FORUM

I was recently given this Allwin as a gift. I know nothing about these machines and would love to learn about their history, value and restoration. How do I determine the age of this machine?

Hi and welcome to the Forum. What a generous, thoughtful gift!

According to Arcades & Slot Machines, the Oliver Whales Allwin De Luxe was made just before WWII, in 1939.
It imitates the form of the German (Saxony) Allwin Deluxe and is quite distinct from the more common, post-war Whales allwin design with colourful graphics on a plastic backflash and taller cabinet with built-in marquee.

See Who was Oliver Whales?
Although he was the most prolific maker of British allwins, relatively little is known about him. I believe Slotalot is currently doing some research into this Redcar-based company.

You'll find many general restoration tips throughout this Forum but if you have specific questions, please ask.

Interesting to compare your Whales Allwin De Luxe with this one. It would seem that he made his Allwin De Luxes from whatever older machines he could get his hands on to re-brand.

That version appears to be a revamped Saxony (German) Allwin Reserve. The spandrels match those of the Whales/Bradley Allwin De Luxe.

Below is a recent saleroom example (Pic 1), which was also evidently a re-build. These make-and-mend games must be post-war, as unavailability of materials forced such emergency measures.
The "flashier" plastic prefigures the post-war trend for colourful graphics.

OW managed to scratch-build at least two classic allwins during the war: the Khyber Pass and Allies Victory Ball. Their distinctive cabinets (similar to jmhines's Allwin De Luxe) with marquees mounted on top, are pictured in JP's Khyber Pass article in the Arena. John also shows another, even more jazzy reworking of the OW Allwin De Luxe backflash (Pic 2). Witness the gradual evolution towards the brasher 50s-style allwin.

Just acquired one of the blue backflash versions.
Does anyone have any images of the WIN and RESERVE labels as mine have disintegrated. Any help greatly appreciated.

There are some images of the Win & Lose labels in Resources. Maybe you could copy the font to produce the Reserve labels: Allwin Win - Lose decals

Thanks for the help.