I saw that come up on CL. I wanted it SO bad but, the pin $ stash is still coming up short.

It’s torture worse than water boarding.

Has anyone in the MSP area ever tried to find a local glass vendor that has a REASONABLY PRICED no-glare pin glass? The products offered by PDI, JJP, and Stern look wonderful, but I am not willing to pay around $300 for a small sheet of glass. Anyone found a good substitute?

I see there is a MAIDEN LE on MSP Craigslist, asking $13,500.

I am relatively new to this forum. Is there a place where events like this are posted in advance? Email lists, or anything like that? I only saw the post on this thread the day before. I would have really liked to attend, but by the time I found out about this event it was too late.

Thanks for the replies guys. I got rid of Facebook over a year ago. But, there are obvious work-arounds for that. I'm guessing my wife will be following the Minnesota pinball group on her Facebook account soon.

I was just there last Sunday for the monthly tourney. I will just say this - for the amount of gameplay those machines get, they are pretty immaculate. As you all know from owning machines, components come loose, get out of adjustment, or outright break quite often. They seem to get fixed quite promptly at Tilt.

Finding a problem with one of their games seems to be an exception rather than a rule.

******

Unrelated - I just got to play 3 JJP machines for the first time. Didn't really like them. Too much going on......EVERYWHERE. It was visual overload. Couldnt figure out what to shoot at much less what I would get for shooting it. I kind of like the Stern system where there is a flashing arrow saying "hey idiot - shoot the ball HERE!"

Yes that is odd. I think your latter guess - about someone not realizing it was broken - is probable. I only say this because on Sunday, there was an issue with an integral feature of one of the games and they just shut it off.

It's too bad that happened with the IMDN because that ramp is such a critical part.

No. I was just putting in a plug for them.

I would say get an EM and try doing some work on that to get some experience. Settle for one that may need some TLC. Rebuild the pop bumpers and flippers. Fiddle around adjusting the leaf contacts. Take the plastics off, replace bulbs, clean/wax the playfield etc..

I am just finding out (the hard way) about these new "node boards" and just how hard it is becoming (or impossible) for an average pin enthusiast to repair.

Sadly, even the EMs are getting hard to find at a REASONABLE price. Sample CL ad:

For sale, 1976 Gottlieb Volley pinball.

It's really beat to shit, has flood damage, and doesn't work.

Asking price $5000, because it's old, so it must be worth a ton of money.

No low-ball offers! I know what I have here!!!

Does anyone know of a TNA available for play anywhere in the Twin Cities? I know Tilt used to have one. I looked at the pin map on this site and it shows 4 owners, all private.

THANK YOU!

My wife and I are convinced (sarcastically only) that casinos like MGM and Harrahs are parent companies to places like Chuck E Cheese and Gameworks. A bunch of these redemption machines are nothing more than gambling trainers for tikes.

NO SKILL INVOLVED. Pull a lever, get some tickets. Over in 5 seconds. How fun is that? It’s not, but, much like a slot machine, they are highly addictive (to the kids). The kids seem drawn by some lower level brain function that craves the reward of those tickets coming out of the machine.

Kudos to the people that figured this out and are making lots of money off of these. It’s just sad to see kids missing out on the fun of basic skill games.

Monday morning rant over.

Geez.....how fast do you have to be responding to CL ads? Two pins I really wanted came up, both vaporized writhin a couple of hours after being posted. Now nothing left but the usual cadre of overpriced pins. Maybe I should pull the trigger on that Apollo 13 bargain basement priced at $6900.

Yeah the Eight ball was one of them. There was also a Super Spin EM up north that appeared to be in really nice condition. The seller clearly had seller's remorse (on the price he let it go for) when I called him.

Ready to play.

Unfortunately I don't have the work space and equipment to take on a tear-down and re-build.

You need to be more specific.

There’s the budget that you discussed with the wife, then there is the ACTUAL budget.

It’s kind of like the three prices:

- The price you paid
- The price you told your wife you paid
- The price you pay when your wife finds out the actual price you paid

Bravo to whomever is delivering a little street justice on CL today.

minneapolis.craigslist.org link

Does anyone know anything about this? Is it legit? Is it all junk? Any way to check out the equipment before bidding? From MSP Craigslist:

Screenshot_20181018-180248 (resized).jpg

Thanks for the responses guys. I actually visited Liebermans a couple of years ago for the first time in about 36 years. Used to be “Lieberman Enterprises” when I was growing up. Dad used to take us there - the official story was to get some parts - but we just wanted in the building. The showroom had about a dozen pins IIRC. All of the latest and greatest, all on free play. To a 10 year old pin head that was JACKPOT. A run to Liebermans for some bulbs, which should take about a half an hour, magically turned into a 3 and a half hour trip. Good dad.

I was a little surprised that they were still around considering not many amusement companies were able to adapt to the video game revolution and went bust.

I have never seen this before, and didn’t know there was anything like this before seeing the Craigslist ad. Nice to know that everything is above board and that it wouldn’t be a bunch of junk nobody wanted. I think I may bid on a couple of things for fun to see if I can get a steal on something. Beside another pin, I kind of “need” a dart board.

I would buy it, but the inside of the coin box looks dirty.

Take one for the team and buy that overpriced Space Invaders so we don’t have to keep seeing that stupid ad.

Anyone else get suckered into the “free” Dirty Harry pin ad on CL?

In case anyone else was interested in this pin, I just went to look at it and it's a project pin. None of the digital score displays worked properly, lots of backglass flaking, and the playfield showed lots of wear. Launched a ball and a cap came off one of the pop numbers. Was a "no thanks" for me but maybe somebody else's treasure....

Screenshot_20190328-154024 (resized).jpg

Just posted on Minneapolis Craigslist (not mine):

Screenshot_20190704-114423 (resized).jpg

Yeah unfortunately for me I am based in PHL, so that's my commute to work. I ride in back like everyone else, sometimes in the jumpseat. Thanks to T-Mobile I get some free internet time on every flight. And what better way to pass the time than shopping for pins on CL and surfing this site?

Over the Atlantic we have satellite internet, but IMO it sucks. Not AOL dial up bad, but close.

Other than that, rest assured when we are at work, it is all business.

"Trust me. I'm a professional."

parkingattendant (resized).jpg

Your findings mirror mine. Outside of the UK, the rest of Europe is for the most part, a lost cause for pinball. Even IF I have found a bar with a pin somewhere, it is usually in need of a lot of maintenance and cleaning, if not out of order altogether. I’m guessing that it’s probably just too expensive getting parts and there is also a significant wait time for snail mail to deliver parts as well. Not to mention, knowledge on how to fix the machines. So, I get it......sort of.

It’s too bad, as there seem to be a decent number of private owners with several or more pins at their homes (according to the pinmap). You would think that there would be a market for a good pinball bar SOMEWHERE, such as large cities like Madrid, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Frankfort, Milan etc..

Anyone want to go in on a business venture? Preferably Prague or Barcelona - the cities with the highest eye candy ratio, BY FAR.

I just like the name of the town.

ZomboMeme 25072019135555 (resized).jpg

Some of us enjoy having these local businesses post here. I have no social media accounts so when I look for anything pinball related, this site and this thread are pretty much all I have.

I’ve never bought from anyone other than local sellers. I’m curious about the shipping. Does the seller usually arrange all of the shipping, or is the buyer expected to arrange everything? How long does it take to ship something like this? A couple of days? A couple of weeks?

For anyone who sells and ships from the local area, just curious who you use and what is involved. When poking around on this site, it still looks like NAVL has a service where they show up, pad and wrap the game for you. Does anyone know if this is still a thing?

Thanks in advance for any info!

Just listed Star Wars pro.

SOLD!

Machine - For Sale

Star Wars (Pro) Archived

Used - shows wear but 100% working and clean - “I bought this machine about a year and a half ago from an individual in St. Louis Park. Unknown history before he owned it. The machine has not had any mods added. As you can see ...”

2020-12-16

Apple Valley, MN

AAAV8R

4,200 (Firm)

Archived after: 6 days

Viewed: 429 times

Status: Sold for $ 4,200

Contributed to Pinside

Along the theme of scams......

For those of you more seasoned at selling machines, is selling on Craigslist always a total $hitshow?

I listed my machine on CL and I got a lot of interest.......from bots and weirdos. At least one legit inquiry.

I’m leaning towards just selling everything on here in the future even if I have to take a hit in price just to avoid the aggravation.

"Boy.......that escalated quickly"

- Ron Burgundy

I’m looking for help from the local playfield restoration experts. I started a thread asking for advice using Novus products, but I didn’t really get the specific types of answers I was looking for.

I wish I could post a pic in this thread. If you look at the pic, you can see the area of high luster finish where the ball does not reach, vs. the worn area.

Big picture question - can I restore the worn area to its original luster? i.e. is it worn (never able to achieve original color and gloss), or just dirty (TLC and elbow grease will get it polished up to like new)?

The ball tracks - what exactly are they? Are they actually worn areas, or just impacted crud that can be cleaned away?

Any tips for working with the Novus products and different types of cleaning/polishing applicators is greatly appreciated.

I want to get this thing back to that shiny new appearance buy I want to know if I’m living in Fantasyland and that goal is not achievable.

Feel free to post here or PM me.

Here’s a link to my other thread which has a pic to highlight the contrast in the two areas:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/seeking-advice-for-using-novus-products

So from what I’m reading so far, it appears that the problem is two-fold:
- impacted grime
- microscratching of the clear coat

Is this correct?

Dang it.......now I want that kit! That looks like exactly what I am looking for. Especially all of the buffing tools that work on a drill. I have been experimenting with hand cleaning with the sponge that came from Pinballlife and it’s not even making a dent.

I wrote to the company to see if they are ever going to restock the kit. I’ll let you know what I hear back. (Maybe it’s just me but the owner looks like he is related to Bert Blyleven )

I agree. I recently drove 25 miles one way to see a game advertised in “excellent” condition. Had to go because the seller seemed “confused” when I asked for pics of things like the shooter lane and outlanes, and wanted me to send example pics.

So I load everything up. Cash in hand, tools, dolly and blankets and other moving essentials loaded in SUV…..ready to buy. And why wouldn’t I buy? It was the machine I wanted and it was in “excellent” condition.

Got to the house and the first then I looked at was the chewed-up and worn out shooter lane. Went downhill from there. Cracked and yellowed plastic ramps, missing screws, poor touch-up jobs on the cabinet and back box, dirty and worn playfield.

Yeah………”excellent”.

I didn’t even turn it on. I was polite and said “I’ll pass” and thanked them for their time but I was pretty pissed.

Now, this was “only” 50 miles round trip. I can imagine how incensed someone could get driving 4 times that much only to get the same disappointing result.

Bottom line - don’t be a dick. Just send the pictures and save people the hassle. People’s time is worth something.

Please post results/findings here when you are done.

I did a lot of work on my KISS pro which has a LOT of plays. I looked through quite a few threads on this site on playfield cleaning/polishing/restoration and the bottom line was there was a lot of bullshit out there.

You learn a lot by contacting the manufacturer of the cleaning and polishing products. Who knew?!

Prices are crazy right now, but like everything else this too will self-correct. In a manipulated market awash in liquidity, “everybody has money”. That will ends when one or more of the bubbles (like the housing market) bursts. Interestingly enough I saw Wells Fargo recently announced ending personal lines of credit. One wonders what they see on the horizon. Pretty sad we are going to have to witness 2008 all over again.

I guess this is a bad time to give a sales pitch for my time share condo…..