Best options for finding a candy cab?

I am very interested in finding a cab, an Astro City to be exact but that is much easier said than done. I don't really want to take part in a group buy because they seem like a huge hassle and if I order one I'm likely going to have to pay out the ass for shipping, probably more than I would even spend on the cab itself. So I'm wondering where you folks, particularly mid-westerners, found yours.

First I would check around and see if anyone local is selling a candy. If you have no luck on that front, your gonna need to order from someone. Of the sellers out there I would recommend either Matsu or Ken at THEGAMEROOM. Matsu's cabs are higher priced, but come problem free and ready to play. I cant say how good Ken's cabs are, because I havent seen them in person, but I have heard nothing but good things about him.

As far as shipping goes, you get what you pay for. NAVL has a pretty good track record with cab shipping, but you can go the uship.com route and have shipping companies bid for your business. I was quoted around $250 for shipping an astro from Utah to Mass, so it should be similar to get to you. Also, you might want to see if anyone else wants to get one, because the shipping on cabs is usally two for one...or you could just spoil yourself and get two

Good luck with your purchase and just make sure you ask for pics before the ship the cab. Hang on to the pics too... just in case some moron tries to make a quick buck and tightens the straps to tight on the cab

-dz

I'm in Chicago and got mine from Matsu, it was before he used NAVL, but the cab came in nearly perfect condition. Definitely don't skimp on shipping, it's not like you can easily order a replacement part if something was cracked. Buying local is always preferred though.

Astro's are quality cabinets, be prepared however as they are about a cm too wide for standard inside door frames. You'll have to break the cabinet down (takes about 15 mins) to move it anywhere in your house once you get it through the front door.

SamuraiShodownSensei said:

Astro's are quality cabinets, be prepared however as they are about a cm too wide for standard inside door frames. You'll have to break the cabinet down (takes about 15 mins) to move it anywhere in your house once you get it through the front door.

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had that problem with mine. Slid right through the old apt's door frames but when we got the house, yeah, about 1/2 inch too wide.

I bought three cabs in the past two years. The first was a Midway KI cab. Got it on ebay - it was about 20 miles away. The second I found on ebay as well. The guy had a neo 25 up for auction. I emailed him and asked what he had cause it looked like he had several in a row in the picture. Turned out he was an operator that closed his arcade before leaving to Japan for a year. He had just returned and was liquidating more than 20 Japanese Candys. When I went to check it out he had several Super neo 29s, Neo 25s, a couple of mini cutes and some Jaleco Pony cabs. I should have bought as many as I could, but I only bought one Super Neo 29. He emailed me about 2 weeks later and said he had some Megalo 410s and the bigger 50 inch super cabs. But I was tapped from buying a Naomi2 GD rom and some games. In retrospect I wish I had bought a pair of Super Neo 29s. (Super Neo 29 was 30 or so miles away) But it worked out well when I found my Blast City on craigslist earlier this week. (The BC cab was 90 miles away)

I prefer local pick up cause I am leery about shipping damage and worried about what I might end up with when its coming from hundreds or possibly thousands of miles away. But, I must say that other members do it all the time with pretty good luck. The other reason I like to buy local is it keeps the overall price low. I paid nothing to ship the first two cabs cause I had a buddy that had a box truck he used in his business. Not only did he offer to help me pick up the cabs, he wouldn't accept and money for gas. He said it was a "company expense". The Blast City I picked up in my wife's mini van and it cost $40 in gas to get it home.

This is my experience. Buying local has probably saved me nearly half the money I would have spent if I had shipped them from Cali or elsewhere. Candys are difficult to find in Texas, but through persistence, I managed to find two in the last 18 months. However, if you can't find anything local, you are not left with much of a choice. Best of luck in your search.

-Test

DecepticonZero said:

First I would check around and see if anyone local is selling a candy. If you have no luck on that front, your gonna need to order from someone. Of the sellers out there I would recommend either Matsu or Ken at THEGAMEROOM. Matsu's cabs are higher priced, but come problem free and ready to play. I cant say how good Ken's cabs are, because I havent seen them in person, but I have heard nothing but good things about him.

As far as shipping goes, you get what you pay for. NAVL has a pretty good track record with cab shipping, but you can go the uship.com route and have shipping companies bid for your business. I was quoted around $250 for shipping an astro from Utah to Mass, so it should be similar to get to you. Also, you might want to see if anyone else wants to get one, because the shipping on cabs is usally two for one...or you could just spoil yourself and get two

Good luck with your purchase and just make sure you ask for pics before the ship the cab. Hang on to the pics too... just in case some moron tries to make a quick buck and tightens the straps to tight on the cab

-dz

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Is this the site you are talking about: http://www.thegameroom.com/thegameroom/index.htm.html

I didn't see any reference to anyone named Matsu though.

Matsu runs his own business... I dont recall the name of it. He has several people post for him on this site, but you can contact him at gamemachine2003@hotmail.com . Ken is the guy who owns the gameroom. I wasnt aware that he had a stand alone site, but Ken has a good selection of cabs (including astros) on ebay. They are the two best US candy cab sellers to deal with.

My Konami Windy cab came from a place called Arcade Infinity in California back in 2004 or 2005. It was well packed and arrived at the freight dock with no damage. They supplied me with pics of the actual cabinet I was buying and were able to answer all of my questions and offer guidance with my selection in that it offered what I wanted/needed. It doesn't look like their website is up but they also have a popular arcade that you can locate online -- you might want to call/email them to see if they still sell candy's.

Great thread. I've been trying to figure out a way to get a couple of candies. I would love it there was a midwest group buy but I doubt that would happen. I don't have the time to head it up.

Maybe we could do a mini group buy from a seller in the U.S. and just get like 10 cabs shipped to chicago, as I know there were quite a few of us that wanted to take part in the next group buy.

I've been hunting craigslist forever and never found a candy out there.

I think I'll be sending an email to ask if he has more than what's on the website. http://www.jpdeal.com/cabinet.html

I'm close enough for a pick up and I've been hearing nothing but praise. Does anyone know what his New Astros and Egrets IIs usually go for?

I believe there is a sale thread on the forums for an egret II. He wants $1200 a piece for them.

I bought my mvs-u4 from Ken at thegameroom and everything went well. I believe he currently has some astro cities, cyberleads, aero citys, mvs-u4s, and aero city tables. Fortunately he lives about five minutes away from me but he was good to work with and has fast communication. I too, have been eyeing one of his astro cities.

Thanks for all the details gang, I too am looking for my first candy.

I have an astro I would consider selling if the price was right and I am right in indianapolis.

Genji, I sent you a pm...

Would anyone be interested in some Net City cabinets. I have a chance to buy some. The cost is high so I'm trying to decide if I want to get them or not. Ken

thegameroom said:

Would anyone be interested in some Net City cabinets. I have a chance to buy some. The cost is high so I'm trying to decide if I want to get them or not. Ken

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Just out of curiosity how much would these run roughly, I am interested in getting a couple in the future, just can't swing it right now.

Dennis

People can feel free to PM me about candies and I will let you know what I have available to me at the moment. Right now I have a LOT of Astro and New Astro Cities. Also some other 31kHz candies.

PM me with your shipping zip and whether it's residential or commercial (loading dock) delivery. I am located in Northern California in the Bay Area.

KaPH33n said:

People can feel free to PM me about candies and I will let you know what I have available to me at the moment. Right now I have a LOT of Astro and New Astro Cities. Also some other 31kHz candies.

PM me with your shipping zip and whether it's residential or commercial (loading dock) delivery. I am located in Northern California in the Bay Area.

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How did you come into all of those so suddenly dude? Also, any prices? What kind of 31 kHz cabs you have?

Questions, questions, questions

The short version of the story is serious networking :P and a huge investment. I will pm you price quotes.

KaPH33n said:

The short version of the story is serious networking :P and a huge investment. I will pm you price quotes.

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http://www.neo-geo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=200046

KaPH33n said:

and a huge investment. .

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Maybe you should invest some time and effort into fixing up cabs before shipping people junk.

Maybe you should get your facts straight before posting... The cabs I'm selling are not related to that thread in any way...

Related or not, it's way too suspicious for anyone not to question it. I'm wrong, I apologize. Do you have any proof that you are not affiliated with kazuo/Kingsley/Coin Op Store?

twalden said:

Related or not, it's way too suspicious for anyone not to question it. I'm wrong, I apologize. Do you have any proof that you are not affiliated with kazuo/Kingsley/Coin Op Store?

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I'd have to agree with Twalden on this, especially when you are located in Hayward, which is where Kingley's cellphone is registered to and also it seems that CoinOpStore's website is down as well. You may be or not be Kingsley, the cabs may or not be from Kingsley. But understand that that group buy was a serious disaster and scam. Ppl are extremely cautious now due to it and this is still the internet, alot of scammers out there, ppl are just looking out for each other.