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Ok, so we've made contact with the operator, we've somehow managed to get to meet him at his warehouse.
What next?
You need your kit. Everytime you go to a warehouse, you want to take the following things with you (in fact, when we get to auctions, you're going to take this and a few other things with you)
For a warehouse raid/visit, you want a small, portable kit. An Op, most of the time... and especially the first 2 or 3 times you meet with him you don't want him to be put off. They're not going to let you run through their warehouse unattended most of the time and if you go in with a bunch of stuff he may just tell you to fuck off. They're pricks like that.
Voltmeter/Ammeter - One Small enough to fit in your pocket. You'll need this to test parts/machines that you want. This goes along with what we'll talk about later.. learning the craft.
Small tool kit -- A Multi-Bit screwdriver works wonders. Most screws on a machine are, in order of frequency: Philips Head, Hex Screw,Flat Head, hex nut. Find an all in one that stores bits in the handle.
Leatherman -- Do I need to explain?
Palm VII -- What? A Palm VII? Yeah, here's why:
http://www.klov.com/palm7/
If you can't, any other cheap palm will do.. and you'll need this file:
http://www.klov.com/klov.txt
The people at KLOV (Killer List of Videogames)
www.klov.com were nice enough to put together a top notch database of all general technical attributes of every arcade game their members have information on.
The Palm app is the digitized version of it and the text file is the next best thing. They enable you to get any general info on the machine you want/see. If you're looking for a JAMMA cab and you're not sure if a machine is or not without opening it up, BOOM, bring it up.. it's there. If you get a fancy smartphone or wifi device w/ access, you can access the db directly and it's a bit more expansive. I own a Palm VII for just this use. Warehouses are dirty, sometimes dangerous places and you don't want to drop a nice phone or palm there.. or have it in your pocket and run into a corner of a machine with it in your pocket and crack the screen. (Yeah, I did that) They're cheap to replace and had on ebay for a few bucks. I use the text version because it's easy to search and fairly straightforward.
Work Clothes -- It's a warehouse.. things are dirty and dangerous. You don't want to ruin stuff in there.
Boots -- Once again, warehouse... and things have a tendency to fall or shift when you're around a machine.
Your List -- Before you get this, you're going to compile a list of things you'd like, things worth money to other collectors and things of interest. A warehouse is a candy store to people like us and it's VERY easy to get sidetracked or star struck. Make a list of things you're on the lookout for.
MOST IMPORTANTLY
Cash.
NOT CHECKS, NOT CREDIT CARDS, NOT GOING TO A MAC MACHINE TO PICK UP THE MONEY.
You want cash.. and lots of it. Make sure the op *sees* the cash or knows that you have CASH on you.
They're FAR easier to deal with when they know the pot of gold is at the end of the rainbow.
The mindset:
You're going to a warehouse to pick get a deal. Yes, your main goal should be to get what you want, but sometimes that doesn't work out exactly. You may not find what you want, but you may find some other things that other would want or are worth some cash to fund your own hunt. What may look like junk to you, may not be to another collector. Ops are hoarding nuts who care very little for the collector's aspect. What you bring out of these places may not have been seen in 20 years, do others a favor.. bring it back out into circulation.
You can also make some coin for picking up stuff for yourself, this funds many of our habits.
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