The Good: - Kicking Sparky's a$$ on Pong - Weather was a lot better than anticipated... - Still a 'well organized' event. - Lots of dealers and parts available - Meeting all the MAACA and non-MAACA members - Some very nice machine examples in the 'Free Play' area (Devils Dare was the winner for me) - Farmer's Market - Allentown Brew Works (Nice place, Good beer, Great food and INEXPENSIVE) - Yuengling brewery tour (it was a nice 'non-pinball' activity...) - Driving down and sleeping with 'Da Crew'...always a fun time! - Lots of machines to play in one spot - Had the opportunity to try many EMs which I've always ignored before...some of them ARE fun!
The Bad: - New 'Free Play' layout meant less machines to play - Too much 'dealer' space, which reduced 'free play' area - In Free Play area: only a handful (IIRC less than 10) of DMDs (I only remember 5: I500, DM, IJ4, RCT, W?D ) - The machine 'disappearance' in the FPA at 5pm on Saturday. - The P.A. system... - The 'mandatory tipping' to take a whizz - Over-priced machines - Over-priced parts in the Flea Market... - Rain on friday - Me being ill over the weekend, which meant I was the 'DD' and couldn't contribute in finishing up "Da Crew's" 156 cans of beer...we had some left... - No Stern SS machines (There was a Dragonfist and a Hot Hand in the tournament area + supposedly a Dracula which I didn't see) - The temperature inside the expo hall... (IMHO, they have outgrown the current hall...they should move in the adjacent one!) - The smell in our hotel room - The sofa bed in our hotel room
The Ugly: - Le Lutin - If you put your picture on your 'free play' machine to help finding you to sell it, take a decent one...most of the guys/girls will know what machine we're talking about... - Pharaoh backglass in the flea marker area - The guy in the corner that had JUNK and still wanted a 'premium price' for his crap. - Bugs Bunny Birthday Bash in the flea market area - You had to pay to play CSI - The Canadian custom's agent...
Current 'working' lineup: ( 2 ) Flipper Football, The Shadow
Gone but not forgotten: ( 22 ) City Slicker, Dirty Harry, CFTBL, Big Shot, Big Guns, Black Rose, Judge Dredd, Indianapolis 500, Big Game, BS: Dracula x 2, Beat the Clock, Fire!, F-14 Tomcat, Getaway, Breakshot, Cheetah, Meteor, El Dorado, Nitro Ground Shaker, Chexx Hockey, Slugfest
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I don't mind tossing the attendant 50 cents or a buck whenever I use the can at the show because he keeps the bathrooms NICE and CLEAN, which is more than I can say for nearly every public washroom I've ever seen in the USA.
And when you've been at the show for 8 hours and you just can't hold your #2 any longer, it's nice to have a clean pot to poop in, if ya know what I'm sayin'.
Oh yeah, I also wanted to add that the prices for some of the parts from the dealers INSIDE the building were a little out of line. I thought a trade show environment was where dealers tried to earn customer loyalty by doing "a little extra" for their potential patrons. But I saw many examples of "gougerama" . When I asked one dealer how much he was charging for his bumper bodies, he took a step back, had a quick look at me and quoted me "$3 a piece". Seeing as I had just finished buying some from PBR for 85 cents a piece, I just said "thanks" and walked away. Was the guy crazy or what ?
Other examples: Custom shooter rods $40 that I regularly see for $25. Drop targets $5 each no matter how many you buy ! Rollover inserts for $3 rather than the usual $1.50. The list goes on and on. Considering what was going on iside the building, I thought the flea market prices were reasonable ( for the most part ).
Maybe you could expand on a few stories: - The machine 'disappearance' in the FPA at 5pm on Saturday. - The Canadian Customs Agent.
Not a specific machine, theft or magician, but as soon as 5PM hit, I would say half of the machines in the 'Free Play Area' were powered off and removed from the show.
As for the agent, he's an ugly mofo and was the same that caused us grief last year...he was still rude, insulting and a major idiot, but we 'played his game' and got through without any problems, and not that we had anything to hide...we declared our stuff.
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Posted by: Mrhide Date Posted: May 5, 2009, 5:33pm
what? no mention of City Slickers?!
Actually I checked it out...brought back some memories...but with no boards, a rough playfield and missing parts, I didn't even check the price of tis 'project'.
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Posted by: magneto Date Posted: May 5, 2009, 9:33pm Tipping to Take a Whizz??? I'd reach for my pocket and flip out a bird! seems to be more Bad than the good....going back next year?
Yeah... it sux...I know that the Market had washrooms, but as cooke said, they are not very 'clean'. However, I found some really clean and FREE washroom nearby...definately a place suitable for a #2... don't ask where
Maybe there's more "bad" but not enough to avoid the show. this is THE show in Eastern Canada/USA. I'm planning on going next year. I think that the organizers should seriously consider of moving on the other side of the building...then they could put more incentives on putting machines in the FPA...
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Posted by: mrniceguy Date Posted: 3 hours ago
Which "guy in the corner ?" Was it the guy with the generator ? The guy with the white van ? The guy under the easy-up ?
The one that, when entering in FMA (Flea Market Area), he was the last booth on the left hand side, at the back. I saw a really crappy Ice Fever playfield, which I thought of buying for my room wall (it was 90% stripped and the PF was in ROUGH shape)...he wanted $20!!! a rough backglass with many paint chips missing: $25!!! this is crazy! most of his garbage wasn't even worth a penny.
As for parts purchase, like for anything else: you need to shop... I really like James Loflin from Pinball Inc. When he goes to shows, he drops the prices of his ramps AND always bring some extra with his "Parts Bazaar"... I was lucky to find specific targets for my friends' Goldeneye and gave me a small additional discount to boot! It's unfortunate that some other vendors try to gouge...
Can't wait for next year!
Mes deux cennes, frosken
Current 'working' lineup: ( 2 ) Flipper Football, The Shadow
Gone but not forgotten: ( 22 ) City Slicker, Dirty Harry, CFTBL, Big Shot, Big Guns, Black Rose, Judge Dredd, Indianapolis 500, Big Game, BS: Dracula x 2, Beat the Clock, Fire!, F-14 Tomcat, Getaway, Breakshot, Cheetah, Meteor, El Dorado, Nitro Ground Shaker, Chexx Hockey, Slugfest
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