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Wanted Starter Pin!

ChrisH

ChrisH

Site Supporter
Joined
Dec 5, 2014
Messages
714
Location
Stroud
Alias
CHR
On the lookout for a first pin

Narrowed it down to....

I500
FT
HS2
Maybe FS
Or
RFM

I'm after playable with no major faults (initially - I'm sure it will go wrong once I get my hands on it), but not after a minty collectors machine - would be wasted on me

I'd like JP and a few of the data east games, but I seem to recall they are a bit taller so won't fit in the room :(
I will have to remove the head to get it up the stairs as it is

What I am looking at pricewise?
Hoping under £1200 (although less would be nice!) but I'm not sure how realistic that is now (FT @ 2.4K on Ebay - ?!!)

I know the whole pinball world has gone price mad - not sure if I'm better holding out and waiting for things to come down in price, or risk waiting even longer only to see them get more and more out of my league. (If FT actually is now a 2.4K machine then I guess I won't be getting a machine!)
 
Prices do seem to fluctuate a tiny bit but I don't see them coming down.
In the real world ft is not out of your budget at £1200 mate. When the buyer sees the decals
On that ft he's gonna be mad!!
 
I think RFM is do-able but I don't think it will have the same longevity as other stuff. Don't get me wrong with the space I'd have one as they are a beautiful thing!
FT and HS2 both sound do-able. With FS being in there too that's a right mix of stuff!

Stay off the Bay of Evil and I'm sure someone here will have something you fancy! Good luck!
 
Yep - not going anywhere near Ebay!
In order of preference it would FT at the top, then HS2 and I500
FS I've always thought was a decent game with enough to do and it used (!) to be one of the cheaper ones, never loved the translite though

RFM is on the list as I thought it might be an easier game to look after, they seem to come to bits easier, I think it would go in my car (Focus hatch) and with it being a PC based game would be in my area of knowledge a bit + the P2K cab is slightly smaller...
Not sure these are actually good reasons to want one - I've only every played one twice
And having seen the fun that a broken prism card or playfield glass can cause I'm not so sure....

Where it's going in the house - 2 floors up, whatever I get will need to stay for a while!

Edit: FS = Flintstones, not FutureSpa
 
Fishtales in a Chepstow pub - the 5Alls near the Castle. Maybe some help for you?

Or come to the Welsh weekend at the end of April. Could be something for sale?
 
Not just any stairs - bendy stairs.... :(
20170411_151123.jpg 20170411_155022.jpg 20170411_155036.jpg

As for just chucking the guts of a PC in a box - done that ;) Fun though they are, they aren't the same a the real thing (well the MAME cab is pretty close)

Will try to get down to the Welsh weekend....
 
I'll have a very nice Flintstones for sale soon. Little bit more than you want to spend though at £1400, which is what I paid for it from another forum member. Let me know if of interest
 
Cool, I'll try to remember to message you before advertising it. Should be within the week
 
Dex-Jay said:
I think RFM is do-able but I don't think it will have the same longevity as other stuff. Don't get me wrong with the space I'd have one as they are a beautiful thing!
FT and HS2 both sound do-able. With FS being in there too that's a right mix of stuff!

Stay off the Bay of Evil and I'm sure someone here will have something you fancy! Good luck!
Click to expand...
I picked up a HS2 off eBay a couple of years ago for £700. Don't get me wrong it wanted a little work but nothing serious.
Hang on, you bought a box of stuff from me off eBay last week! ;)
 
Looking at the Cyclone that's around, and got a potential offer on it.
However in the cold light of day I'm going to have to remove the head - how easy is this on these? (Seems like WMS games are hard, modern sterns easy, and EMs dead easy!)
Does it have the interconnect board? or is this earlier than that - as looking on Google pre-interconnect sys11b had a series of plugs you could disconnect behind the playfield rather then pulling all the wiring off the boards
I have a bad feeling I'd be getting a working game and then breaking it if I try this myself..... I've been after a game for years now and this one is in budget (I'd rather have Metallica, but that's life!)

If I do (IF!) get the head off it would it fit in a (2006 era) Focus MK2 hatchback? - I know it won't with the head on, but as it HAS to come of to get in my house it might as well come off before I move it
 
Just make sure you take lots of pictures before to help the re assembly and be prepared for it not to be working afterwards. Apart from that it will be fine. And sorry can't help about the car but I thought someone kept a spreadsheet on here with what fits where.
 
'Ford Focus Hatch - Yes Older shape games only, separated'

Older game shape? What are we talking here? EM?

How tall is a Cyclone body at the front/back (with the head gone) - the height to the lockdown bar and the height to the top where the head would go on? I get the feeling it might fit, but JUST!
 
I can fit most games in the back of my VW Polo with the head removed so I'm sure a Focus Estate must be able to swallow one.
 
Photo and label everything. Watch out for operator bodges like direct soldering to GI connector so wires have to be cut to get it off.
 
Cyclone doesn't have multi ball, has annoying music and callouts and by all accounts is quite pants.. Ok in a large collection but not one I'd get if you have a limited space.

Stick to your original list.
 
'By all accounts', pah. Ignore the above heresy. Cyclone is an lovely, cute game with good scoring ruleset and I'd happily own one as my only game.

As you may have guessed, this is a matter of taste. I strongly suggest you download The Pinball Arcade, and either play a lot of free credits on Cyclone on there, or just spend the couple of quid to buy the single table, and give it a lot of play and see if you like the scoring, theme of the table. If it turns out you don't like it, then that couple of quid will have saved you a lot of heartache. I agree with Kenny in that looking at your original list of games, Cyclone may not be to your taste. But then again, you're hearing a glowing recommendation for the game from an F14 lover, so there's no accounting for taste...

That being said, if you want to get the machine, it is a System 11 Williams game - so it's fully possible to remove the head BUT:
  1. The amount of connectors from the game to the backboard can be terrifying for a new pinball owner - there's a LOT of them - and some of them are happy to go in the wrong connectors (not many, but some.) I would go prepared with a lot of sticky labels so you can label cable to connector - trust me it makes life much easier.
  2. System 11 games are old and had a couple of problems that are evident in a lot of unrestored examples now, such as burnt connectors that could make removal of some connectors a bit tricky. Nothing that could stop the show, but be aware of it.
  3. Take wire cutters and be fully mentally prepared to cut wires in the case of operator-bodges that add direct-soldered wires to the wiring loom, which would stop you removing the head. Look at it this way - you don't want these horrible bodges anyway. Just photograph all bodges before cutting so you can rejoin all cut wires with screw terminal blocks when you get home. I prefer these to soldering wires again for cases like this.
  4. System 11 heads when off of the body are very, very bad at staying upright as their center of balance is basically nowhere in the center. When transporting, have it very securely cushioned and packed in.
If you end up getting it - if you need any advice for it, I'll be happy to help as a fellow System 11 owner.
 
Americans love Cyclone (and Comet) . when new it topped the earnings table for ages. elsewhere in the world it leaves folks cold. the best funfair game is of course Funhouse but Im well informed Jolly Park is great fun
 
steve brum said:
Americans love Cyclone (and Comet) . when new it topped the earnings table for ages. elsewhere in the world it leaves folks cold.
Click to expand...
Born and bred Brit, but guilty as charged that my tastes lean American... what can I say, guns are fun, I like the most American tables out there... and my wife is American haha!!!
 
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