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Fish tales

M

Mattyg48

Registered
Joined
Oct 24, 2021
Messages
31
Location
Uk
Alias
Matt
Hi there I'm new to the group and infact to pinball really.
I've always wanted to own a table and have found one for sale (fish tales) the machine looks in good condition and the owner says it is in good working order and i have seen a video of the gameplay. Just after a general idea of how much the machine is worth before making an offer. Any advice is welcome. Thanks
 
I know it's a bit of a gamble buying off ebay but I suppose its an old machine so it's not going to be perfect
 
Yeah I take your point it's just the chap is eager to sell and I don't want to miss out because I like the machine😣
 
Mattyg48 said:
Yeah I take your point it's just the chap is eager to sell and I don't want to miss out because I like the machine😣
Click to expand...
You'll be able to find another FT. There were about 13,640 made - so they're pretty common.

Great choice for a first pin tho' 🐠🥳
 
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AlanJ said:
www.ebay.co.uk

Fish Tales Pinball. Pinball Machine | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Fish Tales Pinball. Pinball Machine at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products!
www.ebay.co.uk

also one on ebay currently at £2.4k
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This is the table in question would anybody be willing to take a quick look at it and give me there opinion please. Thankyou in advance
 
Mattyg48 said:
This is the table in question would anybody be willing to take a quick look at it and give me there opinion please. Thankyou in advance
Click to expand...
Okay. It's had the cabinet restored - the trigger has been re-chromed and the decals look new. It also looks to have premium (silicone) rubbers.

What I'm confused about is: Where is the dome on the topper? It's a simple thing to fix (albeit for about $100), but it is rather odd!

Oh yeah, and the switch cover on the caster's club/caster's reel lamp is missing. Mine is also missing... it's perplexing that it's gone on both machines.
 
the topper should have a clear hard plastic cover. they’re not cheap to replace. well over £100.

go see the machine and play it / test it if you can. do not rush into a first purchase.
 
That's quite a nice FT aesthetically, except missing the dome.
Probably closer to 3k at a push, especially as its on ebay
 
David_Vi said:
That's quite a nice FT aesthetically, except missing the dome.
Probably closer to 3k at a push, especially as its on ebay
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The 'missing the dome' thing is simply weird... and a bit worrying.

If you think about it, say you restore a Fish Tales. You re-decal the cab, completely clean the playfield and re-chrome the legs and coin door. And then, for some reason, you completely fail to buy a replacement clear plastic topper that is available from Ministry of Pinball for 100 euros, and attached to the top of the back box by four screws. Why would you do that?

I mean, speaking as someone (slowly) restoring a Fish Tales... buying the plastic case from Ministry of Pinball is the *easy* part.

I would, at the very least, ask some questions:
  1. Why is there no dome on the topper?
  2. Does the fish topper actually work?
  3. Is it the original or a reproduction topper (apparently, some people give a flying flamingo about this and it affects the value)?
  4. Why is it only partly restored, i.e. why is the cabinet restored, but the fish topper is missing its plastic casing and the caster's reel wireframe ramp is missing a switch cover and decal?
  5. What is its back history? It seems to be stored in some warehouse full of plastic containers? (i.e. it's not currently being played in someone's home)
Ideally, I'd arrange to play the machine. It definitely switches on (as evidenced by the pictures of the DMD and lighting), but you have no idea how it plays.
 
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@Mattyg48 welcome!
Don’t pay over the odds, especially for a Fish Tales that’s very common. I recently sold mine for 2.5k and it had been stripped, cleaned, new flippers mechs, LED’d etc, with no faults, complete with working fish topper and dome.
If that’s the first game you have chosen, I recommend you put a wanted ad up and see if one surfaces 👍🏼
 
That one is nice, but if it goes over 3k hold fire I would say. Just for frame of reference I'll be putting one up in a month or two that will certainly be on the high end for a FT but is many levels above that one.
 
There is so many things missing and not right on that machine . This is what I see at first glance Dome missing which has two decals on , the light board which fits in front of that fish ,a rubber installed instead of a drive belt for the rod , wrong bolts fitted on the caster , broken boat plastic , that’s just for starters .
 
I wouldn't read too much into the missing topper dome and switch cover. Personally I always tackle the biggest jobs first so it dosen't seem that odd theres a couple of bits that haven't been done yet, sometimes funds, work, time etc just get in the way of finishing a project. But best to factor in these things if the price starts getting nearer £3k
 
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Thanks for all your thoughts. Here is a couple of videos of the game playing. Seller wants 2.8k??
 

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Having redecalled a FT I'd say it's closer to 3k lots of hours work plus cost of artwork, most come with faded artwork and it's some of the best cabinet art of that era.

My pin was also missing the switch cover on the reel (the one with the fishing fly decal) if that's what @VeeMonroe picked up on I can't make it out from the pics 🙂
 
Mattyg48 said:
Thanks for all your thoughts. Here is a couple of videos of the game playing. Seller wants 2.8k??
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@carl is right. There’s a rubber on the caster’s club instead of a proper drive belt. Also, there’s a really weird banging noise at about 1 minute in. The ball is bouncing around, nothing is happening of importance, and then it starts banging? Not sure what’s happening there.

It’s worth checking if it has the filament bulbs replaced with LEDs. It looks like filament bulbs, due to the dimness and also because you need a regulator card/board to stop LEDs flashing madly in attract mode.

[As a side point, he’s an appalling pinball player. My four year old can do better - and I am not even exaggerating 😈]

@crsedgar - yes, it’s the switch cover on the reel with the lure decal. It *REALLY* annoys me that mine is missing and I haven’t been able to source a new wireframe ramp assembly yet, and I would 100% sort that out before spending HOURS redecaling the whole thing.
 
X
 

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  • VID-20211102-WA0004.mp4
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Mattyg48 said:
Thanks for all your thoughts. Here is a couple of videos of the game playing. Seller wants 2.8k??
Click to expand...

I'd say 2.8k is good, i paid that for one without redecalled cab, but led'd and everything present. I think 2.8k is great and I'd pay that... (well I did😂)

Obviously if the game is working properly, no board damage etc
 
VeeMonroe said:
@Carl is right. There’s a rubber on the caster’s club instead of a proper drive belt. Also, there’s a really weird banging noise at about 1 minute in. The ball is bouncing around, nothing is happening of importance, and then it starts banging? Not sure what’s happening there.

It’s worth checking if it has the filament bulbs replaced with LEDs. It looks like filament bulbs, due to the dimness and also because you need a regulator card/board to stop LEDs flashing madly in attract mode.

[As a side point, he’s an appalling pinball player. My four year old can do better - and I am not even exaggerating 😈]

@crsedgar - yes, it’s the switch cover on the reel with the lure decal. It *REALLY* annoys me that mine is missing and I haven’t been able to source a new wireframe ramp assembly yet, and I would 100% sort that out before spending HOURS redecaling the whole thing.
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Using a rubber instead of the drive belt is a well known hack, the standard ones slip with time and cost 4 x the price 😉.

It annoyed me too but a beaten up faded cabinet annotated me even more 🙂 You could try and fabricate it that was going to be next job before I moved it on, Ministry have the decal.
 
VeeMonroe said:
@Carl is right. There’s a rubber on the caster’s club instead of a proper drive belt. Also, there’s a really weird banging noise at about 1 minute in. The ball is bouncing around, nothing is happening of importance, and then it starts banging? Not sure what’s happening there.
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The banging is the solenoid in the topper. It's louder because of the missing dome. So at least we know it works 😀
 
David_Vi said:
I'd say 2.8k is good, i paid that for one without redecalled cab, but led'd and everything present. I think 2.8k is great and I'd pay that... (well I did😂)

Obviously if the game is working properly, no board damage etc
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I can’t see anything majorly wrong with it from the videos. The lights all look to be working and the major features work.

It looks like it doesn’t have LEDs and you’re going to have to do that job yourself if you want them, and buy the plastic dome from Ministry of Pinball, but otherwise it definitely works, the guy owns it (so not a scam) and it’s in better condition than the one I overpaid for in July.
 
VeeMonroe said:
Also, there’s a really weird banging noise at about 1 minute in. The ball is bouncing around, nothing is happening of importance, and then it starts banging?
Click to expand...
I'm sure that will be the Fish Topper, without a dome it's much louder. Could be wrong though.
 
crsedgar said:
I'm sure that will be the Fish Topper, without a dome it's much louder. Could be wrong though.
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I don’t have a topper (yet). I do have a plastic dome, a rubber fish and a long sheet of instructions…

My Fish Tales videoed, incase remotely helpful (you can’t see much). This is what a FT with LEDs and an LCD screen looks like. My cab is very faded and the chrome on the launcher is tarnished. I also still need to fit a LED regulator card for the lights - they’re pretty wild.

Let me know if you want me to video anything specific and I’ll switch it back on!
 

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