Mills / Sega Slots - Why no coin return/reject button ?

[malcymal]

Playing on my jubilee mk1 today, coin gets stuck, i push the coin reject button and joy, works a treat everytime, coin returned..throw coin in the DO NOT USE BIN. Now my sega, when a coin gets stuck, there are two options... give it a gentle thump OUCH.... on the side to dislodge coin into reject tube or take back cowling off and back door to hand release coin. WHY oh great gurus of Pennymachines, did the Mills / Sega machines not have a coin return system that the player could simply return their coin if it got stuck? It gets really annoying have to reverse the machine and take the back off to release a 6d coin. Just interested in the reasons for no reject system?

[badpenny]

Probably the same reason Jennings bandits (except for The Galaxy) didn't have them either.

[malcymal]

Now badpenny, you tease me with why jennings didnt have them either... so what was the reason ?!?! Was it a complete trust in the excellence of their products, or to keep manufacturing prices down, or to keep the arcade attendant busy running about with keys to dislodge jammed coins.. Come on, spill the beans old bean

[badpenny]

Haven't a clue! .....Could it be: -
Many of those machines mentioned had a small open topped tin box attached to the inside of the cabinet to catch slugs, so presumably they didn't want them returned to be used again?

Maybe they did have a superior attitude towards their products.

Somebody out there must now, what about Mr Peterson our American correspondent, where is he when he's needed?

[daveslot]

jennings do have a coin return system but no button, sega also,it has a long tube from escalator to the coin tray to cope with reject coins but no reject button

[john t peterson]

"Somebody out there must now, what about Mr Peterson our American correspondent, where is he when he's needed?"

Good Heavens, Gov'ner, I'm a British machine collector. Besides, I'm busy fighting my Terrorist In the Whitehouse for the next four months.

[badpenny]

The "Thick Plottens" then.
Plenty of ways to get the coin back but no reject button.

My Governors, Dixie Bell, Tura Bell, QT, Groetchen Columbia, Poinsettia and numerous Trade Stims; have holes that go through the coin entry so you can knock a coin back out if it gets stuck in the entry .... but we are coming up buttonless!

Perhaps we've stumbled across the true reason for their demise, it was nothing to do with advancements in electrikkery it was all down to a lack of reject buttons. Unless you know different???????

[badpenny]

It's that blind faith that duds would be worked out of the system by the maze in the entry that is puzzling. The slightly bent ones and the very thin invariably jam the whole thing. My 1930's Jennings has a reject button, but not in the 60's. However a button linked to a spring loaded gate would have been so sensible.
Alternatively........
My English BDR opens the gate as you pull the handle, this stops a second coin restarting the mech which would have allowed you to juggle the reels with the handle to steal a win line, plus chucks your duff coin back at you if it jammed in the first place.

The castings in Mills and Sega that run from the side of the escalator to the payout tray (As mentioned by Dave) seem to me to be more geared for returning an extra coin in case your attempting the above mentioned Juggling trick or have simply forgotten that you already put a coin in.
Whatever, it's all academic anyway...............

[treefrog]

Dug out a very old thread, but I was intrigued when picking up a War Eagle, that I had never noticed that some earlier Mills machines did have a reject button on the back of the hood, which would push the coin from the rear if stick on the entry. Obviously would not address an issue further down, but seems odd why not continued as even at this point this is a useful feature. Most pictures I have seen of War Eagles that had this seen to have lost the button, maybe they were easily broken. Not seen on other Mills machine though.

[coppinpr]

My view is that its not that they trusted the quality of their machines but perhaps the reverse,ill bet everyone here has had a machine at some time where the coin reject button has become faulty and either rejects all coins or you have to keep pushing the button to get it to decide if its good or bad ,I think they decided it was more trouble than it was worth.

[chris rideout]

If the Shefras escalator is fitted, the coin rejection takes place as the handle is pulled. Either the handle unlocks and operates the reels or the handle locks up and you hear the clatter of an unwanted coin dropping into the winnings tray.

[badpenny]

Having just reread the waffle I wrote so confidently seven and a bit years ago the only excuse I can offer for my approach to the question in hand is that I have no memory at all of this thread.

Rethinking it through and putting myself in the shoes of a large manufacturer attempting to feed a worldwide market and keeping prices down. I guess I would choose to manufacture slots, slides and escalators that would accept the majority of popular coins available in the countries I was trading in. We all know those particular parts tend to be slightly oversize and that many different coin blanks from various countries are interchangeable.
Therefore keeping to the cheaper is better theme I'd probably rely on the coin slot to measure the thickness and maximum diameter, and the open sided chute to reject any below minimum diameter. I'd also depend on the coin detector pin to ignore washers. So why would I need more?

I can only imagine I'd start to consider reject mechanisms if the machine was going to earn its living in a club or casino where the playing stakes would be impressively high. In which case I'd probably be designing more impressive looking machines including the new fangled elektrikery.

Perhaps in 2022 I'll read this again and wonder what the hell this idiot is talking about now!

BP