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Hello folks. Looking for some advice. Much appreciated.
I believe this is a Mills "Black Cherry" machine. Any idea when this machine was made? I read online that is was made in 1936 but other websites say 1946? I cannot read the serial number on the base.
Please advise. Thanks all!
Tom 513 340-5697

(1) Hard to tell when it was made without the serial number. If there's no Mills identifying paper inside the cabinet, or serial number on the cabinet base (that you can read) or serial number on the upper aluminum casting, probably can't tell. In Dick Bueschel's book, page 123 of "An Illustrated Price Guide to the 100 Most Collectible Slot Machines-Volume 2", the Black Cherry was made between 1945-1948. See attached photo.
(2) Hard to tell which key fits it without a photo of the lock. If you send around a photo, we can take a look.
(3) If the paint looks original, I'd keep it as it is - keep it with the original patina.
(4) You can manually cycle the machine and line up 3 Bars to trip the jackpot and the coin tube, if it's working. Just stop the clock fan blade after you start cycling the machine and line up 3 Bars. Getting a book to learn how the machine works and how to fix it helps. One suggestion is the Mead and Geddes book "Owner's Pictorial Guide for the Care and Understanding of the Mills Bell Slot Machine".

Lack of a serial number indicates perhaps Tom's machine may not actually be an original Mills Black Cherry.
Bueschel wrote:
The Black cherry came out at the end of October 1945 and its prewar "lines and mechanism interchangeability opened the door for aggressive copying and old machine revamping to make 30s machines look like new Black Cherry models. Mills was forced to react with certificates (of manufacture) accompanying deliveries to provide assurance of original production."
"With so many revampers slapping Black Cherry and Golden Falls fronts on old machines, many being surreptitiously sold as the latest model......."