I recently got bit by the pinball bug, and while reading this article all I could think about is that maintenance is part of the hobby. And for some it's all the hobby.

Buying a pinball machine is expensive. Prices on used machines range from free to thousands (and ten thousand+ for really in demand ones). After you buy the machine, assuming it works, there's maintenance that occurs on the machine as a direct function of how often the machine is played. Maintaining that machine can be on you for parts and labor, or someone who comes to your home for 100$/hour (or so) +parts. There's no escaping the labor. You have to do it, or the pinball machine stops working. The maintenance ranges from simple cleaning this and that, all the way to removing components from boards, and rewiring destroyed traces.

I love this about the hobby, and it's probably my favorite part. I like maintaining the machines probably more than I like playing them.