I don't feel that I "have to" defend or support Steve Young here. I already did, once before in another one of these threads that pop up from time to time. However, I really like defending/supporting Steve, so...

If you don't like the way Steve does business, then simply don't use him as a parts supplier. People can complain 24/7/365 and I doubt that he will ever change the way he does business. He doesn't have to. He's been doing what he does for decades and it works for him and for those who purchase parts from him. I was a little taken aback the first time I ordered from him by his way of doing business. One year later, I find it hard to complain about a guy who will ship me $50-100 worth of parts lightning fast and then wait for my check. If you ask me, that's a sweet deal.

Has Steve been short or kind of gruff with me if I make a mistake in my ordering or whatever? Yes, but I never feel attacked or belittled. I sometimes think that the comments about this side of him are a little overblown. Have I ever called Pinball Resource and gotten a busy signal? Yes, many times. Good! That means Steve is moving product which means he will hopefully stay in business. We need people like him in this hobby as far as I'm concerned.

I have been in the hobby for just over a year now. I knew absolutely ZERO about how to repair or maintain a table when I got mine (an EM) last April. I don't know any other pinball types in my area. I don't hang out with other hobbyists in my area. Not a big deal, just saying that I have had little chance to get with other pinball hobbyists and learn from them. I'm sure that will come in time.

Steve Young has been amazing to me. As others here have mentioned, Steve has talked me OUT of buying things that I was entirely ready to order and pay for. He has taken time just about every time I have called him to teach me something or give me some good perspective on EM pinball. During my last order, I suddenly found myself listening to Steve list out the last few years of Gottlieb's production as they phased out of EM tables, including a TABLE BY TABLE breakdown of how many SS vs EM units were produced for each table. At times like that, you know what I do? I shut my mouth, I smile, and I soak up the info he so generously gives me. The conversation moved along to Steve chatting with me about single player vs multiplayer EMs and his opinion that single player EMs tended to have better, more complicated, more interesting rule sets. By the time he was done, I had about six to eight table names scrawled on the order sheet that I had written to be prepared - tables I have since looked into and checked out videos of as I continue to decide which EM table I want to obtain next.

Yes, I have bought parts from Pinball Life and from Marco's and I'm sure I will again. However, Steve will be my "go to" guy for as long as he stays in business. I just don't think you can beat getting parts from someone who has been so deeply immersed in pinball for so many years.