Auction in Toronto

[GodSend25]

Is anyone planning on going to the Starburst auction this saturday? (http://www.starburstcoin.com).  I have heard good things about them, but I have yet to attend one.  I sent them an email to try to get some information (location and start times) but they have not replied.  I suppose a phone call is in order.

[menace]

yah me and my brother are going--I hesitated to post it on the board so that they wouldn't be swarmed with people like me (and you i guess) driving up the prices  

So where do you hail from?

[GodSend25]

I was there, I really wanted to pick up a pinball machine, but they went for too much.  I almost got the Shaq one, but I stopped bidding because I felt the other ones were better, but I had no idea they would go for twice as much as the Shaq one.  Oh well, next auction is october 4th.

[menace]

Yah i was pretty shocked at some of the prices--I wanted the championship sprint game to mame since i didn't work anyways (even though they said it did) but 175 was more than i would pay.  I was amazed to see the dracula pin sell for less than that beat up californi crus'n game--another guy beside me left becuase of the shock--mumbled something about what has world gotten too..

[JoeB]

I got my machine there (the one I'm maming).. and I must tell you, the auction is not for regular people like you and I..

If you go multiple times (like I have) you'll very quickly realize who the regulars are, and notice how many machines they always purchase..

you are bidding against arcade operators.. they're budgets will always be higher than yours.

I ended getting my machine (X-men children of the Atom, with 27" display) for only 150$CDN.. and that's a really good price!!

My suggestion.. be there early.. pick up a list.. choose 5-10 machines you really want.. and write down the price next to it that you're willing to pay for it..

then when the bidding begins, bid to that amount.. I've got my machine on my 3rd pick and was happy with it.

Forget pinball.. forget table tops.. according to most operators.. these (and the golf game) are the only machines that make $$$ for them now!

Also.. bid early.. with 2 identical machines, the first one always sells for less! The reason being, of the 100+ machines at the auction, people want to scope prices out first, and bid less for machines at the beginning.. while at the end, some bug bites them, and they want a machine at any cost!

Good luck!

[JoeB]

SO!?  How was the auction???

anyone here get anything good? and pics..

share the wealth.

[menace]

Since my brother is an uber-geek--he wrote down some of the closing prices--Just for interest sake: (prices in CDN)

photo boothsx2 25$
badlands 175$
720 175$
flash baseball 150$
final lap2 175$
cabinet(used HARD) 25$
street fighter Alpha 3 100$
soul edge $150
tekken2 175$
bust a move 250$
chase hq 175$
lethal enforcers 250$
stadium cross 350$
championship sprint (half working) 175$
turbo (half working) 50$  (kicked myself for missing that)
neo geo cabs x3--175,200,400$
crystal castles (mint machine) $375
cyber sled 150$ (kicked myself on this one 2--just for the 2 25" displays that came with it--game fills a room though)
shaq pinball 700$
revolution X 425$
raiden II 350$
die hard 325$
get bass 1950$
dracula pinball 975$
striker extreme pin 1475$
rampage in 33" cab 700$
white water pin 1000$ (looked like a fun  one)
revenge from mars pin 2675$ (it was beautiful)
cruisin world 1775$ (shocker--machine was beat to hell)

[GodSend25]

I tried for the Shaq Machine and the white water pin.  I actually thought Shaq Attack looked like one of the "more fun" pins.  This being my first auction, and that being the first pin of the auction, I was not sure how good or bad 700$ is.  

I was shocked how much the french extreme soccer (1400$) and the gambling pin (almost 2000$ i think) went for.

That crusing game was a wreck too! But you are right, the cyber sled was a steal.  Looked like a fun game too!

I thought about bidding on the "Wok" game just for giggles, but I had no way of getting it home

[Brax]

anyone know when the next one is? I'm supposed to be on a mailing list but I never get any info. Also, there's a $200 dollar deposit required.. you get this back if you don't bid on anything? I've been to two of these auctions (just to buy parts on a Saturday) previously I was never in the market to buy.

[JoeB]

You are correct..

200$ deposit.. you get it back the moment you give back your bidding card.

But if you win something, it goes against your winnings.  All items must be paid in cash, but taxes are added on top of the winning amount.

Items must be picked up within 48 hours, or a 7$ / day storage fee will go against you (so have someone with a pickup or cube van as standby if you win).

Folks.. those prices are GREAT!  I got my cab 2 weeks before christmas, and let me tell you, prices were DOUBLE to 4 times as much as that!

As far as why some cabs were a heck of a lot more.. simple.. they make $$$ for the coin ops!!  5+ year old machines don't so they go for cheap! (which is great for us MAME lovers!)

They normally have an auction every other month.. best to call and find out.

P.S. I purchased a standard cabinet with a 27" monitor inside of it.. it came with a XMen Children of the Atom JAMMA board (CPS-2 I believe).  I paid for it 150$ CDN.. I mame'd the machine, and sold the board on e-Bay for 97$US..   So who knows, you might get your cab for free too next time!

[menace]

well I shouldn't post this since every guy and his dog will come (and outbid my cheap ass ) but the next auction is Oct 4.

On a side note there is also a computer show in mississauga on  Nov. 28th--just so you can but that old ati video card, cheap amplified speakers,joysticks to hack and other nerdy accoutrements required for mame