Mills Slot Machine Age

  • We are hereby offering a very rare Mills slot machine from the 1930s. This unique machine also gives out money and candy. The machine works very well, simply as it should. The Mills Novelty Company, Incorporated of Chicago, Illinois was once a leading manufacturer of coin operated machines, including slot machines, vending machines, and jukeboxes, in the United States. Between about 1905.
  • The world's first slot machine to employ a wild symbol in a winning combination. I don't know if this will help anyone, but I though it was pretty cool to find out what age my machine was. Troy. It did find the machines I was looking for, but some don't have the dates and info.

A nice old Mills hi-top 10 cent slot machine with a working jackpot. Has the cash box and the lock and key. Will demo it for the buyer. Buyer pays cash and pick.

The Slot Fan’s Guide to Olden Day One Arm Bandits

A quick search on eBay reveals some interesting results for antique slot machines. Few people would believe that archaic devices with minimal spinning reels and a handful of symbols could be worth a small fortune. Collectors know better. Slot machines from the 1930s and 1940s can fetch a pretty penny, depending on their condition, brand name, and rarity. For example, an Antique 1930s Mills War Eagle 5 cent Nickel Slot Machine can fetch as much as $2,595 on the market. These contraptions are typically a little worse for wear, and they may not have all their original working parts. In the United States, there are rules in place which regulate the sale of antique slot machines, and certain states may not qualify.

If you’re looking to spend a small fortune, you may be on the prowl for an antique 1899 Mills 5c Dewey slot machine. This device retails for $16,800, and it is in its mint, original condition. These devices were expertly crafted, full of intricately detailed artwork and mechanical parts. If the sticker price is a little steep, you may wish to consider the Mills Novelty Company Owl Slot Machine antique at a price of $15,750. These slot games are worlds apart from the video slots we see nowadays at land-based casinos and online casinos. These are fully functional freestanding machines with ball and claw feet, solid oak carved frames, and beautifully-furnished metal housing. It’s always important to check for damage, especially with the wood items.

Specs of Antique Slot Machines

The Antique range of slot machines are extremely expensive, and can retail at $19,000+ apiece. The original machines were created around 1906, and have a devout following among slot machine collectors and gaming experts. Many slot fans choose to refurbish their antique slot machines, to keep them in pristine condition. The antique slot machines business is a roaring trade, with a niche market of highly motivated buyers and sellers. Only the most skilled technical experts in slot machine restoration professionals can work in this arena, since customers are highly specific and detail oriented when it comes to these high-priced antiques. The typical weight of an antique slot machine ranges from 75 pounds through 100 pounds. Their dimensions are typically 16” x 16” x 28” in height.

There are many examples of popular antique slots, including the following:

Mills
  • 1941 Mills Diamond Front
  • Mills Hi-Top
  • Mills Bursting Cherry
  • 1938 Mills Roman Head 5 Cent
  • 1946 Jennings Super Deluxe Club Chief
  • 1935 Watling Coin Front 25 Cent
  • 1947 Mills Black Cherry 5 Cent
  • 1933 Watling Treasury 5 Cent
  • 1948 Mills Blue Bell 10 Cent
  • 1950 Pace Four Reel Harrah’s Club 10 Cent

The price of an antique slot machine may range from a few dollars to as much as $50,000 +, depending on its condition, rarity and how much the buyer is willing to pay for it. Many antique collectors seek these devices as decorative pieces, or as investments for posterity. The most common brand is Mills, both with its Golden Nugget slot machine and its Orange Front QT slot machine variants.

Slot Game Variety Over the Years

Believe it or not, various slots enthusiasts consider any slot machine created after 1930 as a contemporary slot machine, and not an antique. These contemporary machines are largely comprised of replacement parts, and many of them have been fully restored and tested. The cost of these machines is less than those with a limited number of replacement parts. If you’re looking to buy an antique slot machine, it is best to select a machine that is relatively untouched, and in its original mint condition. Once restoration work has begun, the perceived value of the machine diminishes. If you find an e-commerce platform selling a 1930s/40s slot machine under $3,000, it is likely a contemporary machine with replacement parts.

The strict definition of an antique is a collectible object that has a high value because of its considerable age. In the United States, the Customs Service regards antiques as items that are at least 100 years old. With slot machine games, antiques are considered old-school slot games – typically the 3-reel classic slots. Nowadays, players can enjoy sophisticated HD slots with 5 spinning reels and hundreds of paylines. Video animation, 3D technology, and a virtual presence are worlds apart from the physical nature of antique slot machine games. Online slot games offer a modern-day perspective on this age-old pastime. You can still experience the classic slot titles online, except that now you have far more variety in every way.

Related Posts

INFORMATION FOR VIEWING AND DOWNLOADING

To download, right-click on link and 'Save Target As...'

Bally Bingo Green Book -- Parts List and Exploded Diagrams of components.

Introduction to Bally Flipper Games.

Bally Broadway Bingo Pinball Operating Instructions. A schematic is available but must be commercially reproduced.

Pace Slot Machine Award Cards, Hi-Res Scan.

Autobell Circus Schematic.

Bally Sportsman Flasher Slot Machine operating instructions, pay tables, etc. A schematic of the machine is available on request.

For Amusement Only sign furnished with Bally bingo pinball machines. Print on cardstock and put one on your machine.

Mills Bell Machine Parts and Service Manual HiTop 7-7-7 Model.

Mills Slot Machine Age

PAR sheet for Fourth of July.

Example of a Bally Bally SMI Sheet (PAR Sheet) in PDF format.

PAR Sheet possibly for a Double Bucks machine in PDF format.

Coin Mechanisms, Inc. See National Slug Rejectors and Coinco below.

Bally V-1088 and V-1090 Operator Instructions Manual.

Bally V-1297 Instructions and Bally V1297 Parts.

Bally Double Progrressive Operator Instructions using version 6 for use with Series 1000, E-2000, V-2000, S-5000 and V-5000.

Bally Deluxe Draw Bell Instructions and Award Cards. The award cards provided different values for the Special and Super Special for both Replay and Automatic Payout operation. Operators could tailor the payouts to the location. These cards are scanned at 300 dpi for quality reproduction. For other similar Bally machines, these cards can provide a guideline. Edit them with a photoshop-type program.

Two Mills catalogs from the early 1900's: The Mills Commercial trade stimulator and Mills Amusement, Skill & Vending Machines.

Keeney's Super Bell Operators Manual in PDF format. 1941 document.

Keeney's Bonus Super Bell Instruction Manual. This is a copy of a manuscript and is not the final manual, however it may assist you to understand the operation of the machine.

Mills Vest Pocket Slot Machine Operators Manual, 16 pages in PDF format.

Evans Consoles This is the 1941 Instructions and Parts Catalog for Galloping Dominos, Pacer, Bang Tails and Lucky Star. Much of this information can be applied to machines into the late 40's. The wiring diagram shows how it is laced together. This document is in PDF format. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

Evans Winterbook Parts Manual in PDF format.

An Introduction to Bally Slot Machines, Manual 6000 1979. This is a good primer for Bally electro-mechanical slot machines. Page 22 corrects the myth of how the slot machine got its name--it certainly wasn't what I thought. This manual, in PDF format, is 45 pages in length and it is broken down into five parts for easier downloading. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

National Slug Rejector and Coinco Service Manuals in .PDF format for some older equipment. Coin acceptors normally operate transparently, but they can surely be a nuisance when needing service or adjustment.

Mills Story and Catalog, Late '40s, an issue of Spinning Reels, has a brief history of Mills Novelty Co. with descriptions and depictions of then current Mills products. Ancillary equipment is described such as jack-in-the-box safes, regular safes, coin changers, coin counters and a bell machine tool set. In its day, the tool set cost about as much as a bell machine.

Jennings Chief Parts and Service Manual in PDF format. The scanned doucment was a poor copy so this is possibly just better than no manual at all.

Bally Slot Consoles parts list and description including Triple Bell and Deluxe Draw Bell. This includes pictorials of the reel assembly. A schematic for the Triple Bell is available from Internet Direct.

Bally Reflex Unit With Snap Switches used in Champion games through Serial No. 9053. They were not used in the companion game, Kentucky.

Buckley Track Odds 1938 Machine description, troubleshooting, partsand diagrams. About 80 pages. The file number = page number.

Buckley Track Odds Circuit Tracing Guide for machines 12,000-12,500.

***Some electrical drawings are available for the Buckley Track Odds machines on request. They must be commercially reproduced.

Buckley Track Odds Remote Control installation instructions.

Bally Electro-Mechanical Slot Machine Manual. Covers Money Honey up to the 'computers' took over. The file numbers = page numbers in the manual.

Need more than a manual? Bally Electro-lMechanical Video Guide is available at nominal costs.Bally Electro-Mechanical Troubleshooting Reference. File 0000 is the index.

Mills Slot Machine Age

Limited Bally Coil Reference in a zip file for quick download.

The Last of the Bingo Kings -- Not exactly the Sopranos.

Bally Victory Special Setup Instructions showing some adjustments available to the operator.

Be sure to check the Links page for additional resources.

Pace Slotmachine Manual. Print sheets 1 to 10, turn paper over and print sheets 11 to 20. Fold to make booklet.

Bally Citation and Lexington One Balls A schematic is also available, but too large to scan. Documents for Bally Trophy, Jockey Club, Turf King, Grandstand and Futurity are available on request.

Directions for Operating Mills Operator's Bell COK and FOK Mint Vender.

Bally Triple Draw Bell adjustments. Schematic and Relay/Switch chartsare available from Internet Direct Also available from Internet Direct are documents forBally Triple Bell, Bally Spot Bell, Bally Turf King and Kentucky.

Williams: An Introduction To Coin Operated Amusement Games This document is long --66 pages in .PDF format. Amusement machine components are discussed however many aspects apply to gambling machines. Schematics are explained. There is a lexicon of coin machine terms. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

Metal Forms Products Company I have not seen this company referenced anywhere on the WWW, however they manufacture hard to find mechanical slot parts for Mills, Jennings, Caille, Watling, etc. Their inventory includes vendors, springs, reel tins, discs, disc plugs, cash boxes, back doors, decals and back door paper for restoration. If you have been looking for a hard-to-find part to get your project working, you may find it here. The file number = catalog page.

Mike Munves catalogstill missing 4 pages. Here is a look back in history to 1956 and the machines available. All these games were before video games. The pricing is interesting. Keep in mind that a very good job in 1956 paid $500 monthly. There are 6 files in PDF format to facilitate downloading. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

This is a 16-page Mike Munves 1940 Catalog. The catalog was scanned from a b/w xerox copy of original (or perhaps another copy) and does not have very good detail. It does give a feel for what was then available. This file is in PDF format.

This Ray Oakes & Sons Amusement Trade Catalog from 1960 is of interest to our outdoor amusement friends. I do not believe that they are in business any longer.

Keeney Big Tent Manual. This is a flasher slot. I have the schematics but they are too large for my scanner. I can have them reproduced on request.

K. C. CARD CO CATALOG, 1960. This catalog is a textbook all its own in controlled gambling equipment. An 8-page supplement added near the middle of the catalog offered devices manufactured by H C Evans Co or their successors. The original H C Evans Co was liquidated in 1956 following the death of its owner. PDF format. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

Tax Matters.The operators were not without their hassles. From my experience with bingos, it is hard to believe the payoff percentages of the machines discussed. This document is in PDF format. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

H C Evans Co Catalog. For those who have never seen a copy, this catalog is a tell-all of controlled gambling and carnival equipment. If you ever thought that you were fleeced at a gambling game, you may find the answer here.

Evans Club, Park and Carnival Equipment with 1961 price list. This catalog was issued by the Evans Park & Carnival Device Corporation, successors to H. C. Evans & Co. I do not believe any catalogs of Evans equipment were published after this one. I do not know how long the company remained in business after 1961.

More for our outdoor amusement friends -- A collection of Wurlitzer Band Organ Music.

Games, Inc WILDCAT Service Instructions and Parts Catalog in a 10-page .PDF format document. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader may be obtained Here.

H C Evans 1909-1910 Catalog. This Evans catalog includes pages advertising sporting goods such as baseball gloves, firearms (a shotgun for $5) and fishing rods, reels and tackle.

Bally Series E Link Progressive System Operators Manual.

Mills Automatic Money Makers, a catalog of early Mills machines.

Caille Brothers Catalog of early slot machines and trade stimulators.

Mills Trade Stimulators catalog, early 20th century.

PEPLUS video poker machine info.

Program Summary Reports examples for some S Plus machines.

IGT Program Index.

Mills Slot Machine Models

Williams Upright Video Slot information.

Mills Slot Machine Values

Pot Of Gold manual.