NO MORE SLOT MACHINES ON EBAY!

[John T. Peterson]

I would like to offer appreciation to you collectors (and Ric Gandy in particular) for taking the time to try and weed out the crooks who are selling bogus slots on Ebay. As amply noted before, Ebay is strictly a forum which does no active policing on its own. Honesty in the marketplace must come from the sellers, and if need be, from the collectors. So, hat's off to those of you who are taking the time to help protect the hobby. Well done!!

[777]

It's happening again. A guy selling a repro War Eagle, ebay # 6146521195, is advertising a "genuine 1931 25 cent War Eagle", and this time it is listed under slots and not Token machines.

Check out the questions this guy has received. Lots of people saying it is a fraud but he insists it is original and that his grandfather bought it in 1960.

He registered on E-Bay on 1/12 and the only bidder registered on 1/14 Hmm, looks a little suspicious to me.

If anyone is interested, there are two other War Eagles listed on E-Bay which look legit. One of them is a 25 cent one.

[watlingboy]

The guy is just wrong. I told him what exactly is wrong with his bogus machine and to look at the other 25 cent War Eagle as it is correct and he could see why his is fake. He never replied once I pointed out all the problems. I also mentioned I didn't expect to see my comments at the bottom of his listing and I was right. He choose not to post them. Stay away from this guy.

Watlingboy

[randybro]

It was good to see that there were no bidders for this fake

Randy

[kmorris8]

He has relisted this under 6148322771 with a lower opening bid and a clean slate of questions and answers. He didn't seem too bright about which questions and answers he published before (he posted some of the negative ones!). Maybe he wised up with this new auction. His answers are fun to read..."I don't know what an AHNDLE is."

[777]

He has relisted this under 6148322771 with a lower opening bid and a clean slate of questions and answers. He didn't seem too bright about which questions and answers he published before (he posted some of the negative ones!). Maybe he wised up with this new auction. His answers are fun to read..."I don't know what an AHNDLE is."

If you look at the previous listing there are no bids. I was sure there was 1 bid of $1,500 earlier so I looked at the bidding history. It said he changed the description and then the bidder retracted the bid.

I looked at the description and don't see any changes. He probably put in a space or something so the bidder (probably the seller) could retract the bid. Therefore he didn't have to pay E-Bay their comission.

This is so blatent that E-Bay should pull him. But they won't.

[kmorris8]

Go back and read the first question he has posted in the first auction (#6146521195). It's from toward the end of the auction and "Gil" says "he's been there" and 99% of you coin-op experts [are full of hooey]. He also says you should "put your money where your mouth is" -- does that mean he wants you to bid on this guy's auction because you think it's a fake?? What a hoot!

[Ric Gandy]

I don't know who "Gil" is or what kind of bug crawled up his ass, but this seller is basically straight or as straight as she can be under the circumstances.

When "Watlingboy" posted

It's happening again. A guy selling a repro War Eagle, ebay # 6146521195, is advertising a "genuine 1931 25 cent War Eagle", and this time it is listed under slots and not Token machines.

on 1/14/05, I went to the auction and read the description and looked at the pictures and could not tell whether it was an authentic War Eagle or not, so I contacted the seller and asked how they acquired this machine, etc..

The seller had nothing to hide and posted what she had been told by her grandmother and all of the questions and answers from the first auction.
Not sure what else she could have done under the circumstances. She is obviously not a coin op person and is merely repeating what she was told.

One of the biggest problems with reproduction slot machines is and was that a lot of dealers and other people passed them off as authentic machines to people who trusted them and simply did not know any better. Simple fact of the matter is that if the grandfather did purchase the machine in the early 60s, it is over 25 years old and is eligible to be sold on eBay whether it is an authentic 1931 War Eagle or a reproduction. She said initially said they bought it in San Jose from the manufacturere. I pointed out to her that Mills Novelty Co. was located in Chicago. Now she says that her grandfather bought it in San Jose from an antique dealer. That could easily be what she has since been told by her grandmother or uncle.

One more thing. I don't like seeing anyone get jerked around so I sent the bidder an email and merely asked him if he was aware that he might be purchasing a reproduction. I suggested he go back and read some of the questions AND ANSWERS that the seller had posted since he bid. I also told him he could retract his bid under the circumstances if he wanted to which he ultimately did.

The following is an email I sent to the seller (which she did not post) and her response.

I appreciate your concerns and thank you for the advice. I didn't realize there would be this much controversy. I am an honest person and have told everything I know about this machine to the best of my knowledge. Because I don't know much about antique slot machines myself I did do some research before posting the item. I found that there were reproductions out there priced between $1200 - $1500. I also found one already on ebay that strongly claimed to be authentic priced at $3499. Based on my family's belief that this is indeed an authentic piece I carefully compared my machine to the others I found. I compared the details of the "authentic" description to the best of my ability and verified they matched my machine. I located the original factory inspection sticker and was sure this meant it was genuine. I couldn't locate a serial number sticker but assumed it was probably located on the inside of the back panel where it was obvious a sticker used to be.
I placed the starting bid at $1500 hoping to get close to $3500. Honestly I had no idea there would be such controversy. It seems everyone has their own opinion on the details of what makes this machine authentic.
I have considered your advise. Unfortunately I am going through some tough times right now. Although I'd like to keep the machine for sentimental reasons I do need the money as soon as possible. I really can't risk the possiblility that it could be returned (and maybe tampered) and then have to reimburse funds that will already be spent. I understand I will probably not be paid what I think it's worth. If I wasn't in such a tight spot it may be worth the extra time and effort. Again, I thank you for your concern.

antiqueslots@juno.com wrote:
Thanks for the email. For whatever it may be worth to you, I believe you. Not exactly sure when they started reproducing the old slot machines. Normally, if you see a War Eagle that looks brand new, it is because it is brand new. No reason why this could not be an authentic machine which was restored and sold to your grandfather in the 60s. This just happens to be a very popular machine and one that has been reproduced by a lot of different people for a long time. Just how long I am not sure. You have a bid so your machine will sell. If it is real and it sells for $1,500.00, the buyer will be getting a bargain. If in fact it is a reproduction, $1,500.00 is probably more than it is worth. A lot of experienced coin op people won't bid on it because they won't want to take the chance. One suggestion. You could tell the rest of the story and offer a three day right of inspection and return and full refund of the purchase price if the high bidder does not like it or want it for any reason. That would eliminate a lot of the doubters. Ric Gandy

Finally, if you look at the title and description of the first auction and compare it to the second auction, the seller has made numerous and significant changes. She no longer claims that it is a 1931 authentic Mills War Eagle. She tells the story about how her grandfather got it and lets the bidders make up their own mind. Even if it is a repro, it is over 25 years old if you believe her story (which I do) and is eligible to be sold on eBay. If her story is true, ask yourself what else she could do under the circumstances over and above what she has already done and I think you should agree with me that she is getting a bum wrap in the comments. There is a big difference between this girl who is trying to sell her grandfather's slot machine and slotmachinesusa who knows exactly what kind of trash he is selling. Ric Gandy

[watlingboy]

Ric,

I read the new listing the lady has and I don't have a problem with the way it is described. There does leave doubt as to its authenticity. I have a problem with people drawing a line in the sand and saying it is absolutely original, when it is not. If you're not an expert and you have a bunch of people telling you it's a duck, it's probably a duck. Maybe her Grandfather traded their original machine for this restored one. That's certainly been done in the past. All I can tell you is it has the wrong handle, wrong strips, no jackpot, no handle pump or even the holes in the base where it belongs, new escalator, what appears to be a new cash box and without seeing it you can't tell about the castings or the original 25 cent denomination. John Caler was the first to make match plates and reproduce the War Eagle. He did this in the late 70's. About 2 or 3 years after California became legal. He did this because he had a lot of extra mechs. I don't agree with what he did either as he didn't always represent them as having new cases. I guess we call this one done.

Watlingboy

[777]

Ric:

You indicate this lister is being as honest as she can be. I still think it is a person trying to rip off someone.

Here is why:

1. 0 feedbacks and just registered before he/she listed the item the first time.
2. The one person who bid on the machine the first time also had 0 feedbacks and registered a couple of days after the seller
3. The winning bid was retracted, thus the seller did not have to pay E-Bay their listing fee.
4. The format of the listing has a pretty fancy graphic. Most people who are new to E-Bay don't have a clue on how to do this.

I pretty much agree with Watling Boy.