Expert: Rodger Knutson - 1/1/2011

Question
Hi - My wife is interested in purchasing a Chicago Dynamics Inc - Casino pinball machine.  Its old and I figure it will probably need to be rewired to get it to work correctly.  Is this something worth purchasing and how much would it cost to get a pinball machine rewired.

What would be the approx value.

Thanks

Jim

Answer
Hi Jim,

Good question, I talked to a friend of mind who does the pinball repairs here. He told me that to have a pin like this gone through so it was almost like new, he would charge from 750.00 to 800.00 for complete mechanical/electrail restoration. However this pinball machine might not need all this work, and maybe it just needs to be shopped by a pinball guy and to have the bulbs changed out and new rubbers on the playful bumpers and that sort of thing. If you plan on doing this it might be cheaper to just buy one from a dealer that has done all this and guarantees his work for awhile. That gives you a little protection on future repairs. But if you can pick it up cheap enough, then you have room to work if it needs work in the future. This is a e/m game so I really don't see why you would need it rewired, but the switches and other parts in side might like a little servicing to run trouble free. Some really old wiring was cloth wrapped, but I am sure that this would be vinyl wrapped wire and would be just fine as it is. You might check with a local pinball guy and see what he would charge you to service it, and buy the machine with this cost in mind. Hope this information is helpful to you. Oh, check amusement dealers in the phone book as ask who fixes the old E/M games in your area. If your in the Seattle Wa., area I have just the guy for you who is Super on pinball service and repair on these older and newer games.

Thank You

Rodger Knutson
http://www.coinslots