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View Full Version : Questions for you Arcade Cabinet owners out there...



RadiantSvgun
02-12-2007, 11:26 PM
I've been wanting to get a cab for years, a JAMMA one that has at least 6 buttons. What is around the inital investment? And where can I find one?
I've searched on ebay, but most offer no shipping, no paypal, and local delivery only in a state thats 400 miles away.

diskoboy
02-12-2007, 11:42 PM
Usenet

rec.games.arcade.collecting
rec.games.arcade.collecting.marketplace

JAMMA cabinets are usually pretty cheap. You can probably get a good, working one for under $200. Alot cheaper for an empty cabinet.

Oh. And pick it up yourself. You won't find anyone who won't charge you to ship one. They weigh a ton, and aren't fun to move. If you search on Ebay, just try and find one close by you can get yourself or with a friend.

XYXZYZ
02-13-2007, 12:00 AM
Me, I went ahead and bit it with the shipping. I found a Neo Geo MVS-2-25 on ebay from a guy who would handle all the shipping, right to my door. I won the cabinet for something like $250.00, and I paid $375.00 for the shipping.

Now normally, I wouldn't do such a thing but I've wanted an arcade cabinet all my life, and I know that if I didn't get one this way I'd probably never have one as arcade cabinets don't seem to exist within 400 miles of where I live. And to tell you the truth I'm too lazy to drive a long distance to get it, and I didn't have anyone to help me unload it if I did. And I live in a one room apartment so I have to be finicky. Oh, and you have to factor in the severe case of "I want one NOW!"

So yeah, $375 is a lot to pay on top of $250.00, but I didn't have much choice and I don't regret it at all. I did get to go to an arcade auction that wasn't too far away, and I bought a cabinet and did the hauling myself. Damn that was a pain in the ass!

You know, I'm so lazy I just might pay to have another cabinet shipped to my door sometime. But my big problem is I have NOWHERE to put it! Oh, and it's true what they say about arcade cabinets, once you get one, you've just got to have more.

Is it just me, or does one arcade cabinet by itself just look wrong?

RadiantSvgun
02-13-2007, 12:05 AM
See, thats the problem with me, I don't have a pickup truck or anything, and i don't see many cabinets come up on ebay lately. And I don't have roomates willing to help me haul it.

XYXZYZ
02-13-2007, 01:00 AM
See, thats the problem with me, I don't have a pickup truck or anything, and i don't see many cabinets come up on ebay lately. And I don't have roomates willing to help me haul it.

Yeah. So, if I were in your shoes (My shoes aren't very different) I'd keep watching for that one auction that's just right, and drop the heavy cash on shipping. This once, at least. To get you started, you know. Maybe you can find some ebay stores and sellers that have good shipping setups and keep checking back with them to see if they get anything good.

StealthLurker
02-13-2007, 01:05 AM
Cabs are so cheap now it ain't even funny (even with shipping). First cabs I got several years ago were $600 & $700 a piece with NO GAME inside and not including cost to rent a u-haul, gas & mileage charge. Now you can get them for about $200. Factor in about $150-200 for shipping, still a bargain. Although the exact cab you may want on Ebay is marked as pickup only, if you're patient you'll find one that wouldn't mind crating one up for you.

... and if you think about it, that's a damn good price for shipping. If you're a jap import freak like me, keep in mind shipping just a simple boxed game system can run you almost 100 bucks!

BTW, nice sn... I love that game too. Best way to play it is on a cab indeed!

http://videogamecollectors.com/albums/album35/dark15.sized.jpg

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Flack
02-13-2007, 08:31 AM
I've been wanting to get a cab for years, a JAMMA one that has at least 6 buttons. What is around the inital investment? And where can I find one?
I've searched on ebay, but most offer no shipping, no paypal, and local delivery only in a state thats 400 miles away.

Arcade games are funny. When you don't know where to look they seem to be hard to find and very expensive. Once you get into local arcade circles they seem to pop up all the time. I find myself saying no all the time to stuff simply because I've run out of room. I got an offer to buy an Altered Beast cabinet for $75 yesterday that I had to turn down just because I don't have any more room right now.

When I finish my arcade book I will teach you my secrets. ;)

RadiantSvgun
02-13-2007, 09:41 AM
Arcade games are funny. When you don't know where to look they seem to be hard to find and very expensive. Once you get into local arcade circles they seem to pop up all the time. I find myself saying no all the time to stuff simply because I've run out of room. I got an offer to buy an Altered Beast cabinet for $75 yesterday that I had to turn down just because I don't have any more room right now.

When I finish my arcade book I will teach you my secrets. ;)

I knew there had to be some kind of ring for this thing! Ahh, I've been looking in all the wrong places!

RadiantSvgun
02-13-2007, 11:38 AM
Holy crap Stealth! Is that a MAME cabinet, or is that the Titan board?

StealthLurker
02-14-2007, 10:14 PM
Holy crap Stealth! Is that a MAME cabinet, or is that the Titan board?

It's a real ST-V board with the RS cart.



Arcade games are funny. When you don't know where to look they seem to be hard to find and very expensive. Once you get into local arcade circles they seem to pop up all the time. I find myself saying no all the time to stuff simply because I've run out of room. I got an offer to buy an Altered Beast cabinet for $75 yesterday that I had to turn down just because I don't have any more room right now.

When I finish my arcade book I will teach you my secrets. ;)


Yup. When I ran out of room and friends to hold cabs for me, I tried to sell a shinobi cab and a Gate of Doom conversion cab (old data east cab)... no takers, so I just gave them away. Had to make room for new and better stuff ASAP.

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