Winston-Salem, NC Auction Results (2005)
February 5, 2005
The February 5th auction was pretty small--apparently the trend of late as I understand it. There were actually no upright cabinets at all in the first row--instead, the cocktails and the bar top games (which are usually in the confused cluster in the front corner) were displayed here. This was actually a lot more efficient than the old method, and things moved along quickly throughout the day. I had to leave at around 4 PM, but by that time they were more than half way done--only two major rows remaining.
Some good classics--three Spy Hunter uprights (one of which was in pretty nice shape), and lots of Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga uprights (naturally). There were a couple of pretty rare cocktails, including a nice Tempest and a Karate Champ (which I had never seen prior to this auction). There were also several sad, converted classics in the junker row: a stripped Star Wars with a nice cabinet but with a Road Riot controller; a TRON that had been painted black and converted to 1942; and another TRON that had been painted black and converted to Arkanoid. Sigh.
Since my interest in pinball machines is growing on a daily basis, I did list many of the games that were present. Unfortunately, it's just a partial list--and I had to leave before most of them were auctioned off.
There were a bunch of good deals and a couple of surprisingly high prices. I didn't buy anything.
Video Game Prices
Pinball Prices
June 4, 2005
Like the February 5th auction, this one was pretty small. Again, the first row was nothing but bartop games. Anticipating that, I arrived late. They actually made it down the first row, across the back and up the middle before 4 PM. Not bad.
The offerings were pretty sparse, but there were definitely some classic games going for bargain prices. Two that I wanted to see but didn't stick around for were a Mortal Kombat in a Joust cocktail cabinet (what a sin, that), and a beat-up but working sit down Spy Hunter. Fans of Atari cocktail games were in luck--there was a Centipede, a Dig Dug, and a Missile Command, all working and all sold at bargain basement prices!
Managed to get about a third of the pinball prices--the rest were still waiting to be auctioned when I left.
Video Game Prices
Pinball Prices
November 7, 2005
This auction went a lot faster than any that I have been to in a while--not a lot of junk in the front corner, and not a lot of pool tables and such (maybe a quarter the normal number). As a result, I got almost all of the classic vids and just about every pinball machine.
Unfortunately, although there were lots of pins to choose from (many of the most popular around, actually), the classic vid selection was less than stellar. Unless you wanted a Ms. Pac-Man or a Galaga. Plenty of those, averaging about $400 for working, decent games. (I'd hate to be somebody who paid twice that a couple of years back...)
I only bid on one item--a non-working Wizard of Wor in so-so condition. There was this rather persistent (I'm being nice) dealer who tried like hell to talk me out of bidding at all--which made me determined to do so. Making him pay more than he wanted to pay for the thing was almost as satisfying as winning it myself. My guess: it'll go and sit in his warehouse for years. I would have brought it back to life and enjoyed it. Ah well...
Video Game Prices
Pinball Prices