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What's New

2/17/2012

I added the Theatre of Magic to the Restorations page. It is nice not having to white out the background since these are pictures in progress. It will be nice to finally capture the beginning and ending process of all the games I work on. They won't make a TV show about it (thankfully) but at least I can do the work myself.

2/15/2012

I added a new page and new menu selection for Restorations. I added this to the Contacts/More menu at the right.

I am working on preparing the castings on the 1916 Mills Operators Bell, 1929 Mills Pointsettia, and 1939 Mills Chrome Bell to be sent for re-chroming. The pages will document taking the game apart and cataloging the items to send for re-chroming.

I added the United Super Shuffle and Williams Alpine Club since I had these documented.

I wish I documented every game that I restored. I did not document every part of every restoration. Thankfully, I documented the individual items in the Repair Chronicles.

2/12/2012

I got the Theatre of Magic, Viper Night Driving, and the three slots on Friday evening. I moved them to my basement yesterday.

I did the initial triage.

Diamond Front Mills dime slot: Works nicely and pays out correctly. Need to replace glass and decide how to fix up the outside. It has the jackpot mechanism. Haven't tried it yet. I am thinking about rechroming.

1920s Gooseneck Mills quarter slot: Works nicely and pays. It does not have a jackpot. It is silver. Probably was not chromed but would look nice if I did...

1920s Gooseneck Mills nickel slot. Works nicely. Doesn't pay. The safety slide is not moving out of the way of the coins. Need to investigate why and fix. It is brass painted and some chipping of the paint. It has a jackpot mechanism but have not tested it.

Theatre of Magic: Probably one of the prettiest TOMs I have owned. Thank goodness no mylar. It looks brand new except for two slight areas on the inserts over the lights that came up. I am wondering how to best fix this. It didn't have a manual, but I had an extra manual. I always replace the WPC driver board and send out for repair. The GI connector is soldered directly to J120. Thankgoodness they added a connector to the wires to remove. So I will rebuild a J120 connector and it should work fine. The switch on the right ramp is there but the metal tab is in the coin box, so will need to replace. Except for this switch, the game works 100%.

Viper Night Driving: The cabinet is in good to really good condition. The backglass is curved and thankfully not using plexiglass (which would crack). The play field and the ramps are very dirty but will clean up nicely. No breakage of the plastics. It didn't have a manual but just found one on ebay so will really find out what I need to do with it. I assume it has three black lights. The ones on the left and right are regular fluorescents that work and a black light in the back that doesn't work. So I assume will have to buy three to get working. The game has 4 glo-balls.

The Viper reset all the time. I replaced the bridge 21 on the driver board and the game no longer resets. 3 coils didn't work. I tested continuity. I grounded the trnsistors and they worked. I checked continuity backwards from the transistors and they worked. They went to three different chips so didn't think that was the problem. I reseated all connectors and all coils work. So I basically have a 100% working game.

The Viper has 4 balls as I stated. But when I first got it, I could only find 3 balls. I emailed the person that I bought it from and he assured me there were 4 balls. Since they never take the balls out when they move, they can be caught anyplace. Sometimes under a plastic, at the bottom of the cabinet, where ever. I even unwrapped all the plastic wrap to ensure they didn't fall out.

The game was resetting every few seconds so couldn't play it. I fixed the reset issue, got the game working 100% and played it. I noticed that the balls were not going to the bumper area, but didn't pay attention. I asked my wife to come play it. She came and the balls were not going to the bumper area. Now that the game was lit up, I could see that the 4th ball was stuck in the wiring under the switch on the top right ramp.

Note that the ball is under the ramp at the right under the switch.

Look above the red bumper cap light in the middle to the left slightly and you will see the ball.

Viper with 4 Glo-Balls. I was so pleased to get the 4th ball back. It was like the Prodigal Son or the Beatles reuniting. (If you look closely the one on the left looks like Paul...)

2/10/2012

Been meaning to replace the plunger spring on the High Roller Casino. I did that a few nights ago and it works much nicer. I also cleaned all the dirt off the plunger rod and inside the hole.

I did a few finishing touches on the Dr. Who. The back right bumper needed the switch closer together to be more sensitive. I added a few felt dots to the mini playfield so that the balls did not drain between the flippers. I still will work on the flippers this weekend.

2/6/2012

Dr Who finally posted. Just posted on Facebook. Up to 14 people. Just 999,986 to go...

I will start working on F-14 next.

Yesterday, I finally delivered the Addams Family. I helped a local person with parts and advice for an Eight Ball Deluxe. Then someone came over with a Stellar Wars to fix up.

1/29/2012

The Dr. Who is done. Well almost done. I want to rebuild all three flippers and replace the coils. I will finish that tomorrow. I just replaced both yellow flipper buttons with brand new ones. There was a stripped screw on the lower entrance to the upper ramp. Yesterday, Suzanne and I stopped at the "As seen on TV" store at the mall and bought the "GrabIt" tool for $12.99. It took a few times to get the screw out using their easy instructions. But it worked after a couple of tries and it finally came out. It was very nice. I replaced the screw and the game looks great. Once I get the flippers changed and tested, I am hoping I will be ready to put it up for sale.

1/28/2012

I worked on the Dr. Who last night. It is slow. There is a lot of dirt on the play field, ramps, and in every nook and cranny. I am using alcohol and q-tips to get the dirt out of every hard to get to location. Later today, I will start at the flippers and work my way to the back of the play field to clean plastics, under each plastic, replace all red posts and rubbers. One of the bumpers is loose and missing the light. Hopefully I have the correct screws and can just screw in the body. I bought new bumper lights from Marco Specialties. Rather than have the light on the end of the two exposed strips of metal, they have long wires that will make it easier to attach to the play field. I look forward to this better design. Then I will replace the flippers and coils and it should be working 100%. Hopefully before the end of the weekend.

Once I get Dr. Who finished and posted for sale, I have an F14 waiting to be fixed. I replaced the beacon motor and the "chain" for the three beacons. There were basically regular play field white rubbers being used as the drive chain. These didn't seem to work well and slipped. I bought the correct "chain assemblies" and the beacons rotate much better. I already noted I replaced the display with a new one from Rottendog Amusements.

I am still waiting for the Viper Night Driving and the three antique slot machines. I also picked up a nice Theatre of Magic (TOM). It will be cool to have the Theatre of Magic next to the Pinball Magic for a while. Hopefully the quality I was told that the TOM was in is actually that nice. But my wife reminds me that nothing meets up to my standards.

1/25/2012

Let's see. I wanted to write but too busy. On Sunday, January 15, I went to Alexandria to work on a game I sold in September. It was a Star Trek Next Generation. Turned out that the screw fell out of the wire ramp on the left so the ball was sometimes getting stuck rather than falling into the inlane. The VUK kicking the ball up was sometimes intermittent. I lifted the playfield and noticed that the wire was just touching the coil lug but not connected. I resoldered the wire and it worked. I checked all coils and found that the left sling wire was off and resoldered. Game now works 100%.

Since I was a mile from Mt. Vernon, I went there. After living in Virginia for almost 20 years, I finally visited. It was nice. But I am glad I didn't drive all the way there to go just there.

I bought but have not received yet a Viper Night Drivin' pinball and three antique slot machines.

Surprisingly, I still have my beautiful Pac Man cocktail 16 in 1 game original in excellent condition. I thought it would sell for Christmas. Now I will need to move it downstairs.

Dr. Who is coming along very nicely. I was able to fix the mini playfield without having to take the entire unit out of the game. I still need to clean the surface. I was able to fix the opto switches by replacing the opto boards and change the lights. I added the Cliffy protectors and it looks great. I am almost done replacing all the lights with Cointaker LEDs. The game looks great.

I currently have 12 people that like Purcellville Pinball on Facebook. Just another 999,988 likes to get to a million.

1/13/2012

At McDonalds with my trusty MacBook Air. Updating my mail and noticed that my web site was out of date on the main page. I updated it, but slow to update through the wireless. I just added 2012 to the bottom of every page so it looks up to date in the copyright notice.

1/11/2012

I would have written this sooner but have been busy after work all week catching up on everything I was going to do on Sunday. I got a call Sunday morning to help fix a Tales from the Crypt. The person mistakenly put the wires backwards on the coil. His son was having a party next weekend and I wanted to help. (Remember the phrase "Nice guys finish last.") I thought it would be a simple fix to correct the wires, replace the coil, fuse, and transistors. I did it and it still did not work. When I first watched the game, I noticed that some of the flashers were turning on very brightly and sometimes coils engaged when flashers were supposed to.

I really dislike the L/R Relay (or A/B Relay) in which they share a transistor between a coil and a flasher.

I will be enforcing a new rule when fixing a pinball at someone's home. If I can't get the game working in 2 hours, I stop trying. I do not charge if I cannot fix a game. I originally did this when I was newer at repairs and assumed that I was not capable of fixing a game so didn't want to charge for my shortcomings. I have since realized that I can fix any game given enough time. But it makes no sense to spend 8 or 9 hours (like I did on Sunday) to not figure out the problem and not get paid for my time. (In fairness I did make a nominal amount to cover the parts I put in the game and gas.) This is the kind of time I sometimes spend on games I purchase for resale. Then I enjoy doing this and figuring out the problem and documenting it. If this game were at my house, I could try something. Think about it. Research on the internet. And try something else. I can spend 5 minutes here and there and eventually get that "ah ha" moment and solve the problem. I can't do that at your house.

This drives me crazy since I want to help and I want to fix it. My mind keeps wandering back to the game and thinking of "what if I tried this" or "what if I tried that." Oh well. I hope he figures it out. I also replaced the LS7408 chip. Coils 1 to 8 (the problem child was coil 7) then have an LS273 (or maybe an LS237) before 7408. I can't believe that the problem would go back that far in the circuit. But if I were home, I wouuld have better soldering and desoldering tools and more time to explore....

My grand plan was to get there at 1pm finish by 3pm. Stop at a nice antique store there. Then go to Costco. I didn't drive home until 10:30pm without eating dinner and only McDonalds drive through was open. I will get over it but I wasted one day of my life.

There has to be a way to search on a page on an iPad. It is great to go to people's houses and want to look up something and they give me an iPad. But just like an iPhone, I have not figured out how to do a FIND on the page to find a word. Oh well. (Thanks Bill for telling me how to search a page on iPad and on my iPhone... I never kept the search window on the top right up long enough for it to say "4 Found on Page".)

Well, Sunday was not a total waste of my life (maybe punishment for being tired and sleeping in and not going to church), I did sell the Eight Ball Deluxe. It is always a great game to have and a game that I always turn around too soon. I had a replacement set of drop targets for the game that I did not install when I got it. Part of it was being lazy. Part of it was that I did not want to put them in and they get used and used and not be shiny new when I sell the game. When I sold it, I "remembered" that I had the drop targets (which I was going to admit to the buyers anyway) and said I would install them if they wanted the game. I did that over the past two days. Once I finish whining here, I will post some pictures of the new targets. They really look nice. The install just takes a lot of time to do.

One drop target needed to be replaced on the Pinball Magic as was stated below and after a $277 order with Marco Specialties, I will have the new drop target. Well, if I need to place an order I might as well get everything I need. I will replace all 5 targets this weekend. Monday is a holiday so I am not going to work. I have to deliver the Eight Ball Deluxe this weekend but hope not to do much else besides fix my own pinballs finally.

I am down to only three pinballs ready for sale: Pinball Magic, High Roller Casino, and Lord of the Rings. I actually have a 1934 World Series Rockola that will never sell. Someone offered me less than I paid on the game since "I broke a casting and it is not worth what I am asking for it." I haven't looked too hard, but if I find his voicemail or information I might just sell it to him to free up the space in the house and walk away from the game. If I didn't spend all Sunday fixing a game, maybe I could have spent the time to find his info....

If I don't get interrupted with anything else this weekend, I hope to work on the Dr. Who and the F-14.

1/7/2012

How I spent my Saturday... I delivered the Fish Tales today. It went smoothly. It was an inside basement entrance but I made an exception.

A person in town bought a Black Knight. I helped him with the game.

I worked on adjustments to the Pinball Magic. The left and right sling needed the switch closer together to activate when lightly pressed. The bumper also needed to be adjusted to get some action in the area. Watching the drop targets, they take a beating. But I decided to add the stickers I bought and right after one of the drop targets broke. Oh well, another order for replacement drop targets and decals. The magic carpet was not registering. But in test mode the wire form ramp was registering (using my finger). I rolled the ball and it was not. I adjusted the switch and now (except for the drop targets) the game is nicely working.

Dr. Who. J101 connector on the driver board was fried. I replaced the connector. I also replaced the entire driver board, which I always do. Most lights on the game are out because the bulbs are burned. When I replaced the board, both light circuits on the back box came on. Nice start. I will replace the battery holder on the CPU tomorrow. Hopefully, this will solve the problem.

12/31/2011

Happy New Year. I need a life. The Eight Ball Deluxe was still not working. I spent the evening tracking down the short in the GI to the A and B switches. I also added electrical tape to the lights below the coils on the drop targets. I believe I have solved all the problems. Until the next set of problems appear. I no longer see the 7s flashing on the screen. Please look at the repair chronicles for details.

The World Cup Soccer sold today. Probably one of the best priced games I ever had (this means I made no money on it but moved it out for room for other games). Which probably means it will have all sorts of problems that I will need to fix once it gets to the customer. It is in excellent condition and fully working, but I am sure there will be issues that will appear out of no where.

I documented some issues with the F-14 Tomcat today. I bought a new Rottendog Amusement display. I was also working on a Big Guns at a customer site. I replaced their display with a new Rottendog display, but some of the digits did not show up. So problem is with the display, cable, or driver board. I purchased a cable from Great Plains Electronics and tried it but it was not working at all. I panicked thinking I screwed up the display. I since found out that putting the cable in wrong cannot hurt the board. I documented the position of the red line of the display and I did not put it on the customer's game correctly. (Which means I did not mark it like I should have and "assumed".) His display works great in my F-14. So hopefully the cable is just bad and I will get his game working on Monday. Otherwise, it can be an expensive driver fix.

12/29/2011

A note about the Eight Ball Deluxe. I was playing it today and 7s show up on the screen and popping sounds (from the solenoid expansion relay). This game was supposed to be shopped. Probably by Bozo. There appears to be a short in the wiring. I guess I will need to spend time to find it and ensure that the game works 100%. (Which is more than the bozo that was supposed to have shopped the game has done. There is no sense of pride in the work one does anymore.) I paid extra for this game in "shopped" condition so I can concentrate on other things in the game. I have learned my lesson that this a waste of time. People do not do what they say. Now I can work on this all evening like I have nothing else to do.

Problems found on Eight Ball Deluxe: Connector on lamp driver needed connector reflowed. GI lamp between A and B under blue plastic was causing the short in the GI circuit. Right Sling Coil Fried. Replaced it but still didn't work. Shorted Q7 which controls it and it works. Looked closer at the board and R14 right above it looked fried, so I will replace. In the end, I replaced the board with an Ultimate Driver Board. It is much more reliable. I raised the price to cover the cost of the board and other things I added.

So much for my quiet evening reading on my Kindle....

12/26/2011

Got the Eight Ball Deluxe downstairs. My car can now fit into the garage again. Hopefully I will set up soon and see what a "fully shopped" game means when done by others. I still need to do some work but it is nice.

I posted the EBD for sale. Now I have to work on the Doctor Who.

12/25/2011

Merry Christmas!

No one took me up on my offer to deliver on Christmas Day. Which was just as good since I had to be up at 5am then went back to sleep until 10:30am. I moved the Pinball Magic downstairs this morning. I did not have the key, so I needed to drill out the lock. There is another $6 down the drain. I have a manual thank goodness. The first problem was the display. A new DMD for $200 solved the problem. In switch mode, the left in lane, left outlane, and left sling did not work. Checked the wires. A black wire was disconnected. Resoldered and all three switches work.

The top opto in the trunk was turning on and off. I lifted the playfield and a pin was sticking out of the connector. I reseated it and the opto works nicely.

The game now works 100%. I have a few lights to replace and the playfield to clean.

The play field lift mechanism and the DMD drop down mechanism is nice. This is the first Capcom game I worked on. I am impressed with the design.

Doctor Who is very dirty but should clean up nicely.

12/24/2011

I delivered two pinballs yesterday. The first was the Judge Dredd. I tested it out thoroughly before I prepared to move it. When I deliver any game, I spend time explaining the game and menu features and test. I checked the switches and noticed the switch matrix last column for the trough was showing trough 4 as open when no balls were in the trough. Darn it. I needed to solder another opto into the board and the game worked without a problem.

I used this as an opportunity to mention that when people buy on eBay or such and they get a game, they do not get the kind of service I provide when I deliver and set up. I ensure that the game works 100% before I am done delivering and accept payment.

I delivered the second game. Star Wars Trilogy. All was going well. Closed up the game and played it again. The drop targets were drooping. I opened the game and two screws came loose and off. I couldn't find the screws and put on a different set and that fixed it. The VUK (Vertical Upkicker) on the right sometimes takes two tries to get the ball up. Once in a very while, 3 or 4 times. I tried leveling the game at my house and it did better. We leveled the game several times at the customer's house. It worked better but sometimes it still takes several times to get the ball up. I was asking if he was okay with this. He didn't seem happy. I couldn't read him. If he was not happy, then I couldn't deliver the game. I think he accepted it. With the awkward way to get the game into his house, I was hoping he wouldn't decide to not accept delivery. I already changed the coil so know that it is shooting up strong. The metal guide is correctly positioned over the VUK. I do not know what the problem is. I made $18 on the sale of this game. It was a game that I put too much work into (not including my time -- see below) but probably did more than I should. The theme of the game is great. The music and voices are great. The gameplay could have been better. So I was very glad that I did not need to return the game. I put in LEDs. As part of the kit I bought it was missing a red flasher. I forgot about this. He noticed this when we were going through the lights. I should have offered to tell him where to buy one for $5 rather than me having to buy one and send it. This will eat into my "profit". (He emailed on 12/26/2011 and placed a felt pad on the tip of the plunger and the ball shoots out correctly on the first try every time. That is very good news. He noticed that only one speaker was used. I told him this is the time frame that manufacturers got cheap and saved a few dollars. He also noticed two posts were missing. I did not notice this. I guess I should look closer at the pictures at ipdb.org and at the playfield for holes...) Isn't it funny that the games I make almost no money on cost me much more than games that I sell higher. I guess the lesson to me is to not sell so cheaply and "assume" that no small issues will not come up. Besides, this has a warranty. But my warranty (thankfully) states "Parts not on the playfield when sold." Otherwise I could be nickeled and dimed to death.

Today, I delivered Cue Ball Wizard. I noticed during testing that the right target was stuck in. I thought it may be a kicker and not working. I also noticed a light not working in the GI. I lifted the playfield. The switch did not have a coil. But it was getting stuck. I looked at the play field and realized that it was sticking on the plastic above. I added washers to the top of the posts and it solved the problem. The light was only working when you pressed in tightly. I took out the light and noticed that one of the wires was touching but not soldered. I resoldered and it worked fine.

Three examples of why you should buy locally to ensure you get a complete, working game.

My wife had a manacure this morning. She told me that the women was talking about getting a gift and said, "I hear that there is a pinball place in town." My wife was about to say something, but another customer said, "I will never buy from him. His name is Charlie* [name changed to protect the innocent] and he never completes his work and he takes parts and never returns the parts." The other women said, "I have not heard that." At that point my wife said, "You are talking about "Pinball Charlie" and that is not my husband. My husband, Michael, owns Purcellville Pinball and he is not the same person." The women said to my wife, "You are wrong, the person in Purcellville is "Charlie"". My wife looked at the other women and said, "I know the name of my husband and it is Michael." The woman says, "You are wrong" and leaves. All the people in the store start to laugh at that exchange.

I used to reference "Charlie" on my web site. But I have heard similar stories and I have also heard about the great work that he has done. (I assume both good and bad things can also be said about me. But if anything bad, I would like to know so I can correct the situation or ensure it doesn't happen again.) So to protect myself, I removed his reference on my page years ago.

As I mentioned below, I bought 3 pinballs yesterday. I buy them from a wholesaler that treats them like crap and they get to my house in one piece. I treat them like gold and they break if I just smile at them. I guess it shows if you don't care about the product and treat like a commodity it works better.

Two of the games look okay. Although I will know more soon. The third was "fully shopped" by the prior owner. The person told me "It is not a Michael Belofsky restoration where you spend 100 hours to make the game look and play great and make $2.00 an hour for all of your work..." I guess this is true. I have pride in what I do and realize that I never make my time back in the price I sell. I do make money when you buy a game from eBay or someone else and it doesn't work and then you need to pay me to fix it... This is the time that I regret buying from him. Then I fix them up. Then I forget and buy more games from him. The circle of life continues...

My Facebook page for the business is up to 9 "likes" Just 999,991 to get to a million. Maybe I will get it by the end of 2011...

12/23/2011

This Christmas season has been different than the past. I always watched as my pinball sales track the economy and mood of the country (albeit on a very tiny scale). Last year I wasn't expecting much and sold 6 pinball machines between the beginning of October and the week before Christmas. If you asked me two weeks ago how sales are going, I would have said I sold nothing in this same time period. However, in the last two weeks I sold the same number of games as last year for Christmas. I think people have pent up demand but are looking for deals and buying at the last minute.

I also mirror the Black Friday retailers that sold a lot but made no profits. By lowering the prices of the pinballs, I got most to sell but made no money on any of them. But I did free up space to buy new pinballs to work on. After a while, I get tired of looking at the same games and have the urge to fix another but can't until I free up space. I keep reminding myself that this is a side business and although I do not want to lose money, as long as I make a little and continue to fix games, I am a happy camper.

I bought 3 games today: Pinball Magic, Doctor Who, and Eight Ball Deluxe. Eight Ball Deluxe is a great classic game. I always enjoy owning it (while I do) and playing it. It never gets old. The Doctor Who and Pinball Magic look good and hope to get them working in the next few days. Then I will decide how much I want to work on them (and how expensive they will be).

If you have an interest in any of these games, talk to me. Before I start working on them is the best time to get exactly what you want in a game.

Tomorrow morning I deliver the last game of the season, I think. On Face Book I announced that I could deliver a pinball on Christmas day later in the morning or early in the afternoon. No one has taken me up on the offer. Oh well. I guess I will go see a movie.

I still have the cocktail Ms PacMan 16 in 1 video game with the new monitor. I would really like to sell it rather than move it back downstairs. There has to be someone out there that wants one...

11/23/2011

I set up a business page on Facebook. Click on the link below to Like it. Please tell me what kind of information you would like to see. I would like to use it to tell people about new games or upcoming games, repair tips, and anything else people can think about.

11/18/2011

The Rescue 911 did not get auctioned at the Fannie Mae Help the Homeless auction. Oh well. It is back and part of the Christmas sale.

I lowered the price of the Rescue 911 from $1,895 to $1,495.

I tweeted today a few times on Twitter. I think 6 people are signed up. And I think they are all trying to market stuff to me. Oh well. Just 999,994 people to go to get to my goal of 1 million following me. :) @PvillePinball is my Twitter name.

11/11/2011

Here is my Christmas sale! Buy the games at my cost plus the price of the parts! Let's let some of these games move out so I can free up space to buy and work on others. Some are even being sold below my cost to see if they will move...

I lowered the price of the Original Ms Pac Man cocktail game with the 16 in 1 board from $1,795 to $1,495.

I lowered the price of the High Roller Casino from $2,495 to $1,995.

I lowered the price of the Star Wars Trilogy from $2,395 to $1,950.

I lowered the price of the Judge Dredd from $1,995 to $1,695.

I lowered the price of the Word Cup Soccer from $1,600 to $1,500.

I lowered the price of the Fish Tales from $3,495 to $2,995.

I lowered the price of the Cue Ball Wizard from $2,495 to $1,695.

I lowered the price of the South Park from $2,495 to $2,295.

I added a 20th Anniversary Namco Ms Pac Man / Galaga cocktail for $1,800 with the original board. With a 60 in 1 combo it is $2,250. This game is in excellent condition. It is not new but looks brand new and the monitor is also great.

The Cue Ball Wizard has been fixed once and for all. (See my Repair Chronicles for details.)

10/23/2011

I decided to donate the Rescue 911 to the 2011 Fannie Mae Help the Homeless Silent Auction.

I picked up a beautiful Ms Pac Man/Galaga 20th Anniversary Edition Cocktail. It looks brand new and works great.

I was in the area of Battlefield Parkway in Leesburg, Virginia. They finally finished the loop that loops outside of Leesburg. When we first moved to Leesburg in 1993, we lived right off Battlefield Parkway near Rt 15 (near the Walmart). We were told that they would soon finish this outter loop. 19 years later, it is finally complete.

10/2/2011

We just got from London and an 11 night cruise to Spain, Portugal, Canary Islands, Tenerife, and Madeira. This is the first time we have been to Europe. Hopefully it will not take another 40 years or so to get back. We really liked London. It reminded me of New York City. We went with friends from church that lived there so they were great tour guides. We spent a lot of time on the tube. I bought a "Mind the Gap" tee shirt. I just needed one. We went to Picadilly Circus, Stonehenge, Bath, Salisbury Church, Hampton Court Palace, Buckingham Palace, London Tower, Abbey Road, 2 plays, Westminster Abbey, Jack the Ripper walking tour, and Big Ben.

First time I can remember in years that I did not have a cell phone for 17 days and I lived. I did have a note book to check emails in the hotel when in London. Didn't check on the cruise to much since too expensive and too slow.

Now back to real life. I have to get ready to start fixing pinballs for Christmas. People will realize (as they always do) that they have a pinball that hasn't worked in 5 years or more and have a party next week (or sometimes this evening) and they need it fixed.

In one place on the trip (I think in Madeira) I saw an arcade with 3 1990s Gottliebs: Big Hurt (head down not working - I really wanted to fix it but had to get back on the tour bus), Waterworld, and a Soccer themed pinball.

9/10/2011

Wow. I haven't written anything. I guess I have been busy riding my bicycle this summer. I spoke to an owner of another business about pinballs. He was pleased that I stand behind my pinballs 100% and charge for the service. The discussion revolved around eBay. (You can read my opinion on eBay below, if you don't already know.) He said that he charges $300 for a trip visit for any machine that he did not sell, no matter if he can fix it or not. His opinion is why should people get away with buying a less expensive machine that is not guaranteed by his company and then expect him to figure out everyone else's prior potentially less correct fixes (did I say this politically correct rather than saying "incompetent"? Note that I am not talking about other repair people, I am talking about other repairs.).

He thought that I was crazy that I don't charge if I cannot fix a pinball. I originally put this policy in place because I doubted my abilities to fix a machine and did not want to penalize the person in case it is my inability. I have come to realize over the years that if I cannot fix a pinball it is usually because the cost of fixing the game will be much more than it is worth. Othertimes, I may fix the machine and not charge because I know that I did not (and could not) fix it so that the problem will not resurface. Sometimes the game has been so gerry-rigged by other prior incompetent fixes that I cannot fix it without spending a lot of time and money to do so and cannot build upon such a poor foundational repair. So by not charging, I am not committed to fix a continuing problem that will never go away.

This conversion occurred because I was coming back from a repair (that I could not fix) on a Data East Batman. The display was showing lines. Although I could have probably spent several hours trying to diagnose the problem (and not be compensated for the time), if the problem were the 128x16 DMD, no one currently has one in stock (and they are expensive) so I would not know if the problem could be fixed. I labelled the boards and took out the appropriate boards and asked them to call and send to Coin Service Technology to repair if they can. If it is worth their time fixing it, I know that F5 fuse on the PPB is blown so I know how to track that down and the plunger coil is missing.

I was driving by the house of a customer I sold a machine to a while ago. I was in an area that I am not usually in so I called and left a message that I was near their house and asked if anything needed adjustment or fixing (for free). They called back and stated the game was working fine. But when I sold it to them, one of the flasher LEDs was not working so I sent one in the mail and they never installed it. So I stopped by to install it. The game was still in very nice condition since they clean it regularly and play it often. As I was leaving a neighbor was over. He stated that he had a standup Ms PacMan that was showing funny characters. I suggested that he call twobits.com and send in the board and get the 16 in 1 board put on and they would ensure the board works 100%. I offered to go to his house (2 doors down). I opened the game. I showed him the one connector that should be taken off and suggested he mark the right side of the connector and board to put it back on correctly. I also showed him the two 1/4" hex nuts to remove to remove the track and send in the board. I noticed that the connector was not properly placed on the board. I reseated the connector and the game worked.

I have always been leary about repairing certain machines and certain types of repairs. I am considering charging two different sets of prices. One set for repairs on games that I sold. (Which thankfully have been very few since I am obsessive about ensuring the games work 100% now and for years to come to not have to do warranty work.) And a higher set of prices for repairs on games that were purchased from others. I am toying with the idea of adding a third set of even higher prices for the "perfect" eBay purchases that work 100% that need repairs by me. (Sorry, I could not resist a jab at eBay but this is not the opinion "below" I mention above, search further down... and often.)

7/27/2011

Finally sold a pinball. Yeah! Now I have a little more room. It was Apollo 13. I will miss it.

7/15/2011

I added a "Follow me on Twitter" button to my main page. I tweeted today two times to the world, so one person will see it. Any helpful tips on using Twitter to tell people about new games or repairs would be helpful.

7/4/2011

I raised the price $50 on the World Cup Soccer and will not include the Cliffy protectors (as a separate item). But I will now sell it with a 6 month warranty. I call this my "Value Priced Pinball." Many times I put so much time and money into a game that it goes above the price that people want. They can buy it for less without all the enhancements. So here is your chance to buy a 100% working game at a lower price. If you want the enhancements, I can add them.

7/1/2011

I posted the Pac Man/Ms Pac Man Cocktail Video Game. Finally! I have been so busy that I did not have time to take pictures.

6/26/2011

I posted the World Cup Soccer on Craigslist yesterday wholesale as is for $1,550. I just updated the photos and posted on the site to give everyone the opportunity to buy it. I put it up because it works 100% and I need the space and the money to buy the next games. Mostly I need the space.

I created an account on Twitter: @PvillePinball.

I will need to learn how to use this to the best advantage without being annoying.

6/25/2011

I have been busy and haven't written lately. I have done a few repairs in the last month, but mostly helping everyone on the phone for free. (I need a business model where I can earn money not charging for repairs.)

I finally correctly and completely fixed switch 51 (opto) on the World Cup Soccer and documented the fix on my repair pages.

I still have too many games and there has been no interest in purchasing games so I am out of room and money (but the money is "fake" since it is revenue from the business). So I can't buy any more pinballs until I sell a few games, bring up my cash reserves, and free up space.

I sent the Galaga board for repair. (Sound 15 explosion worked but all other sounds did not work.) I was told it couldn't be repaired and needed to buy a $450 Jamma 60 in 1 board. I did. But the board was not configured correctly for the Galaga set up. Basically, I would have to disable all games but Galaga. The place I bought it from configured this for me. They should have asked me if I wanted Free Play set and if I was using a cocktail cabinet (which I did tell them in the letter I sent). Since the joystick on the Galaga only goes left and right, I could not change the settings by moving up and down to set free play and "flip" for a cocktail configuration. Plus, I already sold this game to a friend for the price I paid it for plus the $100 I thought it would cost to repair the board. So if I did put this game in the board, a. I would be wasting most of its capabilties and b. I would lose $300. (My lesson that I got to keep learning is not to offer a price on a game until it works 100%. Otherwise, some other "small" problem will always turn into a "larger, more costly" problem.)

So I sent the board to Coin Service Technology. I spoke to them yesterday. They fixed the sound chips and replaced caps and the amp was no longer getting hot. They will do their due diligence and test for a few days. Joe explained that the board was flaky due to the double layer construction and the company getting cheap when the bought the game (custom chips, etc). He said that it may not boot once in a while so I would just need to turn off and on and it would work fine.

So my lesson on Galaga boards in the future is to send them to Coin Service Technology rather than www.twobits.com for repair. Two bits is a great company but I would rather repair the Galaga board than spend $450 plus postage on a new one. (Plus their return policy is no returned electronics. I could probably "argue" that the board didn't drop into the game and work, but I buy too many things from them to whine about this. I simply have a request to my wholesaler to find a Jamma cocktail cabinet with nice artwork, a working monitor, a 4 way joystick and two fire buttons to put the board in and sell in the future.)

The Pac Man game was upgraded to a 16 in 1 board ($239) with variations of Pac Man and Ms Pac Man. A new monitor was needed ($400). I installed and the wavy motion is gone. Two bits would rather sell a new monitor than try to fix a 30 year old monitor. I understand that. The colors are off. I had to buy a degaussing coil from two bits. (My suggestion in the future: although I dislike "upselling" and selling more than you need, one would think that a monitor would need to be degaussed. They could have suggested if I did not already have one to buy one. It should arrive Monday. So I will get the game working great and put it up for sale. The cabinet on this game looks great. With a new monitor and upgraded board, this game should last another 30 years or so. Do you want one?

5/21/2011

Just put a Judge Dredd up for sale. It was the first pinball I bought. It was nice to play it again. It really is a fun game.

I also bought a cocktail Pac Man and cocktail Galaga

5/1/2011

I put High Roller Casino up for sale. It is a good game at a good price.

4/30/2011

Addams Family has been restored very nicely. It is working 100% and has been posted.

4/10/2011

Based on fixing pinballs at retail establishments and selling them to retail establishments, it has become obvious that they are used 20 to 50 times as much as a game sold to a home. Based on this, I am initiating a $500 a year maintenance fee to all pinballs sold to retail establishments including restaurants, bars, doctors offices, etc. Anyplace where a pinball is on 8 to 12 to 16 hours a day 5 or 7 days a week, this new fee will apply. This will include a yearly maintenance and cleaning to ensure that it looks good, is working 100%, and no rubbers are broken. This fee will include up to 3 repairs (including the yearly maintenance) in a calendar year. Based on analysis, it should not need more than this for a typical game. I also reserve the right to not sell a pinball machine for a retail establishment if the stress of constant use will hurt the game. Additional repairs will be charged at current rates. (If a repair requires two trips, this is only counted as one.)

Look at the repair page for more information on this. I believe it is fair to everyone.

Maybe I should offer a warranty protection program for home use machines....?

Look at the Cue Ball Wizard. I flame polished the upper ramp play field. The pictures are at the bottom of the page. It is not perfect but looks better since I cannot buy a replacement ramp. (I also flame polished the ramps on Star Wars Trilogy but they didn't look bad to begin with so you may not notice a significant difference.)

4/3/2011

The Star Wars Trilogy is done, working, and posted for sale. Finally!

I picked up an Addams Family last week. I almost have all the mechanical and electrical stuff working. Now I got to buy all the stuff that doubles the price...

I also picked up a 1930s Mills 50 cent slot. I got it basically working. I need to disassemble and clean end to end to ensure that the slides work for payouts. Otherwise a nice machine.

3/20/2011

Some people at my job had a team building event today. I went to a shooting range and had the opportunity to shot many different types of guns. It was fun. It was the first time I ever fired a gun.

Two summers ago, we bought a new portable air conditioning unit. Our bedroom is over the garage and it gets very warm in the summer. Until then, we had a great (still working) Sunpentown portable 12,000 BTU unit from www.compactappliance.com that was 5 years old and still going strong. However, due to the vaulted ceiling we thought we could get a better unit with 14,000 BTUs. I bought an EdgeStar 14000. It worked great for the first summer. We plugged it in for the second summer (last year) and it was making a real loud whinning sound. We put the trusty Sunpentown back in commission.

We called EdgeStar (www.edgestar.com) and he immediately knew what the problem was. There was a rotating fan unit inside the machine that broke. The person said it was a known issue with the unit and they have a redesigned circular fan unit that is stronger. I asked how much. They were about $20 each but out of stock. I said if it is a "known issue" why do I need to pay for the replacement part? Moreover, if it is a known issue, why do I need to repair it myself? The unit was no longer under warranty (and I did not buy an extended warranty) so it wasn't covered. This sounds like a defect in the workmenship of the original unit. I wasn't getting anyplace, so I let it go.

Near the end of the summer, my wife reminded me to get the fixed part. I called. They had it. I mentioned the "known issue" again. The person did send it to me for free (which was nice) but I also bought a second one just in case (so they still got some money from me).

The person at the company said, "You just take off the housing and change it." Great I thought you take off the outside housing and change it... I just spent the last 3 hours figuring out how to disassemble it (taking notes to ensure it went back together). Once I got it disassembled, I easily replaced the part. After a few minutes of lining up the inner parts. I finally screwed it together. It actually works.

I looked at the circular fan. Half of the blades are detached from the side of the fan that doesn't attach to the unit. If we continued to use it, it would have disintegrated and flown all over the place (probably just within the unit and through the hose).

If you buy an EdgeStar portable air conditioner, ensure that the circular fan is of the new design or it will fail. I am not even sure I would ever recommend them to anyone again. I will never buy another portable air conditioner or anything else that they manufacture.

So, in the past few years, fixing pinball machines has allowed me to replace ceiling fans, fix pool circuit boards on my neighbor's pool filtration system, and now fix a portable air conditioning unit.

This gets back to my business. I only sell locally so I can repair any pinball I sell. I stand behind my pinballs to ensure you have a working pinball. I am very fair on the repair prices for games I sold. This is why I will not sell newer slot machines, EM Slot machines, or video games. I can't really service them, so I won't sell them.

Two summers ago (it wasn't a very good summer), we needed to drive my truck to Kentucky to help Timothy with moving items. The A/C in the truck did not work. I recharged it and within a week it stopped working. I paid almost $200 for the work. I forgot to bring it in to see where it was leaking. (This of course was my fault.)

I finally decided to try to fix it. It appears that I may keep this truck forever so it should work. I brought it to the same place. They could not find a leak. This time they took apart the dashboard to look at the compressor. It was working. This time it cost $500 to recharge and look at it. Hopefully when it stops working, they will be able to track it down and fix it for less than $500! I realize they are a "real" business that has payroll and overhead, but it is still frustrating when I pay for a repair and it is not done. Getting back to what I do, if I don't repair, I don't charge. (I am also picky about what I choose to repair based on this premise.)

2/27/2011

Finally finished the Apollo 13. I want to work on the Star Wars Trilogy this week to fix up the wires I wire nutted to heat shrink them so that the X wing fighter lines up correctly. I picked up a High Roller Casino. Every single GI light was out. It turns out the light in the back box needed to be replaced (and the starter) and EVERY SINGLE light bulb. I guess they put it in a location until every light went out and it didn't work (because someone spilled a coke down the front and onto the test switch buttons).

2/25/2011

I have been meaning to add this story:

My son, Tim, is a paramedic in Kentucky. During the third quarter of the Superbowl he received a call. He tells me an important life lesson: If you plan to commit suicide, don't swallow a whole bottle of anti-depression drugs. When the drugs start kicking in, you realize that you actually do not wish to commit suicide and call 911.

I believe that the person was actually okay. Of course, no one should commit suicide.

The other story he tells me is after he saves a patient that tried to commit suicide, they will usually ask "How did I do?" He really wants to say "Not very well, you are still alive." Instead he always says "You were this close to almost not making it."

1/26/2011

1990s Williams/Bally pinballs usually reset about 15 years after they are sold. This is due to the WPC driver board design. BR1, BR2, Cap 5 need to be replaced. I usually take the boards out, replace the 3 components, ensure all traces still connected, and put the board in. This takes too long.

Going forward, I will have refurbished 100% working boards for replacement for $200 plus the old board. This means that this repair would be about $350. However, I ensure everything on the game is still working.You can also buy new boards for about $275 that I can replace for you (or you can do yourself).

Now I will take the boards with me and do the work later in my shop with the correct tools, better light, and appropriate space.

1/25/2011

Fish Tales is new. It is nice. I always thought it was (and is) a great game. This is a nice looking game.

I got the motor back from Pinball Resource for the Cue Ball Wizard. The game will now work 100%. I will install tomorrow.

1/11/2011

With me whining about buying pinball machines I shouldn't, I thought an objective list would help me determine if I am getting a good deal, or wasting my money.

Many times when someone calls to sell me a game and it is working (which rarely happens), I tell them they can get more money selling it themselves. If the game is not working, I still tell them they can get more money selling themselves but less. I want to be honest up front. I am not a charity buying the games from you out of the goodness of my heart (but I do want to treat you fairly - and me fairly too). Too many people have been watching "American Pickers" or "Pawn Stars" and watching the stupid things they do, especially when a pinball machine is shown. "American Pickers", for example, shows you what they bought it for and how much it is worth. Maybe they have someone willing to buy the game at that price. I, and many of the people I know, would not pay that much for a game that is not shopped, not working 100%, and not warranteed. [Don't you love when you watch "Pawn Stars" and the person finds out that the item is worth $10,000. Then they ask what they want for the item. The person says "$10,000." I want to hit the idiot on the head. If you want $10,000, then you shouldn't be taking your items to a pawn shop. You should expect at most 30 - 40%. The owner has to take the risk of finding a buyer and eventually selling the item... Thanks for letting me vent.]

My business is selling games working 100% and looking as good as possible to individuals. I rarely sell to places to put them in a restaurant or such. I do not sell my shopped games to other pinball enthusiasts. (They want to work on them themselves and they don't need warranties. I do wholesale games occassionally when I need space.) I am not an artist and do not get them looking perfect, but I get them looking very good. There are artists out there that will do complete restorations and they look fabulous. But you will also pay double or more what you can buy the game from me. So, do you want a work of art or a game the family can enjoy?

As I have said many times on this page, I don't compete with eBay or Criagslist prices. My games are better than those. Most games on these sites are not up to my standards. The ones that are also have prices that reflect the fact that they are high quality games.

So, for example, say I am selling/sold a game for $2,995. You see the same one sold on eBay for $1,800. You want to sell me this game. If the game is not missing parts, mostly works, and looks in decent condition I will offer you $900. I will then spend $600 to $1,000 on parts to get the game working 100% and ensure all motors, plastics (if available), ramps, game specific parts, displays, etc. work. I also offer a 6 month warranty and stand behind every game I sell. After spending an average of 40 - 60 hours on a game, I do not have a problem selling you a great game that I know will work for years to come (and will probably not need any warranty work) for $3,000. You get piece of mind that you have a working game. I don't really get paid a "real" per hour rate, but I enjoy fixing games so this is okay.

Here is a list of items I should be looking for when I purchase a machine. (You can use this when you buy a game from me or others.)

Items to Look For When Buying A Pinball

Item	Subtract
Missing Manual	$25
Broken Plastics	$200*
Broken Ramp	$150 - $250*
Game Specific Motor	$100 - $200 or more*
Game Specific Part	$50 - $200 or more*
Cabinet: Light Scratching	$200 - $400
Cabinet: Heavy Scratching/Wear	No Go
Playfield: Bare Wood Areas	$200 - $500 or No Go
Playfield: Wear Spots	$200 - $400*
Translite Scratched or Missing	$200 - $300*
Older Backglass w/artwork Flaking/Fading	$200 - $400*
Older Backglass w/artwork Broken/Missing	No Go
Decals Missing or Ripped	$50 - $100*
Need for Cliffy Protectors	$50 - $100
Boards: Missing Boards	$200 - $500 or No Go
Boards: Repairs Required	$200 - $300*
Displays: DMDs	$250*
Displays: Older displays	$200 - $300*

* Could be a "No Go" if parts are not available for the game.

1/9/2011

My lessons for the week (repeating some of the 1/3/2011 post):

1. I do not need to buy every pinball offered to me. Sometimes they are just not a good deal or not worth getting. "Just Say No" and "Step away from the pinball machine" are phrases I will need to learn.

2. Do not buy, move from, or deliver to a customer whose only entrance to the basement (if that is where the game is going) is through the house.

3. Don't buy games, after regretting buying them (see item 1 above), thinking I can wholesale them. I am not in the wholesale business. My basement just gets cluttered with games. On the other hand, when I offer a game "as is" to the pinball group I am on, the potential buyer should not expect a game in pristine condition where the colors are radiant. If they were, don't "cha" think I would fix it up myself and sell it retail at a much higher price?

On the other hand, I think the underlying reason I bought a World Cup Soccer this past week was to "get back on the horse". I sold my World Cup Soccer December 11. While moving it to my staircase, I dropped it. It all happened in slow motion. I tried to get it up a small ramp leading to the landing on the stair case. I came at it at a slight angle. I put the game on sideways so when I get it out to the landing it is in the right direction to take up the stairs. The game started tipping to the left. I tried really hard to stop it from tipping. Later I noticed black and blue marks on my wrists since I tried so hard. As the game fell to the left, I braced my left leg under it to cushion the fall. The game gently fell to the ground. I picked it up and no damage. The top of my leg hurt but I got it in the truck. As I was driving (stick shift), I could not move my left leg forward to the clutch. I had to use my hands to put my leg in position. I could press down and up and move it away. So obviously the muscle that controls the "move the leg forward" was not very happy. I delivered the game but needed some help on the other end to ensure I didn't drop it :) I even needed to take away a non-working game and deliver it to the wholesale person I buy from. Over the next few days it hurt but it did not bruise where the game hit my leg. At the gym, someone thought I got hit REALLY HARD in the back of my knee with a racquetball. The back of knee and about 5 inches up was all black and blue. It did not hurt but looked bad. Then over the next few days the black and blue mark travelled down my leg and then into my ankle. My wife convinced me to go to the doctor and they said it was healing okay. It is now a month later and it is totally fine.

But this incident cost me a snow blower. My wife made us buy one "since we aren't getting any younger" and I have proven that I can get hurt and she would not be able to shovel. I recommended moving to Phoenix or Florida. I lost. We now have a snow blower. It is supposed to snow Tuesday. But I do not think we will have measurable snow for years now that I bought a snow blower.

This weekend was the "get back on the horse" weekend. I moved the World Cup Soccer successfully to the basement. I even added an "operational efficiency" (see I can use impressive terms we use at my real job and tie them to pinball) to the movement of pinballs. When the game is at the bottom of the landing, rather than taking it in sideways where the center of gravity is not correct and the game can fall, I now turn the game 90 degrees and bring it in correctly and safely. OHSA would be proud of me. I also had to move a Flying Chariots down to my basement. This game has a beautiful playfield in almost excellent condition but a back glass that has a crack in it that makes it virtually a parts machine. I tried to give it away at a really low price ($85) and no one wanted it. I then brought the Getaway machine upstairs since I delivered it today. I used my new "operational efficiency" in reverse to get it up the stairs. Finally, I brought down a Monday Night Football. This was part of the trade for the Getaway. This is a game in beautiful condition that I sold to the customer a few years ago and looks as good now as it did when I restored it then. (But the game is not pristine and not all of the colors are radiant....)

So I think I subconciously got the World Cup Soccer to ensure that it did not beat me and I got it safely downstairs.

Over the next few days, I got to get the motor out of Cue Ball Wizard and send to Pinball Resource for repair since I can't buy one. Then with the few parts I got, the game should be totally done.

Fishtales is next. Then Apollo 13. Then Star Wars Trilogy. Then Monday Night Football. Then World Cup Soccer....

1/3/2011

Well, the Cue Ball Wizard is done but needs a new motor. That is another $200 since they are not made anymore. I also needed to buy the correct brackets for the cue stick. This will make the game better.

My wife says I need to join "Pinball Anonymous" and learn how to say "NO" when someone offers to sell me a pinball machine. I don't need every machine and I am not in the wholesale business. Next time, unless I really want the game, I will say "NO." (I hope....)

I will now also start saying "NO" if you want delivery to a basement where the only entrance is through the house. No! No! No! I hate going down/up narrow staircases with carpet and worry about scratching floors or messing up carpet. I won't do it anymore.

12/28/2010

Cue Ball Wizard has been posted.

I am almost done with the Star Wars Trilogy. I am just waiting for the LEDs.

I thought I posted the problem to the Apollo 13. I posted it on my repair pages. I was using a 3 amp time delay fuse rather than a 3 amp slow blow. They are "supposed" to be the same but they are not. It all works. I am also waiting for the LEDs.

Fish Tales has most of the parts. Waiting for the LEDs and then will start working on this after the two above.

12/2/2010

Star Trek has been posted.

Several random thoughts:

How can you trust the newspapers and television news when you know what is really going on and the media is reporting lies or half truths? (I realize that I may not have the truth but I really think I do.) The mortgage problems reported by the media are not reported correctly. I know the truth about how the problem started, who started it, and what is going on. Does the media really not know? Or are they reporting lies to report what they want the public to "know"?

I like Hallmark ornaments. I have many on my Christmas tree. I look forward to July when they are introduced. I don't buy as many as I use to because they are getting rather expensive and they overproduce them and they are on sale after the holidays. I hate buying something for full price that I can get for 1/2 price after because they make too many... If they didn't over produce, they would run out but that would condition people to get the ornaments they want before Christmas because they will not be on sale for half price after....It is funny when they constantly send coupons good for "everything"* *except what you really want. I like Kohl's. When they give you a coupon for everything they mean it.

12/1/2010

Someday I am going to listen to myself and do what I say I am going to do. I am going to try to limit pinball purchases to Bally/Williams games of the 1990s, Newer Stern games, Bally 1977-1985, and maybe a few 1985 - 1990 Williams games. Whenever I have problems with games, they are usually Gottliebs or Data East/Sega games. I just bought a Fish Tales. It works. It just needs a lot of cosmetic improvements. I also just bought a Sega Star Wars Trilogy. Surprise, F21 is blowing. It is the trough VUK. I just ordered the manual and will hopefully replace the coil and the transistor and it should work. But just like the Apollo 13, they went cheap on the GI and it will require removal of plastics to change lights. The slings on the Star Wars are cracked at the tips and they don't seem to have replacements. Stay with Bally/Williams... I got to keep telling myself. For the Apollo 13, I am going to buy a 555 timing chip and hopefully this will solve the problem.

The Star Trek Next Generation is complete and looks great with the LEDs. Hopefully I will get the pictures up on the web site tomorrow.

11/25/2010

It is Thanksgiving. No place to go. Suzanne and I will go to the new Harry Potter movie and find a place to eat.

I just went downstairs to replace GI lights on the Apollo 13. I "thought" that I could raise the play field and simply unscrew them from the bottom and replace. Sega seemed to have gone cheap on the GI lights. The lights are stapled to the play field. Now I will need to take everything apart. I might as well replace with LEDs so this never has to be done again. This will raise the price eventually but improve the maintainability.

I have a post on RGP to help fix the magnet problem. Don't know if it is because core is moving in the magnet due to a lose of structural integrity or something else. magnet is too powerful in grab and blows the F21 fuse. Hopefully I will figure this out.

11/20/2010

I donated my Slugfest to Fannie Mae's Help the Homeless Fund Drive. I delivered the machine today to Rockville, MD. I also scheduled a fix in Arlington, VA of an F-14. It turned out the 2P6 pin 2 black-white 12 volt wire fell out of the connector and the sound was not working. I also helped the customer fix lights and learn a bit more about the game. I then went to McLean, VA to fix an Addams Family. It was not recognizing the ball was in the outhole. The switch wire (green something or other) was disconnected at a nearby switch. I helped with some other stuff. Now to put my tools back in the garage and my dollys back in the basement.

I got all the parts for the Cue Ball Wizard and Apollo 13. Hopefully I can work on them tomorrow.

Tomorrow is our fall congregation meeting at church. We vote on the budget. I have not been asked to do financial presentations in the past few years (I am the chairman of the Finance committee). Oh well. Less work and stress. Every year we tell everyone* that if everyone just gave a little more, we would be fine. Every year the same core group of people donate. Some people cannot and that is understandable. There is probably some percentage that is not donating and could or could give more. We haven't been able to find these people yet. Our finance reports show a $20,000 loss for the year so far. At the finance meeting (or what I call "Groundhog Day" as in the movie), I explained that we had $20,000 more in the bank on January 1, 2010 than we did on October 31, 2010. This appears about the amount of money we are behind every year (we are actually behind much more because we have not been able to donate to Synod and other things....). We currently have $15,000. This means that we cannot go another year like this. At the congregation meetings, leadership always tries to paint a rosie picture because they are afraid of the truth and how people will react. So we never get the intensity and dire need conveyed of the current situation. The congregation, although the data is on the web site, weekly bulliten, monthly newsletters, and quarterly statements, is oblivious to our dire financial condition.

I added an asterisks (*) above because we kid ourselves when we say we have a congregational meeting and speak to "everyone." We speak to the 30 or so families that bother to attend. I believe we have over 200 families and this is just not important enough for most. (I know and appreciate that there are vacations planned, trips planned, school events, etc.) So, the congregation meeting is actually "singing to the choir" and the cycle continues. Somehow I believe we will make it through. It would just be nice to have finance meetings and council meetings where finances do not dominate the conversation.

11/11/2010

Today is Veteran's Day so I have the day off. I picked up an Apollo 13 pinball machine. Maybe I will put it together and start looking at it.

I just posted the High Speed II - The Getaway. It is a great game but this pinball is definitely not collector quality. I would have charged a lot more if it didn't have some wear on the playfield and didn't have some broken plastics that are not available to replace.

I will be posting the Rescue 911 soon. It was originally meant as a gift for my son, but there are now space issues so I will get him something else. When the time is right, I will find him a pinball and give it to him.

I am embrarrassed to write this, but thanks to Joe and Dennis at Coin Service Technology, I finally figured out the problem with Roadshow. I though there was something wrong with the CPU (which was fixed by CST). If the game was on for a while, when a game was started or during a game, it would go crazy. I thought a chip was getting hot. It turned out, thanks to them mentioning to look at the switch matrix, that the bull dozer and Ted eddie switches were not adjusted correctly. Simple. That was the problem.

I still have the stuck opto to replace on the Star Trek Next Generation and all the LEDs and new items to add. I still need to carefully look at the Cue Ball Wizard.

10/16/2010

We just came back from a great cruise to New England and Canada. It started in Baltimore, MD so we did not have to fly.

Isn't it funny how we will spend more money for something while on vacation than we would ever pay in "real life"? For example, a $5.00 bottle of water at Disney World that you can buy a 24 case of 24 ounce bottles from Costco for $6.50 or so.

Sadly, the No Good Gofers sold. I am sad to see it go since it truly is a great game. I will get this one again. I wish I had time to play it longer but it went to a good home.

Now I have to glue the right side of the cabinet better for Getaway. Then I will need to start looking at what the Cue Ball Wizard needs to work.

Still stalling on the Star Trek Next Generation. I think I found the intermittent problem with multiballs. The jam opto in the trough is not working correctly. I will simply need to change out the opto. The pain in the neck thing to do first is to create a connector since the trough boards are soldered to the wires rather than using a connector.

9/26/2010

The No Good Gofers has been completed yesterday. Photos are now available and it is officially for sale.

I bought a Getaway and a Cue Ball Wizard. The Getaway is now working 100%. I now have to clean it up and get it ready for sale. There is a nickle-size area near where the ball exits the plunger area. I have no idea how it could have happened. Oh well, the playfield will never be perfect. (There are also wear spots under the top right ramp and at the top left.)

The interesting item on the Getaway is the grease on the under-playfield right support lock mechanism. You always know when an operator was in a rush to fix something or had no idea what they were doing when there is grease or oil on or in the machine. The solution to make the right lock mechanism work was not to put grease on it, it was to examine the part and see what the problem was. In this case, the metal was bent and the locking mechanism was not engaging properly. I took off the bracket (with the help of Ed) and used a hammer to bend the metal back and then a pliers to bend back another part. It works smoothly now. Thanks Ed!

The other thing I have to fix on the game is to replace the test buttons inside the coin door. The coin door and the buttons have soda on them. The left ESCAPE button does not work. Once replaced, the test buttons should work nicely. Finally, the on/off switch is inside the game. This will be a bit inconvenient for home use. I assume however buys this will put it on a surge protector and use the on/off switch on that to easily turn on the machine.

I quickly looked at the Cue Ball Wizard. Played a game. The left flipper didn't work and several coils did not work. The left flipper cabinet switch is missing. I guess the operator needed one in a hurry for another game... I will work on this after the other machines.

I have been stalling on adding the LEDs into the Star Trek Next Generation. I will start on that soon.

9/3/2010

Read about my fun fixes of No Good Gofers on my Repair Chronicles. I shorted my switch matrix to my 50 volt coil matrix.

Here are some pictures of the games I have in the "showroom."

ngg

The above picture shows World Cup Soccer, Star Trek The Next Generation, Lord of the Rings, Monopoly, Road Show, South Park, Rescue 911, No Good Gofers and Slug Fest. I just received all the parts to make Star Trek look very nice. It works 100%. The Rescue 911 is not for sale. The No Good Gofers works 100%. I just need to shop it and decide how much money and time I will spend on it.

A view of the same games from the other side. (Usually I use Photo Elements to white out all other pinball machines and the background.)

World Cup Soccer, Star Trek The Next Generation, Lord of the Rings, and Monopoly.

Road Show, South Park, and Rescue 911.

No Good Gofers and Slug Fest.

8/27/2010

After you read this, you may never want to buy another Slurpee at 7-Eleven again...

I went there today to get a Slurpee. A father (I assume) and several of his daughters came in and got cups to get Slurpees. They placed their fingers (including the father!) under the dispensers to taste all of the flavors. They were touching the underside of the dispenser with their fingers. They were licking their fingers and putting them under again. It was a totally disgusting experience. One of the girls filled up her cup, licked the lid to free up space, and placed it under another dispenser to get more.

I told the cashier and he did an excellent job cleaning it up. I decided to go ahead and get a Slurpee since it may be the last one I ever buy based on watching these rude and disgusting people do what they did. I figured that the dispensers were clean and may be my only opportunity to get a Slurpee knowing that the dispensers were clean.

This happened today around 1:45pm at the 7-Eleven in Herndon in the Kohl's shopping center.

8/7/2010

I am waiting for all the parts to come before I can work on my remaining pinballs. I was able to look at the switcfh matrix on the Star Trek and see that the Trough Up opto (switch 67) was not working. Thankfully, I replaced the emittor LED and the switch works. This was causing the game to occassionally shoot two balls or get confused in multi-ball thinking that an extra ball was stuck. The GI lights on the shields were not working. I replaced the IO driver board with a known good board and they work. So I will need to replace Q18 and/or ensure that all traces are working correctly for this GI circuit.

Until I get the boards back on the Rescue 911 and No Good Gofers, I can't do anything else. So I am trying to clean up my basement.

8/4/2010

I just spent over $1,300 on parts for South Park, Star Trek The Next Generation, No Good Gofers, and Rescue 911. If I am going to fix these games, they are going to look great and work 100%. (Another reason I can't compete with craigslist or ebay "deals".) A lot of the money was spent on Star Trek, my favorite game. The South Park now has the two missing gates and both Cliffy protectors. Cliff sent me the one for the ledge and the angle was not correct for my machine. I took pictures. Cliff rebent a new one with better angles for the game and sent it. It works great. Thanks Cliff! if you don't know about Cliffy protectors, click here.

7/24/2010

I picked up a Star Trek: The Next Generation pinball. This was a pinball I fixed up several years ago and sold to a friend. It is in beautiful condition and not very much more used than a few years ago. The South Park turned out very nice and has been posted for sale.

7/18/2010

I went to Florida last week to visit my parents. My sister, her husband, and two kids live there too. My son flew in from Kentucky. My brother flew in from New York City. I am always thankful when I return home. I love visiting them. However, I believe most of the older population there does not give a damn or not whether they kill you when they are driving. I guess they have lived a long, fulfilling life and if they take a few people out with them while driving down the street, I guess it is no big loss. I know this is not a nice thing to say. But looking at their bewildered faces as I am driving, I am amazed how unsure, uncomfortable, bewildered, and confused most older people in Florida look while driving.

I came back last Thursday and rode my bike on the W&OD bike path. I met two teenagers coming the other way on the trail. I turned a corner going almost 18 miles an hour and ahead there were branches blocking the path. I stopped and moved them. You could see the marks where they were dragged from the side of the path onto the path. I have to believe that those teenagers moved them there or at least moved them out of the way and replaced them when they passed.

On Friday, I sold the Elvis. It now has a new nice home. A few friends of mine will be sad that Elvis left the building. This is a game I will look for again and buy. I stopped at Lloyd's warehouse on Friday on the way home. The boards for the two machines below are still out being repaired so I have not had a chance to see what is really wrong with the games. I did pick up a Sega South Park. Cosmetically it is in nice condition. It boots up, which is better than the other two. The row of target switches was out on the top left. Luckily it was just a wire that was disconnected. The Kenny opto was not working. The transmitter was bent and had a cold solder joint. I repaired this and the opto worked. Mr. Hankey was acting like a little s**t and was not coming out of the toilet. I figured out how to get the coil in front of it out and took out Mr. Hankey. The ledge that the coil was resting on needed to be bent just the right way to work. It now works fine but will probably have future issues with it. The game is basically working except it needs a gate near the bumpers, new rubbers and new lights and cleaning. It is nice to get a pinball from Lloyd once in a while that I can get it basically working in a few hours. It will also need new locks and I will buy the Cliffy protectors.

7/2/2010

I picked up a Rescue 911 and a No Good Gofers. This is the time period that I get upset with Lloyd for selling me junk. Then I realize that is what almost every pinball I get from him is before I get it working. Then I fix it and am happy again. And then I buy another machine or two from Lloyd and the cycle continues...

The No Good Gofers blows fuse 602. This is the 115 - 123 volt fuse that controls the high power (to the display) on the audio visual board. I assume the high power circuit is bad. I will just send the board to Coin Service Technology to fix. I will call them on Tuesday and see if I should just send the whole board set to test...

The Rescue 911, based on reading www.marvin3m.com/fix.htm, appears to have a bad U8 DMD Controller GAL chip on the dot matrix controller board. The LED does not flash like it should and the screen shows garbage. This fits the explanation exactly. I will see if CST can also fix this and possibly send in the entire board set to check. This machine will be for Timothy since he is now a paramedic. I owned this and Fire! when he was younger but have sold them a long time ago. Hopefully I will get this working and given to Timothy and Jessica.

6/30/2010

A friend told me that the Chantilly Costco had a pinball machine for sale. It was a Batman for $3,299. This is much less than I can buy it wholesale. I thought about getting one. Luckily I quickly checked www.ipdb.org and found out that Stern is now making "Standard" versions of their "Pro" pinball machines. It is really sad that Stern is selling these cheap versions for several reasons:

1. People want a regular pinball machine for their home, not a home version that is crippled. Bally tried this in the 1970s with cheap 3/4 size pinball machines sold at Sears. I get calls to fix these all the time and I just won't waste my time on them.

2. In the future, when I buy a pre-owned Stern pinball, I will need to figure out whether it is the "Standard" version or the "Pro" version. I will have to spend half of my time explaining the differences. Moreover, I will have to explain why I am selling one for $4,300 but the "same" version is on ebay for $2,000.

3. Once people get these cheap versions in their home, they will never know that there is quality and depth to the pinball machines and it could cause a quicker death of the pinball.

This is another sad day for pinball....

There is a quote on the above site that says that this game plays very different than the "Pro" version. This is an example of why I wouldn't be allowed to write the advertising for the "Standard" version. I would be truthful and state that it will have less challenges, less to do, less programming and complexity of the software, and overall a very unsatisfying experience. However, if you ask me to write the advertising for any real Stern pinball, I would be truthful and be able to talk about the great things of each game....

I will do my best to never buy a "standard" game in the future to repair and resell...

6/19/2010

It is interesting how fixes come in sets or multiples. I fixed the reset problem on two different customer's pinballs (an IJ and a TZ) and the problem came back. I tell people that once the BR1, BR2, Cap5 is replaced it should work 10 - 15 years. So resetting within a year on one machine and 3 months on another was disconcerting. I documented the changes on my Repair Chronicles. For the TZ, J101 was burnt and needed to be rebuilt. On the IJ, the heat sink on BR1 and BR2 was bent down. I slighly raised it and straightened out the legs and it worked.

On the IJ board I also noticed that a fuse had a wire soldered on the outside. I should have noticed it when I originally went to the customer's house. But I noticed it this time. Upon further inspection, 3 fuses had wire soldered on the outside. This frustrates me. I can only assume that this was on location and a replacement fuse was not available so they simply added a wire on the outside of the fuse. True that it closes the connection, but it does not provide what the fuse is intended for: protection. If there was a problem with the game, the fuse would not have blown. This could have been a fire hazard. Please use the correct fuses (if it says 3amp and you only have a 5amp, spend the time and buy the correct fuse rather than use the incorrect fuse). Also ensure that if a fuse is slow blow then use a slow blow. If it is regular, use a regular. Smoky the Bear will thank you. Only you can prevent pinball fires!

So, now I can provide some random thoughts.

* I was at the mall on Friday and another person went through the stop sign while someone was driving on the side that said "Proceed without stopping". Another idiot proving that my wife is correct and you should stop because people don't stop at stop signs in malls.

* I bought a road bike and have been riding on the W&OD. It is a 45 mile bicycle trail from Purcellville, VA (my hometown) to Washington, DC. It is great fun and great exercise. Note to self: Breath through your nose rather than your mouth while on the trail to eat less bugs. I haven't built up the nerve to use my shoes with clips yet. I use a pair at the gym while spinning, but the chance of falling over at the gym is 0.

* I provide a detailed description of fixing the reset problem on the Road Show I currently have. All of the information is good information. I finally broke down and sent the board to Coin Service Technology. They said that there was probably a run of boards that did not have good solder connections since they are seeing a lot of the same problem. So now I think I finally have it worked out and it worked without resetting after 5 minutes or 5 hours of being on. Finally....

6/8/2010

In December, between the snow storms, I bought an Indiana Jones (Williams) from a person in Round Hill, VA. I looked it over and offered a price. The person wanted more. I gave it to him since it looked like everything was in order except for what I knew was in okay condition (the cabinet). I have learned my lesson (again) and have updated my "Check List" to help you and also help myself. It turns out that the translite was not a translite but a piece of paper with a copy of the translite. I would have never thought to check for this. Did the person lie to me and know that it was a piece of paper? Probably. Can I prove it? No. Most importantly, did I ask? No. Did I think I would need to ask? No. I guess this question would be similar to asking if a car really had the engine in it or a cardboard cutout as a replacement.

I guess what bothers me the most is that I did not notice it when looking at the game and did not realize it when I took off the back glass many, many times. I noticed it the day that I was delivering it with the customer there. Luckily I am good friends with the customer and told him to buy a translite and I will reimburse to ensure he gets what he wants and deserves. I just wish I would have noticed it sooner. I don't like when people lie to me or do not tell me the whole truth. I will never lie to anyone, but will stand behind everything I sell. I am more embarrassed than anything else that I did not sell a pinball to the customer that was of the quality (knowing the condition of the cabinet was far from perfect) that I portrayed it to be.

4/26/2010

I spoke with Gene at Retro Pinball today and will be set up to distribute the remake of Gottlieb's King of Diamonds pinball. This game looks very classy and provides everyone with the opportunity to own a new "classic" Gottlieb pinball machine using state of the art electronics for easy repair.

4/24/2010

The Williams Indiana Jones has been completed last week. I finally had time to take and post pictures. The playfield is beautiful. I wish the cabinet was in better condition. Oh well, you play the game not the cabinet. As I state on the for sale page, this is not collector material, but it is a 100% working great looking playfield. If someone wants to get it re-decaled, I think I know someone that I can pay to get it done. I don't want to do the work.

4/10/2010

The Roadshow has been posted for sale. I worked out all the problems with the game. The left flippers were getting hot. I replaced the flipper button board with a Rottendog Amusements replacement flipper board and this solved the problem. The problem described below concerning the spacer on the CPU board solved the problem, but it reset a few more times. I took off the CPU board and added a washer to adjust the spacing and reflowed the solder on the two double row of pins connectors at the top of the CPU board and this seems to solve the problem. I will continue to play the game and test.

I took all the ramps and other items off the Williams Indiana Jones. I purchased replacement plastics before. I also bought a new plastic ramp from MAD Amusements. Mike Chestnut replated the wire ramps and the gun. They look beautiful. I will start cleaning the playfield and replacing parts tomorrow.

3/21/2010

The Stern Indiana Jones pinball was delivered yesterday. It is a very nice, entertaining game to play. I miss it already.

Most of the playfield on the Roadshow is complete. I have the sling area to work on next. I will then try to clean up the yellow plastic ramps as well as I can and get them back on the machine. I put a few strategically placed LEDs on the game to reduce future frustration....

Added Grand Slam to the Archives page. Only 1000 or so to go....

3/17/2010

Another St Patrick's Day that I forgot to wear green. Someday I will remember. So what is new? The Roadshow is almost finished. Hopefully I will be posting it soon. Then I will start working on the 1993 Indiana Jones. I will not do the decals. Only bad things can happen when you give me a decal.

I played Elvis in the dark the other day to see the LED lights. The game looks very nice. I will need to try the other games.

I still have not updated my archive pages. Hopefully will get there eventually. I will probably not add the other secondary pages until I have something to put on them.

Hopefully sales of pinballs will pick up soon. Otherwise I will get bored with all the machines I currently have.

The new Stern Indiana Jones is a very nice game to play and very addictive.

The MAC has been a very nice computer. The iPhone has also been great. I think I see an iPad in my future....

2/7/2010

I thought I fixed the reset problem on the Roadshow. It happened yesterday night. I figured out the problem today and posted the solution on my repair chronicles. Since it wasn't the typical BR1, BR2, and CAP5 reset issue (since I already fixed that), I searched RGP and it led me to the look at the CPU board. The interesting thing about the conversations about the reset issue was the quality repair people on RGP talking about not liking fixing reset problems on their own machines since they worked hard to ensure that the game worked correctly. But the "bread and butter" that helped keep them in business repairing pinball machines are all the "eBay specials." It is funny that I complained about them as well and said that "eBay has been very, very good for me."

This problem took me a day to figure out in between shoveling 3 feet of snow and working on other tasks around the house. I am very glad this problem did not happen at a customer's house since I would not have been able to think about it, test things, research the issue, and finally come up with the solution.

I feel a little bad, the person I bought the machine from did not want to put any more money into the game. He gave me the receipt of the repairs that were done by another pinball repair company. They charged A LOT of money. (I don't feel bad about what I charge now.) They charged almost $500 to repair the driver board. When I do repairs, I make a determination of whether it will cost more than $150 to repair the driver board. If so, the honest thing to do is offer to sell them a new driver board. I won't make as much money but I will be doing the right thing. (Thank goodness I am not doing this for a living.) So the really sad thing is, in hindsight, they didn't really fix the problem since it turned out being a missing spacer on the CPU board that was causing it to vibrate and creating cold solder joints. So he paid for a repair, it worked a little and then stopped working. He didn't play the game for a while. Found me and sold me the game.

2/5/2010

An almost new home use only Stern Indiana Jones has been added. Tomorrow, I get to work on the Roadshow since I will not be able to go anyplace due to the snow blizzard.

1/31/2010

I am working on replacing the bridge rectifiers and the capacitor on the Roadshow I bought last week. As usual, I have to replace the connectors for the GI lights (J120 and J121) since they usually cause the connectors to burn and don't get a good connecting. I just went to take out the board. The Bozo that repaired this machine before me solder some of the wires from the J115 connector directly to the pins. If these people would just bother to do a repair correctly, it would make my life easier when I have to repair their repairs.

Roadshow: Now that game does not reset and all GI lights work correctly, the remaining problems are:

1. Weak Left Flipper - replaced coils and flipper button board
2. Red and Ted's eyes do not close (3/17/2010 - Red's eyelids needed a new coil. Ted's eyelid coil broke and was reapir with a twist of wire that did not work very well. Thankfully, Red and Ted can now open and close their eyes.)
3. Clean playfield, change lights, replace rubbers.
4. Replace a few plastics and buy the orbitpinball.com protectors.
5. Display is missing two right columns - new display.

1/24/2010

I completed adding the repairs for Gottlieb, Data East, Sega, and Stern. I will work on adding back the archive pages. Then I will work on some of the 2nd level for sale pages (that no one ever looks at anyway).

1/23/2010

I completed re-adding all of the repairs for Bally and Williams. I will work on Gottlieb, Data East, Stern, and Sega tomorrow. I also need to add back the archived machines I sold or traded in the paste. Finally, I still need to complete the menus for the "for sale." But I will not add back pages where nothing has sold...

I purchased a Road Show today. A bit faded but it looks nice. It needs a new left sling (which I think I have). The "Start City Event" plastic is also missing a small triangle off the left bottom. It will need to get the BR1, BR2, and Cap 5 replaced to stop the reset issue. J120 and J121 on the driver board will also need to be replaced. Once I do this work, I will turn on the machine and see what else is wrong.

1/18/2010

Now that I finished restoring all of my pinball machines, I am continuing my work to migrate my web site from Web Expressions (Front Page) on a pc to Dreamweaver on the Mac. I may or may not duplicate all my archived pinball machines. This will be a lot of work.

So when this site goes live and you see this comment, hopefully I have brought my current site over without missing anything. One major change is changing the pages from .asp extensions to .html extensions.

1/9/2010

Monopoly is complete and posted for sale. I purchased a Williams 1993 Indiana Jones. I did some work to get it working 100%. There are a few broken plastics. It needs to be cleaned. I am just enjoying the game as is. I am trying to decide whether to spend money to change the lights to LEDs, re-plate the wire ramps, replace the plastics. The cabinet decals could do with replacing but I really, really do not want to do this work.

12/27/2009

Note to self: Do not go to Tysons Corner Mall the day after Christmas. It was a zoo. The people were almost as rude as New Yorkers! (I can say that since I am from NYC.) It was enjoyable and very crowded. We left at 5pm. The parking lot was backed up. We got into the car and backed out. Sat there for 5 minutes and decided to go back in and shop some more. As we were walking back, people were yelling to the traffic control people that they have been in the parking lot for 1 hour and 15 minutes waiting to move. We came back out at 7pm and it was empty.

I finished the Elvis. It looks very nice with the LEDs and all the new stuff.

I also updated this web site to move some items off the for sale list. Now I got to work on the Monopoly next.

12/21/2009

I forgot to mention some things yesterday...

I marked a lot of the Stern machines as "we can help you locate" since they are not available new anymore. I also put a disclaimer that I need to verify the price since Stern keeps raising them...

I sold the World Cup Soccer. I received a deposit. I moved the game off the "for sale" list. Then the person decided that they did not want the game. I refunded the money. In the future, I will keep it on the "for sale" list to ensure that I don't lose a potential sale.

I always stand behind what I sell, but I will make my policy and returns explicit. The delivery fee will not be refunded. There will also be a "restocking fee" of $300 to cover my cost to pick up the machine and the time it takes to bring back. I have not had to do this yet, but want to be ready.

12/20/2009

I finally completed the Ripley's Believe It Or Not and posted it for sale. I started working on Elvis.

I probably delivered my last pinball machine on Friday right before the snow storm. With almost 2 feet of snow in the backyard, I doubt I will be able to move any more machines for a while.

It is that time of the year where I will not schedule repairs due to bad road conditions. Last year I went to fix someone's machine and their street and driveway were not plowed. My Prius does great on gas, but not on ice and snow. So I will probably take a break from repairs for a few days until conditions get better.

The new Dreamweaver-based web site I am doing on the Mac is coming along nicely but have been very busy at my real job, and fixing machines, and getting my own machines restored. Hopefully sometime next year I will switch out of the pc world totally.

11/11/2009

I added my Lord of the Rings. It is beautiful. I am working on an Elvis, Monopoly, and Ripley's Believe it or Not. These are all great games and will be working 100% and also be beautiful when I am finished restoring them.

It's been almost two months with the Amazon store and I made $0 in commissions. If I multiply that by 12 months....

I have been thinking of making a list. (It is just my subjective opinion.) I will probably move it to another page, but here it goes:

My favorite games:

Star Trek The Next Generation (in my opinion the best pinball ever made)

Lord of the Rings

Monster Bash

Ripley's Believe It Or Not

Monopoly

Eight Ball Deluxe

Games I like and would sell well:

World Cup Soccer

Road Show (but I hate taking the heads apart)

Indiana Jones (1993)

Diner

Theatre of Magic

Flintstones (great for kids and adults)

Corvette

Twister

Dirty Harry

Fish Tales

Scared Stiff

Monday Night Football

Xenon

Gorgar

Big Guns

Stargate

Games I like but would not sell well:

Slugfest

Water World

B. S. Dracula

Freddy: Nightmare on Elm Street

Tales of the Arabian Nights (maybe just priced too high)

Robocop

Fire!

Games I don't like but would sell well:

Twilight Zone

High Speed

High Speed 2: The Getaway Twilight Zone

Addams Family (I like it but get bored with it so quickly)

Games I don't like and would not sell well:

Maverick

Silver Slugger

9/19/2009

I added a link on the left menu to a store featuring Amazon Books, Software, and More for Pinball and slot machines. If you need to buy something from Amazon, go to my store page:

http://www.purcellvillepinball.com/store.html

and click on "Powered by Amazon.com" on the right side. I will get a small commission. Thank you!

8/28/2009

I finally posted the World Cup Soccer for sale! I have been working long hours and have had very little time to work on pinball machines or the web site.

I bought a new Mac. I got tired of working with Windows, virus software, etc. I didn't want Vista and I didn't want to wait for whatever Windows 7 will be. Plus I would probably have to buy new software so I might as well buy new software on a different platform. I decided no Microsoft software shall taint my Mac. So I bought iWorks which works very nicely. This web site is built using Web Expressions (Front Page and ASP) so I am now still using my laptop until I finish learning Dreamweaver and rewrite ALL of my web sites.... I am going through the entire tutorial on Dreamweaver rather than jump in a do a half baked job on the redesign. I don't simply want to copy the design, I want to make it better. I am hoping to use a database again to store references to all photos and items and build up the site automatically for the pinballs for sale, archives, slots, etc.... (1/17/2010 - I decided not to use a database approach since although it could be easier to ad and move information, it would not show up in search engines as well.)

I think I did a very nice job on the World Cup Soccer. Since I wrote the post on the World Cup Soccer on 7/5, I ended up buying a new soccer ball motor, new hole eject plastics to ensure the ball goes into the goal correctly, and a power supply for the display.

I also worked on a Theatre of Magic and I think I did one of my best, if not the best, restoration of a pinball on this. I have pictures here if you would like to see them. I had the wire ramps replated. The customer decided to replate everything including the side rails, hinges, u-channel, h-channel, legs and lock bar (which are not shown in the picture since I didn't want to have them on the machine while working on it. The entire game uses LEDs from BCSPinball. The game looks great. It also has the animated saw and mirror and lamp post. All plastics are new. The clear plastics and plastics protectors have also been added. The ramps are all new. The five target switches are new as are the decals for the entire game.

Back in May, I purchased a Mills OK Vendor slot Machine (see May 28, 2009). I think I did good job in restoring it. Click here to see the restored game next to pictures of it before it was restored.

7/5/2009

It is 1:20am ET. I just finished shopping a World Cup Soccer. It has a new display and new soccer ball. I added the Cliffy protectors, replaced the clear plastics and put plastic protectors on. I changed the lights, cleaned the plastics, playfield, and ramps. It is back together. I think I have the back legs too high but will lower them tomorrow. I may post it for sale tomorrow, but I still got to finish my scope document for a meeting Tuesday and finish business requirements by Friday, plus handle all of the current issues. I wish I could have bought replacement ramps, but the ones on the game look good. There were two broken plastics. I was able to buy one but not the other. The plastic protector is covering the area that is missing so it doesn't look too bad.

7/3/2009

I posted two Diners for sale. Both at $2,195. One has mylar and one does not. The one that doesn't has new stickers. Both work. A great opportunity to see two of the same machine side by side. It is like when I was growing up in New York City and there was a diner on every corner. (3/17/2010 I was re-reading this to correct some typos and realized that I should have owned two "Starbucks" pinball machines -- which they don't have so I can use this decade's analogy of a Starbucks on every corner.)

6/29/2009

Here are a bunch of things that I have learned over the past few weeks but have been too busy at work and at home to write up:

1. Do not buy or take a bowler for free. They are not worth the time to move and set up and they are very heavy. No more bowlers for me, thank you.

2. Do not buy or take a juke box for free. I thought I would try to learn to fix them. I don't want to or care to learn. They are heavy and bulky and I don't want to deal with them anymore. I do have a lighter working CD jukebox that I will put up for sale $799 to free up space if anyone is interested. www.abjukebox.com can help repair it in the future if you need it repaired.

3. Do not buy or take a video game for free. One exception is Galaga or PacMan cocktail tables. Video games are too heavy and not worth my time to fix or sell. If you want to buy one, look on the internet. Wholesalers sell them to individuals for less than I can buy one and resell. So it is just not worth dealing with them. (Similarly, I love the Pinball 2000 games - Star Wars Episode and Revenge from Mars, but the monitor is too heavy and not worth moving by myself.)

4. Do not offer to fix video games. I do not like them. I do not care about them. I don't want to waste my time and yours trying to fix them. Call www.twobits.com for help. I like pinballs and after doing this since December 6, 2004, I realize that I really only like fixing pinballs and will simply focus on pinballs (and antique slot machines).

5. Do not offer to fix EM Slot Machines. They are a pain in the neck and not worth fixing. I write on my repair page that I will not fix them but I am stupid enough to have two in my shop that I am looking at. They are a pain in the neck and I am wasting my space and time. I will probably repeat what I have written elsewhere. If you are at an auction or antique store (I love going to antique stores but I hate when they try to sell a slot, pinball or bowler and have no clue what they are selling) and you see a non-working EM slot machine. It is not working for a reason! Don't buy it! You can't get them fixed. You will have a really heavy paperweight in your home. Do not bring them to me anymore.

6. I comment on my repair pages that not many people fix EM pinball machines. I "know" why (because when you fix them, then 100 other non-related problems appear and the customer expects you to fix them for free). Now that I have been doing this and the pinballs break again (a few months later or years later) and I am expected to fix them, it is just illustrating why I should "wake up and smell the roses" as other repair people have and not bother. Even though this item is above #12, I wrote this after so I will repeat what I said below, "Nice guys finish last..." I try to help and it backfires and now no one will get them fixed....

7. I will not sell pinball machines to retail establishments nor will I do a 50-50 deal on the proceeds of the money from game play. I have never put a machine into a retail establishment. I am not sure of the licensing issues. But more importantly, I do not want slimy, dirty hands on my games from people that will treat them like garbage. Plus I would spend all my time adjusting switches for a few dollars. Not worth it! I help fix pinballs and other items for one restaurant. I spend more time than I ever get back in fees fixing their machines. (I have to go and waste my evening tomorrow fixing 3 of them....) From a hobby perspective where I work full time, I am wasting too much time on one place getting the machines fixed (because I am dumb and I do not charge nearly what I should to cover my time).

8. Only sell machines outside of my area of local repair when the person can truly fix the machine themselves. I recently sold a machine about 125 miles from where I live. I delivered it and it was working fine. I sold it without a warranty but would help over the phone - but the reality is the machine must and will work 100% so I am stuck fixing it even if I have to drive back again. I was playing it for several months before I sold it. One of the flippers was not working strongly. It turned out a bushing was missing. (Maybe it broke off in transporting it since it was working fine for me.) I sent the person some parts in the mail and they fixed it (top left flipper) and then the bottom left flipper became weak and hot. I happened to be driving by today when he called. I stopped with my wife with me. She said so but was not a happy camper. Especially since she only wanted me there 30 minutes. I was there 1.5 hours. Too long. I replaced the coil since I happenned to send one (and had no tools or parts with me). Somehow, I put the brown power wire (EBD) on the other side and blew the main 3 amp slow blow fuse. Luckily Lowes had a variety pack of slow blow fuses. Based on searches on Rec.Games.Pinball I think the problem is we probably fried the diodes. Maybe he can replace them and see if the new coil solves the problem. But the lesson here is to only sell locally. I do not offer a warranty to come out. But it is important that all my pinballs work. So I will get this fixed even if I have to go out there next weekend and blow a holiday weekend. This is just not worth it.... Hopefully I can get them to try to replace the 2 diodes on the coil and it will solve the problem.

9. When someone calls wanting a new pinball, direct them to a wholesaler on the internet. I make $200 at most selling a new pinball machine. This is not worth the time and the burden it puts on the "business aspect." If I sell a $5,500 pinball and make $200, My "annual income" (for tax bases, etc) goes up astronomically but my real profit goes up by $200. This is also not worth doing. I will make more money when you need the new machine installed in your home and set up or you need it fixed down the road. Sorry, but that is the truth. (I know this is my page to whine and complain. $200 may be a lot of money but not when I need to work from home to wait for the delivery of the machine and then spend 3-5 hours driving to deliver it, set it up, inspect and ensure it is working 100% and teach the person the basics of maintenance and cleaning.)

10. Japanese slot machines are NOT real slot machines. They are not worth more than $200. It is so funny to look at Craigslist and see people trying to sell "real Las Vegas" slot machines for $400 or $600 or more. I want to send each and every one of them an email to tell them to get real, you will not get that much money for the machine unless you take advantage of someone. When people call wanting to sell me a "slot machine" and I find out it is a Japanese slot, I have to bite my tongue and tell them (nicely) I do not buy junk toys. I did that once by accident and offended the person. Sorry. Don't try to to sell me junk... errrrr. I mean a Japanese Slot. I do not want one. Thank you very much.

11. I like pinball machines and antique slot machines. This is what I will stick with and this is what I do well.

12. As I write below on 5/28, do not broker deals for friends or strangers. Although I have nothing into the pinball, I now am in the middle of trying to help the person get the machine working. That is not my job. Although I help many, many people for free by phone, I am so busy lately at work, I just do not have the time. Plus when I help a person I have never met over the phone I do not "feel obligated" to get it working although I will do my best to help. This will now be my problem until it works. I think the real solution is to let people find machines on their own. Then I can be called to fix it when it doesn't work and get paid for it. I think nice guys really do finish last.... Or better yet, buy the machine for a low price, fix it up and test and sell it for more than double to cover the parts, time, and warranty and do it correctly....

5/28/2009

I just purchased a very nice Diner and a nice World Cup Soccer. I need to restore these. I also have a Rowe CD Jukebox that I will put up for sale. I also have a Lucky Ace that I may put up for sale. I have almost $1,100 into the World Series game. As I state on the page for it, it works but the bases are lower and I either need to figure it out or sell it for what I have in it to someone else to fix up. I was hoping to eventually sell it for much more. But if I can get my money back and get it to someone that can do the finishing magic, that would be great. I also bought a beautiful Mills OK Vendor slot machine from someone in Kentucky not too far from my son. I was able to take it to the local locksmith (Leesburg Lock and Key) and they were able to make a key to open the front to get to the mints. One of the panes of glass that shows the mints was missing. I took the front door to Banner Glass in Leesburg and they quickly cut two new pieces of glass. They look great. I will also replace the glass in the jackpot area, reel area, and coin area. I am debating whether to repaint the front. It is faded and missing paint, but I like old things looking old rather than looking like brand new reproductions. I need to decide what to do. The knob for the mints work when you press down the lever inside the machine. But I do not see where the mechanism engages this lever, so the knob never turns. If anyone knows what part is missing or what to do, I would appreciate some advice.

I recently helped two people connect to sell a machine. I ended up helping by moving the machine and setting it up at the new location. Hence my pricing changes and clarifications below in the 5/16/2009 post. I quoted the person $250 to do the move assuming 2 hours. It took almost 4 hours. But since I quoted the price, I stuck with it. The person gave me a little more but that defrayed the costs of the boxes of lights and the replacement pop bumper bracket.

The machine was supposed to be in working condition with just a few lights out. For the most part that was true. But as I stated, a pop bumper bracket was broken and the coil was dangling and many plastics were broken. The person paid a really low price for the game. If I bought it and took it home and fixed it up, I would have sold the game for about double the price. However, it would have included replaced plastics, plastic protectors, all new lights, new rubbers, the playfield would have been taken apart and cleaned everything. The person got a solid machine and a great price, but I am not sure they were 100% satisfied. But this was not my concern since I was not involved in the deal. It does illustrate the difference between doing a private deal and buying a machine from someone that warranties the machine and provides it in 100% working order.

5/17/2009

I drove I-81 today to deliver a machine. I think I passed at least 15 police cars giving out tickets. I am sure they are generating funds for the great commonwealth of Virginia. If they could use just one policeman to get 1 drunk driver off the roads, it would probably do a million times more good than all the cars they stopped today....

5/16/2009

Eight Ball Deluxe Limited Edition sold. This is one great game! I haven't listed the Lucky Ace yet, but if you are interested it will be $995, much less if you don't need a warranty.

Time for a complaint:

I dislike when people stop at intersections that say "Keep Moving." My wife stops at such intersections such as at the mall. She always tells me that she stops because the people coming the other way don't when they should. She always stops when I am with her and it never fails that someone goes through the intersection that should have stopped. I guess I really dislike people that don't stop at intersections when they should.... (Plus these people are proving my wife to be correct...)

I updated my repairs section to add specific costs for moving a machine from one location to another (minimum $350) and moving a machine from your garage to your basement (minimum $175). This covers the time it actually takes to do such tasks.

Stern raised their prices on not current machines by $400. This means that you can still order a newer machine but it will be made on demand rather than in quantity.

4/25/2009

I fixed up the World Series game. What do you think? I still got to do more, but it will probably take several months working on it here or there. Take a look: www.purcellvillepinball.com/worldseries.html.

I finally helped a customer get the left flipper on a Teed Off working. One less thing to worry about. Tomorrow, I need to fix a switch on the Lethal Weapon 3 I sold at Christmas time. The switch fell off and the two screws and nuts were found. We cannot find the actuator. I will add the actuator tomorrow.

4/17/2009

I purchased an Eight Ball Deluxe Limited Edition. I just fixed it all up and is working nicely. I really like the 1990s Bally/Williams games, but this game keeps me coming back for more. This was the first machine I fixed when I first decided to fix other people's machines back in 2004. The person bought it and had it in their garage in pieces. He brought it over and I put it back together and got it working. In hindsight, I realize how much more productive I would have been now than I was then. He is moving out of state and decided not to take it. It is kind of nice to have the first machine I worked on as a business.

I also purchased a 1933 Rockola World Series Pinball machine. (www.purcellvillepinball.com/worldseries.html) www.halor.com is a great web site to buy reproduction parts for this machine. This machine has no flippers. The top part actually has pins. I fixed up the mechanism to correctly keep track of balls, strikes and outs. I was gently trying to bend the casting that held the pivot point of the mechanism that turns the bases. It snapped off in my hand. I should have followed the directions on the site to line it up. I need to work on putting in a wooden block and then finding the correct pivot point to attach the mechanism and hopefully the bases will turn. It is a really nice looking machine.

Yesterday, I fixed a Twilight Zone. It needed a new reinforced slot target (as all TZs should have) and it needed the diverter to The Power aligned (mechanically) to work properly. It also was resetting in multiball mode when you pressed both flippers. Typical BR-1, BR2, CAP 5 replacement. I changed these out and put in the board and it did not work. I checked all the connectors. I pulled it out and reflowed the solder to the BRs to ensure it went through. I even took a spare driver board that I marked with markers to ensure that all connectivity is still there. I put this board in and it worked. I took out the Cap and followed the 2 traces on the top of the board. One was not getting continuity. I took out my board and drew in the trace for future reference. I added a wire between the two points and confidently told the person that the game would now work (secretly praying that it actually would). Thank goodness it did. I did not charge for the time I spent resolving my own problem. This would not be fair. If I better marked my board, I would have found this issue, added the trace immediately, and save a bit of time. In my opinion, this is the right way and the only way to do business.

Now for a rant. A few shingles flew off our roof. We paid a company to fix it. They fixed it and told us that the attic fan was installed improperly and it would cost $300 to replace and do right. I called them and found out they do not cover electrical work. I could do it myself or pay someone. I have never been in my attic and thought it best to pay someone. Then I decided I did not want to spend the $425 or so in total to fix. I did a search on the internet and found I could get a solar powered attic fan installed for $677. So now I am paying more money (on my own free will) to hopefully save a little money and keep our home more comfortable in the summer. They will be replacing the attic fan next week.

3/15/2009

I took the Monster Bash off my for sale list. I like it, I play it, I don't want to sell it. No new pinball machines lately. But I continue to fix machines.

1/26/2009

It has been a while since I wrote anything. My wife, Suzanne, and I went on a New Year's Eve cruise to the Panama Canal. It was 11 nights stopping at Labadee, Haiti; Cartagena, Columbia; half way through the Panama Canal, Puerto Limon, Costa Rica; and Georgetown, Grand Cayman. It was great. I realized the only way I am going to relax is by sticking me on a ship in the middle of the ocean without a computer, cell phone, email, voice mail, or pinballs to repair... I donate plates and plasma (at Inova Blood Services) once a month. I went in today to donate. I cannot donate for a year because of the threat of Malaria since I went to the beach at Labadee (and went parasailing for the first time) and went into the Rain Forest in Costa Rica (and went on a zip line for the first time). Oh well...

I am slowly catching up on my repairs. I have a favor to ask every one next Christmas. As we get closer to the holidays and you realize that you own a pinball machine that has not worked for the past 6 months, year, 5 years, or 10 years and you have guests coming in a few days, please don't all call at once and ask for your pinball to be fixed immediately. :) Start calling now, I will have more time to get your machine working before Christmas.

I know I have mentioned this before (and even provide a checklist on each item for sale), but I will mention it again. I have a few more pinball machines available for sale. I will buy machines that interest me. But after I sell these machines, I do not plan to buy any more pinball machines specifically for sale. I cannot and will not compete with the low, unrealistic prices on eBay. I have told people to be very wary of buying pinball machines on eBay. If you know the buyer, or see the machine in person, then you will have a better chance to get what you want. If you view a machine, you need to run all tests, look for broken plastics or missing plastics, and broken or missing parts. I am spending a lot of time fixing up machines people bought on eBay. The funny thing is, if they would buy it local, they would pay more but in most cases after the delivery and potential repairs it could cost about the same, if not less. If I sell it, it would be guaranteed to work before you pay for it. It will have a warranty and be in the exact condition specified. Be careful buying from eBay. But if you do, then if you live close to me it will probably be good for me since you will need to pay me (or someone in your area) to come and fix it. Or in some cases, get the machine to work in the first place. I guess I can say that eBay has been very, very good to me.... So if you buy on eBay, try to determine the price you think is fair and remember that you may be adding several hundred dollars for shipping. Then subtract between $300 to $500 (or more) for repairs. If this price is a good deal, buy the game. Otherwise, you may not be getting a good deal.

11/8/2008

I traded the Monday Night Football. Hopefully there will be some sales for this Christmas season, but I do not expect any.

I fixed a machine for someone. It was actually the 2nd time I fixed it for different reasons. I did not sell this machine.

I spoke to the owner of the machine. He said he paid $2,100 for it. I told him that I charge $3,500 for the machine. Now that he has worked with me he realizes that the extra money covers the 6 month warranty, the under plastic set, replacement plastic set, clear plastic set, ramp protectors, Cliffy protector, and other items that add up to about $500 of extra parts, plus the 4 hours or so it takes to install. His game was also missing a toy on the playfield.

10/7/2008

I added my Monster Bash back for sale. I will also add my Ripley's Believe It Or Not, Star Trek The Next Generation and Lord of the Rings.

9/30/2008

I donated my Monday Night Football pinball machine to the Fannie Mae Help the Homeless silent auction. A month ago, someone called from Richmond looking for a Monday Night Football, but I just donated it. I just found out that the silent auction this year has been cancelled due to all the issues at Fannie Mae. Therefore, the pinball is available. I cannot find the person's phone number. It will not list on my phone bill until next month. (The phone bill cut off the day before he called...) Hopefully he still needs it and will get it.

7/13/2008

I added Monday Night Football. I also added my Linked In page.

5/8/2008

I still have not posted the chips, etc. I will get to it.

I raised the price of delivery. Gas prices and the time it takes to deliver is killing me.

For my Repair Chronicles pages, I added a mobile phone feature. This turns off the menus and allows more screen space for the information. I own a Voyager cell phone and now I can see my pages without having to scroll to the right. If you use this and need to scroll to the right, ensure that the MENU > DISPLAY RENDERING screen is set to Screen Optimized (at least on the Voyager phone). [This may not be necessary with my new web site....]

4/23/2008

Over the years I have purchased many chips and repaired boards. I have many extra chips that I will eventually use. I will offer these for sale over the next few weeks. These are chips you can't buy at Radio Shack anymore. You usually need to buy these from the internet as I have. Postage will usually double the cost of a chip if you need to order just a few. By providing this service, I hope to provide chips and other electronics locally to people that need it fast or need small quantities. My prices will be higher than what you can get on the internet. I built in the portion of postage that I paid.

Sample of chips I have available:
35 amp bridge rectifiers
15000 uF snap-on capacitor
7408 chip
TIP102
TIP42
TIP36
IRL540N Mosfet N Channel (replaces 20N10L, 22NE10L and 12N10L)
IRF 9530 (12P06 Mosfet P Channel) [used on Gottliebs]
2N3904
2N4401
2N5401
74HC123 IC Dual Timer
1N4001
33 Ohm 7W 5% resistor
2N5060 SCR (used on Bally Lamp driver)
2N5061
MCR106 SCR (used on Bally Lamp driver)
Opto Emitters
Opto Transceivers

4/20/2008

I now have a reliable source to sell and service newer slot machines. I will start selling only IGT slot machines for around $1,195 without a bill validator (my preferred method of selling a machine) or around $1,395 with a bill validator. Williams Slot Machines with Dotmation are around $1,995. Call us with a specific machine and we will get you a specific price. Slot machines are warranteed for 3 months but you need to bring them back for service. In most cases, we can diagnose the problem over the phone and just ask you to return a specific part. Eventually we will have some in stock.

We will not sell newer Universal or Bally machines.

4/13/2008

I added Shrek and Indiana Jones. Stern raised their price by $100, so I had to also.

4/1/2008

Someone actually read this and asked if I really was not fixing machines in people's homes. I thought I was the only one that read this. I am doing fixes in people's homes. However, I am being selective in what I choose to fix. (Although so far I have chosen to fix everything.) I am actually fixing more now than before. I realize I just don't like fixing machines in the winter. I guess I just don't like the cold and having to schedule around snow and ice.

Some people have even brought machines to me. This is nice for the more complicated fixes (especially for EM machines that will just take a long time to track down, or Williams System 3 - 11 machines that usually take a bit more time for me to debug).

I did raise my rates. I still feel they are reasonable. I stand behind the repairs and warranty them. The other day I tracked down a broken wire on a coil. Simple solder fix. But I did not do a good job at soldering (since it was in an awkward position) and it broke again. I came back the next day and repaired it and double checked the solder will hold. This is what I consider good customer service. (Yes, I would have rather done the job correctly in the first place.)

3/17/2008

I do not wish to repair pinball machines in people's home. I have been whining about this for a while. I enjoy fixing machines in my home, but not for others when people are worried about costs and I don't charge nearly what I should. In some cases I don't charge at all if I cannot fix the machine (usually because it will just cost too much).

I will do so occasionally. I will raise my prices to cover my costs. Otherwise it is just not worth doing. I am trying to find another business to keep me busy.

2/1/2008

I added my Monster Bash for sale. I love it. I will now be on the look out for my next Monster Bash. But it is time to move this on to someone that wants it.

1/26/2008

Some of the machines that I hoped would sell for the Christmas season have just sold. I hope to add an Addams Family next week.

I cannot repair electro-mechanical slot machines. There is no information about repairing them that I have been able to find.

I added back the video games. I will still offer them...

12/27/2007

I finally added Big Guns on the site. It is a great, fun game. It has a new PinLED display.

12/25/2007

I finally added all the cosmetic changes to the Star Trek Next Generation. The game now looks great and plays great. Tomorrow I will photograph and post the Big Guns pinball.

11/27/2007

The Robocop pinball was donated to my church's (Holy Trinity Lutheran Church) Christmas Bazaar. This raised $800 for social Ministry programs for the holidays. A Rowe/AMI CD-51 jukebox was donated to Fannie Mae's Help the Homeless auction in Washington, DC. This raised $700.

I have decided that I will sell out the machines I currently have and concentrate on repairing machines in 2008. I will buy the machines I want when I have the space and money but will not really have them for sale. I guess after 3 years of moving around machines, I want a break. I enjoy fixing them.

I removed all my new video games from the web site because distributors were selling the games lower than I can buy them. Some machines I could sell and make $25 for 4 to 5 hours of my time including delivery and setup. This just did not make sense. Enjoy buying machines from the internet where in most cases you will get no personalized service and need to move the game from your garage to your basement (or even need to pick up a machine from an airport).

I permanently lowered my prices on several pinball machines and other items that will allow me to free up space and money to buy machines I want. If you want to know why some of the prices were not lowered it is because I would loose money. It makes no sense to loose money. If my prices with a 6 month warranty are not good enough then please search the internet and ebay. I guarantee you can probably buy the same machine in worse condition and maybe working or not for the same price or less. Good Luck! I sell quality, restored, warranteed pinball machines. This has some value and I have no reason to lower my prices anymore. For example, compare my prices and quality to www.mrpinball.com. Then add the fact that I warranty the pinball for six months.

When I did the York show a few weeks ago, everyone wanted a deal. I did not sell some of the items I had. I decided it was not worth selling the items for the same price that I paid for them. I have a scale mirror on my site available for $99. A decent price. At the show I offered it for $70. The people were not interested. That is fine. I felt like telling them, "I paid $50 for it, give me $45 and it is sold." Yeah, right. Maybe I should have gone down to $60. But I like it and will keep it. (Now I will lower the price to match this story.)

10/27/2007

Twilight Zone is complete and ready to make it into your home! Very fun to play. Very fun to fix as well.

10/14/2007

I just returned from the York Show. It was the first pinball show I attended. It was put together and run well. Thank goodness it did not rain. I enjoyed meeting many people. I did not enjoy carrying all the parts. I had to take what I did not sell and pack it on my pickup truck, load into the hotel, load onto the truck the next day and set up again. Next year maybe I will rent a truck.

The manual page and marquee page will be out of date until I have time to update what sold at the show.

10/10/2007

I have ordered all the parts for the Star Trek. This will add $500 to the cost on the web site.

I posted a High Speed II: The Getaway. This is a fun game.

I just purchased a Twilight Zone. The clock needs to be replaced. I am waiting for all the parts before I start working on it.

I purchased two Rowe AMI CD051 Jukeboxes.

9/30/2007

I extended the sale. I want the pinballs to sell. A new lower priced Star Trek The Next Generation has been added. I can add the extras for an extra cost. Now the price compares to all the other run of the mill Star Treks out there. I advise you to add all the extras to protect the playfield. I will probably add them as time goes by if this machine is not sold and raise the price accordingly.

9/16/2007

Fish Tales and High Speed II: The Getaway are coming soon. I posted a few more marquees.

9/8/2007

I just added a Robocop pinball machine, Peo Barnyard Golf, NYC Subway gum dispenser and a scale mirror.

9/3/2007

We just returned from visiting Timothy in Kentucky. If you live in Kentucky (Lexington area) and have not had a chance to visit the Kentucky Game Exchange at 930 Winchester Rd, Lexington, KY 40505, you should. They do great work and have a great selection of machines.

I decided to put all my in-stock pinball machines on sale. I was tired of looking at the same machines. I need money and room to buy new machines to fix. When my showroom starts looking like a museum since nothing is changing, it is time to move out some pinball machines.

I will be going to the York show October 12- 13. I will be in the flea market area selling anything and everything pinball related and more. Please stop by and say hello.

I finally sold the Scared Stiff. It is a great game.

8/25/2007

I redid the menu. I added many of the screens I jerry-rigged links to within the page. I also redid the main page so it looks better.

I will soon have a Robocop and possibly a Lethal Weapon 3. I purchased a Barn-Yard Golf Trade simulator game from Peo in 1931. I hope to get keys made this coming week and get it working. It has the rare gumball attachment. I also purchased an antique gum machine that was used in NYC subways. A cool piece of history since I took the A Train every day to high school for 4 years.

8/18/2007

I have added pinball manuals, bingo manuals, plastics, pinball flyers, video game marquees, and other fun items to enhance your game room or add value to the machine you own.

8/1/2007

I finally finished my Stargate project. This was the machine from hell. that I got from a friend with everything imaginable missing. It took a while to get it together, but it now works 100%.

I also purchased a Street Fighter II. This is definitely a parts machine. Do you need a cabinet, power supply, plastics, ramp or playfield? I will be posting this soon.

I also have about 40 pinball manuals for sale for $18 plus postage. I have video game marquees that I will post soon on my parts page. take a look.

7/21/2007

I traded the Data East Star Wars for a Sega Godzilla a few weeks ago. I just finished fixing it up. It has been placed on the web site.

6/2/2007

I put Slugfest and Indianapolis 500 on eBay. No bids. They did not sell. This is very funny since I put a low price on it (without a warranty). Oh well. Just goes to show that everyone on ebay wants a deal. I thought this was a very good price. But another Slugfest came on with no reserve. I am hoping this other Slugfest sells for way beyond the price of mine (sweet revenge). The cash register did sell....

5/25/2007

I am doing minor fixes to the site. I removed the reference to tax refunds on the main page and added a Christmas 2007... banner. I will try the Slugfest on eBay....

I added Family Guy and Spiderman to the new pinball page.

5/10/2007

I finally added my gum ball machines. I have three Ford 10 cent gum ball machines for sale.

I also finally posted the Star Trek The Next Generation. This is the 5th Star Trek The Next Generation that I have restored. This is my favorite game. If I sell it, I will buy another and restore. If I have the room and money, I may buy another so I can start to restore while I still have this one.

4/29/2007

I guess I haven't posted in a while. Today I finished up the Monopoly. It is a beautiful machine and in excellent condition. A few weeks ago I posted a Scared Stiff. I also posted The Simpson Pinball Party a few weeks ago. Ebay did not do any good in selling the Star Wars machine. But it got me in contact with a local collector that I will trade the machine with. I will also assist in fixing some of his games. I got in a Gilligan's Island. But a friend came over and wants it. I just finished fixing it up. View my repair log for the fun I experienced in getting this machine working.

Now that the weather is better, I am more apt to fix machines. I think I have caught up with fixing machines. I am happier when there is sunshine and warmer weather.

2/16/2007

I posted the Roadshow. This is a very nice machine. The entire game was taken apart to fix Ted's eyelids. (This is the only way to get to "Ted".) This is a very enjoyable machine.

2/13/2007

I posted the Slugfest.

2/11/2007

I posted the Star Wars on eBay. As I stated below, I prefer to sell locally. However, the advertisements in the local newspapers were not working (except giving the papers more money). Hopefully, this will generate some web traffic and maybe even some sales for about $5 a week.

I will be posting a Slugfest and Roadshow soon. I will probably also sell The Simpson's Pinball Party soon.

2/3/2007

I added all my repair notes for the past few years. Click here to see them or go to the link on the main page.

I purchased another Roadshow and Star Trek the Next Generation (STTNG) a few weeks ago. I just finished shopping and repairing the Roadshow. I have 3 small items to fix (right flipper, adjust plunger gate and replace 2 opto switches on the dozer board). It looks really nice. I needed to replace the lids down coil on Ted. It was very fried. You have to take apart the entire game (almost) under and on the playfield. While I had everything off, I replaced the rubbers, lights and cleaned the playfield and plastics. I put the hyper thin Cliffy protector on. It looks very nice and does not affect game play.

The STTNG looks beautiful. The playfield and cabinet are in great shape. The playfield is dirty, as are the ramps and plastics, but they should clean up nicely. The Alpha ramp switch is not working but I will get to it once I start taking the game apart. I have all new clear plastics, under plastics, ramp protectors and the hyper thin Cliffy protector to add over the next few weeks.

I picked up a Slugfest today. It will need a new display and a lot of cleaning. It has a lot of baseball cards. Maybe one of the cards will be worth something.... I will work on this after the STTNG.

I traded my Tales of the Arabian Nights (TOTAN) for a beautiful working Scared Stiff. I saw it about a year ago and am looking forward to getting it. Although I liked the TOTAN, I did not go back to play it. It was not selling so I traded.

I thought about putting a machine on eBay. Although I would rather sell locally, maybe it will generate the advertising (for $5 to $10 a week) I couldn't get advertising in my local papers. Maybe I can get to a point of selling one machine every week or two.... I will put one up in the next two weeks and see how it goes.

1/21/2007

I have been maintaining a list of problems and solutions for all the repairs I have made over the past couple of years. I finally organized the list and placed it on line to share with others and also have when I am out doing a repair. Take a look: Click here to view my Repair Chronicles.

1/5/2007

Adelphia is now Comcast so my email is now mbelofsky@comcast.net. What fun! I get to change it in 10,000 places...

12/24/2006

Merry Christmas! I took the sale off the web site. I keep becoming delusional believing that great prices and a sale would entice people to buy great machines.

I may have a contact to purchase newer slot machines from. If this works out and I can get the person to warranty the slot machines 6 months from the time I sell them (not the time I buy them from him), then I may consider continuing selling newer slots. Otherwise I do not have the knowledge, tools, etc. to fix up newer slot machines.

I cancelled all my print ads starting January 1st. We will see if this is a good decision....

11/29/2006

Does anyone actually read this (besides me)? Some decisions I have come to:

1. I will no longer advertise in Leesburg Today, Loudoun Easterner or Purcellville Gazette starting January 1, 2007. I get no leads, sales or repairs from these advertisements (but it does get the papers a bit wealthier). Why waste my money when most of my repairs and sales are word of mouth (referrals) or my web site?

2. Although I love pinball machines, I am tired of hauling them around. I will no longer buy machines as "specs" in the hopes of selling it. I will buy machines I personally like and maybe someday sell them. Or I will buy a specific machine for a customer to fix and sell (with a down payment since I have done this before and have been stuck with very nice machines until they sold.)

3. Although I fix the pinball machines and they work great, I occasionally get tech support calls on my machines, which I promptly repair. Since I offer a warranty and stand behind the machines, you can be guaranteed they will be fixed and working. I will slow down on selling machines so I can slow down on repairing machines.

4. This is a hobby. I enjoy it (although I am starting to question myself and therefore will keep it a hobby). I reserve the right NOT to fix a pinball machine if I don't feel like it. Several reasons that I would not feel like it include a) you live too far away and I don't want to travel that far; b) I may not be able to fix the machine and do not charge if I do not fix it, so why bother going to your home to fix something that probably is not fixable (either because I am not skilled enough or usually because it would cost more to fix than it is worth) and I waste my time and my entire evening; c) If you live too far and I fix it and it breaks again, I don't feel like coming back out, so I just won't fix it in the first place. I am sorry I feel like this, but I want to enjoy this and I am not because of certain people.

5. Although I say I buy machines, I don't guarantee I will. Remember, I will need to take it into my shop, fix it, get it looking great and working 100%. I will be offering a 6 month warranty. If the machine is worth $2,000, you will not get $2,000 from me. You will probably get $800 - $900. If you want to get more money then you will need to sell it yourself. You can try http://www.mrpinball.com classifieds or http://washingtondc.craigslist.org. You may make more money. You can have the person pick it up from you. If the backglass has a prominent picture of Arnold or Stallone, it is harder to sell. These games are great but people shy away from them because of the backglass.

11/25/2006

I added a link to the Internet Pinball Database on each pinball machine. This will help the customer find out more about the machine including pictures, ratings and rule sheets.

11/21/2006

Completed the Indianapolis 500. I got it working 100% and cleaned up really nice.

11/18/2006

The Road Show sold faster than I thought it would! I was hoping to enjoy it in my collection for a few weeks. Now I know that I will get another one in the future. I am on the look out for a really nice Star Trek The Next Generation for myself. I just finished one for a customer and really wanted to keep it. I enjoy working on them and I enjoy playing them even more.

My three favorite games are Monster Bash, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Lord of the Rings. I hope to have all three for my own collection soon...

The Joker's Wild! IGT slot machine sold at the silent auction for Fannie Mae's Help the Homeless auction yesterday. It went for $700. Not bad. I was hoping for a little higher but anything is good for the donation. The 1977 Bally Night Rider sold at the live auction. It went for $850. This wasn't bad either.

I am thinking of changing the way I buy and sell pinballs next year. Instead of "speculating" on a machine, I may only fix up a machine for a customer once they tell me what they want (and put a down payment on the machine). This will stop me making wrong decisions and having machines I don't really want. However, if I buy machines I really want it would not hurt to stay in my collection....

I am waiting for a board that should have come with the Indianapolis 500 to start working on it. It is a pretty nice game. I would not mind keeping it if I can't sell it. It will go nicely with the Corvette that I originally bought for a customer (I should have ask for a down payment) and then never heard from again...)

11/10/2006

I put the Star Wars up for sale. This is quite an enjoyable game. Tomorrow I will work on getting the rubbers changed on the Road Show, cleaning the plastics and replacing the gears in the Red and Ted heads.

11/5/2006

I put the Road Show up for sale. I still have some cleaning up but the game works nicely.

11/4/2006

It's Christmas season! Yeah! I am working on a Road Show. It is a very fun, family oriented game. On Monday, I will receive a Star Wars and Indianapolis 500. If you are interested in any of theses games, please reserve them now. If you are looking for a specific game, please tell me and I will find it for you.

I decided to donate the Night Rider pinball and the Jokers Wild! slot machine to the Fannie Mae Help the Homeless auction to raise money for HTH.

9/26/2006

Only one taker for the summer sale. What a bummer. Maybe people will buy for Christmas...

I fixed the small problem on the Twister. It was intermittent. It was a wire on the trough coil that was touching but not soldered. The game now works 100%.

I just completed a Water World. I will post this next week.

I just posted a Stargate PROJECT pinball. I don't have the time or energy to work on it. I would like to sell it as a unit.

I added the checklist to the pinballs. It is so frustrating to see the shape of the pinballs that have been sold to people....

I modified the repair charge. I will charge a nominal fee of $25 if I can't fix the machine or it is not work fixing. Otherwise, this fun hobby will not be fun anymore and I won't do it. I don't have to do it often but if a fix will take more than the game is worth or a game is beyond repair, my opinion has to be worth something...

8/19/2006

Suzanne and I just dropped Tim off at Eastern Kentucky University yesterday. Now we are on our own (at least until Thanksgiving). So now it is time to get all the pinballs that I have been sitting on working.

I got my order of transistors from Great Plains Electronics. I replaced the 74LS175 with a 74HCT175 on the master control board for the engine. This solved the problem. I added a lock. I replaced the leg bolt plate for the left front leg. (It is amazing how it is always the left front leg where a bolt gets stripped. This is a pain in the neck to replace with all the wires and boards there.) The Corvette is now complete and posted for sale.

I also replaced the power board on the 1977 Night Rider machine. I posted the Night Rider tonight as well.

Now off to work on some other minor fixes for my other machines.

I added a summer sale. I placed 4 of my machines (including one pinball) on sale.

7/30/2006

Just added the Bram Stoker Dracula.

7/28/2006

Just added a great Twister and Dirty Harry. This is the second Twister I have worked on. Note that pictures of a pinball are the pinball that is being sold. I do not reuse pictures.

7/17/2006

Just purchased and fixed up an Attack From Mars. It looks great and plays great! I will be adding a Bram Stoker Dracula.

6/19/2006

Added pictures on a 1952 United Super Shuffle Alley that I just figured out how to fix! It is starting to look good. http://pvillepinball.com/supershufflealley.html.

6/9/2006

Added map and driving directions. My web hosting company provided these toys to me. As a developer it was fun to add it onto the Contacts page of this web site. [removed in dreamweaver.]

6/2/2006

Cleaned up the main page. I removed a lot of the pinball machines that I have not sold page. I left the 2 traffic lights on the main page since I have no other way to get to them. I kept the Theatre of Magic and Tales of the Arabian Nights on the main page since they are very pretty and in excellent condition.

I added Monster Bash and the 1946 Candy dispensing machine. I fixed it up and cleaned it. I did not redo it. For $1,495 it looks original with the dings and bends. I like antiques looking like antiques. If you want an older machine to look like new or if you are looking for a great bar and set up in your basement, you should check out Bars and Booths/Back In Time Warehouse in Charlestown, West Virginia. I highly recommend them!

3/18/2006

Added the traffic signal and the walk/don't walk sign.

The Tales of the Arabian Nights has been completed. It looks great and plays great. I would love to keep it but then I would have nothing to sell.

I picked up a 1946 Candy dispensing machine. It looks pretty good. It is set up for free play. In other words the coin mechanism is no longer in the machine and the machine will give candy (once I put some in) by just pulling the lever. I am not sure if I want to keep it or not. If you have any interest, please call or email or ask to come over and see it.

I bought my son an old fire call box. It just needs to be sand blasted and repainted. He is about to go to college (EKU) to get a degree in EMC. He is a volunteer EMT at the Purcellville and Lovettsville Rescue Squads.

Hopefully soon, I will start working on getting my 1952 United Shuffle Alley Deluxe Bowler working.

Looking for someone to buy a Xenon project machine for $800 including the overlay. I don't have the time or the experience to do it myself.

2/19/2006

Added Theatre of Magic. It is a great game and in great condition.

I raised the price for repairs. Otherwise it is not worth doing.

1/29/2006

Added Tales of The Arabian Nights. I still have some more work to do on it, but reserve it for yourself now.

I am working on a beautiful Theatre of Magic. If I do not decide to keep it for myself, you may want to find out more about it.

I added a warranty page. I stand behind the machines I sell but I want to be clear what is and is not covered.

1/15/2006

Re-did the menu on the left. Added a menu selection for Video Games. Now you can go to video games from the menu rather than scrolling down the page. I also added a menu and page for others to sell items through this web site. Look for items soon. I also added a testimonials page. Hopefully someone will provide a testimonial to show that we are doing a decent job...

12/25/2005

Retook the playfield pictures of Silver Slugger with the glass off. The game photographs looks so much better. Did some additional minor switch adjustments to get all of the switches working absolutely correct. Took of a resistor that controls the bottom jet bumper light (you will note it is not lit up in the pictures). I will buy a replacement resistor and solder it back on tomorrow.

I spent yesterday getting a 1994 Williams Flintstones cleaned and working. Everything came together very nicely on this game. Please click on the link above for pictures.

12/23/2005

Just finished fixing up and cleaning a 1994 Data East (Sega) Maverick pinball machine. It is very fun and addictive to play. This will work great in any game room for the adults and the kids. It will also do very well in a gambling- or poker-themed game room. This machine was made by Data East and production continued under Sega when the company changed hands.

As a funny note, we have been advertising our pinball machines on www.mrpinball.com. It is amazing how many scammers there are. Not only can they not write in proper English, they all use the same hokey methods of trying to get your attention.

I believe in selling locally so I can stand behind the machines I fix. However, I have sold 2 machines to people in California. I ask the buyer to set up delivery with North American Van Lines (NAVL). This way, they are responsible for setting up the delivery (with me telling them when I am available for pickup), they are responsible for paying the shipping charges, and they are responsible for handling insurance claims if necessary. I can tell you that NAVL is very experienced in packing and shipping pinball machines. The shipping people are very professional and skilled in moving pinball machines. So far, I have a 100% batting record for getting machines safely to their new home and great condition (both physical and working). I highly recommend using NAVL to ship pinball machines.

12/17/2006

We guess we should update this more often. What is new since May:

We have increased our warranty from 30 days to 6 months on pinball machines and antique slot machines. We are very confident with the work we do on these machines that we can increase the warranty. We have been offering this to customers. Now it is official.

We have a beautiful cocktail Ms Pac Man with 16 games (Pac Man, Ms Pac Man, other variations, fast and slow), a new monitor and new glass and underlay. We lowered the price from $2,395 to $1,995 as a Christmas special.

We offer newer slot machines for $1,195 without a bill validator and $1,395 with a bill validator. The quality of these machines is outstanding. We can provide references on these and everything we sell if you wish. We currently have 3 slots in stock at a lower price of $995.

Many machines have come and gone in the past 6 months. It would be nice if the Fire! below goes. It is wearing out its welcome...

In November, our business was a finalist in the Home Based Business category for the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce. We did not win, but we met nice people and had a nice dinner at the event.

December 2005 is our one year anniversary. We made it one year! Only 99 left. I thought some day I would be famous and be in a million households. I never thought I would do it by visiting houses one at a time to fix pinball machines. Only 999, 900 houses to go...

5/22/2005

We just completed restoring a 1980 Williams Alien Poker Pinball Machine. It has been created from 3 Alien Pokers in various stages of demise.

5/15/2005

We now have a great and fun to play 1987 Fire! Pinball Machine by Williams.

5/14/2005

Take a look at a very nice 1991 Data East Checkpoint Pinball Machine.

5/14/2005

We just purchased an original Galaxian Cocktail table from 1980. Click on the image to view the description. We are offering as is (with a 30-day warranty of course) for a special price including sales tax and delivery. We are also offering additional upgrades if you want to improve the machine. [didn't copy image to new site.]

4/9/2005

Two new slot machines. These are real dollar slots from a casino in Michigan. Click on the image to go to the description for Fiery Doubles or Triple Crowns. [didn't copy image to new site.]

2/9/2005

We now sell new video games, jukeboxes, air hockey games and bubble hockey games.

1/8/2005

We now sell New Stern pinball machines! We will start selling Juke Boxes, Video Games and Air Hockey games soon too.

12/12/2004

Added a 1977 Gottlieb Cleopatra and a 1993 Data East Last Action Hero Pinball machine for sale. We have also listed a Mills Hi Top 10 cent slot machine circa 1948. We also placed our repair philosophy and prices on the web site.

12/4/2004

This web site! We love pinball machines and slot machines. We like playing them. We like fixing them. This web site will allow us to find machines in need of a new home. This web site will hopefully allow us to find these machines and improve our skills at repairing them. Eventually, each machine must be sold due to space constraints.

Since we live and work in the Northern Virginia area, this is where we will be concentrating on buying and selling machines. This is not a full time endeavor (although some day we hope it could be). We enjoy pinball machines and slot machines and we hope to share this enjoyment with others in our area.

Several pinball machines are available for purchase. Several parts are also available. There will be a slot machine soon.

Purcellville Pinball and Slots, LLC 37790 Eastgate Dr Purcellville, VA 20132 703 431-5470 mbelofsky@purcellvillepinball.com or mbelofsky@comcast.net Showroom open by appointment only Copyright © 2010, 2011, 2012 Purcellville Pinball and Slots, LLC. All rights reserved.