Subj: Re: ABOUT THE FLINTSTONES PINBALL WE BOUGHT FROM YOU
Date: 5/19/02 7:22:23 PM Central Daylight Time
From: Barrywnj@cs.com
To: Big70
Double-click picture(s) to display full size
Barry,
Please answer all of the questions I ask and address each and every issue in
this e-mail and not just a select few. I will answer all questions at the end of
each question.
First, you told us "you have made some assumptions that were not mentioned in
the auction description." What assumptions do you feel we made? you assumed than
no repairs were ever made to the machine, you assumed that the machine never
left the USA, you assumed that no cabinet touch up was done.
Now regarding the Bondo. Do you think that using Bondo on a cabinet of a pinball
machine is something not worth telling prospective buyers? It doesn't matter to
us that it was neatly and professionally done. If it had been stated that Bondo
was used on the machine, we would have never bid. I have to ask, why didn't you
put that in your description? we are selling used machines, some have a bit of
touch up. We have never recieved any complaints that bondo was used before. We
sell about 10 machines a week and maybe 5 or 6 have some bondo, never once a
complaint.
As for the "yellow bird" plastic that was replaced with some white plastic.
Isn't that something you tell your customers about? Did you ever plan on letting
us know that the cord plate hadn't been put back on or that the score cards were
not put back? Why does the pictured machine have the correct Silver legs and
silver bolts, but we got Spray painted Gold legs with Black Data East bolts? We
paid $1279 for a machine that had all of these things in the pictures and
therefore should have come with the machine. It doesn't matter how inexpensive
some of these pieces are or how easy they are to replace. It's the fact that
these things were shown with the machine being sold and none of them came with
it. the yellow bird broke off in cleaning the machine, i will send you one from
the next Flintstones that comes in, or offer you $50 back if you dont care to
wait.
You responded to most of the issues we had with the machine in your last e-mail
to us. I would like to know what you have to say about the other issues you did
not mention anything about which are:
1) Red ball shooter button shown in pictures - non original white button is on
the machine. red button was damaged, I replaced with a working white one, I will
swap this also when I get another Flintstones in.
2) The locking assembly on the head is missing bolts. Will ship with the legs
when you send the gold ones back, will reimburse you postage.
3) The clear plastic is missing on the spinner assembly. Dont know about this.
4) Power Driver board has been modified - CAPS mounted to the head. Makes it
more reliable, nothing to complain about.
5) There are 3 transformers in the cabinet. Does no harm to machine.
6) The rear ball pop-up assembly is defective. Whats wrong with it?, worked
here?
7) There are countless wires cut in the machine. Machine worked 100% when
shipped.
8) Even the coils you have on it were cut from other machines and the old wires
were left hanging free and untapped with electrical tape. You couldn't even take
the time to desolder them. Very possible, but didnt affect appearance or
description of game.
9) The Non-American coin mechs you did have on the machine did not even work.
will send with legs 2 american coin mechs. We dont supply mechs with machines as
a rule, as just about all go to home use on free play. But if mechs you want, we
will provide.
Upon further review of the pinball, we have found more evidence that points to
you sending us a different machine than was pictured. There is some wear on the
Score Card area of the pinball we received that is not on the machine in the
pictures. The blue "rock house" next to the yellow bird plastic is all blue and
vivid in the pictures of the machine you used. The machine we got has a very
faded blue "rock house" and is even missing blue in some places. The flippers on
the machine you had pictured were not set at the correct angle and were angled
too high. The right flipper covered the "s" in Flintstones and the left flipper
covered part of the "F" in Flintstones. The machine's flippers we got did not
have this problem and were at the correct angle. The most damning thing of all
is the little white "Williams" sticker on the front of the machine. The machine
in the pictures you used has this white sticker to the right of the "s" of the
Flintstones logo which is below the coin door. The machine we got had had that
sticker removed, but you can see from the film it left behind where it was
located. It was above the "s" in Flintstones logo and not to the right as the
one in the pictures was.
The machine was cleaned further after the pics were taken. We use scrubbing
bubbles on most playfield parts some blue could have faded, or it can be the
lighting, I cant tell by the pics. The flippers were checked after the pics were
taken also. I will send score cards with the other items mentioned. There are
many stickers on the machine when we get them in, some operators place on, we
usually remove residue with naptha, sorry if we missed one, but it was the same
machine, the only Flintstones I had in stock. I feel you had buyers remorse
right away, from the emails you sent the day the auction ended complaining the
price was not what you wanted to pay. The issues you describe are nothing that
anyone wouldnt expect on a used machine, we sell 500 per year and this machine
is typical for a very nice used machine. We put the machine on legs to service
it in the shop, if chrome is what you want, I have no objections to the swap,
but I thing Flintstones shipped with gold legs from the factory. You have to ask
questions before you bid. Sometimes people ask if there was any touch up, or
does it have american style door, or if it ever left the country for any time.
Fair questions, but most people dont find them relevant as long as they get a
machine as described, which I feel you got. Let me know if you are sending back
gold legs for me to exchange with chrome, or do you just want me to send out the
mechs, bolts , score cards, and new grounded plug.
******HERE ARE PICTURE OF WHAT WAS STATED ABOVE*****
- FIRST, PICTURES YOU USED, SHOWING THE WHITE STICKER, BLUE "ROCK HOUSE," SCORE
CARD AREA, AND FLIPPER SITUATION.
<IMG SRC="Untitled"
<IMG SRC="Untitled"
<IMG SRC="Untitled"
*******NOW PICTURES OF THE MACHINE WE RECEIVED*********
<IMG SRC="Untitled" - FADED BLUE HOUSE
<IMG SRC="Untitled" - FLIPPERS NOT ANGLED LIKE THE FLIP
