Found a Pac-Man cabinet on eBay for £600? Spotted someone selling a classic pinball machine on Facebook Marketplace? Before you hit Buy, there's a few things about getting these beasts from their current location to yours that nobody ever mentions in the listing.
Let's talk about it.
Right, how heavy are we talking?
Depends what you're collecting. Standard upright arcade cabinets - the classic ones you remember from the 80s - weigh anywhere between 75kg and 180kg. That's roughly 165 to 400 pounds if you prefer imperial.
Pinball machines? They're a bit lighter generally. Most come in around 110-135kg (250-300 pounds). Still not exactly light though.
The really brutal ones are the specialist cabinets. Driving games with full seats and steering wheels can push 300kg. Those old shooting games with the big monitors? Even heavier. There's a reason arcades were always on ground floors.
Will it fit in my car then?
No.
Well, probably not. Here's the thing - most upright arcade machines stand about 1.7 to 1.8 metres tall. That's nearly 6 feet. They're also about 60-70cm wide and 60cm deep.
Pinball machines are a bit different. They're lower - about 75cm tall when the backbox is folded down - but they're longer. About 140cm from front to back. Width is usually around 75cm.
Could you squeeze either into an estate car if you removed all the seats and tilted it just right? Maybe. Should you? Definitely not. These things weren't designed to be transported lying down, and if you damage the internals trying to wedge it into your Mondeo, you've just turned a £600 bargain into an expensive paperweight.
What about a van though?
Better. Much better. But still not straightforward.
The weight's the problem. Say you've hired a Luton van for the day - great, you've got the space. But getting a 150kg arcade cabinet up the ramp and secured properly? That's a two-person job minimum. Three would be sensible.
And they're not balanced weight either. Arcade cabinets are front-heavy because of the screen. Pinball machines are even worse - all the mechanisms are in the playing field, so when you're lifting one end, you're basically deadlifting 80kg whilst trying not to drop the other end.
One bloke with a hired van and good intentions isn't going to cut it. You need proper equipment - a good dolly at minimum, ideally a pallet jack - and people who actually know what they're doing.
Can you just fold the pinball machine up?
Yes! This is actually the one bit of good news with pinball machines.
Most modern pinball machines (anything from the last 25 years or so) have a hinge system. The backbox - that's the tall bit with the score display - folds down onto the playfield. Makes it much easier to transport because suddenly you're dealing with something that's only 75cm tall instead of nearly 2 metres.
Older electro-mechanical pinball machines don't have hinges though. The backbox has to be completely removed, which means unplugging various connectors inside. Not complicated if you know what you're doing, but if you don't? Easy way to end up with a machine that won't power on when you reassemble it.
What's the big deal about doorways?
Standard UK doorways are usually about 75-76cm wide. Your arcade cabinet is probably 65-70cm wide, so that'll fit. Your pinball machine is right on the limit at 75cm. It'll go through, but there's no room for error.
The real problems start when you've got narrow hallways, tight corners, or stairs. Ever tried getting a sofa up a staircase? Now imagine that sofa weighs 120kg, cost you £800, and will break if you drop it.
Measure everything. The route from the seller's door to their street. The route from your street to wherever you're planning to put it. Every doorway, every corner, every potential pinch point. Do this before you buy, not after.
What if it's upstairs at the seller's place?
Then you've got a decision to make.
Some people will tackle stairs with arcade equipment. Some absolutely won't. And honestly? The ones who won't are probably being sensible.
Getting a 150kg arcade cabinet down a flight of stairs requires specific equipment and experience. You need straps to secure it, you need people positioned correctly, and you need to know what you're doing. Because if something slips, that machine's going through someone's wall. Or worse, through someone.
When you're looking at marketplace listings, "first floor" or "upstairs" should immediately make you factor in extra cost. Either you're paying someone who knows how to handle stairs, or you're walking away from the deal.
Do arcade machines break easily during transport?
They can. Especially the older ones.
Modern arcade cabinets with LCD screens are a bit more forgiving. The old CRT monitors though? They're heavy, they're fragile, and one decent knock can kill them. Replacement CRTs are expensive when you can find them, and they're getting rarer.
Pinball machines have their own issues. All those mechanisms under the playfield - the flippers, the bumpers, the targets - they're not designed to be shaken about. Rough transport can knock things out of alignment. Doesn't break them necessarily, but you might need someone to come service it afterwards to get everything working properly again.
This is why "mate with a van" jobs often end badly. You save £150 on courier costs, then spend £300 getting someone to repair what got damaged in transit.
What about insurance?
Yeah, this is the bit that makes people uncomfortable.
You've just spent £1,200 on a pristine Street Fighter II cabinet. Your mate offers to collect it in his van. Halfway home, he has to brake suddenly. The cabinet - which isn't properly secured because he couldn't find the right straps - slides forward and smashes into the bulkhead.
Who's paying for that?
Professional courier services carry goods-in-transit insurance. Your mate's personal van insurance almost certainly doesn't cover commercial goods being transported. So if something goes wrong, you're either out of pocket or you're having an extremely awkward conversation.
For something as expensive as an arcade or pinball machine, proper insurance isn't optional. It's essential.
How much does proper collection actually cost?
For a straightforward collection - ground floor, easy access, reasonable distance - you're looking at £150-250 typically. That's for a courier service that specialises in large items.
If there's stairs involved, difficult access, or it's a long distance? Could be £300-500. Sounds like a lot until you price up what happens if it goes wrong doing it yourself.
The peace of mind's worth it. Someone turns up with the right equipment, they know how to handle the machine, they've got proper insurance, and they deliver it safely. Job done.
What should you ask the seller before committing?
Good question. Here's your checklist:
What floor is it on? Ground floor is ideal. Anything else needs planning.
How did they originally get it in there? If they had to bring it through a window or take a door off its hinges, you'll have the same problem getting it out.
What's the access like? Wide corridors and big doorways? Great. Narrow Victorian hallways? Less great.
Does everything work? Obvious one, but specifically ask about the monitor, the controls, and with pinball machines, all the flippers and mechanisms.
Can they help with loading? Some sellers will, some won't. Best to know in advance.
When can collection happen? Some places have restricted access times, especially if it's in an office building or business premises.
Get answers to all of these before you hand over any money. A good seller will understand why you're asking. If someone gets defensive about basic logistics questions, that's a red flag.
Are there specific courier companies for this?
There are specialists, yes. Not every courier will touch arcade equipment - it's too heavy, too valuable, and too easy to damage if you don't know what you're doing.
What you want is a service that does marketplace collections regularly. They'll have the right equipment (pallet jacks, proper securing straps, tail lifts on the vans), they'll have experience with gaming equipment, and they'll have the insurance sorted.
They'll also contact the seller beforehand to confirm access, which is crucial. Last thing you need is the courier turning up and discovering the machine's in a basement with no lift access and the seller failed to mention it.
What's different about old school pinball machines?
If you're buying a pinball machine from before the 1990s - anything electro-mechanical or early solid state - the backbox won't fold down. It has to be removed completely.
This means disconnecting all the wiring harnesses inside. They're usually keyed so you can't plug them back wrong, but there's still scope for confusion. And if you lose track of which plug goes where, you're looking at an expensive service call to sort it out.
These older machines are also generally more fragile. The playfields can warp if they're not stored flat, the electronics are less resilient to knocks and bumps, and finding replacement parts is increasingly difficult.
Doesn't mean you shouldn't buy them - they're often cheaper than modern Stern machines, and many people prefer the simpler, more mechanical gameplay. Just means you need to be extra careful with transport.
Do you need to empty them first?
Yes. Absolutely yes.
Arcade machines might have coins stuck in the mechanism. Pinball machines definitely will - there's usually change inside, plus any balls that got jammed somewhere. You want all of that out before transport.
With pinball machines specifically, you want to lock down the playfield. There's usually a mechanism to do this - it stops the playfield from bouncing around during transport and potentially damaging the underneath mechanisms.
Good sellers will have already done this. If they haven't, it's worth taking five minutes to do it properly rather than just chucking it in the van as-is.
What about the actual journey?
Arcade cabinets should travel upright. The CRT monitors in older machines can be damaged if transported on their side for extended periods. The weight distribution also makes them unstable if you try to transport them horizontally.
Pinball machines can travel with the backbox folded down, which makes them more stable. But they should still be secured properly - strapped down so they can't shift if the van has to brake suddenly.
And everything should be padded. Blankets at minimum. Proper furniture pads are better. You're trying to prevent the machine from getting knocked or scratched, and you're also trying to protect the van itself from getting damaged by 150kg of solid wood and metal sliding around.
What happens when it arrives at yours?
Hopefully, the courier unloads it carefully and gets it to wherever you want it. But this is where your earlier measuring becomes important.
If you've bought a pinball machine and it won't fit through your internal doorways, that's your problem to solve. The courier's job is to get it to your property - getting it from your hallway to your games room is on you.
Some courier services will help position it for you, but it's not guaranteed. Always ask about this when you're booking. If they only do kerbside delivery, you need to have a plan for how you're getting a 120kg machine from your front door to wherever it's living.
Can you test it before the courier leaves?
You can, but most couriers won't hang around long enough for you to fully test everything. They've got other jobs lined up.
What you can do is a quick visual check - make sure there's no obvious damage from transport, check the glass isn't cracked, make sure all the legs are still attached.
For a proper test - powering it on, checking all the controls work, playing a full game - you're on your own. This is why you want to ask the seller detailed questions beforehand about the condition.
What's the worst that can happen?
Worst case? The machine gets damaged beyond repair during collection, and nobody's insurance covers it properly because you cut corners on who did the transport.
Or it arrives "fine" but something got knocked loose during transit, and now it doesn't work. You end up spending hundreds getting an engineer out to diagnose and fix problems that weren't there before.
Or you discover it won't fit where you planned to put it, so now you've got a 150kg arcade cabinet sitting in your hallway with nowhere to go.
All of these are avoidable. Measure properly, ask questions, use a proper courier service, and have realistic expectations about what's involved.
Is it actually worth buying from marketplace sites?
Can be. You'll save significant money compared to buying new or from specialist retailers. A new Stern pinball machine costs £6,000-12,000. You can find perfectly good working examples from the 1990s for £1,500-3,000. Same with arcade machines - modern reproductions cost £1,000-2,000, whilst an original cabinet might be £600-900.
But you need to factor in collection costs. And potential servicing costs. And the time investment in organising it all.
For some people, it's absolutely worth it - you get genuine arcade equipment with proper CRT screens, original artwork, and all the authenticity that modern reproductions lack. For others, the hassle outweighs the savings.
Final thoughts?
Collecting an arcade or pinball machine from a marketplace seller isn't like collecting a table. It's more like collecting a very heavy, very expensive, very fragile table that also has complicated electronics inside it.
You can absolutely do it successfully. Thousands of people do every year. But the successful collections all have something in common - proper planning, realistic expectations, and professional handling.
The nightmare stories? They always start with someone trying to save money by cutting corners.
Measure everything. Ask detailed questions. Book a proper courier. Budget realistically - the purchase price plus collection costs plus potential servicing is your real cost, not just the listing price.
Do it right, and in a couple of weeks you'll have a brilliant piece of gaming history in your home. Do it wrong, and you'll be listing a damaged arcade cabinet on Facebook Marketplace yourself, wondering where it all went sideways.
Your choice.