Anyone familiar with old pinball machines?

[Adam West]

I have always wanted to own a 1970's Bally Kiss pinball machine and Evel Knieval machine.

With the way the economy has been going, some of the machines are actually starting to get into the ball park that I may be able to afford one (probably the Evel one at first since Kiss is still pretty expensive).

I don't know much about maintenance and certainly don't have the experience to work on them myself. I just want to buy a nice machine, plug it in and play.

I know from my standpoint, it's important to buy from someone who is experienced with these and has taken care of all the maintenance. My question is how much maintenance are these machines once they are purchased? Are they complete money pits and do they need to be maintained regularly? Chances are I will play them like crazy at first and then play them more moderately once the novelty wears off. I don't own any gaming systems and don't really care for most games but love pinball. Whenever I take my kids to an arcade; I always find myself heading over to the pinball machines. There is something about them that I love and especially love the graphics of these two in particular. I just wanted to know pros and cons before digging further. Thanks.

[sauce]

My cousin is well versed. I'll pass along your query.

[Mikey]

I've never owned one but I did want to buy one in the early 1990's ...

The person selling them was a local arcade owner who was going out of business.

Interesting thing, even though he was trying to sell his machines he flat-out talked me out of buying one.

He said the 2 biggest problems were they burn a lot of electricity (many need a special socket installed in the wall (220, I think) ......... and, he said no repair job is cheap.

I never did buy one after hearing that

[Brazoo]

For years my Uncle had this Evel Knievel one set up in his basement. I remember it being a really fun and basic pinball machine. Probably a little easier to maintain than some of the more elaborate later machines I would think - but I don't really know for sure.

I don't remember him ever having any problems with it - he eventually stored it due to wanting more space.

[Wee67]

Most areas have active pinball associations that collect and compete. I bet they would have some great advice about what you'd face buying a classic machine.
Free State Pinball Association - FSPA - Baltimore, MD - Washington, DC - Virginia

[galaxyexplorer42]

There is a place in Lyons Colorado called "Lyons Classic Pinball". We go there about once a month. They have all sorts of pinball machines from the 50's to the present. Pm me your contact info, and I can pass it along to the owner. He's an expert on the subject. Google it... Lyons Classic Pinball.... Colorado...

[ScottA]

A good friend of mine got the 70's Star Trek machine from a flea market in town (I helped him pick it up). He's worked on it all himself learning about it from the internet. Most of the machines from that era are really all the same on the inside he said. Everything you need to learn is on the internet and most parts he's bought were on ebay.

[Adam West]

A quick update. I might be buying a Kiss pinball machine tomorrow. I found one for sale that is about a 45 minute drive from my house. It appears to be in excellent condition from the pics with just normal wear from play and all original. It isn't cheap but the asking price is below market value. I am taking cash and if everything is as described; I am going to try to use some of the Pawn Star/American Picker tactics to lower the price a bit. The strangest feeling I do have goes back to my childhood. I grew up in poverty (to be blunt) and it was a rare treat for me to have a quarter to play a game of pinball but now I have an opportunity to own one!!!! To me, this is a small but significant example of the American dream come true. Wish me luck.

[Evel KMego]

Awesome! I have the KISS pinball machine myself. Main maintenance tip - keep the playing surface from drying out. It wiil scratch up the balls, which in turn will scratch up the playing surface. You can buy cleaner and polish made especially for pinball machines on the net, any pinball accesories site should carry it. Bally recommends Wildcat NO. 125.
Use a cheese cloth to apply it and work it in. Also, bulbs will burn out often and will need to be replaced, but they are cheap and easy to replace yourself( same web sites sell replacement bulbs). If anything bigger then that comes up , I suggest calling a pro to repair unless your very knowledgable yourself, don't take a chance on such an expensive collectible. Hope you get it and show some pics.

[UnderdogDJLSW]

I had heard this article on the radio just this week. I guess they were repeating the story, but there is a pinball museum that just opened in Georgetown in Wash. D.C.
D.C. pinball museum a flip back in time - wtop.com

[Adam West]

Awesome! I have the KISS pinball machine myself. Main maintenance tip - keep the playing surface from drying out. It wiil scratch up the balls, which in turn will scratch up the playing surface. You can buy cleaner and polish made especially for pinball machines on the net, any pinball accesories site should carry it. Bally recommends Wildcat NO. 125.
Use a cheese cloth to apply it and work it in. Also, bulbs will burn out often and will need to be replaced, but they are cheap and easy to replace yourself( same web sites sell replacement bulbs). If anything bigger then that comes up , I suggest calling a pro to repair unless your very knowledgable yourself, don't take a chance on such an expensive collectible. Hope you get it and show some pics.

Thanks for the information. I actually did purchase it and it is a great looking machine. The guy I bought it from is a hobbyist. He buys machines, fixes them up and either keeps them or sells them. This one he decided to sell since he wasn't a huge Kiss fan and wanted the money for another machine. All the parts are original and excellent condition. He did replace any bulbs, cleaned it, etc. It has very minimal wear on the playing field. I ended up paying $1,900 for it which I thought was very reasonable considering the condition and what most people on Ebay are asking. I tried to get it a few hundred lower but it was the lowest he would take. My kids and I have been having fun with it. I know some will think I should have my hand slapped for letting my kids play it but I fully intended on playing it and not have sit like a museum piece. The enjoyment to me is worth letting it take some wear and tear. I'll post some pics later.

[megomania]

Man, that's awesome! A KISS or Evel pinball machine is my holy grail of collecting. Took the time to catch up on Pawn Stars and American Pickers over the long weekend. Pawn Stars guys bought a KISS machine and the Pickers bought an Evel machine. Why should anyone care if your kids play it? That should be what the machines are for! Have fun with it!! Jealous

[Adam West]

Thanks again. It is really unbelievable what it looks like all lit up (really a great piece of art too). Kiss and Evel have also been on my Holy Grail list as well...if I were to ever purchase a pinball machine. Unfortunately, sellers generally don't want to ship (local pick up only) because of the fragile glass and worry about messing up the electronic components shipping (plus I'm sure figuring out how to pack it would be a challenge considering it weights about 300 lbs total). Fortunately this one was 45 minutes from my house. If this turns out to be a big hit...maybe Evel will be a second one to add at a later date...much later date.

[Adam West]

One other cool thing. The machine has 3 slots. One on the left and right for quarters and the middle slot is designed for the Susan B. Anthony dollar which was introduced in 1979 and gives you 5 plays for a dollar. I understand that there were only about 17,000 machine produced total...mine is in the 15,000 range and I'm guessing one of only a handful that takes Susan B. Anthonys.

[Mikey]

Make sure you post pictures