Philosophy
For an older game that needs some serious rehab, it just doesn’t make sense to diagnose problems individually and then repair them. Simply, pinball machines are complex with many interactions and dependencies of sub-systems. For example, one can hardly diagnose an MPU unless first knowing that the MPU is being delivered all the proper voltages.
Our approach is to systematically work through a game from the pin’s 3-prong plug, through the fuses, power supply, boards, and game features. By taking this approach, we will not only repair the problem that brought the game to us, we will undoubtedly find and fix other problems. Some of these other problems will be very obvious; a switch was not working before and now it is. But many more of the problems fixed will lead to quality of play, like re-soldering header pins delivering more power to the pop bumpers….making them poppier. We encourage potential repair customers to come and play our games listed for sale that have received the same treatment your game will receive in shop. You will be impressed with the play, the action, and the cleanliness of the pins. Frankly, we hate to play sloppy pins, and we won’t let pins leave playing and looking less than exceptional.
In-Shop Repairs
Larger jobs are much easier and less expensive to conduct in our Knoxville shop, where we have all the tools and parts readily available. Most in-shop repairs will be quoted with basic parts included. If for example an MPU board is found to be beyond repair, the cost for the board will need to be added to the quote. We will do our best to discuss the potential outcomes when you dropoff (or we pick up) your pinball machine.
The turnaround time for your repair will be dependent on the work requested, but most jobs will be completed within 3-4 weeks. Sometimes repairs can take longer than expected depending on what is found during an in depth inspection and work-through of a broken machine. We complete simple and moderate circuit board repairs and maintenance in-shop. We outsource more advanced circuit board repairs, which can add a month or more to the repair time. We have excellent relationships with our vendors and can generally obtain any parts not on hand within a week.
Payment and arrangement to pickup your pinball machine is due within 2-weeks on the completion of work (cash or credit). We offer pickup and delivery service of your pins for a fee. We strongly suggest having us, or another knowledgeable party, transport your pin unless you are comfortable moving it.
On-Site
We also conduct house calls for sick pinball machines. It must be said, that repairing a pinball machine in your house/location is more difficult than in our shop. In the shop, we can bring to bear all of our tools, our parts, great access around the entire perimeter of the pin, excellent lighting, and a general lack of conversational partners. Also, if we run into a problem and need to do some research, order a part, or just sleep on things, there are plenty of other pins to work on until the problem has a solution so that a delay of a few days has no financial consequences. Working on a pinball machine at your house does not afford these opportunities, and so we generally prefer to conduct repairs in the shop, but for smaller repairs a house call can make more sense. We will do our very best to attempt to repair your pin in one visit, but quite often this is not possible as we simply cannot anticipate every potential problem and bring every part with us. Payment (cash or credit card) is due prior to our departure from your location.
