Andy D

[andy d]

Hi all
I have been, and am, a member of a few Forums, and most of them have an introductions page where you can say "hello" and tell the other members what you are interested in.
It sometimes helps you to get answers or get to talk to like minded individuals a lot quicker. Of course it's possible you are all secretive so & so's, locked away in a room surrounded by Arcade machines. Anyway, since you don't have one, I will do it here.
I am a 50+ CNC Machinist who has always had a love of vintage Bandits and Allwin type machines. My wife recently agreed to me purchasing one of each, so I now have cash burning a hole in my pocket. My other interests are Cartophily (No, nothing to do with maps!) Billiards, Snooker and I am also a 'Hobbyist' magician. I would love an Allwin connected to Snooker, and since they tend to have balls and recepticles, I am surprised I have never seen one.
Anyway, as I find my way around the site I am sure I will find myself 'picking brains'.

Regards Andy

[badpenny]

Hi andy d and welcome.

We are always delighted to get new blood, and at 50+ you're younger than many of us.
Yes I had to google Cartophily, and believe me whenever I have to move machines around I wish I were satisfied with something as light as that.
There are a couple of serious collectors in your neck of the woods.

Good luck with your collecting and let us know how you progress.
When it comes to help and support the knowledge here is second to none.

BP

[arrgee]

Greetings Andy D and welcome to the Forum, where you will find the foremost knowledge base in the galaxy regarding slot machines. There are some very expert connoisseur forum members here with wide experience of allwins and bandits.
I have a number of old ciggy cards, some loose and some stuck in books. They were all my late mother's and she stuck them in the books when she was a young girl (she was born in 1911!) - film stars, flowers, personalities etc. I find them fascinating.

[andy d]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys.
I have been reading some posts and didn't realise that there were bandits out there that are hybrids, or one make of case and another make of 'guts'.
Could I assume that the ones auctioned at the Elephant House are OK, as they appear to specialise in them? I can probably see myself going to one of their auctions to satisfy my coin-op cravings.

[daveslot]

There are two snooker related allwins I have see: one a Wonders which appeared in Sherborne Auction Rooms. Search the forum - it should be there. The other is a BMCo allwin from the 1930s. As for auctions, always view and if not sure ask the auctioneer or somebody who looks knowledgeable.

[jingle]

The billiards machine is in the museum in the Dropcase section.

[andy d]

There are two snooker related allwins I have seen

Thanks Dave, after a bit of research I found a "Snooker (1963)" no pic yet. I couldn't find anything with the search at the Charterhouse auction site.

The billiards machine is in the museum in the Dropcase section

Wow! That's what I am talking about. And I bet this is extremely rare, with only one known to exist?

[daveslot]

The Wonders is called Pot Luck - it should be on here as I posted a picture of it. Thinking about others, I have had a catcher-themed billiards, I also have an allwin with a billiard's hole on playfield.

[arrgee]

Take a look at Mechanical Memories Magazine February 2012 (issue 63)
There is an article written by a collector who made a 'snooker' themed allwin called 'pot black' .
Cannot post any pics as these will be Jerry's copyright but the finished machine was very impressive and looked just like a contemporary 1960s allwin.