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Need to get my claw machine on location. Help!!


superstorm

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Hey everyone, so I bought a 90's Clean Sweep claw machine (pic below) off eBay recently and I took the measurements of my doorways to make sure that it could make it through the doorway (which it did) before finalizing the purchase.  So I was planning on keeping it in my room until I found a business to put it in, but it needed to go through the kitchen doorway in order to get in my room and I failed to realize that the two doorways weren't completely aligned with each other and I couldn't get it through and into my room!  Now its sitting in my house and my parents want it gone, so I really need to find a place for it soon.  I'll probably put it in a storage unit by next week if I don't find a business that will take it before then, but I don't want to keep it there for too long and keep having to make monthly storage payments.  So I was hoping that some claw machine vendors on here could give me some advice on what I need to know to get a claw machine on a location and everything else that I need to know about being a claw machine vendor.  Also, this machine does not have a dollar bill acceptor, only coin mechs.  So I need to find a place where quarters will be readily available.  Any help and advice would be appreciated thanks!  

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You have to do the work to find a location for your claw machine. Keep I mind most businesses will not take older machines or claw machines that will disrupt their business (no bill acceptor means more trips to the counter for change).

Go around town, ask different businesses if they want a claw machine. Offer them 30 percent of the profits.

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What dkochan said, your best bet for a unit like that is a place with existing coin-changer facilities- a laundromat is a prime candidate for it. Bear in mind, laundromats are usually a lot harder on equipment than "normal" locs due to their unattended nature, so be prepared for more cleanup, touch-ups, and potentially needing extra locks or security measures.

Good luck!

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10 hours ago, CLAWgical said:

You have to do the work to find a location for your claw machine. Keep I mind most businesses will not take older machines or claw machines that will disrupt their business (no bill acceptor means more trips to the counter for change).

Go around town, ask different businesses if they want a claw machine. Offer them 30 percent of the profits.

Yeah I agree that it'll take work and some time to find a business that will take it, but why will most businesses not take older machines?  It is still a nice machine and in great condition despite its age and I don't know if you've ever seen what this model looks like when its turned on or not, but the marquee has its own light show type of thing that draws attention, which is a plus.  And judging by your username, it seems like you probably know a lot about claw machines so I was wondering if you could tell me wether or not its possible to get a dollar bill acceptor installed on it?  When Smart Industries first made this model, the dollar bill acceptor came as an optional feature so most of them were built without one.  But I have been wondering if its possible to have one installed since Smart Industries was adding them to this exact model back in the day.  If not, I'll have to look even harder for a business to put it in.  

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9 hours ago, dkochan said:

I suggest trying to place your crane in a coin laundry. Offer to pay 30 - 40% commission.

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Yeah I've already thought of that and contacted one local laundromat about it, but I never heard back.  I'm still looking, but when your machine only has coin mechs its probably one of the best locations to put it on.  

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6 hours ago, PerformaVending said:

What dkochan said, your best bet for a unit like that is a place with existing coin-changer facilities- a laundromat is a prime candidate for it. Bear in mind, laundromats are usually a lot harder on equipment than "normal" locs due to their unattended nature, so be prepared for more cleanup, touch-ups, and potentially needing extra locks or security measures.

Good luck!

A laundromat is probably the best location for it, but it has not been at the top of my list because of the reasons you described.  I actually own two claw machines now with the one in my pic being the second one I have bought, the first one that I bought actually was at a laundromat and I had to meet the seller there to pick it up.  And what you said is definitely true, he had the machine's plug changed to fit a different type of outlet because people kept messing with it, he had extra locks on it, and he had it chained to the wall with a padlock.  So I would prefer to not put it in a laundromat unless there is no other option because this machine is in such good condition still.  One other idea that I came up with is trying to put it in a bar and have prizes in it that will appeal to bar customers because most bars have pool tables that only take quarters, so there's more of a chance that people will have quarters on them and it might not get treated as roughly in a place like that, depending on the bar's atmosphere.  What do you think of that idea?  I'm thinking its worth a shot to ask some bars at least.  And like I also asked CLAWgical, do you think its possible to get a dollar bill acceptor installed on this machine?  Smart Industries used to put them on this exact same model back in the day, but they were an optional feature so most were built without them.  Seems like it would make finding a location easier if I could get one added, although I do worry now that the age of my machine will make finding a location harder if what CLAWgical said about businesses not wanting older machines really is true.  

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9 hours ago, superstorm said:

A laundromat is probably the best location for it, but it has not been at the top of my list because of the reasons you described.  I actually own two claw machines now with the one in my pic being the second one I have bought, the first one that I bought actually was at a laundromat and I had to meet the seller there to pick it up.  And what you said is definitely true, he had the machine's plug changed to fit a different type of outlet because people kept messing with it, he had extra locks on it, and he had it chained to the wall with a padlock.  So I would prefer to not put it in a laundromat unless there is no other option because this machine is in such good condition still.  One other idea that I came up with is trying to put it in a bar and have prizes in it that will appeal to bar customers because most bars have pool tables that only take quarters, so there's more of a chance that people will have quarters on them and it might not get treated as roughly in a place like that, depending on the bar's atmosphere.  What do you think of that idea?  I'm thinking its worth a shot to ask some bars at least.  And like I also asked CLAWgical, do you think its possible to get a dollar bill acceptor installed on this machine?  Smart Industries used to put them on this exact same model back in the day, but they were an optional feature so most were built without them.  Seems like it would make finding a location easier if I could get one added, although I do worry now that the age of my machine will make finding a location harder if what CLAWgical said about businesses not wanting older machines really is true.  

A bar could work, I suppose it depends on your prizes and what sort of bars you have around. No harm in giving it a shot.

As for a DBV, if you're willing to tinker and mess with it there's always a way to get a DBV in there, but I've never tried something like that so I can't honestly say how that would go, or if the struggle and investment would ultimately pay off in the long run.

One other option, though somewhat more clumsy, would be a standalone changer unit, akin to the little changers found on the old Antares machines. Changers like that are all over the used market here, and adapting one onto the side of your crane or even as a standalone support unit might open up more options to you.

Whatever direction you go, good luck!

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8 hours ago, ussb1 said:

It's easy to install a bill acceptor on any machine that has coin switches.

 

That's good to know, thanks! Would you by any chance know how much the average cost of getting one installed on your machine is?  The door with the coin mechs is made out of wood, so I already know that I'll have to get a hole cut in the door  for it to be installed, and there's a mobile arcade technician in my area that can probably come and connect it to the machine.  

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 5/9/2017 at 4:54 AM, superstorm said:

Yeah I agree that it'll take work and some time to find a business that will take it, but why will most businesses not take older machines?  It is still a nice machine and in great condition despite its age and I don't know if you've ever seen what this model looks like when its turned on or not, but the marquee has its own light show type of thing that draws attention, which is a plus.  And judging by your username, it seems like you probably know a lot about claw machines so I was wondering if you could tell me wether or not its possible to get a dollar bill acceptor installed on it?  When Smart Industries first made this model, the dollar bill acceptor came as an optional feature so most of them were built without one.  But I have been wondering if its possible to have one installed since Smart Industries was adding them to this exact model back in the day.  If not, I'll have to look even harder for a business to put it in.  

I'm not sure if you can add a DBV, I would contact the company and ask them. 

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