John's Arcade Forum - Classic Arcade and Pinball Collecting and Restoring Discussion Forum - RETRO MAME - Nintendo Vs Forum

Hey guys.  New to the game.  Looking for broken stuff to work on.  I'm more into classics rather than the newer stuff. I'm still looking for my first machine.  Is there anything crazy I should stay away from?   I'm trying to find a reference for game values so I don't end up paying too much for broken stuff that's not worth it after its fixed up.  Any suggestions?  Almost picked up a Capcom bowling for $150 bit my heart tells me that's too much.  Anyways, any tips would be apprecated.  I'm new just getting into this.  I enjoyed the last episode of the show.  Wish I could make it to the meet up.  Thanks in advance.  

And one other thing.  Frogger for $150 not working.  Is that too much?

Hey Shooter!!! The one piece of advice I have is when you are looking at games, make sure they are not conversions and are indeed the game they are advertised as. A lot of games out there are conversions. You might see a Frogger game that was once a Time Pilot or something else. These are hard to restore. So, when you see a game, google it to make sure you are looking at an original game and not some Frankenstein. I bet that Capcom bowling was once something else.

$150 for a nice non-working Frogger is a fine deal. Those cabinets don't seem to hold up well so lookout for swollen particle board. The wood grain sides are also hard to replicate if it's really damaged.

Thanks for the advice John.  I did end up getting a cabinet.   But it is a pin.  I know you guys aren't that into them but it's been a pretty fun one to tinker with.  Just getting ready to take apart the playfield and do some major cleaning. 

One other question for you.  I know you do have 3 pins right now.  Do you have a preferred place you seek out your pins?   I guess this question would work for arcade games too. I'm basically wading through the overpriced stuff on craigslist daily looking for deals.  I occasionally check eBay and pinside, but there usually aren't too many deals to be found. 

Loved the live show you guys did at grinkers!  Keep up the great work on the podcast. Been listening to every episode.   

What pin did you get?!?!?

I buy pins from other collectors. CL and eBay is really hit or miss.

i'm into pins too. i think you have to check everywhere online just like you are doing until a deal pops up.

I too am into pin's. Basically if it takes money im into it lol XD So don't keep us in suspense too long. The wait might just kill me XD

Well, I ended up with pins.   I got an older em.  It's a 72 williams honey.   And i recently picked up an 84 williams space shuttle.   Got it for $150 off a scrapper.  I don't think he knew what he had.   It's defiantly in rough shape but I'm looking forward to the restore.   Just got an mpu for it.   It didn't have one.   And probably going to go with a CPR playfield.   Still got to track down a backglass but I I've got a lot of work ahead of me before I need to worry about that.  Just gonna keep my eyes open on eBay, craigslist, pinside ect....

Sorry, I didn't post earlier.  Didn't realize some people were interested in seeing what I ended up with. 

Oh, nice! Space Shuttle is a CLASSIC. That one will be fun to restore.

2 of my current projects, I was looking for a cheap game and found out both of them were converted from a classic originally, so now I am forced to de-convert them :)

Mania Challenge that was originally a Qbert
Street Fighter 2 World Warrior that used to be a Defender

Love Defender!   Always thought that would be a great one for a home arcade just because it's so tough.   At least for me.  Good luck on the restores.