How to Make Heads and Tails of Coin-Op Machine Collecting

Prices can vary, of course, given the age, condition and rarity of the device in question.

Vintage gumball machines can go for $100 to $200 and antique mechanical slot machines -- the kind that actually pay off in coins, not receipts -- sell for $1,000 and up.

Now if you want to spend some serious coin, then you may be interested in a Caille Roulette gambling machine. Rubin, who owns a Caille, said one of them sold for just shy of $250,000 last year.

Kevin Greco, who co-promotes the twice-yearly Chicagoland Antique Advertising, Slot-Machine & Jukebox Show with Bob Traynoff, said many collectors start off small. "You can go in at a certain level, buying one or two items a year," he said. "You get a feel for what you want."

Davids said the simplest advice for the novice collector is to buy a machine that works, unless you have the knowledge to fix it or know someone who can. Many people have purchased what they thought were bargains, he said, only to pay more money than they wanted to in the end.

Boekelheide said most coin-operated machines command a premium if they are in original condition. Restoration can actually decrease the value of the machine.

"Serious collectors want items that have not been restored," he said. "In many instances, machines can be worth twice as much in their original condition."

The only exception to the restoration rule, he said, is jukeboxes, as it is usually necessary to do some kind of work on them to improve the sound quality.

There's one thing to keep in mind about antique slot machines in particular: State regulations regarding ownership of the one-arm bandits need to be checked, as laws vary from state to state.

Rubin said the coin-op machines have been wonderful investments over the years and the best pieces in each category -- gambling, music, vending -- will always appreciate greatly.

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