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Robert Rowland wrote a short piece for issue 44, recollecting memories of kiddie rides in the arcades in Mablethorpe back in the 1960s. I was able to publish a wonderful collection of photographs taken at the Marine Pastimes arcade, which were kindly loaned to Robert by the current owner, Gareth Jackson. Sincere thanks to Gareth for allowing me publish the pictures (taken by his father) in the magazine, and posting them on this site.
Please note that these pictures are subject to copyright, and may not be downloaded and used for any purpose other than personal interest.

And more..........

Following on, in issue 45 I published pictures that Andy Doran emailed me of some of the machines in his collection, including the fantastic Edwin Hall Dalek. Of particular interest are the Austin J40 pedal car rides, which are labelled Robinson Brothers (London) Ltd, presumed to be the makers. Unfortunately, Andy hasn't been able to find any information on Robinson Brothers, so if anyone has any info. please let us know.
Here are the pictures, including the Moon Bug control panel which wasn't published in the magazine.
.......................what on earth is 'YAW'?

In aviation, "yaw" is the side to side motion of aircraft that would be induced if the pilot were to pump the rudder pedals alternately. The three axis of the plane are: "pitch" (nose up and down;) "roll" (rolling about the center axis as in an aileron roll;) and "yaw" ( nose right and left.)

J Peterson
Navy and airline pilot, retired

I don't think you've got that quite right Mr J Peterson old chap. Shouldn't that be..........
Your American Navy and airline pilot, retired .......Hmm? Let's not let standards slip eh?

Touche, BP!

Many thanks to Gareth Jackson, Robert Rowland, Andy Doran and Jerry for a wonderful glimpse into this neglected realm of vintage coin ops. I love the space themed ones, especially Sputnik and the Flying Saucer. Not sure what today's kids would make of a giant egg with antennae.

Thanks for the explanation John - I thought Yaw was a made-up word.
But BP, why were you conversing with JP at half four in the morning? John can be excused, he lives on the other side of the world, where the clocks are always wrong. But you live here - in the centre of the universe, in our Great country where time was invented, and where the clocks always tell the right time..................... er, except at this time of year they are always an hour fast

Nice pictures, pennymachines. I agree, a very much neglected branch of coin-operated machines; I guess because most collectors just don't have the space. Those of us who are unfort...........sorry, fortunate enough to be married find it easier to sneak in a few allwins, whereas a coin-operated horse or space ship stuck in the middle of the living room tends to be a little conspicuous.
I love Pegasus by the way, never seen one of those before. Any idea of age or maker?

Well JC it's because my body clock is buggered ....... my mind got buggered over ten years ago and now it's the body's turn. ..... you'll be my age one day.

By the way superb photos Mr Pennymachines. About twenty-twelve years ago I had a nice little side line buying up old and battered kiddie rides from a local distributor as they retired them. I'd paint them up, refurbish the innards and change the the coin mech for a push button then flog them to wealthy kids' parents as the present for kids who have everything, they then told their friends who had to keep up with the neighbours, and Hey Presto I had a waiting list! I ended up making a couple of shillings out of that. Especially as I only had to wait for the kiddies to grow out of them then I could buy them back and start all over again.

Those were the days when I was young and good looking, now I'm buggered and good looking
and have ended up talking to somebody I've never met t'other side of the Atlantic at half past four o'clock in't morning.

JC wrote:...a coin-operated horse or space ship stuck in the middle of the living room tends to be a little conspicuous.

I've kept a coin-operated Zebra in a sheltered spot outside the house for 10 years. Only needs feeding in the Summer (10ps). Very popular with our smallest visitors. I guess a nice Edwin Hall would demand better treatment.

JC wrote:I love Pegasus by the way, never seen one of those before. Any idea of age or maker?

Late 50s, early 60s? I'm guessing by the form it must be fibreglass not ali.

The Pegasus symbol was used by the Standard Oil Company of New York in the earliest days of oil refineries and filling stations. The logo first appeared on their gas pumps and petroleum products in 1911. When the Standard Oil Trust was broken up by the Supreme Court in 1911, two of its divisions, Standard Oil Company of New York and the Vacuum Oil Company merged. The former brought with it the Pegasus logo, the latter brought the Mobilgas name.

The Pegasus appeared on Mobilgas products beginning in 1911, but it was in 1931 with the forming of Socony-Vacuum that it was officially adopted as a trademark. The flying horse was first colored red by an artist at the Mobil Sekiyu division in Japan. A major makeover was done in the 1930s by the commercial illustrator Robert “Rex” Elmer. Not only was it given a cleaner and more graphic appearance, but the horse now flew from left to right, as opposed to from right to left. Through the years there have been gradual changes made to the rendering of the red horse, but the symbol itself has stood iconic for Mobilgas. The Pegasus symbol is still used today by ExxonMobil.

Rebecca@Harmony and Home

Interesting link with the Mobil logo - that's to say, I wonder if there is a link?
Because the real Pegasus (in mythological terms) was white.

I'm pretty sure it was an advertising tie-in. Notice the Pegasus logo on the saddle. Maybe sited on Mobil garage forecourts to entertain the kids while refuelling. Or would that be dangerous?

John Gorka sings "The Flying Red Horse"

In issue 49, I was able to publish some works photographs of Edwin Hall rides, from an original advertising flyer.
Here they are:
(Copied to Resources - Site Admin.)

Hi everyone! I'm new to this forum, so I hope I'm not breaking any rules by posting here. I didn't see anywhere that I was supposed to make an official "intro" post, but if there is one feel free to point me that way.

I'm currently working on a website about coin operated rides, specifically concentrating on those made (or distributed) in the UK from the 50s-90s... I know they're not the most "popular" of slot machines, and have been rather neglected before now, but their history fascinates me and I would love to make some kind of comprehensive guide to the different models and their manufacturers someday.

When I was little and loved these machines, my mum decided it would be fun to see how many different ones we could photograph. To cut a long story short, we ended up with nearly 2000 photographs taken throughout England which has given me a good start for the website! Unfortunately, I wasn't born until 1991 though, so we only saw the very tail end of what I consider the "classic" kiddie rides of the 50s-70s. Hence, I'm desperately seeking old photos for the site if anyone here has some that they wouldn't mind sharing. Full credit would be given, of course.

Specifically relating to this thread, I was fascinated to see the Mablethorpe photographs! I know the Noddy Rock-a-Boat, which I believe to be an early Edwin Hall ride, was still there in the late 90s. As was Star-Dust (made by Walter Streets & Co), I believe. But he had been re-painted and fixed on a different (barrel-shaped) base if he was indeed the same one. And I've heard such a lot about the Edwin Hall flying saucer from old newscuttings etc., but had never seen a picture before - I was so excited to find this thread!

Also, in response to Andy Doran's photos, I've not been able to find much about Robinson Partners either. I do know the company was formed in 1949 and was listed as a "scientific instrument manufacturing" company (no idea what that's all about. All I could think of was maybe coin operated telescopes or weighing scales!) in phone books over the years. They were located in Barnes (Westfield Works? The same premises as Samson Novelty Company) until the mid-90s when both companies folded together. There's really not a lot of info about what they made out there, but I believe their first kiddie ride was a horse which was released in 1954 and I do have a few photos of other Robinson Partners rides. The second photo in PennyMachines post is a Robinson Partners horse.

Is anyone here in contact with Mr Doran? I'm wondering if there's a manufacturer mentioned on the Moonbug ride? I suspect it's a RG Mitchell ride but would really appreciate confirmation of that!

And finally, I thought I'd share a handfull of photos from my collection with anyone here who may be interested. I'll give you all a link over to the website once it is complete too.

What a great opening post, coinoperatedskylark and welcome to the Forum.
Love the pictures, look forward to the website and what an excellent idea your mum had! Generally, such familiar and "mundane" objects were only captured in the background (particularly in the days of expensive celluloid film). As the rides are displaced by more modern versions, the value of your archive will become increasingly apparent.