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I'm really scratching my head over this one.Just recently on E-bay, a 1935 Mills "Cross Diamond" in nearly perfect original condition was listed and didn't meet the seller's reserve. It couldn't make it over the $1800. mark. The odd thing about this particular machine, it had factory skill stop buttons on it, with the even rarer skill instruction card on it. It is not reproduced, ever. In my 37 years of collecting slots, I've only seen ONE OTHER Cross Diamond with skill stops. This machine is not to be confused with the late '39 "free play" electric cross diamond of low value. I've only seen about 5 other non-skill stop Cross Diamonds to boot. This was the infamous machine Mills made up for Frank Costello, mob boss of New York, to his specifications for the front design and colors, to be operated in the boroughs of New York, apparently for a short time before Laguardia swept up virtually EVERYTHING coin operated and dumped them at sea. Look it up! The facts are in Frank Costello's autobiography book about his machine, published just before his death in 1973.

Did you bid on it ?

3reel wrote:I'm really scratching my head over this one.Just recently on E-bay, a 1935 Mills "Cross Diamond" in nearly perfect original condition was listed and didn't meet the seller's reserve. It couldn't make it over the $1800. mark. The odd thing about this particular machine, it had factory skill stop buttons on it, with the even rarer skill instruction card on it. It is not reproduced, ever. In my 37 years of collecting slots, I've only seen ONE OTHER Cross Diamond with skill stops. This machine is not to be confused with the late '39 "free play" electric cross diamond of low value. I've only seen about 5 other non-skill stop Cross Diamonds to boot. This was the infamous machine Mills made up for Frank Costello, mob boss of New York, to his specifications for the front design and colors, to be operated in the boroughs of New York, apparently for a short time before Laguardia swept up virtually EVERYTHING coin operated and dumped them at sea. Look it up! The facts are in Frank Costello's autobiography book about his machine, published just before his death in 1973.

No sir, I didn't. I sold that same EXACT machine a while back. I found it sitting the cellar of a 150 yr. old ocean front house where it had been for approximately 63 years!

I have a Mills cross diamond I found at a moving sale. I bought it because I always wanted a slot with a vendor. I didn't know the history until I did some digging. The odd thing is there is no paint on the casting. I have considered having it repainted. Any opinions?