I've wanted a pinball machine for years but it has never really seemed affordable or sensible to have one. Then I saw this one on eBay in September 2002. With less than 10 minutes to go, it was still at less than £300, so I decided to put a bid in for £350 with 3 minutes to go and cross my fingers. I didn't actually expect to win, as usually there are about 10 bids in the last minute!

I got it for £343, which was quite a surprise! When I picked it up the previous owner told me he thought he would have got at least £400 for it so I think I got a bargain. A bit of research on the net reveals prices of £500-£700 for similar machines in the UK, and $1200 for Comet machines in the USA.