Rocket
Bally, 1933I stumbled across a 1933 Bally Rocket payout pinball in an antique shop today! Game is original, unrestored and in good cosmetic shape. The clerk knew nothing about the working condition of the game, although it is probably safe to assume it would need major TLC to operate properly. The seller is asking $750. Does anyone have any idea of what the actual value for this game would be? Any help is appreciated! Thanks.
Jim
Hi Jim,
These days they range for a low of $500 and a high of $1000 depending on condition, and finding the customer.
Stunning Game too!
Make sure all the parts are there, before you make any offers.....Not hard to fix...tough to find parts
Oldpinguy,
Thanks for the reply! I will stop by the antique shop and give the game a closer look. The totalizer on the playfield looks like the front end of a 1933/34 Ford which caught my attention (I've got a '34 Ford). The game would look cool sitting near the car in the Hot Rod Grille garage/gameroom!
Jim
As Oldpinguy said, make sure it's complete. Especially the payout mechanism. There needs to be a pyout tube that coins get fed into. It must pay out when a win is made. carefully study the bottom of the payout tube and follow the connecting rod/lever an make sure it can move when appropriate to drop out a load of nickels.
Thanks for the great advice. I'll closely examine the mech before making any offer. I once owned a Buckley Diamond Mine payout pinball, but this Bally appears to be quite different in the way it operates. I haven't looked inside and am not sure if the shop even has the keys. I can only hope that the dry-cell batteries have been removed to prevent corrosion! I'll let you guys know what I find.
Jim
Wow, $150 in 1933. They were expensive toys even back then...Super cool looking though!
Found a calculator $150 in 1933 is just over $2700 today.
Well, I got back by the antique shop today and got to talk with the game's owner.
Good news: game appears complete with all payout equipment, coin mech, tilt mech, etc. Batteries were removed many years ago (no battery acid leakage). Overall a decent, complete, unrestored, non-working example of a rare game.
Bad news: game needs complete cosmetic restoration due to following: all metal trim on sides of cabinet is rusty, shooter, coin slide, etc needs replating. Glass has deep scratches. Chrome rails and all hardware on playfield shows some rust. Cabinet paint is worn, chipped, and has yellow paint spatter/overspray on left side. Looks like game may have spent some time in a damp environment due to evidence of rust on plated metal. Game is missing a couple of the small "mushroom" posts on the playfield. Game has original locks on all three doors but they have been disabled by removal of lock tabs. No keys or tabs for the original locks.
Really bad news: owner adjusted price from $750 to $700 FIRM. Said that he saw a YouTube video of a guy in Chicago that restores similar vintage games and sells them for $5K. I offered a bid of $500 that I considered fair due to the anticipated cost of restoration, but he declined. I left my phone number and told him the offer was there if he changed his mind later. He stated that he thought about listing on eBay but didn't want to crate the game for shipping.
Jim
He saw the Vintage Coin Op video that game was so cherry it wasn't funny.
I think 500 was a reasonable offer
--Jeff
Thanks for the comments guys. I appreciate all of the knowledge and help available on this site. I have received a couple of PM's and have forwarded the seller's contact info to them, so the old game may still get a new lease on life with someone who has deeper pockets.
Jim
Bally Blue Ribbon is a similar game, you can find a recent restore thread here:
https://www.maaca.org/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=19694
Beautiful looking game!
Quoted from Hot_Rod_Grille:Well, I got back by the antique shop today and got to talk with the game's owner.
Good news: game appears complete with all payout equipment, coin mech, tilt mech, etc. Batteries were removed many years ago (no battery acid leakage). Overall a decent, complete, unrestored, non-working example of a rare game.
Bad news: game needs complete cosmetic restoration due to following: all metal trim on sides of cabinet is rusty, shooter, coin slide, etc needs replating. Glass has deep scratches. Chrome rails and all hardware on playfield shows some rust. Cabinet paint is worn, chipped, and has yellow paint spatter/overspray on left side. Looks like game may have spent some time in a damp environment due to evidence of rust on plated metal. Game is missing a couple of the small "mushroom" posts on the playfield. Game has original locks on all three doors but they have been disabled by removal of lock tabs. No keys or tabs for the original locks.
Really bad news: owner adjusted price from $750 to $700 FIRM. Said that he saw a YouTube video of a guy in Chicago that restores similar vintage games and sells them for $5K. I offered a bid of $500 that I considered fair due to the anticipated cost of restoration, but he declined. I left my phone number and told him the offer was there if he changed his mind later. He stated that he thought about listing on eBay but didn't want to crate the game for shipping.
Jim
Jim,
The guy in Chicago is likely Mike Hasanov/Vintage Coin Op:
I am friends with him. He is a world class restorer of antique coinops and if you go to his channel you will see some absolutely jaw dropping restorations.
I had looked to get a Rocket at one time, and he sells them as fast as he can restore them. There's a waiting list for this very desirable title.
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