I'd go new. Besides everything else you mentioned, if a used pin gets damaged/destroyed in transit, it's going to be a pain in your ass.

Hands down NIB for the difference in $$.

Agree, in this situation go new if you are going to go in on an LE. Warranty and shipped from reputable distributor. Peace of mind.

Go for NIB. The CGC warranty only covers the original owner.

Go new in box. You’ve got some great pins and if you don’t mind paying extra, get the NIB. It’s nice to open that box and be the first owner and have a warranty

NIB FTW!

Warranty for NIB LE :

Electronics 24 Months
Mechanical & Other Components 12 Moinths

Used - No Warranty.

I'd go with the NIB

LTG : )

ST

Know what you mean by $645 being in the middle ground but if you know its a keeper I'd go nib.

Warranty big plus as mentioned by others. Plus something special about breaking in a brand new pin that you know will stay for a long time.

I wouldn't hesitate getting a NIB one at all.

Get the nib don't even think about it. Plus you get that new pinball smell .

nib in a heartbeat

NIB all day long

Given your scenario I would buy new. I like the idea of the warranty.

This is Pinside so after 57 consectutive “buy NIB” recommendations, Rai will post “just sent payment for the HUO one. Thanks everyone!”

Sounds like the used game is priced too high.

NiB No brainer.

I noticed a chip on my main UFO and a new one is being sent out.

A couple considerations when buying used over new. Used may have a surprise, small issue or cosmetic flaw you were not aware of (issues can be warranty on new) The other, what happens if used is damaged during the freight process? Who will resolve the issue? Just something you may want to work out ahead of the deal.

I agree, NIB if for no other reason than the 2 year warranty.

Buy new in box for that small price difference. You will be happier long term with your purchase.

Exactly. I bought a used one that was supposed to be "like new" and "have had a playfield protector from day one". Well, the previous owner had a) tried to raise the outline wires and chipped the playfield in the process and b) dropped something sharp twice to the playfield in such manner that it had punctured holes through the playfield protector and damaged the playfield. That's "like new" to you. It is different if you can go and inspect the machine by yourself of course, I had my used one shipped from abroad to me.

I had same recent situation twice as was tempted to pick up a slightly used but
realized about warranty. That was my only concern. Why take risk to save
just a few hundred going used versus nib. Of course shipping was another factor
that I just want to avoid at all costs. You never know what can happen there.

Yes I hear ya on used DI and WOZ as I was once looking local for both. Like you said here the cost savings would be justified. There on my scope but man
I'm having serious space issues. So much to choose from out there! I let go of my RBION months ago, my first nib and still kicking myself! Loved that game.

The warranty is probably the biggest reason to go NIB. I would say though that going HUO gives you a chance to inspect the quality of the play field before purchasing. I just bought a NIB MMR in May and kind of wish I went HUO. I am not happy with about 6 or so inserts on my playfield.

20180508_100353 (resized).jpg

And the visible ribbing under the clear:

20180508_100436 (resized).jpg

All normal according to CGC and not covered by a warranty. I could have taken better pics of the cracks on the inserts but you get what I mean.

Good move. AFM is a classic and will be forever.

I would say if find any new game that comes out is better than any game you own than trade one of your pins out. Pure and simple.

Funny, had that same thing on my AFMr that I purchased a month ago. Was shocked at how bad the playfield quality was and told “its normal”. Sold it yesterday at a pretty big loss.

It is always a bit of a gamble opening a NIB.
But as a new in box AFMLE owner, mine is stunning and gets tons of oohs and ahs when people see it in person for the first time.
Odds are in your favor as the majority of the LE's I have seen and heard about are awesome.
The only real two issues are if your ball makes it all the way around for a skill shot and the skin tone on a few of the playfields is a bit off sometimes.
CGC will fix the skill shot issue if you have it with no hassle.
You will also need to check and see if the game has the new 2.0 IC chip installed.
CGC will send you a replacement for that as well.

You won't be disappointed. One thing people forget to mention on the LE is the mini saucer light show. Its worth it alone for the LE.

I know I sound like the LE/SE wet blanket but I played an LE recently and the light show was actually really distracting. They really tried to Fast and Furious a classic and I can see how some love it- I just don't. What I love is how they are giving us another chance to relive an amazing condition AFM. Build quality to me feels really great on my classic.

btw I wish they had a smoother option for that big screen b/c it would have looked much better IMO.

Those are not cracks, that is an effect called "Crazing".

As every playfield restorer will tell you, the crazing is invisible until you spray the new clearcoat on the playfield.

That Crazing pattern is actually inside of the insert plastic, it's not on the top, it's not anything that could have been sanded out.

Old games used to have a cloudy clearcoat called "DiamondPlate". The cloudyness hid the crazing.

When you remove the old clearcoat and redo it with a modern clearcoat, that crazing often becomes visible.

New games have that amazing, super clear factory clearcoat that really makes the colors pop. At the same time, that clarity allows the Crazing to be seen.

It's totally normal.

Here is an old High Speed with brand new clearcoat. The crazing is now reveled:
7766c78cc671413f284e85d9d8143b8f (resized).jpg

Thanks for the response Vid. What you say makes sense but at the same time difficult for me to accept as normal when so many games do not have visible crazing.

I believe they are technically still cracks within the plastic material itself.
(http://www.plastictroubleshooter.com/ThePlasticTroubleshooter/cracking.htm). I totally get they aren't unheard of but in my eyes they are still a defect, as in not appearing on all fields on all inserts.

A friend of mine just purchased two MMRs for a route and neither have crazing in any of the inserts. Another friend has a AFMR LE without crazing. None of my games or reproduction playfields have visible crazing either, although I have had reproduction playfields in the past that had crazing (a CPR first run Whirlwind pf for example). I know the issue was very prevalent with those at the time and something was done to stop the issue since all of my CPR fields are without any crazing since then.

All this tells me is I need to stop buying NIB. For 8k crazing should be eliminated. I love my game otherwise though!

Sorry to the op, I'm not trying to freak you out! I'm sure your game will be fine since crazed inserts aren't guaranteed.

Definitely! I will point out that I pay close attention to details many probably wouldn't. I only get to buy a new game every couple of years so I pay really close attention to my new games. They are super expensive now.