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What was your longest wasted journey to collect a pin?

Judge Dreads

Judge Dreads

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Though this may be a good time to get it off yer chest or open up some healed wounds :rofl:

Mine was to Peterborough to pick up a collector quality IJ from Pinball Treasures who was listing crap straight from a bar in France on ebay many years ago, machine was a totally faded steaming turd complete with cigarette melted button, biplane repaired with a plaster and a host of other nasty stuff, I couldn't even make an offer as it was that bad, to make it worse the van was hired and the sat nav took us right round every back road through Birmingham trying to avoid the toll going home, it was a long argumentative return journey and I think it's the closest I have felt to what women term premenstrual (felt sorry for the co-pilot)

There are few worse feelings than trekking back after a long journey with an empty van :mad:

Total mileage circa 500
 
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Not quite a wasted trip but almost. I went to Farnborough to collect a machine once. When I got there, the machine developed a very minor fault (trough opto) which generally did manifest itself there and then. The guy was so hacked off he wouldn't let me buy it until he'd paid an engineer to come and fix it. (Weeks away) I insisted I was happy to take it as was and repair it myself but he was having none of it. I literally hand cuffed myself to the machine and said if you think I've done a 300 mile round trip and hired a van to go home without it, you're very much mistaken. I ain't leaving here without it. I Don't care if I have to dress up as batman and chain myself to the fence. It's coming home with me today. Thankfully i persuaded him and came away with it but t'was a close call.
 
Gaz Shiells said:
if you think I've done a 300 mile round trip and hired a van to go home without it, you're very much mistaken. I ain't leaving here without it. I Don't care if I have to dress up as batman and chain myself to the fence. It's coming home with me today. .
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Yup "There are few worse feelings than trekking back after a long journey with an empty van :mad:"
 
Luckily I've never had to suffer this (yet), but I think that's down to being very thorough before arranging trips and hiring vans. Unless you're buying from a top retailer like Pinball Heaven, or one of the well respected guys on forums like this, then you have to just assume the worst.

I'm sure one day it will happen to me though, just a matter of time.
 
Think it is generally something you do when you are starting out, there is the forum to guide newbies these days, borrowed pics from a different machine did'nt help but yup, I was Homer Simpson.
 
Replay said:
Oh dear, you mean when I lost my fricking mind and drove to France for a stupid game that was nothing like as described? A game I don't even want now. A game when I got there I didn't even want in my car if he gave it to me? And only drove 1500 miles :eek: Bonkers , totally bonkers:confused:
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Now that sounds like an interesting story. (Also sounds like a complete nightmare!!!) :eek:
 
I have a near miss on ebay.de a few years back, was bidding on a Flash Gordon lucky for me i was outbid in the final minutes.

Can't believe i was contemplating a road trip to germany... :tut:
 
Touch wood this hasn't happened to me yet :) Always come back with something in the car or van and always been happy with it :thumbs:
 
Timewasters and dodgy sellers shoud be named and shamed, reduce the chance of it happening again :thumbs:
 
Replay said:
Oh dear, you mean when I lost my fricking mind and drove to France for a stupid game that was nothing like as described? A game I don't even want now. A game when I got there I didn't even want in my car if he gave it to me? And only drove 1500 miles :eek: Bonkers , totally bonkers:confused:
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This is such a great story, can you name the game if not too painful.
 
You know what - I'm kinda hoping we get a Popeye and TOM for Northwich. Just so we can put 'em next to each other within view of the bar, get drinks in and watch the entertainment...

Maybe see if we can squeeze a Gilligan's Island in there as well to get the Treble...
 
I've been very lucky so far, always drove home like a 5 year old on Christmas morning :)
 
This is my story I arranged to pick a pin up for 9 am using printed directions from Google when it came to 1pm after being lost and driving round for 4 hrs I went to halfords bought a sat nav and found it in 10 mins
 
PeteB said:
Luckily I've never had to suffer this (yet), but I think that's down to being very thorough before arranging trips and hiring vans. Unless you're buying from a top retailer like Pinball Heaven, or one of the well respected guys on forums like this, then you have to just assume the worst.

I'm sure one day it will happen to me though, just a matter of time.
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Phew Pete!!!! I feel a lot better now!!!
 
Drove a 400 mile round trip to pick up a Big Guns. Only to find out that every other pinball table fits in my car other than it. Due to the huge backbox.

Then went down the day after to pick it up :)

At least the queen was saved :P
 
Well this may not be the longest wasted journey - I thankfully have not had one of those - BUT it sure was a crushing disappointment :rofl:

Back around 2006 I bought a Swords Of Fury unseen on ebay, said it worked but needed attention, got it for £100 I believe. Super happy as it was a game I had been after. Anyway it was up near where my parents lived, so spoke to my Dad and off he went to fetch it. He confirmed it was working when he saw it - some lights and stuff, was a bit tatty , but yeah ok. So he loaded it up and took it home.

It was several weeks until I could get up to my folks to collect it. This is what greeted me .......:rofl:


cab1.jpg SoF 033.jpg SoF 030.jpg SoF 010.jpg SoF 028.jpg

To say I was gutted was an understatement. Apparently it had been rescued from a closed down ice rink ....and it looked it :-o

Amazingly - it did power up, a few lights and 3 of 4 displays worked. But cab was beyond hope, and boards were damaged/hacked to pieces. Shortly afterwards I made the executive decision to put it out of its misery and part it out - the playfield ramps/plastics etc were actually pretty good and at that time unobtainium so I easily made my money back.

Never buy blind on ebay and expect great things.

A year later I ended up with a lovely Swords so all good in the end :D
 
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