It's interesting the price of machine really means nothing to this player

[spacejam0]

I was thinking.
I currently have 4 machines in my little line up ranging in cost (not value) from under $2000 through to over $4000. I say cost and not value as that is the point I am trying to make here. I think I love and play them in the reverse order as to what they cost..i/e my Flash is the cheapest machine that I own and yet I love it and play it the most and so on down the list till we get to my most expensive machine which I play the least.
Probably just a nostalgic thing as the games from my childhood are the ones I love the most.
Don't know why I wanted to share that but I thought it was an interesting little bit of food for thought.

[swinks]

I take it that T2 being the least favourite...

I hate keeping tally's on cost as it is amazing what a machine tally's up when you collect parts for a while.

I got my Ironman about 12 months ago for $5500 and it is heavily modded - tastefully. But it got me curious what did the previous owner (luke) spent on mods. I searched and found where all the parts came from and in total $2100 on extra's not including any freight but easily $2500. I love this game heaps but recently getting right back into my CFTBL which is a Euro's import project machine with a crappy cabinet which I got for $2400 and it plays great.

so I know where you are coming from and yeah another food for thought

[Freiherr]

'Beaty is in the eye of the beholder' goes for pins like everything else. One man's junk is another man's treasure. I  still love playing many pre 1980 pins due to their rule simplcity and challenging layout.
By the way, I have a Flash which I bought from an operator in 1981 for $500. The machine has been in storage for the last 25 years. One of these days I will bring it back to life as it is all original.

[pinnies4me]

I'd agree, the game cost does not rank the fun factor for me - the most played game for me at the moment is Firepower, and it was very cheap when I got it (a bit of a wreck then admittedly and a few $ have since gone into it).

[ddstoys]

Yep sounds very familiar Tim

  Acdc is my dearest game and only ever gets turned on for guests and a game I got for nothing is played heaps and its not even finished lol (hotshots)

[pinball god]

+1 however I can go from playing spacies to death to finding funhouse is number one, but wait next month my TZ is something I can't live without. It kinda goes in waves for me, but my T2 and theatre of magic rarely get played for sometime now. I hope they have their time again though

I do find that when I do a mod or major repair, ramp change or something like that, I get a real interest in that game again.

[goodolddays]

Have to agree , its not the price of the pin but the nostalgia factor for me .
 I was playing pins from mid/late 70's thru early 80's  so for me my EM's and Firepower are my fav's .
 I also really enjoy playing my Creech but its not a game I played in my youth , rather a game I wanted as an example of one of the best from the 90's.

 

[Caveoftreasures]

One machine I absolutely love is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
I love the backglass artwork and the cabinet artwork. The audio is excellent cranked up. NINJA NINJA !
The gameplay is fun and the flow n shots are straight forward and really really fun.

Pinnys like this, show that some other DMD 90's machines are just too complex sometimes. TMNT is not a expensive machine (say $2500 for a v nice one) but they are getting harder to find cause people are hanging on to them, cause they are fun for both kids n adults. You dont have to spend 6 or 8 grand to really find a hugely fun pinball machine. Star Trek Next Gen is another for under 4 grand which is also superb, and being a widebody, u get that limousine feeling when playing it. Nice for v reasonable money !

[Strangeways]

Have to agree , its not the price of the pin but the nostalgia factor for me .
 I was playing pins from mid/late 70's thru early 80's  so for me my EM's and Firepower are my fav's .
 I also really enjoy playing my Creech but its not a game I played in my youth , rather a game I wanted as an example of one of the best from the 90's.

 

+1

I've never worried about the cost of games I want as part of the sentimental reasoning behind my collection. Some of them I've paid fair prices and others I've bought cheap to restore. Creech sums up the DMD era for me. Fun to play and LOTS of interesting things to do. Not too hard, but it keeps you coming back for more.

[Pop Bumper Pete]

This is why the phrase 'Serious pinball collector' irks me
I is usually used to denote someone to whom money is no object, some one who must have the best (A catorgrisable quantity) of what he desires

I say a real pinball collector is you guys, people who can enjoy playing any game (from any era), and can talk for an hour on their favorite game

[Caveoftreasures]

This is why the phrase 'Serious pinball collector' irks me
I is usually used to denote someone to whom money is no object, some one who must have the best (A catorgrisable quantity) of what he desires

I say a real pinball collector is you guys, people who can enjoy playing any game (from any era), and can talk for an hour on their favorite game

well said Pete,

maybe anal pinball collector and serious pinball collector mean the same thing.

cause only serious anal collectors play pinball machines with white cotton gloves on.lol

maybe the serious part also comes from the look on the wifes face when she sees a new pinball turn up.lol