why are balls so expensive?

[shooter05]

I hate to complain and I'm not sure this is where it goes BUT why are pachinko balls so expensive?
I have 2 machines now and a total of 180 balls. I know its not enough and I gotta buy more but they are ridiculously priced.
Is there another method of getting them?
How do you guys afford to run all these machines you got?

[Eddie]

Mine are Priceless!

[luckydog]

1,000 balls are pretty heavy, so shipping wili usually be at least $10.00.

your cost of balls will run 3 to 4 cents each,

remember they must be shipped here from Japan orginally, so they are taking up space and adding weight to the dealers container.

then they have to count, package, advertise "sometims clean them" and ship them.

[hanabi]

I think maybe a lot of us were lucky and bought stocks at the right time / right price??
( probably about a year ago in my case)

Over here in the UK, there are not many vendors and the few we do have seem to have run low on the Hallowed Sphericals

So its the old supply and demand thing I'm afraid...

[new in town]

How do you guys afford to run all these machines you got?

1. Time and Patience. (and saving up for them)

2. Keeping an eye out of E-Bay for GOOD prices and having a Quick SNIPE Finger.

3. Ocassionally Members here put some up for sale in the PachiTalk Auction.

In a year and a half I have accumulated 60,000 Sphere's for myself and 10,000 for two family members.

1.000 Sphere's weight about 12 pounds. I have received and shipped 5,000 at a time in a flat rate box for around $10.00. Each 1,000 was put in a USPS VCR box and then put into the Flat Rate Box. 60 pounds shipped for $10.00.


pachinko balls, Collectibles items on eBay.com

[JACKSJE4]

I have found the best deal is usually with Bill at www.vintagepachinko.com . He sells them for 6 cents apiece and shipping through USPS is always $5-6 regardless of weight. He also cleans them up really good, so they look like new.

I bought 1500 balls from him three months ago and haven't seen a better deal since.

[wrkey]

Some of the machines I've acquired had balls with them but never enough. I've purchased almost all of the balls that I have off of eBay and I pay around $24 per thousand plus $10 to $12 per lot for shipping. This to me seems to be a reasonable amount considering that the ones I get are clean with no rust and have the engraved characters/letters on them.

So, I've paid more for the balls I have than the machines I put them in, go figure. But, having the balls that are clean, correct size and weight is essential to the correct operations of the machines and when properly maintained, will last forever.

I look at it as an investment and the cost of having a machine. Would I like to find a supplier for less expensive balls, absolutely.

My last two purchases off of ebay was with a seller with an eBay id of "stopexpress". He has delivered a great product and I got them within 4 days of payment. I would suggest you check out his auctions as my experience to date has been great and the prices (if you play it right) are very reasonable!

Good luck!

[mudfud]

my last two pachinko ball purchases were from goldenstatetraders1, and the balls were clean (no rusty ones) and in good shape. they cost about $35 for 1000, including shipping.

considering they are all the way from japan, I don't think that's that expensive.

even if you tried to buy ball bearings that were 11 mm (and I could not find them), I think it would cost you more than 5 cents a piece.

(the 7/16 th inch ball bearings are 10% oversize and they get stuck in my nails)

and, if you consider the steps in making one, see this link

Sato Tekkou - Virtual factory tour > Process of manufacturing steel balls

I don't think it's that bad.

[sharmoni]

I've bought balls from TradersSpace on eBay. Their prices are low (4¢ a ball) and their quality is good. You can guarantee the price with BuyItNow (only available for 3000 and 5000), but their auction prices are about the same as long as you don't bid much higher than the initial listing price.

[portercbl]

I have over 70,000 balls and they are priceless in my playing of my machines.
Pachinko is not a cheap hobby , but of all of the money I have spent on my hobby, it has been worth every cent for the continued enjoyment my machines give me.

Just remember this, It's only money, You only live once, If you don't spend it on something it will be stolen from you anyway by Corporate America,

And you could always use the balls as ammo in the up coming revolution! hehehehehe So buy, buy, BUY! It helps the economy anyway!
Jerry

[Sid]

we gonna resort to black powder muzzle loaders

[celly]

I work around heavy diesel 4400 horsepower engines all day long. The thought has crossed my mind to bust open an encased ball bearing to see if the size was right. Ebay is about the only way to go to get em, honestly.

[johntofva]

Please read the following threads regarding ball bearings.:

http://www.pachitalk.com/forums/pach...eel-balls.html

and

http://www.pachitalk.com/forums/mode...ied-these.html

[penrhos]

Has anyone here brought directly from Yahoo auctions Japan and had them shipped direct?

I already buy most of my arcade games from YAJ using an agent.

They are about 1000 Yen per 1000 for used balls. but how heavy are 1000 balls and would it be worth surface mailing a box full back.

[JACKSJE4]

You can find them in lots of 1,000 on ebay for around .02 cents a piece (shipping included) if you are patient. I just bought some at auction for that amount.

[Meathead]

For those of you interested, i found out by accident this seller is actually Gaku. Not a whole lot of balls, but reasonably priced and lightening fast on the shipping. Also, a trustworthy seller...

ebay.com/Pachinko-balls-200-from-Japanese-casino

I just bought some tokens from him.