Baby Pac-Man, How much?

[Kaytrim]

There is a Baby Pac-Man for sale in my local area.  From the sounds of the ad it needs a cap kit for the monitor and a minor shop out on the playfield.  The seller is asking $250 OBO.  If I can convince the wife what would be a good offer on this non-working machine?

Here is the ad on CraigsList. http://iowacity.craigslist.org/clt/373436956.html

TTFN
Kaytrim

[ChadTower]

Full asking would be a good offer.

[Kaytrim]

Even with the needed repairs you think that 250 is fair?  Looking at the pics the glass top is cracked as well.

TTFN

[ChadTower]

Needs closer inspection but barring any surprised (blown out playfield, charred boards), I'd say it's not an unreasonable price.

[JimmyU]

Are Baby Pac-Mans fairly rare?  I think I only saw one growing up.  It would be nice to have a game that really can't be emulated.

[Kaytrim]

Darn.  I was hoping for a little better deal.  That price will defiantly get the veto from my wife.  She has seen some of the bills that came in from when I was working on Dad's Bartop and she is not happy.  Not only that we just don't have the COH to swing a deal like this.  I hope that this deal sticks around for a few weeks and I can snag it lower.  The biggest issue is getting the ok from the wife.

TTFN

[pointdablame]

Darn.  I was hoping for a little better deal.  That price will defiantly get the veto from my wife.  She has seen some of the bills that came in from when I was working on Dad's Bartop and she is not happy.  Not only that we just don't have the COH to swing a deal like this.  I hope that this deal sticks around for a few weeks and I can snag it lower.  The biggest issue is getting the ok from the wife.

TTFN

Not to burst your bubble, but don't expect a Baby Pac Man for $250 to last a few weeks.  Have you contacted the seller yet?  I'd put $5 on it already being gone.

[Kaytrim]

There was a non working Tatio cab a few months ago listed for $50 and it was there for 5 weeks.  I send in an offer of $25 and was told that it had sold for $16 that morning.  I am hoping that this will take a similar path.  However I am not going to hold my breath.  The higher hurdle is my wife not the price of the machine.

TTFN

[More Cowbell]

Why not make a lower offer now and get on the list? If it sticks around for a while, the seller may just decide your offer is a good one. Or he might accept on the spot. If not, nothing lost.





edited for typo. doy!

[Kaytrim]

Not a bad idea MC.  I still have to talk to the wife before making an offer but it is worth a try.

TTFN

[pointdablame]

Not a bad idea MC.  I still have to talk to the wife before making an offer but it is worth a try.

TTFN

Just out of curiosity... does your wife let you display your testicles up on the mantle at home?  Or are they hidden away in a closet?





 

[Chris G]

It does say OBO...

[ChadTower]

There was a non working Tatio cab a few months ago listed for $50 and it was there for 5 weeks.

A working taito is not a pinball machine.

[Kaytrim]

Not a bad idea MC.  I still have to talk to the wife before making an offer but it is worth a try.

TTFN

Just out of curiosity... does your wife let you display your testicles up on the mantle at home?  Or are they hidden away in a closet?





 

If I wasn't such a nice guy I'd fire a flaming comment back at you.  However I am a nice guy so I will just ignore your juvenile attempt at humiliating the relationship I enjoy with my wife.

There was a non working Tatio cab a few months ago listed for $50 and it was there for 5 weeks.

A working taito is not a pinball machine.

I understand that this is a rather unique machine Chad and that is one of the reasons I want to try to get a hold of this and restore it.  Given that we don't have much funds to put towards this type of project.  It is all tied up in real estate investments.

TTFN

[RandyT]

I'd offer $150 and see if he bites.  But I would want to get an indicator that the problems really are as was stated, and not that one day a bunch of smoke rolled off of one of the logic boards and that's why the screen is dark.

IOW, make sure that the game powers up and makes all of the normal noises like it's playing a game you can't see.  Baby Pac's are not real common, so finding new logic boards could be a difficult and expensive proposition.

Good Luck!

RandyT

[leapinlew]

Not a bad idea MC.  I still have to talk to the wife before making an offer but it is worth a try.

TTFN

Just out of curiosity... does your wife let you display your testicles up on the mantle at home?  Or are they hidden away in a closet?

If I wasn't such a nice guy I'd fire a flaming comment back at you.  However I am a nice guy so I will just ignore your juvenile attempt at humiliating the relationship I enjoy with my wife.

When I am ignoring someone, I don't normally say anything.

[pointdablame]

If I wasn't such a nice guy I'd fire a flaming comment back at you.  However I am a nice guy so I will just ignore your juvenile attempt at humiliating the relationship I enjoy with my wife.

Wow.... did you get your sense of humor taken away with the testicle removal?  It was a joke dude.. and I guess I'm wrong, but I thought that was pretty clear.  I was just messing with you, but by all means, flame me back if it'll make ya feel better.

I'm glad you have a great relationship with your wife... maybe if it was even BETTER, you could joke about it.

[LiquidFire]

When I don't want to PO the seller, I just say take my number and call me when you will accept $(insert amount).

The easier you can make it on the seller, "I will come and give you cash, walk the ferret and take the cabinet with me the same day."

Your offer all of a sudden looks better than anyone elses.

No one can get mad at you and man, have I got the deals that way. Of course, you also lose out when you don't 'step up'. But hey, there is always another deal to be had.

[ChadTower]

I've done that and had guys practically throw me off their property.  I've also done it and had guys call me back a week later and say "take it today and you get $50 off your offer".  It really depends on the seller.

Either way, if you don't have the COH, just pass on it and wait for the next one.  People keep saying Baby Pac is rare but just look around the forum right now at how many people are getting them or talking about getting them.  It's not rare, once you're in on the local collectors' circuit a Baby Pac isn't hard to turn up.

[Green Giant]

"Baby Pac-Man is an arcade pinball/video game hybrid made by Bally Midway in 1982. Upon inserting a coin, the game begins its typical maze-style play like in the original Pac-Man, but upon entering an "escape" tunnel, a pinball is launched below on the main playfield where the player can gain extra points. The monsters are noted for being extremely aggressive, fast, and unpredictable, frequently breaking the rules of movement established in Namco's official Pac-Man games. Also, the game initially starts off with no energizers: the player is forced to earn them in the pinball portion of the game, making Baby Pac-Man notoriously difficult despite its infant hero."

If the original game works and just needs a new cap kit, $250 doesn't sound horrible.  Maybe I am not old enough, but I don't remember seeing alot of arcade-pinball hybrid games out there.  But you have to clarify everything since it sounds like there is a whole bunch that can go wrong.  Find out every flaw and use each one to cut the price down a little bit.

"Finding one today is rare, and they tend to be expensive when they are found, and are considered difficult to restore due to their design. "  http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1195382

[CheffoJeffo]

Don't believe everything you read on teh innernets ... I've seen 3 of these become available locally in the past 12 months and I haven't been looking.

[ChadTower]

Other than the pin2k titles, I can think of three such hybrids off the top of my head.

Baby Pac
Granny and the Gators
Caveman

Don't walk in and be a jerkwad and use every flaw to cut the price a little.  That's a good way to get tossed out by your shorts.  The game is worth well more than double that when working properly.  Trying to cut it way down further than that based on every little flaw in a 20+ year old game is not reasonable.

[RandyT]

Don't believe everything you read on teh innernets ... I've seen 3 of these become available locally in the past 12 months and I haven't been looking.

Maybe it's because they are starting to die and becoming unfixable due to lack of available parts 

But this game is going to have a value that might be personal to the buyer.  The game was rare because it wasn't very successful. I.e. not a great game.  So, to a collector, it's going to have more value than to someone who wants something fun to play in the gameroom.

Offer the seller what you can afford and what you think it's worth.  If you really really really want one, make your offer reflect that.  Otherwise, pass it up and wait for something that better suits your tastes and your budget

RandyT

[Kaytrim]

Not knowing what monitor is in there myself does anyone know how much a cap kit would be for the monitor?  I am just trying to come up with some cost analysis for a repair and sell job on this.   I'd also like to know the dimensions if anyone has then handy.  This looks like it is rather deeper than your average video cab.

TTFN

[pointdablame]

Height:  67.75"
Width:   22.75"
Depth:   37.00"
Weight: 294lbs

http://www.ggdb.com/GameByName.aspx?vid=213

[ChadTower]

Maybe it's because they are starting to die and becoming unfixable due to lack of available parts 

Most of them are like this one... dead ten years and finally at the "get that thing the eff out of my house" stage.  I've never seen one that is still running from the original days without a major refurb job.  The vidiot board in particular, which unfortunately is pretty much unique, is unreliable.

Kaytrim, it's a standard 13", I think... can't remember the model but the cap kit is in the usual $10-20 range (shipped).

[Kaytrim]

I've never seen one that is still running from the original days without a major refurb job.  The vidiot board in particular, which unfortunately is pretty much unique, is unreliable.

Kaytrim, it's a standard 13", I think... can't remember the model but the cap kit is in the usual $10-20 range (shipped).

Thanks for the info on the cap kit Chad.  What is the vidiot board you are referring to, the video driver board?

[ChadTower]

IIRC it is the bridge between the "game board" and the pinball driver.  Could be wrong on that, though, as I can't remember the exact breakdown of what function is on what board in that cab.

[Kaytrim]

I did a google on vidiot board and came up with this site.  It is chock full of information on repairing the Baby Pac-Man machine.  http://www.marvin3m.com/bally/babypac.htm  The vidiot board controls the video game portion of the machine.

TTFN

[ChadTower]

If you're going to get any pin, become very very familiar with that website.  It is everything you could need and more.

BTW, reading that summary, my guess wasn't too far off.   

[Kaytrim]

If you're going to get any pin, become very very familiar with that website.  It is everything you could need and more.

I'll keep that in mind I would love to get my hands on an Elvis pin.

[ChadTower]

The Stern?  That's a high price pin, mostly because of age.  It's not old and still in the earning stage of life.  You're looking at $2-3k depending on condition.

[RandyT]

Not knowing what monitor is in there myself does anyone know how much a cap kit would be for the monitor?  I am just trying to come up with some cost analysis for a repair and sell job on this.

If that's what your planning to do, keep in mind that a dead tube might not be a something that just requires a cap kit to fix.  The flyback could be dead, the tube could have lost vacuum from the neck being cracked by an impact of some nature or it might just be a fuse (although fuses pop for a reason...usually it's an indicator of a more serious problem somewhere else)

Cap kits are usually cheap and run between 10 and 25 dollars, but consider that you might have to replace the monitor or work on the output section of the logic boards to get the machine working again.  There might also be issues on the pin section that require attention.  Aside from the usual overall rubber replacement, it's not uncommon for things like  coils, linkages, transistors, relays, etc. to have issues on older pins.  Just one part could cost as much or more than a cap kit will.

Right now, there are two on eBay.  One is not working but says their tech is "working on it".  It has a "buy it now" of $695.  The other is supposedly in great shape and the BIN is set at over 900, but it's a fresh listing and currently has only a 99 cent bid and a reserve.  So you really need to see the machine in person to get a better idea as to the actual condition before going too far.  The problem is, with no display, you probably can't even get the pin section into the self test mode to see what's going on there.

RandyT


*edit*
Chad beat to some of this, but I''m not gonna edit it again

[ChadTower]

Odds are it's not a $20 solution project.  If you can do the work yourself you'll get it up and working before you hit street value, probably, but you're not going to get out of this for $250 + $20 in parts.

[Kaytrim]

The Stern?  That's a high price pin, mostly because of age.  It's not old and still in the earning stage of life.  You're looking at $2-3k depending on condition.

That be the one Chad.  There is one where I bowl and I try to play it whenever I am there.  Plenty of skill shots, toys and special modes.  I figured that it would be on the higher end of the spectrum.  The one at the bowling alley has a bill validator along side the coin door.


Randy & Chad, thanks for the input.  My skill set is not up to that point yet.  With that in mind I may be better off waiting for something else.   The problem is I have been looking on CraigsList for over 8 months and this is only the second cab that has shown up in my area.  There are several in Des Moines but that is a 2-3 hour drive away and I don't own a truck or trailer.  If it is local like this one then I could borrow a truck from a friend.  Guess I'll stay with custom stick building to fund my hobby for now.

[ChadTower]

Find your local collectors' circle... that is where most of the better deals come most often.  Start with RGVAC and follow that wherever it leads you.

[Barry Barcrest]

Are Baby Pac-Mans fairly rare?  I think I only saw one growing up.  It would be nice to have a game that really can't be emulated.

Baby Pac isn't rare... it had a pretty high production run in pinball numbers.

[koolmoecraig]

$250 is a no-brainer to me.  As for the broken glass, that's like a $20 fix.

Even if the monitor is completely shot, a BRAND NEW 13" from Happs is $154 and they always go on sale down to $125 I believe.

I'd jump on it.  After getting mine I can honestly say that it is in the top 3 best games ever and EASILY the best in the Pac-Man series.

I believe the production run was 7000 units.  More and more people are starting to reproduce parts for them as well.  You can now get brand new playfield decals at phoenixarcade.com along with the side art and cpo of course.

[Barry Barcrest]

I believe the production run was 7000 units.

Go to ipdb.org to look at the production numbers.  Lists at 7000.   That's pretty high for either a pin or a vid.

[ChadTower]

Those are wise words.