I should do an actual write up or one of the podcast things all the kids listen to now-a-days.

I have been a hobby operator for a few years.

In short > pinball does NOT make money. Pinball will make you new friends and you can help revive/create a fun pinball scene. Pinball can help you to justify buying new and expensive titles you would normally never purchase.

My business thoughts:
Make a LLC
Get insurance
Pay your operator fees
Pay your sales tax

You want to be legit and not risk your personal life for hobby operating!

My operating thoughts:
4 games is the minimum number to make a location.
Run a month tourney or gathering. Most coin drop will come from casuals but you still want to build a core group of regulars. These are the guys you will find are likely new friends anyway and you want to hang with.
Old classics will often do just as well as new fancy stuff.
A B/W B lister for 2k will often do 80% of the drop that a 5k Stern will do
A B/W B lister which you have fully gone over will give you less headache than a new Stern in most case.
EVERY new game on route will be a PITA for the first 2 months, then thing ssettle out and they hold up if you keep them clean.
Rotate titles every 3 months. A new deck every 3 months can help to keep things fresh.

Final thoughts:

DONT do this for the money. Your time and energy can be spend almost anywhere else and make way more funds! If you are doing it for the love of pinball then it cna pay off in spades. I have met new friends. I have turned new people on to the love of pinball. I have seen kids play their first game of pinball and "get" it. These are the things that make it all worthwhile.

Lastly >> be prepared that IF you are able to create a new scene in your area then almost assuradly someone else will come in and follow in your foudatiuon to try and take your playerbase and that is cool. Just keep your games running better and remember that it is all for fun