I'd keep my options open and hope that a NOS playfield, or one in better condition eventuates.
That's what I'd be doing. The game isn't desirable enough to warrant huge amounts of time and money on.
Whats the backglass like?. Usually they are pretty hammered on this game.
There seems to be heaps of these around. Keep your eyes open i reckon.
The backglass is flaking and cracking in places. Mostly intact, but it's days are nubmered.
I bought a tin of Markseal and I'm going to seal it up shortly before it gets any worse.
I have, however, scanned it for good measure.
Yeah, I've been waiting for a playfield to pop up - nothing yet. Captain Neo in the US had one a while ago. He wanted $175 + $300 (USD) shipping. That was for a bare unpopulated pf by the way.
It's an option, but big dollars for a not-so-popular pin.
A restored Magic is a beautiful machine to look at and great fun for an early stern. You can refinish the legs, door and buy new playfield parts. A restored Magic COULD fetch anywhere within the range of $1500 - $1800. So it really depends on how much you paid for the game (as is), factor in the NOS playfield and the amount of effort to restore it. At the end of the journey, you will have a stunning machine.
"unpopular" - Says who ? I don't think it is unpopular. I owned one years ago and I regret selling it. Same with Galaxy and Meteor. Stern Magic was an EXCELLENT earner in its day - right up there with the Ballys that everyone loved.
At least look at Mitch's threads on creating an overlay. I think you have a few options available.
