A (rare) Craigslist Success Story

[MaxVolume]

Actually, using the cash in hand method, I picked up a working Asteroids a few weeks ago, saving over $100 off the asking price. So I'm rolling in it.

Care to share what you got it for?  You can PM me if you prefer, but I understand if you want to keep it to yourself.  There's one available locally and I'm trying to figure out a fair price for it.  Thanks

[yotsuya]

Guy wanted $235 for a non-working Asteroids complete with new side art and overlay. It didn't sell for a month, but I was in contact with him. I made a cash-in-hand offer of $100 for just the machine, no art. He countered at $115, throwing in the overlay, which I accepted. I gave him $120 when I paid ($5 tip for helping me load it).

I had to change the power cord and switch, and I put in a known working board that I had, and it fireworks fine. The actual side art is in good condition, but the bottoms and corners need a bit of work. It's nothing horrible, though. If it had worked when I bought it, I would have been fine with his asking price, easily.

I'm glad I didn't buy the artwork, though. The CPO he threw in I'm not planning to use.

[yotsuya]

It was nice of you just to give him the tip.   

Love how he had a fish on the hook at $100 but was gonna cancel the deal unless you sweetened it with another $15.  He's going to really enjoy that case of Bud Light he stuck you for.

Keep telling yourself that, Jimbo. All I know is I have a nice Asteroids in my living room that works.

[Lilwolf]

My wife wouldn't make it easier for me to get a new cab...

I love happy endings

She also doesn't allow me to spend the extra cash for the happy endings...

Great find!  (and why I bought a pickup...  when the opportunity comes, you have to hop in and go...  But for me I have to ask my wife... see if she had something more important to do... roll her eyes...  ask where I would put it... then decide what she wants after I get back...  then I get the go ahead...)

[vintagegamer]

It is really getting sad how cutthroat this hobby is getting to be these days.  I've seen that kind of stuff happen with car parts, but the arcade hobby, it was never this insane in the past, IMO.

I know a guy who has games rotting out in his backyard right now, and I've been able to save 1 so far, but the others are still there.  The seller claimed another local was coming to pick them up, but that the guy's "a little slow on coming over".  Every time it rains, I go hug the game I saved from him already. 

Nice grab Haruman...

[Well Fed Games]

 

It is really getting sad how cutthroat this hobby is getting to be these days. 

People rage on KLOV when someone else gets a machine off Craigslist or Ebay that they wanted. It is real competitive in the Chicago area, I have given up on trying to get something off CL locally unless it is gutted to the point a collector wouldn't want it.

[Seith]

Some great stories in here!  I really need to start hitting up my local CL more often...

[MaxVolume]

Guy wanted $235 for a non-working Asteroids complete with new side art and overlay. It didn't sell for a month, but I was in contact with him. I made a cash-in-hand offer of $100 for just the machine, no art. He countered at $115, throwing in the overlay, which I accepted. I gave him $120 when I paid ($5 tip for helping me load it).

I had to change the power cord and switch, and I put in a known working board that I had, and it fireworks fine. The actual side art is in good condition, but the bottoms and corners need a bit of work. It's nothing horrible, though. If it had worked when I bought it, I would have been fine with his asking price, easily.

I'm glad I didn't buy the artwork, though. The CPO he threw in I'm not planning to use.

Thanks for the details... I ask because a local guy has a working Asteroids that he wants a lot more than that for.  I'm guessing he paid $1000+ several years ago and now I'm getting a vibe from him that he wants very close to that figure.  Nobody who knows the arcade market is gonna pay that, but I suggested he post it on Craigslist.  I wouldn't know where to put it, but it's very tempting, especially if he'd take the $250 it's probably worth.  It's almost all original, except for a repro CPO.  I don't like those things myself, especially over what was obviously painted graphics.  Replacement CPOs are okay, even repros, but doing that to an Asteroids seems like sacrilege.  It does make the machine look better though, and getting that stuff repainted might be pricey (and would just rub off again).  Still, I don't blame you for not using the one you got in the deal, and I kind of wonder how bad the original CPO on this machine really was.