Do you know this model of Rol a top?

[Psittacus]

hello,

I have the possibility to buy this rol a top.



But do you know this model?

What is the estimation of it?

Regards

Psittacus

[gsx11r]

Hi Psittacus

As I have already say on an other forum ;this slot is a “ Frankenstein” !
It s an old French rol a top bird of paradise (1936/7)!
But someone have remove the jackpot and the original front casting !
And replace it with this nice four columns from an early model !
The Mech inside is not the good one for this 4 columns ! And some parts are missing on the mechanism !
If you want to find the original front casting with THE jackpot , pfff , good luck , it s more easy to find the complet slot machine !! ( I have tested it !!! )
And be careful , the price value for a bird is not the same in France than the one in USA !!
It s really easy to find a Bird in France ; and it s Hard to find in US !!

Stephane
( Sorry for my poor English ,but I try to make my best !! )

[watlingboy]

Well, it is hard to say if this is a Frankenstein machine but it probably is. Without seeing the front of the mech, you can't tell for sure. This is a very early cast in horn Bird and the mechanism is correct for that machine but the top and bottom casting are years apart. That vender is actually off of a very late model Rol-A-Top called the "New O.K. Front Vender" made in 1939. The machine was equipped with future pay and a guaranteed $3 jackpot in addition to the 20 coin pay. The way it worked was there was a second coin tube mounted next to the regular coin tube. When the first was full the coins would go down a chute and fill the second coin tube, holding only $3 in nickels. The short coin tube had only one slide under it and that was attached to the 20 pay slide. So when the 20 pay slide went back, it took the single slide with it and the $3 tube emptied. It also, as stated in the ad, was a future pay machine. About 30 years ago 4 or 5 of these bottom 4 column castings were found and put on machines but they don't add any value to the machines because the mechs are missing all the parts to pay the jackpot. So without seeing the front of mechanism on this machine it is impossible to say if it is correct. The ad says nothing about this being put on a Bird. The removeable horn top casting would at least put the casting in the same time period of manufacture. 3 of these original correct and complete machines exist that I know of. Very few had to be made. The big question is why Watling came out with this in the late 30's after most cities, states and counties had already amended their laws to make all the gimmicks that slot manufacturers had put on their machines illegal. Watling built an out dated machine that no one wanted or could use.

Watlingboy

[Mills]

Watlingboy :
Have you see on the adverising the slot picture ?
Look the name of the slot! This advertising can't be made in 1939 !
In 1935, it seem more logic!

[watlingboy]

Mills,

I guess you are referring to the word "Rol-A-Tor" on the machine in the advertising. Dan Post was very careful to get the dates correct on the advertising that he took from Bill Board and Automatic Age magazines. What makes this issue confusing is the fact that Watling used their original art work over and over again. Burton A. Burton, in the 1960's, visited Burns Watling and got from him, all the advertising he had that had survived. In there was original art for console machines that never were made and something very unusual. Watling used the original art work again and again and overlayed the new casting designs over the old ones. Just like paper dolls. All this original art work exists and is owned by a collector. With it are lots of little cut outs of castings that can be layed over the original art work. Apparently Watling was not in to spending money on an elaborate art department. So in this case, they pasted the bottom casting art work over a Rol-A-Tor. The 3 known complete machines are all Cherry Fronts with removeable horns making the soonest this machine would have been made was 1938. The serial number of one of the three is 90066, making it manufactured sometime between 1939 and 1940. Lets say it was offered originally in 1935, then why is there only a couple of advertisements known on the machine and why so few surviving examples. I stand by my previous posting.

Watlingboy

[gsx11r]

And it s easy to date a Watling advertisement !
Watling write "nearly" each time : " XX years of progress established since 1889 " !
Watling update their advertisements each years ! So , 1889 +50 = 1939
Look this advertisement :59+1889 =1948
No more " rol a toR " on it , but always the first Mechs style from a rol a toR !
Stephane

[mechanic]

This option may have been made in 35 but as most manufacturers did they would offer these options on their later models also. So having a Bird with an OK Front Vendor is very possible.