Saved from the Finance act bonfire

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chief engineer
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Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by chief engineer »

Saved from the bonfire.

As a young teenager I saved a barrow load of old machine parts from the bonfire protest against the ‘Finance act’ down at one of the sea front arcades.

I thought all the bits had all gone over the years, but while checking out another arcade machine to post up on the forum that I had squirreled away in my parents loft, I found an old glass front along with some top flash glasses and entry slot Perspex decals.

I did have one of the other glasses with fruit symbols as opposed to the horses, that I did build into a home made machine, but I can’t remember where it ended up.

I think the original machine might have been four sided, as I had quite a few doors, but sadly only two glasses had survived the destruction onto the bonfire. One of the other machines on the bonfire from memory was a three player a side machine that featured film stars of the day, but I have never seen a picture and it was one that I never played, so it’s a bit vague.

CE
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brigham
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by brigham »

It MUST be by Jamiesons of Bridlington.
I have a number of the single-player types, but the artwork on this one is much more elaborate.
Single-player machines weren't involved in the Finance Act debacle, of course, so this must be from a multi-player console. I've never heard of such a thing.
One oddity. Both single-player 'Gold Cup' AND 'Royal Ascot' avoided using actual horses' names. Crompton's, on the other hand, always used real 'Winners', AND specialised in large multi-players. I wonder if it could be a joint venture.
More information would be wonderful.
(The 3-a-side 'Film Stars' machine is very familiar, although I can't at the moment put a name to it).
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slotalot
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by slotalot »

The glass on the Jamieson wall machines was smaller than the glass on the 4 and 6 sided games, and they had slightly different artwork to avoid mixups in production... :didact:
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brigham
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by brigham »

ANOTHER newly-discovered product from what must be my favourite manufacturer.
Each new day...
(I don't suppose anyone knows of a surviving example?)
chief engineer
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by chief engineer »

Thanks for the replies, really great info and looking at slotalot’s photo there is no doubt it comes from the Jamieson stable.

I did also find the wooden backer to the glass that held the lamps and although the white background paint to the glass behind the horses has disappeared there is probably enough front flash parts to make up a single player wall mount machine.

I wonder if a circuit diagram has survived to get the game play correct to the original?

Thanks CE
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slotalot
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by slotalot »

Been searching for wiring diagrams for years without any luck, Ian Jamieson can't remember there being any formal drawings, and Laurie Binns the chap that designed them is no longer with us. :cry:

I have found a photo that might be the other "Filmstar" machine you mention??
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coppinpr
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by coppinpr »

I remember those large film star machines so well from Brighton pier. What sticks in my mind is, even then I always wondered "Why Ava Gardner" (and usually as the high payout if I remember correctly). A big star it's true, but never the standing of the others used and fading from the limelight by the time these were made. Looking back now I wonder if someone in the design/production of the machine had a soft spot for her. Not my cup of tea, even as an 11 year old. :lol:
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badpenny
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by badpenny »

Now we know what subject to start threads on in order to entice Slot a Pot a Stuart a lot out of retirement!

BP :cool:
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brigham
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Re: Saved from the Finance act bonfire

Post by brigham »

These big arcade pieces fascinated me at the time. I loved the fact that they ran continuously, and you could conserve your precious pennies by just watching for a few games. I loved the sounds and the lights. You could see and hear them working. They were like a living thing.
I suppose now it's the scarcity of them, the elusiveness, that holds the fascination. Most must surely be extinct; their sheer size, their complexity, added to the ravages of the Finance Act and then decimalisation, must have weighed heavily against their survival.
So what have we got? Trade fliers would at least tell us what we are looking for. Home movies from Trade shows give us tantalizing glimpses of wonders past, usually in poor light using outdoor film, and often run through the camera twice.
Failing memories supply the rest.
Once we have the names, we can start the search. We can start placing the 'wanted' ads in World's Fair.
Somebody must have something. A two-player 'Rolitina' turned up recently, and it wasn't even a mainstream machine.
Crompton's Threepenny Derby, or Cover the Spot, perhaps?
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