Quoted from Legacy:I look at this from a different point of view. Probably most of the people you are referring to are not collectors or enthusiast but just the weekend guys that come to these shows to play a little bit. When you really start to dive in to pinball it becomes an expensive ordeal. Look around pinside and the collections that people on this forum own. Behind these collections are very successful, ambitious, intelligent, and professional people that know how to earn a buck.
The "priciness" of the pinball hobby is a very recent development. Several years a go and earlier, there were tons of games available regularly at low prices. There still are some now (EMs, DE/Sega, some less popular titles), but the "rich-guy" aspects (with people buying lots of NIBs and LEs) including the "barbie doll" aspects (pretty LEDs and decorative toppers and other dress-up accessories) are more recent. Many folks who've been into pinball for a while are primarily into buying games (generally older/used) and getting them to pay smooth as butter, and playing them. This is not necessarily a rich-guy activity, although many of the veteran pinball enthusiasts seem to be absent or less vocal around here.
