Advice: Repair or buy new?

[Rhods]

Hi! My first post here on bowl-tech so be gentle if I mess something up =)

I'm about to buy an old bowling alley in my neighborhood, been working on AMF machines on and off for the last 12yrs (not in the bowling alley in question). They've 40yr old 82/70 pinsetters that are pretty worn down, the result of unsatisfactory maintenance through the years.
My question is this, would I be better off repairing these old workhorses (needs to be upgraded to meet "new" European safety standards) or would I be better off buying brand spankin' new edge machines?
I'm counting on to be able to run this business for 10-20yr or more so I guess it all depends on how long the 82/70 will keep going.

On a side note, how is the first impression of the quality on the edge machine?


Please don't focus on spelling errors and such, I'm from sweden, I'll do my best to be understood. =)

Cheers!
//Robin

[rivmike]

How many lanes?

[Rhods]

Only 9 lanes

[racelanes]

Repair 70s will run forever if you maintain them and are able to get parts. Parts wont be a problem 30 years from now because even the brand new stuff most parts interchange or are able to be converted.

[70/70]

What model? A,b or C? What chassis?

[Rhods]

What sort of damage is irreversible on these machines? I'm thinking of the steel frame etc getting worn out, or can everything be repaired and rebuilt (at an reasonable cost)?



Hmmm, don't really know what model of the 82/70 it's. All bowling alleys I've been working at has all had the same models of the machines (as far as I know). The machines where built in 1973 or 75.
MP-chassis.

[Tablejam]

Is the chassis gold or silver colored?

Gold= Solid State

Silver= MP

[Rhods]

Mp, Silver

[Tablejam]

Perfect.

Well really this all depends on how much work the machines need. If they have been neglected then that also means they have not been lubricated so that in itself can be an issue. Its difficult to tell without actually being there and seeing these run, for myself anyway. But if the bad parts are replaced, lubrication is done, and things are in adjustment, they will run well for a long time if not neglected again. So yes, I can tell you from experience that neglected 40-50 year old machines can be brought back to life to run well again. On the other hand, new Edge machines will also run well for a long time if cared for. The cost difference will of course depend on exactly how much work the 70's require, I'm guessing it will probably be less than new machines.

[8270king]

Repair them - much cheaper

[slb785]

They can be repaired for much less money. I have a 40 lane center I've been at for about 2.5 years that I'm just getting working well again (been limited by budget). They were running close to 200 frames per stop when I started. Now I average about 800 frames per stop. My machines were SEVERELY neglected, and on top of that the mechanics before me didn't know what they were doing and making things worse on top of all the worn/broken parts.

If you only have 9 machines and have a good mechanic who isnt a "hack n' wack" mechanic who can make sure everything gets done right the first time you can get many years of life out of your machines.

[House]

Repair them - much cheaper

i agree. rather than investing for new machines, use that money to repair and hire a expierienced mechanic staff. just my opinion.

[Pin_Head]

Yeah if say it's around $15,000 for example for a new Edge, as great as it would be to have them, for half that cost per machine you could easily with the right staff get those babies as good as new again.... For example both TJ and King have some very old machines and both run exceptionally well....

[70/70]

^70 MPs? keep them! Good machines. TJ, King,lots of other guys (and me) have 70's that run SWEET

[talon]

Repairing a neglected AMF 8270 would be cheaper than an instant dept on a newer machine. The owner needs to get 2 things.....A great mechanic, and a reasonable budget complete with a 2-3 year realistic time frame if all works out well....all three things are up in the air. Good luck with all three from what you decide >>>> Uncle Bob