HELP!!!! REPAIRING C&F ‘31 BABY GRAND

[Penniesfromheaven]

I am new to this forum…and desperately need assistance repairing a1931 C&F The Baby Grand that I inherited from my father 10 years ago. It hasn’t been out of its original shipping crate since he passed away and i now just discovered that it does not operate properly. The reels do not spin when a coin is inserted and the arm is pulled its full travel distance. I am quite familiar with Mills and Jennings machines and adept at repairing them; however this C&F is a different beast. The reel stops elevate off the gears and the elevator cycles coins properly, the payout slides also function correctly. But for the life of me, I can’t figure out how the reels spin. I don’t see a kicker (striker) like the Mills or Jennings. I don’t see any missing parts or disconnect springs but I must be missing the obvious, because the reels don’t spin; the reel stops cycle correctly 1…2…3 left to right, and the last “click” is the payout slides engaging. The only thing I noticed is the Mills and Jennings have 5 “clicks” one for each reel stop 4th for the reel brake that locks them in place, for the 5th the pay out fingers and slides. This C&F only has 4 “clicks” not sure if that means any thing just an observation.
Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Fun Fact the original shipping crate still has the original shipping label which states the cost as $75.00 and $29.45 C.O.D.and was shipped directly from C&F to a speak easy in Detroit MI where all that Canadian whiskey made its way across the river to a dry country during prohibition.

[rtmccurdy]

It would be great to see some pictures of the machine and crate. A UK collector (Frankie Rumble) is quite knowledgeable on the Baby Grands and has restored several. Perhaps he will see your post. He is also on the Facebook slot groups as well.

[Penniesfromheaven]

Here are some photos of the shipping crate with machine case and works
My father said the crate doubled as a stand at the speakeasies
There is an address on the shipping label to a business that no longer exists in Detroit
The label also said it was shipped from Chicago by rail to Detroit COD

[Sslots]

Hi, very beautiful machine.
I'm Frankie Rumble
I have wrote a few pieces for the C&F The Baby grand and their versions they made.

I can see you have a few different jams currently.

I'll PM you and we can have a call and I can talk you thru it, hopefully an easy fix.

Check your private message.

[Penniesfromheaven]

Thank you for all the replies and support and a big shout out to: Frankie Rumble with out his help my dad’s Baby Grand would still be dormant…my reels are spinning once again
Correction: Frankie Rumble identified this as an early 1932 model serial # 797; matching back and case with original lock and shipping crate. Unfortunately the cash box is not; however, it lives another day to spin.