I'm thinking of making this my first Arcade purchase

[Zombiezilla]

Does this appear to be more headache than it is worth? I have the money, and the guy lives pretty dang close to me. What do you folk think?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/ebayISAPI.dll...tem=6101871199

If it sells to one of you, I guess I know it was a pretty decent deal.

[Flack]

Looks like it needs either the monitor or the board repaired. I don't know anything about this specific machine but I'm guessing Space Invader parts don't come cheap. If you are really good with electronics and wanting to get a machine to work on then I'd recommend it, but overall it's in kind of rough shape and will need some more money invested to get working.

[chadtower]

Not worth $150 unless you can inspect it without obligation and determine that there is either a working monitor or board in there.

[Flack]

Just to give you a point of reference, $210 is just about the limit that I've spent on any of the games I've bought so far. You're not going to get old classics in great shape for that price thought.

[chadtower]

Yeah, it should definitely be mentioned, in the context of a Space Invaders cab, that you will NEVER get a good condition, working Space Invaders for $210. That cab, with all of the unknowns and those pics, I'd think would be around $75-80. You know there's a monitor IN there from the pics but who knows if it works. You can tell it powers so the isolation transformer and original power supply are there. There's probably a PCB but it could be in 65 pieces. The control panel is destroyed and it's not the purely original artwork. Even doing it yourself you'd still have to put in a couple hundred at least to get that pretty and working again. If you're not a PCB/monitor guy, you're looking at several hundred for either repair charges or a new monitor/PCB.

[Zombiezilla]

I emailed the seller late last night, and he says that there is no picture on the monitor, and that all you are getting is the tri-color look that you can kind of see in the pictures. I emailed him again asking if you can hear the game in demo mode or anything that would hint that the board itself still works. My idea is that maybe it is just the monitor that is shot.

I have no experience in monitors, games, construction, etc., etc., etc. If this badride was made out of a material I could sculpt, I would be cool. But as is, something tells me I might get in WAY over my head, and possibly kill myself. I did entertain thoughts of getting it and just using the cab, but the price seems too much just for turning it into a MAME system.

My main goal at first is to get a cool game, and also a MAME system. If this was a working game, with cab damage, I would be on my way to pick it up right now! Heck, it's only 15 minutes from where I am right at this moment.

[chadtower]

Your conclusions are reasonable. It's too much for a MAME cab and one should not MAME a classic like that anyway. That cab is better left for someone with the time/motivation to restore it. I'd guess that anyone paying that much with that little info has restoration in mind anyway.

[Zombiezilla]

Yeah, I have done enough reading and following to know that to MAME-out something like a SPACE cab would be only right if the thing was gutted completely, and even then it wouldn't be all that cool to do.

I have an arcade not too far from me and they told me they had some dead machines that they would sell, so I am planning on calling them to find out what they have. Before I go buying any of them for the MAME purpose, I do plan to ask around here if the particular cabs are "O.K." to MAME out. I know some out there would say to never do that, but I am under the impression that doing it might actually be doing some games a service.

Oh, and if I do get hold of an old cab and turn it MAME, I fully intend to keep the original artwork and everything on the cab, aside from the consol.

But I really would love a real SPACE, TEMPEST, DOUBLE DRAGON, JOUST, Q-BERT, CONTIPEDE, etc., etc., etc...

[Zombiezilla]

Not worth $150 unless you can inspect it without obligation and determine that there is either a working monitor or board in there.

I'm sure I could check it over if I asked. The guy seems really cool. Shame, he doesn't sound like he really wants to part with it, but he is afraid to get into working on it, from how it sounds.