When I 'shop' my pin (for me, not necessarily to sell), I do pretty much everything you wrote that you would expect. I go a little further though and strip down the entire top of the playfield with a few game specific exceptions... like I didn't completely remove the trunk on TOM or the face in BoP, etc. I like to be able to clean the entire playfield surface and then clean everything as it goes back together.

I do this for every pin I buy.

Every game i buy gets tore down and gone through no matter who I bought it from.

I think to some people shopping is new rubbers and bulbs....

To me a full shop is at the bear minimum, taking everything on the top of the playfield, cleaning all the parts and then going under and cleaning all the coils / sleeves, inserts...

Well, fully shopped means you snapped a rag at it and said it was good.

Refurbish means you took it down to the playfield to clean, touch up, polish, fix, repair, undo, rubbers and balls.

Restore means its almost new.

HEP means its better than new

When I sell a machine and say "shopped" I also describe what was generally done, as it means something different to everyone. To me, shopped means the topside of the playfield was dis-assembled to the point that you can clean all surfaces, including wood, plastic, ramps, etc. Then I replace all rubbers and any bulbs that are burnt or dim (although with some machines I just replace all with LEDs). I also replace the balls. I typically replace the plastic posts (especially if gunked) as well but don't consider this part of the "shop job" process. Nor do I think fixing/replacing any mechanical parts are part of that process. IMO, "fully working" and "fully shopped" are two different things.

That Junkyard was definitely not shopped. I bet I know where it came from too.

99% of the pins I buy aren't from pinball people. And I just like to know my machines inside and out.

I never use the term when selling machines because I think "shopped" means different things to different people. To me, shopped means mechanically/electronically tested and 100% functional, fresh or newer rubbers, no bulbs out, and cleaned without a tear down.

Ask 100 people and you'll get 100 different answers. I can tell you that by your pics, that game was not shopped. To me, fully shopped means this:

Top side completely disassembled and cleaned, including playing surface, plastics, posts, ramps, etc.
Bottom side, all inserts cleaned with q-tip, all mechs inspected, cleaned or repaired as needed.
Flippers rebuilt with new plungers, sleeves, coil stops, and playfield bushings.
All rubbers replaced.
All lamps cleaned, burnt out ones replaced.
Backglass cleaned on both sides, same goes for DMD window.
Cabinet vacuumed out.

Anything more and your getting into restoration territory. Anything less and I would call it routine maintenance.

Don't forget about new target foam and new plastic posts. Flame polishing ramps adds extra flare!image-188.jpgimage.jpgimage-371.jpg

That crapper looks filthy. Least he could have done was give it a 'two flush & a brush'

As others have said, shopped can be so many different things, but what i have been doing is:

tear down approx 80-90% of the top side, every plastic part is removed and cleaned, all ramps, wireforms etc. I also remove all topside lightbulbs. I then clean all the playfield and use a toothbrush and rag to go in some of the hard to reach areas like corners and such. Then i wax all areas of the playfield. I will wipe off the wax, and repeat again a couple times to give it good protection. Much easier to wax it a few times at this point then tearing down the playfield again soon. After waxing, i use a compressor to blow off the playfield to get any dust and stuff out of corners, and then the same for underneath the playfield. Next step is to vacuum out the cabinet to get the dust away from the machine before re assembly. I then replace 100% of the rubbers. and put new light bulbs on everything top side, Now blow off playfield again and reassemble. Then one last blow off with the compressor.

Now i lift the playfield and verify that 100% of the bottom side lights are working, replace those that are needed, and also replace one that have darkened so much that i think that they should be replaced., Also checking all flashers and backbox lights. Final step is to check and make sure the game is working fully, all switches, coils, etc,

At this point, I consider the machine shopped

He meant it was "Fully Shopped" in 1998.

Fully Shopped means it was tore down to the bear table. Everything cleaned, fixed and or replaced.

Shopped, means thoroughly cleaned and rubbers replaced.

Shopped, like HUO, comes in many different flavors. But even with that in mind, what OP posted could not be considered 'shopped' in any way, IMO.

-Wes

My definition would be a full topside teardown. Replacing anything that is broken or damaged (obviously some plastics are not always available). If the flippers are weak, they need to be rebuilt as well. I've received games that have never had rebuilds but were still nice and strong, so it is not always a necessity for me. New rubber and I like to do all new star posts as that makes a game look nice and shiny vs the old dull ones. PF cleaned and polished and waxed.

If I could eat dinner off of it…….

LOL

I dont even like using the word 'shopped' because it has such a variance in definition. I just figure if a flipper says shopped he means he snapped a rag at it.

If I do any work on a pin, I describe and list what I did. Then there is no room for misinterpretation.

The local pin flipper gives the machine an ok cleaning sometimes removing things but no attention to detail. He replaces some rubbers and star posts, post sleeves. He only rebuilds flippers if they're terrible. He does not fix switch problems. Lights are usually replaced. Playfield often have areas of wood showing you don't find until you arrive or massive planking. He calls this shopped.

The local restorer takes the play field out of the machine. Clears everything out of the cabinet. Repaints the inside and reassembles the cabinet. He strips the playfield. Cleans and waxed the entire play field while stripped. Tumbles and cleans all bolts. Regrains the metal. Cleans the ramps. Cleans the underside. Rebuilds flippers as needed. Reassembles and tests everything. New rubbers and lights. He calls this shopped.

First thing I do is get the game working 100%. Then I remove everything from the top of the playfield. I clean it with magic eraser and alcohol. Then wax it 3 times. All posts get scrubbed and cleaned and the plastics cleaned top and bottom.

I also remove every mechanism on the underside of the playfield. Each mech gets disassembled and cleaned to remove the black soot. All coils get wiped off and cleaned on the inside and new sleeves put in. 100% bulb replacement and new rubber rings and new ball(s).

The games that have not got this in depth of a shop job become dirty again rather quickly and the rubbers turn black.

Shopped to me is working 100% with all upper PF parts removed. Surface and all parts cleaned. All new rubbers. New bulbs were needed and zero question about flipper strength or switch responsiveness.

Wear is a totally different topic if defects are present like bare wood or planking, ghosting, delamination etc.. it is just stated outright so they can examine it for themselves.

I agree this is a very broad statement.
Best just to go look at it. ALWAYS.

To me:

Shopped = cleaned (everywhere - rear orbits, under ramps, etc...), new rubbers, new balls, new target foam, no functionally broken parts, no errors

ie game plays well and is clean but there's room for improvement

Fully Shopped = Shopped + PF stripped mostly, deep cleaning, possible repair of some wear, possible mylar removal, no broken parts, no missing parts (sometimes unavoidable), inserts leveled, etc...

ie - game is as close to 'new' as can be reasonably expected from a hobbyist perspective

I couldn't agree more !

That's exactly what i'm doing when buying a new pinball machine, excepted for the regraining part of the process.

Image 234581 001.jpg

Addams resto 345 001.jpg

I tend to go overboard.
-Total topside tear down. All metal gets polished. All plastics, plastic posts, and ramps get the dishwasher then get Novus 1 afterwards.
-Playfield gets Novus 2 and 3 coats of carnauba wax.
-New rubber throughout
-Replace bulbs (sometimes with LED depending on game)
-All flippers get fully rebuilt including brushings.
-All coils get new sleeves and coil stops (including pop bumper stops)
-Replace sling actuator arms
-All inserts get q-tip cleaned with isopropyl alcohol
-All drop down target assemblies get completely taken apart and cleaned
-I replace any mech that has a spring with a new spring
-Complete cabinet vacuum throughout then Wipe down with a moist cloth
-Reseat all cables in the backbox
-And finally, I'll sometimes do touchup paintwork on the cabinet if it needs it and I'm confident I can get the colors correct

Half the fun for me is working on a new game. I appreciate a game more after I work on it.

I think the word "shopped" should just be struck from the dictionary, since it is so subjective. Just eliminate the use of the word altogether and spell out exactly what kind of work you have done. You might have simply forgotten to pull out all the bulbs and clean them all - and someone else might expect that as a part of the shop job.

While you are at it, eliminate the term HUO as well, just describe the detail of the machines condition - that's all I care about.

I don't know much but those pics are not from a "fully restored" game. Bolts needed tumbled, dirt/wax on star posts, and ramps needing cleaned if not flame polished.