chris in md

I have two of these machines, and they're very nice. I paid 50 bucks apiece for mine, in very good condition, and I thought that was pretty much a steal. 75 bucks is a good price, as long as they're complete. The paint finish on mine appears to be original, and it's a textured black paint, not perfectly smooth. I've included a few pics, so maybe you can better compare the condition of the one you're looking at. A couple of the loose pieces that are sometimes missing from these things -- the weight plates for the sticker columns (there should be 3, one per column); the cash box and lid; key for the lock; all 3 coin mechs work at whatever price they're set at (they're variable from 25-cent vends up to $1). If it's missing any of these things, if a coin mech or two doesn't work, those are all things to factor into your offer. For 75 bucks, I'd want everything working and accounted for; I'd start knocking down my offer if any of the above are missing or not working properly. general machine pics -- -------------------------- inside the door, looking at the columns; note the weight plates on each column (brass colored plates) -- -------------------------- coin box (one per machine) -- -------------------------- close-up, front of door w/ mechs -- -------------------------- coin mechs --

Great info & great post, Kevin! I like having this all compiled in one spot. We need to get the POTD voting feature back, b/c this is a great one. - chris

I think he's talking about the times of day when the bar or club gets a high volume of customers, high traffic, which can vary by the day of the week. In the pizza joint I worked at in college, we called it getting "slammed," like 6-8pm on a Saturday is a mega-busy time for a pizza joint, during a big sporting event is usually busy, etc. It's whenever the rush of customers occurs.

Hear, Hear. Well said, Scott. Thank you so much for keeping this community rocking, Steve!

This is very helpful info, Kevin. Thanks for posting.

Hey, great job, JP! I've got my machines just about ready, so this is certainly inspiring.Quick question -- did you place your machines on a commission basis or charity? I'm pretty sure I want to go the commission route myself, so was just curious. Basically, how'd you sell yourself and your machines? - chris

I hear you on these points, Luke. On the NW machines I have, the candy flaps sit inside the candy chutes, so I don't think there will be a problem from the paint being too thick, but I can understand it being a problem w/ other machines where the flaps are mounted directly on the mouth of the machine. Obviously, you don't want the paint to be 3 inches thick, but a couple coats usually isn't a problem. I generally test fit things after painting and make minor adjustments for moving parts if necessary. I do like a nice, smooth finish. And BTW, those are some great-looking machines you've got there. Very nice work. :cool:

If you use primer first, that'll cover the black and provide a good base coat to spray a lighter color on. They sell primer spraypaint in the same place they sell regular spraypaint; just choose a plain-color primer, like gray, so it's easy to cover w/ your main color. It will probably take severaI coats of your main color to get a good finish, whether you use primer or not, so just allow enough time for each coat to dry (follow the dry time it says on the can). You may need to sand in between coats if the paint runs in places (which will happen if you go too heavy on the paint in an area); purchase a finer-grit sandpaper, something between 150 to 250 grit (the higher the number, the finer / gentler the grit). After a coat has dried, you can sand down any bad spots, wipe it down to get the dust off, and hit it w/ another coat of paint. You probably will want to paint the whole piece each time you put a coat on there, so the finish will be uniform on the whole piece. Usually the lighter the color, the more coats you'll need. If you paint them red or blue, that should only take 2-3 coats; if you decide to paint them yellow, that may take an extra coat or two to make it look nice. And paint outside so you're not breathing all the fumes! It takes a little practice and trial and error, but it's fairly easy once you get the hang of it.

i got two of these exact same sticker machines a few weeks ago for 100 bucks total, which is probably abnormally inexpensive.i'm not sure where you live, but i posted one in the craigslist section that's in CA, and the seller's asking 95 bucks (http://www.vendiscuss.com/forums/view_topic.php?id=5276&forum_id=49) they're nice machines, but 225 bucks is way overpriced, IMO.

BruceRehm wrote: nam wrote: My oven is a dry heat, too, but I ain't sticking my head in there when it's on...

i like posts like this, with useful first-hand experiences. you get my vote. keep us updated on how it goes. :cool:

i would've been happy buying that for 250-300 bucks, so $100 is an absolute steal. nice job! :cool:

Nice pulls, Scott! I'm still getting set up and hope to have my machines placed soon, so reading this is additional inspiration. - chris

Just for clarificiation, are we officially starting at 12:01am EST Friday, 12:01am PST Friday, 6:00am Friday? When? We also need a specific time for the end date. Thanks!

seems like we could say that the first one to post the ad gets the credit. a quick scan of the posts should be able to turn up an ad that's already been posted if it has the proper city / state info in the header.