Mills Extraordinary, a few questions

[coppinpr]

As most of you know by now, I like to buy old beat up machines and restore them to the best of my ability, but every now and then I buy a machine for my collection, because I like it.
Yesterday I got a machine I have long wanted, a Mills Extraordinary. I love the Art Deco style.

Couple of questions for the pundits:

I knew this machine slightly so I didn't pull it apart that much before agreeing to buy it. When I got home and pulled the mech out I was surprised to find a token dispenser in perfect condition with a blanked off glass window allowing the tokens to show from the front. I have now opened this up although as yet I don't have any coins/tokens big enough to go in it.

So anyone know if my machine is a standard Extraordinary or one of the three or four variants I've seen on the net?

Anyone know what the removable blank marked with the arrow in the photo below was for? It opens up quite an area if removed.

The mech in my machine seems very old but in very good condition (all MLB stamped) with several parts, very unlike the later Mills mechs (the kicker, the reel stops etc.). Is this likely to be an original mech?

It has 10 stop star wheels - was this normal?

Below is a photo from the web of a machine that appears identical to mine and is listed simply as a "Mills Extraordinary". Is this correct?

[andydotp]

Lovely machine coppinpr, well found.
The removable panel is the jackpot inspection plate. Allows you to watch the jp tripping action when things go awry.
Nice surprize to discover the Gold Award token vendor in place - which suggests your cabinet is that of a 'Silent Mystery Extraordinary Golden' (add Vendor if it has the patch below & behind the handle). These stemmed from the 1932 Roman Head which was Mills' introduction of both the 20-stop mech and the Gold Award.
The GA value could be set by the operator with award cards of 20, 50 or 100 attendant-paid coins in exchange for your token.
The Extraordinary was developed/released in '33/34 for the World's Fair exposition (it's often referred to as a "World's Fair")..
The award card would have had the three GA symbols on the pay line option and a twenty-stop GA mech to match so I suggest the 10-stop mech isn't original to that case.
Pics of the insides & mech would be good to see.
The GA mech is tripped by a feeler that drops into a horizontal slot cut into the outer edges of the three payout disks when the GA symbols line up. I can't see a GA symbol in view and being a 10-stop mech it wouldn't be set up that way - hence blanking out the window.
GA tokens are available on fleabay all the time.
The coin entries on the Extraordinaries differed too due to alternative top castings. Yours is inset and mine is straight through the front of the casting - mirroring the coin bezel and the facades of the centre tower differ. - subtle differences. (perhaps a Mod could drop in a pic of mine for comparison please?).
Something looks odd with that escalator?? Do the skill stops work??
Other interesting Extra comparisons are handle, side or front vendor, fortune strips, single or double visible jp, 'mystery' pay (as original) and wooden runners.
What's the cabinet serial No. please copp? Be interested to know as mine is 40376
Oh! and to further confuse us, post WW2 masses of reclaimed 'Extras' were refurbed (often in full-height 'Club' cases) and redistributed as "Pageboys".
Anyway, lovely piece there.
andyoudidaskdotp

[coppinpr]

Thanks for the info andy, very interesting. There are three numbers on the case, two on the wood, (one on the handle side one on the base). Both are A127 and one on the chrome side rail 34474. I intended to buy a token release bar but the payout discs have certainly been changed and there is no slot in the edges to take the additional movement of the reel lock. The discs look like R&W discs and indeed the back door lock was a R&W lock (the badly damaged key broke in the lock first time I tried to open the back) but I have a nice original Mills lock in stock.
The reel stop buttons don't work - I wasn't surprised, I guess they went with the UK conversion.
The escalator is definitely wrong - it's a roll down. I'm hoping to replace it at Coventry.
There is no vendor space on the side.
I guess I'm a mug for the Art Deco style machines - my two Buckleys and this Extra are my favourites. The friend I bought the extra from has a "Little Duke" that I would like.

[badpenny]

I woke up early this morning to the frantic thumping of the front door. Outside I found a postman with a hernia and a bandit in his bag.

So I took a photo of it and told him to return to sender as I already had one.

Andy my Mills Extraordinaryarierre also had an escalator that only showed the first coins and then they rolled down. I replaced it with a complete view one, but since then I've read .... heard .... dreamt somewhere that view and then roll escalators were right for the period?
What's your view on this conundrum?

BP
ps The vendor that's missing on yours happened on the return journey back to you.

Edited once upon a time to correct my spooling

[andydotp]

Sterling effort by Australia Post as I only sent it an hour or so earlier . Thx BP (that's why you're up early??).
The roll-downs weren't a Mills product, more a quick-fix for sloppy escalators so always preferable to replace.
Much earlier serial there copp. The A127 would've been an operators' number.
Lovely machines all of 'em.
Your extraordinaryderierre?
I always thought your smelling was perfick Beep.
a.p

[coppinpr]

I remember reading somewhere that Mills replaced the eagle with the page boy because the eagle was considered too "Nazi".

[andydotp]

Yes, reckon you're right and fits with the immediate post WW2 era.

[gameswat]

By the way I think it was PM who mentioned before that R&W marked locks have nothing to do with Ruffler and Walker.

[mills]

If you want to see my Extroadinary : https://plus.google.com/photos/10967460 ... ZKw5NflqQE

This model had a front vender and working skill stop. It had never been restored since 1937
It's why it's complete !

[andydotp]

Bonjour Mills, nice machine, a couple of questions s'il vous plait (pardon le Francaise - je non parlaise pour about 20 of your anees).
Your lovely Extraordinary is similar to mine and has (as shown in your first few photos) the very same set of flat/holed tubes running down the inside of the rear of the escalator and down the back of the jp. Is this the "check separating" system? I can't imagine it being anything else yet cannot find a lever or anything to activate it or switch it back & forth on mine.
Our escalators also have a visible little tab showing behind the glass (in your 23rd pic). What's that all about do you think?
I'd send my machine back to Britain for BP to upload the relevant pic but it seems the postie is off on compo with a hernia so scroll back and zoom in.
Bon Scott,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, err, Nuit, pardon.
andydotp

[mills]

Hello Andytop,
rail assembly between the escalator and the jackpot is used to divert coins to the cash-box. Only tokens go in the reserve tube and the jackpot.
To achieve this feat, Mills made ​​two types of escalator to divert coins.
The one I have work in the following way:
The player bought brass tokens which allowed to buy candy roll. If the player won, he received bi-metal tokens .
On the escalator (pic 23) we can see a magnet that allows bi-metal tokens not to be deflected to the cash-box.