# I Bought A Broken Jersey Jack Pinball Machine & Saved Thousands!

**Source:** Cooltoy  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2025-09-02  
**Duration:** 17m 27s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7aoWKOuBPM

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## Analysis

A Cooltoy content creator shares their experience purchasing a broken Hobbit pinball machine by Jersey Jack for $3,000—a significant discount from market value. After discovering a simple power cable disconnection and two blown fuses, they restored it to full working condition with minimal repairs, acquiring what they describe as their best deal ever on a Limited Edition model in immaculate condition.

### Key Claims

- [MEDIUM] The Hobbit by Jersey Jack is worth significantly more than $3,000 even in broken condition — _Cooltoy creator told the sellers 'This machine is worth more than you're asking, even in broken condition'_
- [HIGH] The machine had only been played fewer than 500 times in its 10-year lifespan — _Creator checked the original code records and found play count had not reached 500 times_
- [HIGH] The primary issue was two blown fuses controlling high-powered coils (flippers, slingshots, pop bumpers) — _Creator found blown fuses after inspecting the machine and replacing them resolved the major issue_
- [HIGH] The Hobbit Limited Edition comes with a 27-inch HD screen, shaker motor, and bronze powder-coated hardware — _Creator listed the features of the Limited Edition model they purchased_
- [HIGH] Rubber degradation can occur in machines due to lack of use over 10 years — _Creator observed dry-rotted rubbers on a machine that had been neglected for years despite being only 10 years old_

### Notable Quotes

> "I'm always on the hunt for a project pinball machine. That's literally the only way I've built my collection is to find beaten, battered, abused machines that need TLC, restoration, love, rework, that kind of thing."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, early in video
> _Establishes the creator's collecting philosophy and strategy for affordability_

> "It says Hobbit video game, $3,000. And I immediately recognized it as The Hobbit by Jersey Jack. And I was like, that is an absolutely incredible deal."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, early-middle
> _Shows the creator's market knowledge recognizing the pricing anomaly immediately_

> "This machine is worth more than you're asking, even in broken condition."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, middle
> _Demonstrates transparency and ethical dealing with sellers; acknowledges true market value_

> "I didn't drive a truck... I wanted to look at the machine before I bought it, make sure I actually wanted to buy it. I didn't have the right vehicle today."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, middle
> _Highlights the logistical challenges and spontaneity of the purchase—drove 4 hours with wrong vehicle_

> "Found two blown fuses that controlled high power coils like flippers, slingshot, pop bumpers, things like that. Uh, replaced those quickly and bada bing, bada boom, put everything back together and it was a fully functional, fully operational game."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, late-middle
> _Documents the actual repair process and how a simple fuse replacement resolved the primary issue_

> "This thing works like a champ. Has no issues whatsoever. I was even blown away when I was looking at the records and everything. It was running the original code. Had never been updated."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, late
> _Confirms the machine's excellent condition and minimal usage history_

> "Best deal I've ever got, hands down."
> — **Cooltoy creator**, end
> _Strong declarative statement about the value and significance of this acquisition_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Cooltoy | person | YouTube content creator specializing in pinball machine restoration and acquisition |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Pinball machine manufacturer; maker of The Hobbit machine featured in this video |
| The Hobbit | game | Jersey Jack Pinball machine with Hobbit/Lord of the Rings theme; Limited Edition version purchased for $3,000 |
| Smaug | product | Mechanical toy feature on The Hobbit pinball machine; requires jaw alignment maintenance |
| Facebook Marketplace | product | Online marketplace platform where the Hobbit machine listing was found |
| Pinside | organization | Pinball community forum/platform mentioned as a source for deal-hunting |
| U-Haul | company | Truck rental service used by creator to transport the machine home |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Pinball machine acquisition and deal-hunting strategies, Restoration and repair of broken/neglected machines, Jersey Jack Pinball machine quality and features
- **Secondary:** Secondary market pricing and value retention of pinball machines, Machine maintenance and rubber degradation over time, Collector mentality and build-your-collection philosophy
- **Mentioned:** The Hobbit pinball game specifications and features

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.92) — The creator expresses genuine excitement and satisfaction throughout. Despite the stressful journey and logistical complications, the outcome is framed as fortunate and rewarding. High enthusiasm for the machine's condition and value.

### Signals

- **[collector_signal]** Jersey Jack Hobbit Limited Edition sold significantly below market value ($3,000) due to seller's lack of knowledge or urgency (confidence: high) — Creator stated machine is worth more than asking price even in broken condition; seller appeared unaware of market value
- **[restoration_signal]** Broken Hobbit machine required only fuse replacement and rubber refresh; demonstrates common failure modes in neglected machines (confidence: high) — Two blown fuses in high-power coil circuit; dry-rotted rubbers from 10-year neglect; simple repair resolved all issues
- **[product_concern]** Rubber components degrade from lack of use over time; 10-year-old machine showed significant dry-rot despite no abuse (confidence: high) — Creator replaced all rubbers due to dry-rot on a pristine, unabused machine stored in climate-controlled mansion
- **[operational_signal]** Pinball machine acquisition often requires logistical improvisation; creator drove 4 hours without proper transport vehicle and rented truck on-site (confidence: high) — Creator drove in small SUV, realized it wouldn't fit machine, then rented U-Haul truck from nearest location
- **[market_signal]** Private sellers sometimes price machines far below market value when unfamiliar with the secondary market; early responders have advantage (confidence: high) — Machine listed only ~10 minutes before creator saw it; creator's quick response secured deal that was in high demand
- **[product_launch]** Jersey Jack Hobbit machines maintain excellent build quality and condition even after years of storage if not abused (confidence: high) — Cabinet immaculate with no marks or nicks; playfield pristine; all original components and documentation present
- **[community_signal]** Content creators document acquisition and restoration journeys to share value-finding strategies and entertainment with community (confidence: medium) — Creator produced detailed narrative video documenting entire purchase and repair process for audience

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## Transcript

In today's video, I'm going to tell you about the wacky bit of circumstance that allowed me to buy this broken pinball machine and save thousands of dollars. [Applause] [Music] Pull up a comfy chair, grab some popcorn. Let me regal you of the tale of this ridiculous bit of circumstance that allowed me to buy this Hobbit pinball machine for $3,000. Yes, that is an absolute steal of a deal. And it was one of those too good to be true type scenarios that actually ended up being true in the long run. Now, I'm always on the hunt for a project pinball machine. That's literally the only way I've built my collection is to find beaten, batter, abused machines that need TLC, restoration, love, rework, that kind of thing. That way, I can save lots of money. Uh because these things are stupid amounts of money. It's a a money pit of a hobby, but it's an enjoyable one. I love it. So, I'm always scouring Facebook Marketplace, Penside, Craigslist, eBay, those type of places looking for a deal. As luck would have it, one Sunday morning, it was storming like crazy. I woke up. It was like 4:30 in the morning. Couldn't go back to sleep. So, pull out my phone, start scrolling on Facebook, look on marketplace, and I see this listing. It says Hobbit video game, $3,000. And I immediately recognized it as The Hobbit by Jersey Jack. And I was like, that is an absolutely incredible deal. Surely it's not going to work. And I've seen a lot of deals like that pop up over the years where they are essentially too good to be true. And a lot of times what happens is either A, it sells in like 5 minutes to the first person that messaged them, and first person that got to their door, or B, it's a scam. This person lived probably four hours away from me in a different state. And I was like, "Okay, well, I'll message them, but chances are if this is the real deal, it's going to go to somebody that lives closer because they're going to be Johnny on the spot." So, I look at the listing and they just posted it less than 10 minutes ago. And I was like, "Wow, that's kind of crazy. It's, you know, butt crack early in the morning." So, I messaged them said, "Yeah, interested. I'd love to buy this machine. When's a good time to pick it up and pay you?" And I wasn't really expecting anything. I was like, "Maybe in the middle of the day I'll get a message that says, you know, sorry, I sold it to somebody else because that's how these things typically go." Lo and behold, minute later, I get a message back said, "Yeah, sure. It's available. You can come. Uh, this is where I live. Where do you live?" And I was like, "Okay, well, I live several hours away from you, but I can get in the car right now and I could be to your house probably at like 10:00 this morning." She said, "Okay, that's great. Uh, I'll see you on the way." I was like, "Great, cool. What's your address?" And she's like, "Well, I'll let you know my specific address once you get to town." And I was like, "Okay, red flag." uh that that just seemed weird to me. But I also kind of understand it because, you know, you don't want to give out your home address to uh lots of people on the internet, especially if you got lots of messages on a particular machine, something like that. So said, "Okay." And I immediately started looking at this person's profile. I'm like, "All right, has she actually posted something? Is it a hacked account? Uh does this look like a scammer?" All the all these type of things. And all the boxes were, you know, being unchecked. This looked like a legitimate person selling a legitimate item. had legitimate sales history. Um, no, you know, kind of questionable things going on on their profile. So, I was like, "Okay, well, I'm like, I don't have anything else going on. Worst case scenario, I take a road trip to a different, you know, state in town and maybe I'll stop at a cool place on the way there or back, you know, have a story to tell if, you know, nothing comes of it." So, said, "Okay, great. Getting in the car now. I'll be there by, you know, 10:30 in the morning. Um, let me know if anything changes." So, I get in the car, start driving several hours. I'm probably, you know, a little little ways away from the the town, but very close. And at this point, I get a notification on the Facebook Messenger app. And I get a message and it's from the seller. And I was like, "Oh, wonder what she has to say." And I click it open. She says, "Sorry, sold the machine to somebody in town." And immediately just, you know, the the rage and the disappointment is bubbling up in me. I'm like, "You got to be kidding me." So, I message her back. I'm like, "Are are you kidding me? Are are you serious? It's like I I'm literally 10 minutes away from you. Like you told me you were going to hold this for me and I told you specifically that I was on my way and then I was going to be here at this time. And then the longest 10 minutes of silence transpires. Messenger comes back up again. I get another notification. She says, "Okay, you're right. You can have it. Here's my address." And I'm like, "Holy cow." I'm I'm beyond excited. And let me let me tell you folks, this is how risky this whole situation was. I didn't have my normal vehicle that I pick up pinball machines with. My wife was out of town. She had our our van that I would pick up a machine. I drive a small SUV that does not fit a pinball machine in it. So, I drove several hours into a different state to pick up a pinball machine with a vehicle that I knew couldn't even possibly pick up the pinball machine. And then I finally drove to this person's house about 10:45 that morning. And I was blown away because it was in a gated community that I needed, you know, an access code to get into and it was all these multi-million dollar houses. And I was like, "Okay, maybe maybe this is legit." Arrived to this immaculate mansion. Uh, meet these wonderful, nice people. And I get there and she says, "Uh, I I told you it was working. Uh, unfortunately, it's not." So, I'm like, "Oh, okay. Uh, that's slightly alarming. Let me look at the machine." And so I'm looking over the machine and it looks pristine and she's like, "Yeah, we bought it several years ago from, you know, a distributor. We bought it for the kids. Enjoy it." And we haven't played it in many years. Last she knew it was working, but when she actually tried to turn it on, didn't work. So I got to looking at it and everything, you know, appeared there. They had keys, manuals, everything. It wasn't abused. It just looked neglected. It was covered in dust. Uh just looking, you know, through the playfield glass, I saw the rubbers had been dry rotted and I was like, "Oh, wow. This truly hasn't been played." But the playfield itself uh looked pristine and I was like, "Okay." I opened up the coin box, looked inside, computer, everything was supposed to be inside the machine was there and I was like, "Okay, well, um I'm like I I'll be blunt with you." And I told the the owners, I'm like, "This machine is worth more than you're asking um even in broken condition." and and they're like, "Well, you know, we just need the space and honestly, you know, we're we're just happy to get rid of it. You're here." She's like, "I feel bad that you drove all this way. I told you it was working. It's not working." Was giving me the impression that she was expecting me to haggle the price down even more. And I was like, "Look, it's it's worth more than what you're asking." Um, I'm comfortable giving you what you're asking as is condition right now with it not being working. I'm like, "I I imagine it'll be a simple fix for me." I'm like, "If you're okay with that, I'm okay with that and we can make a deal." And she said, "Yeah, sure. let's make a deal. We shook on it. I gave her the $3,000 and I said, "Uh, one one second. I got to go uh switch vehicles because I I didn't drive a truck." And she's like, "What do you mean?" I was like, "Well, I wanted to look at the machine before I bought it, make sure I actually wanted to buy it. I didn't have the right vehicle today." So, I said, "I'll be right back." So, I ran drove to the nearest U-Haul location that had a truck that I could rent. uh rented a truck, came back to the house, loaded up the machine, you know, paid for and everything and uh drove four hours back to my home in a rented vehicle, unloaded the machine, got it home, started looking at it, um quickly realized that the power cable in the back had come disconnected uh from the actual joint in inside of the machine. Uh took it apart, put it back together, plugged it in, turned it on, Ed Boon, and it turned right on. And I was like, "Holy cow, we are we are in business." Tried to start a game. Started, but it wouldn't play. None of the flippers worked. Slingshots, there was a lot of, you know, high-owered coils weren't working. So, I was like, "Okay, uh, this could be a lot of things, but opened the hood, lifted the playfield, saw everything was, you know, in pristine condition." I was like, "All right, that that shouldn't be any major issue." So, opened up the computer, saw there was a couple of wires in the back, uh, kind of crammed together, and it looked like it probably had caused an arc. And lo and behold, found two blown fuses that controlled high power coils like flippers, slingshot, popovers, things like that. Uh, replaced those quickly and bada bing, bada Ed Boon, put everything back together and it was a fully functional, fully operational game and didn't have any real major issues after that. I was I was just blown away, you know, after this crazy long day and, you know, jumping through hoops to get this home and see it actually worked and didn't have ridiculous issues. Like I expected even at $3,000 I was still going to be okay if it had issues, but thankfully they were all minor. Um, and I was super stoked to get this game for a a heck of a price. It, you know, it needed some cleaning up. I I gave it a quick shop job. uh replaced all the rotted rubbers cuz literally they were dry rotted from lack of use, which is something crazy to think of for a game that's, you know, relatively 10 years old. But, uh, gave it a shop job. Gave it all brand new clear Titan rubbers. Um, put some inner art blades on there cuz I love those on all my games. Even gave it a little basic topper, RGB illumination, sound activated, and things like that. Um, this model was autographed by Jersey Jack and gold ink on the the back glass, which I thought was kind of funny. The only real issue I had with this machine was uh Smog's uh jaw when I got him. He was like kind of slack jawed and sideways and I had to disassemble the mech and straighten it up. And then now he's up and down. It works great. And you know, he's not talking like a slack jawed uh hillbilly or anything like that. Other than a couple of fuses, you know, a quick, you know, rubber change and shop job, uh, and then just restraightening of Smog's jaw, this thing works like a champ. Has no issues whatsoever. I was even blown away when I was looking at the the records and everything. It was running the original code. Had never been updated, and thus showed the original play count, and it hadn't even been played 500 times. And for a game that's 10 years old and really fun to play, uh, I thought that was amazing, but it also lent to, you know, their story. They said, "Yeah, we've had this for numerous years. Uh we haven't played it in numerous years. We got it for the grandkids and the kids, but uh no one ever plays it anymore." And this is the limited edition version specifically. Uh we got the Invisal comes with the shaker motor, you know, Jersey Jack staple 27in highdeinition screen. Uh it's got that bronze kind of vein uh looking powder coat all around, you know, legs, armor, hinges, that kind of thing. The cabinet condition was immaculate. didn't have a mark or a nick on it or anything like that. So, uh, it cleaned up great, works great. Best deal I've ever got, hands down. Uh, it's just super fun to play. And I'm not going to talk about it. I'm just going to show you the gameplay of this great game. That was the luckiest pickup of my life. is harder than your material. Thank you. adventure. [Music] The 31 horses already. First they jump, then they stand, then they stand. A box without hinges of all treasure inside. [Music] It's the beast. Feast. Feast. [Music] What's the spider? [Music] The spider. Most Hey [Music] Oh, wow.

_(Acquisition: youtube_auto_sub, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 3d7d358a-ab39-4d6b-a7bc-3f2ebd220b2b*