesn't hurt to provide a simple link I'd say, to me there is a difference which is why this has left me confused and bewildered. Figured those who didn't want to donate wouldn't donate and would leave it alone and it appears I am not alone in this thought. Crazy! The thread was for the story and for the in-person help, the rest was an afterthought and a minimal contribution to the post.

Anyways, thanks and hopefully one day Star-Jet #2 will be ready to go and touring around shows with me. Dry games are good games! One of these days I will have to stop up there especially to get my pinball fix now.

Thanks Tom. Nobody here yet, sent out a few replies but not sure if anybody is coming. Open door, though, so I guess we'll see. Probably will continue disassembly myself in a little to get started. If nobody shows up I think a friend is around tomorrow.

Does your pump have a battery backup feature? Might be worth investing in! I hear those are popular around Pinside.

Nobody showed up today (yet) so I gave the Escelera StairCat @beezleboob loaned me another whirl as it's meant to be operated alone anyhow - had a little test run with Mom the other day and wasn't feeling too comfortable with it and it went a little shaky so I gave up after the first set of stairs and went back to the normal handtruck for the last game of the night but this afternoon I decided to perservere and this time went perfect.

Not bad for 300 lbs. up two small flights of stairs!

(Sorry for the bad quality and "EDIT & SEND" text on all the pictures, phone is full of memory and my computer where I empty it is at home - so I use an app to bypass the memory cap)

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Next...

"Flash, aaaaaaaah!"

(I am taking little breaks between bringing up games I already took apart so I figure why not share some of my passion of these machines? I always love telling the stories behind my collection and the history behind all of these machines. I remember every year all 30 machines were made and how much I paid for each of them all in my head. Some say I'm crazy but I just love pinball! )

1979 Williams Flash - picked this up two years ago for $200 as my second game in the hobby. Heavy project, came off of route way back when and sat in a warehouse ever since. Time capsule, most of the bulbs were factory original and burnt out. I did not realize until now how beautiful this original factory cabinet paint job still is. I always have had some way to nab the nice ones even back when I wasn't trying to! The playfield is shot but is somehow nostalgic to me, and while I'd probably replace it on any other game I might just make this one work. Standing true to the stories of people lining up to play this game when it was brand new, the playfield truly shows how very clearly much play every Flash game received back in 1979 when it (in my opinion) revolutionized the next era of pinball.

Fun fact: I'm in it for the late 70's/any 80's game nostalgia from old outdated campgrounds and they are where my heart truly lies but my passions for EM games grew as I began collecting and took over the game room. In the famous words of that little girl from the taco commercial: "Why not both?"

Not a fan of the System 3-6 boardset (when they don't work!) so I haven't seen this project for some time as it was stored behind some games along with my 1978 Williams World Cup which also shares the same boardset and is being troublesome. Even bought some "repaired and tested working" boards from a vendor at York but they didn't work either and realized they had bad repairs and acid damage. You win some you lose some, I guess. Seeing the nice factory original condition of this cabinet makes me really want to finish fixing it up, and next time it goes back down in the basement it will be to get up on legs! The sights and sounds of this game make it one of my favorites.

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She's seen better days mostly because she isn't seeing anything now...

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1978 Williams World Cup. Early solid-state machine that is old enough to not have an attract mode. (or free play, booo!)

I brought this game to York one year with the machine shined up and ready to go, just had a board issue - but I was going to buy some. Set it up for free play, bought the boards from the vendor, and they didn't work. Of course! So it sat there and looked pretty with me inside of it half of the time for the show. Oh well! This game is in pretty decent condition. Once I save up the money to get the Rottendog boardset for it I am going to put this on my route for others to enjoy. One of my favorite parts of the hobby is sharing - whether it be bringing many games to shows, having pinball parties, or putting them on location. Although it got interrupted, if I can find the space and time to finish up the tail end of my Bally Skyrocket restoration I will be bringing it to Pinfest so everybody can get some plays on it. (It's a rare bird) Doing the same with Star-Jet once it is finished. Sharing the love!

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I had so many people interested in helping out and one guy got caught up in something and let me know but I never heard back from most of the rest during early planning stages. It was silly for me to over-estimate at the beginning expecting not many to fall through. Oh well!

If you want to stop by tomorrow to help finish up (I think I'll hopefully still get a lot done today) I might have another friend coming over that day. Let me know!

Thanks everybody. Not feeling too great today so finally just got out of bed but wanted to update so nobody else thinks I fell down the stairs. Going to text my friend in about an hour if I perk up a bit as he only had free time tonight so we'll see how that goes.

Yes, the Escalera has done wonders for me. I think I got 6 games upstairs by myself yesterday. The heads, which are usually folded down on games starting in the mid-80's, have to be fully removed on these older games as seperate pieces which were a little shorter than the Escalera strap so I'm going to wait for my friend to show up to use the old fashioned bandtruck to get them up so I have somebody to support them from the bottom.

Thank you for the kind words. I do not have the most expensive or the most perfect collection but it is mine and I love it. (and maybe have the nicest examples of a few titles ) Hopefully one day I can follow through with my dream of a pinball museum so everybody can enjoy them, both the rare titles and the more common titles alike. This is a dream I hope to follow through with while I am still younger and in a moderate amount of time which is what I am most focused on but realize the most important part may just be decades from now when there are no other pinball museums or many collectors left. Scary to think one day I may have to carry on the hobby and that it may be the "last trip around the block" for a lot of these games at that point but I would (already do a little) take a lot of pride in keeping them alive for much longer than a sister game next to them on the factory production line which could have easily been destroyed and thrown away 30 or 40 years ago from today after being operated for a short time, and much longer decades from now.

We see a lot of games today collecting but what we don't see is the thousands of games in the dump that didn't get to experience any of this collector revolution and were thrown away years or decades before all of this even started, most people probably don't think about it and it's just an interesting thought. Here's hoping somehow we don't get a big rift of that again (for different reasons of course) in the future and some more young people take up collecting before the days of $100 EM machines and then the days where you can't even sell them for $100 and they're thrown out. Scary!

Yep, I've been charging it all night so it should be good to go for today.

Not complaining. Saves me warehouse rent from saving every single game from the dump in 30 years

I highly appreciate the offers. I need to return to PA tomorrow afternoon (after dropping off the Escalera to Boob) for a day or so, not sure which day or time I will be back yet so I'll keep you updated.

I got another 3 games taken apart today, and 2 upstairs (one was a bit of a dirty project so I didn't mind that staying down there for now). Running out of room and also not cramming them in so they don't fall through the floor. The dining room is full and they have started to fill up the living room. With only a few machines to go I'll figure out the space issue. Before I return the Escalera, in the morning I'll probably just house a few on the third (fourth if you count the basement) level for the time being since I'll likely ask to borrow it when it's time for them to go back anyways. I'd easily consider it because I feel like the god of the stairs.

Moved some games towards the now-pretty-empty dry side as well to prepare for my short time away.

As I run out of room I've been taking it a bit slower than these last few games are the heavy two player or four player variety. Getting them up the stairs now is the easy part now but taking them apart gets pretty draining especially with my very physical method, some people seem to use a hydraulic(?) cart to push up the back of the machines to get the legs off and then drop it down with that but mine is heaving it onto a stool, then setting the back on the ground by hand when the back legs and the head are off. Also have to pull the game out of the tight spaces they are in, sometimes put the rolling feet under them, label the legs, ziploc the bolts, etc., etc..

Thanks guys. Heading back out to NJ today and going to get the remaining heads left sitting around downstairs upstairs hopefully, and eventually the remaining games if I can make some room. Then it's basement fixin' time! (well, estimate time)

Conspiracy!

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You've asked about that 3 times now! She lives with my aunt most of the time due to her age. She doesn't know, don't worry. (Mom does though obviously)

I'll be in NJ all week I believe for Easter and whatnot. Perhaps we can set something up. If you guys want to make a day out of it perhaps we can swing by my friend David's Morristown Game Vault as a token of my thanks and also just to hang out for a bit, quite the sight to see and only like 20 minutes away.

Ghostbusters, Metallica LE, etc. all on free play and there is never lines on any of the games besides maybe one person playing it. Great pricing at $7 for 30 minutes and $10 for an hour (and +$5 for each half hour after that), but with me/this time don't worry about that so to speak and we can stay as long as you guys can hang around.

My third home. 90-something arcade machines (there is an entire row all the way to the left of the second picture and also games in the bank vault) and I think about 16-17 pinball machines now or so. Four more pinball machines not in the main lineup.

Pictures are old and also don't do the size of the place justice, it is in an old bank so it is HUGE. Ceiling is like three stories high.

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(I like to spread the word for my friend's awesome accomplishment so whoever else is interested check it out at morristowngamevault.com, it still "underground" in terms of Pinsiders but the town of Morristown is LOVING it.)

No no, it was fine I meant it jokingly. Just found it funny. Thanks for the concern!

Oops. I do it more as "how do more people not know about this place I could spend my LIFE here" to show people this awesomeness way more than just helping out my friend.

Small update since I have the time (and I owe you guys who donated to at least keep updating!): going to be getting quotes this week. Taking things slow right now. Thankfully no heavy rain to come very soon and no more water coming in right now. So, I relaxed. Enjoyed my Easter holiday. Great weather! Also took a step back on my own regard to not only take a rest but think and change life a bit and get myself back on track to living life happily and how I really want to (not just pinball/Pinside related) and realized that while I wish to obviously continue in this wonderful hobby and continue my collection and other pinball dreams (along with many of the great friends I have met here), I realized spending time here on the forum was no longer fun for me personally, and thankfully that (obviously) coincided with not much interest either so I didn't have to push myself to stay away and it came naturally instead which made for a very nice unintentional unplanned break of just not caring to log on. After finally picking up on that and thinking more: At the end of the day I let the hobby be too much about random other people and not enough about being humbly happy with it myself.

The best lesson that came partly due to and after all of these people screaming "listen to me" on this thread and telling you what life lessons you need to learn was that you shouldn't listen to anybody! (within reason obviously) *Do you* and have fun with your hobby, or what the hell is the point. As does everybody else, I know myself better than anybody (especially those who don't even 'know me' at all, except this time meaning nothing deeper than that we've simply never even met hence the quotes) and trouble only began and more mistakes were made only once I started to cave to people who were trying to tell me I didn't. This thread was just tip of the iceberg and it went on for a lot longer around here and I am happy to be back to my previous peachy self and feeling better and happier and more like "me" again in my daily life than I have in several months.

I am looking forward to taking a huge step back from here, and enjoying the hobby the way I want to with myself and family and friends, including the many I have already met through here. (and as always, still looking forward to making more NEW great pinball friends through the hobby (even Pinsiders) - but likely more often at "tomorrow's show", "tomorrow's meetup", or "tomorrow's game deal", rather than "tomorrow's thread". Much more personal and great, too.)

However, I will keep everybody updated, here on this thread, on the progress of the reconstruction of my basement gameroom, because it is the least I would do for all of the generous support. If I'm this content again already I can't wait to how happy I'll be once I have my own gameroom to visit again! I wasn't even going to post *this* because I didn't really mind to but I figured it would be nice for the genuinely interested people who have supported me with this basement issue as well as publicly putting a nice comfortable cap on all of this thread and more.

Thanks again for all of the outpouring support and sorry that I could not respond to everybody! robin runs a fantastic website (and being a frequent CSS designer myself, it's beautiful...) with a lot of great people on it who have been very generous and good to me, and I will continue to try and pass on the genorosity and kindness many here have shown me. I try to do that regardless every day but I'll make a big effort to truly pay it forward when the opportunity arises. So, thanks! See you at Pinfest as well, whoever is going! Will come back and update again once the basement work begins.

Steven

Hey guys, just an update. Together we have raised $660.00 in donations to help fund my basement repairs. My family has decided with this amount plus my own contributions (and their own of course) that they will get the repairs done by a professional, we will be contacting the company spfxted posted as well as another my dad knows personally and compare quotes.

I feel very blessed, this month alone an abnormal amount of repairs were needed by my older clients and new clients I seeked out combined with a willingness to accept all of them and work very very long days, I really stepped up working hard at my own business and fixed as much as I can and ended up bringing in over $1,200 and counting this month from things I taught myself over the last few years, like complicated PCB repair for arcade machine monitors and also doing more pinball work across EM to SS this month alone. The donations and help were very necessary due to the severity and suddenness of the situation and I couldn't of got the games out of there without the help of Boob's Escalera either, and all of the support both through words and donations really motivated me just to increase the amount so I could contribute to the cause just as much as other people have been so generous.

I have removed my PayPal account e-mail from the original post and want to thank you all very much, no longer accepting donations. With Pinfest coming up I want there to be no confusion, all of the donations are stored away in a separate account. With even more repairs beginning to be underway and my own money already being contributed to the cause as well in a similar amount to the donations received, I decided to give myself a little spending budget of money I earned later in the month and continue to earn as Pinfest approaches - but obviously this includes $0.000 of any donation money, so just making sure there is no confusion.

I think the idea of keeping some of it as a "rainy day fund", or perhaps an "oh shit fund", is really great life advice and something I will be taking to heart.

Please keep the thread open as I would love to post some progress pictures when the work begins. I have also been trying to do as many good deeds this month as I can from giving people rides, to tweaking games, to fixing games usually outside of my travel distance, to whatever else. I will be making a donation to Pinside and the idea of contributing to my local food bank with my newfound earnings for this month has also came to mind to help give back where it counts as well not only just to repay my debts but also just help people, I love to do that.

Thank you so much,
Steven

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