That’s how it starts right?
Don’t be to eager, do some playing and a bit of research can pay off before you buy.
Sound like you’re doing that already so good for you.
Have fun
RVH

don't do it
pinball machines are like potato chips, you cannot stop at one

a visit to Jersey Jack pinball factory to look at Wizard of Oz would be a good idea

or get in touch with Todd Tuckey @ http://www.tntamusements.com/ he is less than a hour drive from you

Don't do it, run, flee... go buy a boat instead!
These things are as bad a crack cocaine

I recommend spending a few hours there trying out different machines. You should see if you like some of the newer faster machines or something a little slower.

You can ask me any questions you like as I bought my first pinball machine last year and frequent Pinball Gallery. You have to be careful though trying some of the machines there as some of them don't play too well because of setup or minor issues.

Talk to Todd Tuckey. His pins are a little more expensive but he doesn't screw you like GRC. It's the perfect way to get into the hobby. They will deliver and take care of maintenance too. Go visit his showroom. He also does blowouts once or twice a year where you can get shopped pins for very reasonable prices.

I purchased my first pin and only pin a couple of years ago. My advice is don't rush as trying to decide which pin to buy is a very fun part of the process. One pin is a tricky business as you will definitely go through ebbs and flow of playing it. I probably put 800 plays on mine in the first 6 months then petered out a bit. Then of course my wife got into it right when I was in a lull, but she really played it a ton for a few months. Then it sat turned off for the most part except when my son's friends would come over (my son never really played it a ton). The good news is that I recently started playing it a few times a day again and the love is back. So one pin is definitely doable.

Try out The Pinball Arcade or Stern's pinball arcade (not quite as good) to get at least a little exposure to what games are appealing. It's not a perfect representation by any means, but it convinced me that I'd enjoy TAF and it proved to be correct. It might help you decide what types of games are a better fit for you and your wife.

“Don’t touch the door! Don’t touch the door!”

Keep us posted on when your wife goes through the “you’ve always wanted one (emphasis ONE), so go ahead”... to “how much did you pay for that??!!”...to “you love those damn pinballs more than me!!!” stages of collecting. Haha!!!!

If you have the money and if you do not want to have to worry about repairs immediately, then go ahead and look for a NIB machine (NIB stands for "New in Box"). I would also recommend that you go to an arcade or some other type of onsite location where you can check out different pinball machines. From my experience, modern games play quite fast, machines made in the 1990's are some of the top rated and most sought after, and anything from the 1980's or earlier might be kind in terms of price - but will likely need maintenance. Have fun choosing your first machine and welcome to Pinside ralphs007

Ralph, buy an Em or five and don’t look back. More variety. You’ll get tired of playing one. Same price factor with more fun! There is always a way to squeeze five pinballs into a house

Yep, one in the living room. Then, "we don't need to park your car in the garage", then "well, we barely ever use that dining room table".

Hahaha!!! Yes your gonna hear it no matter what you do,"Why do you need all these pinball machines??You only need one they all play the same don't they??"Hahaha!!

NIB, if you want to play and only want to do minor repairs for the first year or two of ownership, although there are exceptions of course depending on what you buy. This is what I did, I bought MMR NIB and it has been very reliable. First machine for me in Jan 2017. I have only had to replace a couple of minor parts, a troll head and a post stud that broke. The machine has never been "unplayable" in the time I've had it and that was important to me as a first time owner. I did do a substantial amount of modding, 23 protectors installed, 2 light mods, shaker motor and DMD color chip installed, anti-rattle tape on the pf glass, some colored anodized nylock nuts, filed down sharp side rails and did a shop job. Some of this stuff was minor , some not. Buying NIB allowed me to play and be an owner for a while and ease into the machine work side of it.

Yes very true!!! I didn't have a dining room table for a very long time....Hahaha!!!

Don’t buy a new game just because you think it won’t need repairing. All pins need repair eventually and you don’t learn to fix something until it breaks. I started with an early ‘90s machine a little more than a year ago when I didn’t know the difference between the inside of a pinball machine and the inside of a refrigerator. Stuff broke, but with help from pinside I quickly learned how to do things like replace coils and troubleshoot loose connections. Fixing stuff on the playfield like worn or broken rubbers or just changing a bulb can involve taking a lot of stuff apart and putting it back together again. If you’re like me, the first time you drop a screw down the drain you’ll totally flip out. After about a year, I’m confident that I can tackle pretty much everything short of a board repair. This stuff will eventually happen to your NIB or recently manufactured pin as well. So just buy the machine you like and don’t be afraid to poke around in it’s guts. It will scare the hell out of you the first time you need to disassemble a pop bumper or solder a connection, but after you’ve done it once, you’ll not only have that skill in your mental toolbox, you’ll also have the confidence to tackle the next repair.

If your going to get in the Pin hobby whether an old game or new game learning to do repairs is a must because there is no such thing as a 100% bulletproofed machine that will never need repair or troubleshooting.You learn as you go and if you have spare time on your hands it wouldn't hurt to read or watch vids about pinball fixes and repair.Honestly,I worked on my pins more than i played them...replacing parts,leds,waxing and cleaning,new roms,modding,etc.

Im with the NIB crowd. You generally wont have any maintenance or at least not as muchnas you would on an older game and you can study and learn about repairs while you are playing and having fun on your new game.

The important thing is, you do have people in your area that work on Pins in case you ever need help. Pinball is a awesome hobby, welcome and have fun!

Take your time making your selection before you buy. You mentioned a Pinball Gallery. Go play as much and as many as you can. Go to youtube and watch pinball videos. Find a vid you like and watch it. Watch it again. And again. Chances are that if you enjoy the video over and over then, IMO, you will have a better chance of getting a pin that won't grow old too fast.

It took me two years of reading information on pinside and to listening to all the pinsiders and watching videos before I knew what I wanted to live with. There were 40-50 pins I watched vids of that I thought I wanted. Everyone of them would have been a disaster for me to buy.

Sure, if you buy the wrong pin for yourself you can always sell it---but you might not always sell it with out taking a loss.

I think that Todd Tuckey being suggested is a good idea. However, Todd has that gift of gab and he can make the most mundane plain-jane pinball machine sound like it is the pin that everybody is chasing after. In my opinion, in some of his videos he sometimes paints...ah..."lipstick on a pig".

Choose wisely, Young Skywalker.
***********************

I have never been a sports fan. Never cared to watch them on TV. Superbowl leaves me cold. But I find I can kick back and watch pin vids on youtube all afternoon.

Welcome to the hobby ,glad we have a new member ! I think whatever you decide to do will be fun and satisfying . So many opinions , but new or used is kind of decided on with game desire. If you like the older 70’s or 80’s , 90’s games then used is the only way, if you like the new stuff from the past couple years then new or used is an option . If you come across a couple games your interested in, ask here in pinside for someone with one close to you , Maybe they would let you come over and play a game or two .
I have some bullet proof 80’s and 90’s pins I’m my collection they haven’t been worked on in decades, so older doesn’t necessarily mean problematic . And brand new doesn’t always mean it won’t need a little tweaking.
My wife and I both enjoy Pinball , for different reasons, but it is a shared hobby . Enjoy and keep us posted as to what you buy .
BTW: no one came out of the womb an electronics guru , I’m certsinly not officially educated in electronics , but have learned with the help of many Pinball folks how to do most repairs myself , and find it very rewarding when I fix it myself .

I'd echo this, with a little time and patience you'll be fine, and maybe even enjoy the repair process and find it rewarding like I and many here do. I started knowing NOTHING about pinball machines and being afraid to even change out a bulb. After a few years and several games, your confidence goes up exponentially and I went from being terrified to replace a resistor on my own, to troubleshooting and rebuilding boards and working under the playfield with the help of pinside, local collectors advice, and lots of reading/videos. I'm at the point now where I'd almost rather have a project game and bring it back to life for the experience of doing it then buy it fully working. Buy the game you'll enjoy playing!

If you’re planning on buying your first pinball machine, I’d also plan on where you’ll put pin 2, pin 3, pin 4, etc. My only advice: buy a pin in good working condition that you can learn on. Do not buy a broken machine as your first.

Here is a recent thread of similar nature, recently marked "solved"
Might find some good suggestions in it?

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/first-pin-ball-machin

Amazing how quick you can create extra space for the next pin once you get that first one.

So true!!! The real magic starts when a guy only has space for 4, but owns 8!

Good for you. Crutch definition: "Crutch" is when you attempt to twist the wire into that small hole on a coil lug as a means of holding it in place before you try to solder it. You will know you have arrived when you get to the point that you can just lay that bare wire across the top of the coil lug and put it together with a nice shiny solder joint.

ralphs007 2 years ago I had zero pins,.. now I have 4 (soon to be 5) have done full plastics, rubbers, and led replacement on 2, learned how to solder, upgraded translites and displays, waxed playfields, installed mirror blades, added mods,.. and I am 54 and also challenged by battery replacement...
Whether in the US or in Australia or elsewhere I learned that 1) play as many pins as you can and find the “one” that floats your boat 2) your wife will probably be as good if not better at playing it 3) for inspection and buy time, try and get an experienced pin head to go with you to look at a machine and lean towards excellent condition.. there’s more pin heads about than you think and they are all nosey, very friendly and can spot a dud 4) check parts are available for the “one”,.. pinball is a game of kinetic destruction,.. parts scarcity is a pain,.. and can mean extended downtime coz something IS going to break...
Pin 1 is a training junker, pins 2 & 3 are 86/93 era, pin 4 is NIB as will be pin 5,.. they’ll be with me till I can’t flip no more!!
Enjoy the chase...

Now that you can solder, go buy a DMM (Digital Multimeter). Good luck with your search.

If money is no object, when deciding on what to buy, focus on the top 50 games in the pinside rating. Although the rating system at Pinside is not perfect, it is pretty close in my opinion. There are many top titles that can be bought for a fraction of others. I would always recommend buying HUO, both from a cost and maintenance perspective. Don’t wait too long, as this hobby is magical and life is too short. Your goal should not be to own just one, but to participate in this wonderful hobby and own as many games as you can......Variety is the spice of life and in this hobby it is no different.

Don't wait, rush into it. We don't live forever and the only way to learn is to experience the hobby firsthand.

Patience is over rated.

Dude. You have a nice wife.

You WILL find room for more.

It gets second nature after a while. Another good way to practice is to see if you can get a dead or parts board and just spend some time removing and adding back various parts, pins, etc. It will give you a good feel for board work and then when it actually matters you'll have some good confidence.

Even the hinged heads can be removed. The wire clusters in the hinged heads unplug just like the older pins where the head comes off.

Good luck Ralph. I know Bill Disney at Pinball Gallery sells and services Pinball
Machines too. Nice guy. Find him one time you are there and talk to him. He can certainly help.

I’ve purchased a lot of machines off of Todd( TNT Amusements) . He is first rate and will help you out after the sale which is key.

Anybody can call their selves a mechanic. Anybody can call their selves a repairman. Anybody can call their selves a financial planner. It does not mean they know what they are talking about.

His agenda? Did he have a bunch of older pins he was trying to sell?

All the pins I have seen are mostly alike. There is the cabinet with play field installed. There is play field wiring. The play field wiring can be unplugged and the play field removed. There is cab wiring. All of this wiring plugs into circuit boards in the back box/head. The back box is either bolted to the cabinet or it is hinged and bolted to the cab. It was not glued on. It was installed; It can be removed. The wiring was plugged in; It can be unplugged. The legs were bolted on; They can be unbolted.

Your repairman is either trying to: A) Trick you. B) Does not know much about some pinball machines. C) Is just a general idiot.

I will allow that some of these later pins have very deep cabinets to make room for all the toys. They might be a little tighter fit to get upstairs. But probably not.

My neighbor's daughter lives across the street from the both of us. Her mini-van developed a vibration. The "mechanic" said the transmission was going bad and needed rebuilt. My neighbor bailed his daughter out and bought the vibrating van from her so she could get a different car. The van sat in his driveway for awhile and then I saw his wife had started driving it.

I asked him if he got the transmission fixed. Turned out it was not the tranny. Some sort of defect developed with one of the tires and a bubble developed on the surface of the tire. New tire = no vibration. Mechanics are human.

Here is a confidence builder for you: Doctors are human, too. Not all of them were "A" students. Better hope the repairman does not have a brother or sister

I haven't played DI personally but that's a very good choice from what i hear. Congrats on getting your first new game!