My head is spinning...

[Rick]

Have a problem that I'm hoping some of you veterans would be willing to help me out with. I've literally read every thread in the equipment reviews section and feel like I'm not much further along than when I started. It sounds like every machine on the market has it's pros and cons and opinions can vary wildly, even on the same machine in the same thread.

I want to do this the right way the first time. And by that I mean I want to go with ONE machine for all of my singles/doubles and only one machine for my triples.

For my singles/doubles, I think I finally have the contestants nailed down to Oak 450's, Oak Vista Cabinet, A&A PM Elites, NW60's or Beaver RB16.

For triples, from everything I've read there are two machines that stand heads and shoulders above the pack: Northwestern Triple Plays and 1-800's.

If you own one of these machines and have a good deal of experience with them I'd be very grateful if you could take a minute for me and grade them on:

Price:

Serviceability:

Durability:

Durability is probably the most important factor for me, followed by servicability and finally price running a distant third. Time is money and I'm willing to pay a premium if it means less time spent tinkering with faulty equipment in the long run. Also, if you feel strongly that I'm missing the boat on a machine not included above I'd really like to hear it. I can be persuaded. Much appreciated!

[PerformaVending]

Northwestern Triple plays are built with the same mechanics of the super 60. It's like three Northwesterns packed into one unit. I bought mine for about $50 from a guy who got into their Biz-Op program. These are not cheap new, but can be bought at Sam's club, so there's that going for them. First, the machines are incredibly heavy. For it's size, the thing weighs a ton, even unloaded. I like that it has one key to open both sections, but I don't like it that you need to open the candy compartment to open the coin compartment. For others I'm sure this is a triviality. As for durability, I give this machine top marks. You could probably smash the lexan windows if you set your mind to it, but harming it otherwise would be very difficult. Between the heft and the thick steel construction, there is very little that could "total" this machine. If you hit it with a car, I think you'd do more damage to the car than to it.

I have operated the Northwestern 60, Super 60, A&A PN95 and PM Elite, but I've yet to see a noteworthy difference between them. Northwestern has superior coin mechs, but otherwise the machines are nearly identical. A&A's machines are cheaper, and do the same reliable job, so I'm not sure why you would pay more if you buy new.

At this time, I do not have any firsthand experience with Eagle, Oak, or the RB16. I will have an RB16 deployed soon, and I can report my findings then.

My rationale is to buy more "budget" machines from A&A, increasing your route size and decreasing your ROI at the same time.

This of course is only my opinion. I wish you the best of luck, whatever you do!

[Nate9303]

I say buy whatever there is cheap in your area on craigslist...at least to start. See if you like it. I bought 8 Vendstar 3000's (in good shape) for a little under $25 each. Get them placed and you have you money back in a matter of months. Then the only cost is candy. The rest is profit.

A cheap Vendstar could make you as much money as a more expensive unit.

[Action Vending]

I respectfully disagree with both of the above posts. If you are going to buy machines for the long hual and want one machine, I would go with the OAK Vista or 450. Our company decided to save a few bucks a about ten years ago and bought AA PM elite and 2001 2" machines as well as their sticker machines that look like the northwestern ones. Now we are starting to see some of the consequences from buying AA, their paint is less quality than OAK or NW or beaver, AA globes are not as durable, their coin mechs are not as reliable, and the over all quality of their machines is sub par compared.

I would go with OAK I prefer their coin mechs over the NW and the vista cabinent is great in "bad" areas because of the plexi panels instead of one globe. With the vista you can also place more machines on a rack in the same area as others.

Beavers are high quality but are a copy of the oak acorn, except oak used a metal body instead of plastic like beaver.

I operate some beavers and would rather have NW or OAK.

OAK Price 5/5 Very reasonable for a great product.

Servicabiltiy 5/5 Easy to service and the vista can be adapted to a wide variety of situations.

Durability 5/5 Paint Lasts longer than others. Cast aluminum Doesnt RUST and is light weight.

NW Price 4.5/5 Fairly reasonable for a quality machine.

Servicabilty 5/5 Very easy to service, domed lid allows more product.

Durability 4/5 Paint peels easily and they use steel parts (which rust).

Beaver Price 3/5 Way over priced for a copy of an OAK Acorn.

Servicability 4.5/5 The globe opening is smaller and fits less capsules.

Durability 3.5/5 Plastic body, steel chute cover and flap (which rust) Coin mechs are awesome.

A&A

Price 5/5 Cheap but you get what you pay for.

Servicability 4/5 lower quality copies of the OAK and NW machines depending on the model.

Durability 3.5/5 They are good for a few years but dont hold up to OAK or NW

I have ran all of these machines and they are all great but Oak is the best followed by North Western.

[dogcow]

OAK Price 5/5 Very reasonable for a great product.

Servicabiltiy 5/5 Easy to service and the vista can be adapted to a wide variety of situations.

Durability 5/5 Paint Lasts longer than others. Cast aluminum Doesnt RUST and is light weight.

NW Price 4.5/5 Fairly reasonable for a quality machine.

Servicabilty 5/5 Very easy to service, domed lid allows more product.

Durability 4/5 Paint peels easily and they use steel parts (which rust).

hey let me ask you, i dont operate this equipment but i have repainted a fair number of them

with my powdercoating set up.

one thing i have noticed it seems the oak cabinet machines (gumball machines not 2") have a lot of parts to remove to get the money out vs the northwestern super 60, do you really give it 5/5 for servicing? i mean maybe there is something i am

missing, is there some trick to getting the money out without taking apart the whole thing. the super 60 you just

twist the body off the base a little

[Action Vending]

hey let me ask you, i dont operate this equipment but i have repainted a fair number of them

with my powdercoating set up.

one thing i have noticed it seems the oak cabinet machines (gumball machines not 2") have a lot of parts to remove to get the money out vs the northwestern super 60, do you really give it 5/5 for servicing? i mean maybe there is something i am

missing, is there some trick to getting the money out without taking apart the whole thing. the super 60 you just

twist the body off the base a little

Well the reason I like it better is that with the NW super 60 every time I service I take the hopper off the body to make sure coins arnt stacking up on the chute cover. so that being said it is then easier to dump the coins from an oak body than to scoop coins into your hand and into the bag.

[BigRedvender]

I have seen the NW triple plays like performa says sturdy built and looks like it could stand anything. I now own some NW 60's Nicely and sturdily built. I got a great deal on some eagles. Ok machine but not as well built or has the fit that the NW do. So my stock is now 15 eagles cabinet one of them is an XL 5 NW 60's and one NW Globe BG machine. I have worked with Tools most of my life and learned you get what you pay for. But also if you only use it once in a while the cheaper is ok. I plan on being in business for a long time I haven't gotten an oak yet so I will hold my judgement on them till I get one. I like the NW and will probably stick with them from now on. I will keep my eyes open and pick up a AA or a Oak and check them out but if you figure a service life of 15-20 years what dose a few extra bucks really figure out in the equation not a whole lot. Eagle from eagle 57 plus shipping NW 60 70 at sam's with little to no shipping on pickup. Figure you run the machine 10 years that means on a monthly biases you paint .10 cents more a month not a big amount for a better quality machine.

[Action Vending]

I have seen the NW triple plays like performa says sturdy built and looks like it could stand anything. I now own some NW 60's Nicely and sturdily built. I got a great deal on some eagles. Ok machine but not as well built or has the fit that the NW do. So my stock is now 15 eagles cabinet one of them is an XL 5 NW 60's and one NW Globe BG machine. I have worked with Tools most of my life and learned you get what you pay for. But also if you only use it once in a while the cheaper is ok. I plan on being in business for a long time I haven't gotten an oak yet so I will hold my judgement on them till I get one. I like the NW and will probably stick with them from now on. I will keep my eyes open and pick up a AA or a Oak and check them out but if you figure a service life of 15-20 years what dose a few extra bucks really figure out in the equation not a whole lot. Eagle from eagle 57 plus shipping NW 60 70 at sam's with little to no shipping on pickup. Figure you run the machine 10 years that means on a monthly biases you paint .10 cents more a month not a big amount for a better quality machine.

Oak is much better quality than eagle and the price is a bit cheaper too check out the download section. Eagle is a copy of the oak.

[musser]

My 2 cents. oak vista 300 or 450 hands down for charity because the "dump" body vista is faster to service. But when it comes to a rack NW hands down, true they take up more room but they are blazing fast to service. The Oak Vista Panel sounds like a good idea for tough spots but never really ran into that many problems with them so I stick with the 300 or 450.

The A&A PO89 Oak knock off is pretty good but oak is still better. The A&A Northwestern knock offs are a pain, parts don't fit, and mechs fail a lot faster than the real Northwestern. LOL< I do buy A&A replacement globes though, but never ever coin mechs or locks!

[BigRedvender]

Oak is much better quality than eagle and the price is a bit cheaper too check out the download section. Eagle is a copy of the oak.

I will probably end up with a couple of oaks just to check them out. I am a sucker for a good deal and I am a big gear head and like pulling things apart and checking them out.

[will.vend]

Well the reason I like it better is that with the NW super 60 every time I service I take the hopper off the body to make sure coins arnt stacking up on the chute cover. so that being said it is then easier to dump the coins from an oak body than to scoop coins into your hand and into the bag.

I agree, the idea of nw super 60/aa pn95 being easier to service is a myth, if you service them the way you should you need to take it apart and clear coins from around the coin wheel, also all mine have all the coins bunched up on one side of the tray and spill every time I try and slide it out without removing the globe and hopper. I really dont see why ppl think it's a hassle to take them apart, I do it several times a day and it's no big deal. A bad day vending is better than a good day working for the man!

[will.vend]

Have a problem that I'm hoping some of you veterans would be willing to help me out with. I've literally read every thread in the equipment reviews section and feel like I'm not much further along than when I started. It sounds like every machine on the market has it's pros and cons and opinions can vary wildly, even on the same machine in the same thread.

I want to do this the right way the first time. And by that I mean I want to go with ONE machine for all of my singles/doubles and only one machine for my triples.

For my singles/doubles, I think I finally have the contestants nailed down to Oak 450's, Oak Vista Cabinet, A&A PM Elites, NW60's or Beaver RB16.

For triples, from everything I've read there are two machines that stand heads and shoulders above the pack: Northwestern Triple Plays and 1-800's.

If you own one of these machines and have a good deal of experience with them I'd be very grateful if you could take a minute for me and grade them on:

Price:

Serviceability:

Durability:

Durability is probably the most important factor for me, followed by servicability and finally price running a distant third. Time is money and I'm willing to pay a premium if it means less time spent tinkering with faulty equipment in the long run. Also, if you feel strongly that I'm missing the boat on a machine not included above I'd really like to hear it. I can be persuaded. Much appreciated!

I use cabinet style machines because they are more versatile than any other head available. A few reasons are...1) you can replace one broken panel instead of the entire globe, 2) if you are vending candy they hold less product so you have less waste/spoilage, 3) you can add up to 3 ext caps to them and end up with more capacity than the super 60 head, 4) you can fit more of them on a rack, they are slimmer and if you add one cab ext to the back it is same capacity as a super 60, 5) if vending toys the display stays in place better than on a 450/super 60 globe.

I do not use the chrome painted ones because they will peel and look bad after a short time, I know some vendors like that look and I respect that but in a couple of years all those machines will need serious refurbing.

I also do not use triple style machines and do not recommend them. all my reasons have been explained in detail in older threads.

[bulkjake]

I love my 1-800 triples...Having all the same equipment really makes this a well oiled machine. I can go out and service 18 machines and only bring a few parts with me because they are all the same. I really came across these machines by accident, so as someone else said above, just see what deals you can come across on Craigslist. I happen to think these machines a very durable but, I don't have anything else to compare them to. And they look great : ) Not like some other all plastic machines.

[Rick]

I say buy whatever there is cheap in your area on craigslist...at least to start. See if you like it. I bought 8 Vendstar 3000's (in good shape) for a little under $25 each. Get them placed and you have you money back in a matter of months. Then the only cost is candy. The rest is profit.

A cheap Vendstar could make you as much money as a more expensive unit.

Very thoughtful responses, all of you. I really appreciate it because I'm going to be staking a lot of money and time with whatever conclusions I develop from this thread. Nate, I hear what you're saying and I'm well aware that one of the cardinal sins on this forum is buying new (or like new used) for top dollar - but allow me a brief explanation...I am not mechanically inclined. Actually, that's being too kind. Ya know when somebody is explaining how to take something apart and/or put it back together they say "It's so easy a monkey could do it"? Well, I'm the mentally handicapped brother of the monkey they're talking about.

I know myself pretty well and after an exhaustive amount of research that I've put into this before buying even one machine I can tell you, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the only way I'm going to fail at this is if I get overwhelmed and frustrated with malfunctioning equipment early in the process. I'm am very comfortable running my route at a net loss for three years and reinvesting 100% revenue back into more machines. So, I know it's just me - but I need grade A equipment from day 1.

Now 1-2 years down the line I could find that these machines are actually very simple mechanically and when I hear people talking about changing coin mechs, bushings, etc. my golpher won't pucker tighter than a snare drum...but that's where I'm at at least starting out.