When I was young and living along the Carolina coast (USA) I would trade in pop bottles to get nickels to play the bingo games in the beach bars before they opened. The Golden Gate was my favorite. I grew older and the bingo games disappeared (Hey, that's gambling and not legal here!). A year or so ago I saw a bally bingo game for sale. I went to see it and figured all the pieces were there and took it home. It is in my garage and I am ready to begin restoration. I am guessing I have a lot to learn. By joining this forum I am beginning my education. I have a lot of questions.

Thanks for welcoming me.

Here is how it sits in the garage. Not a pretty sight; however, I have a vision to have it up and playing. So let the project begin!! I have (sandwiched in corrugated cardboard) the glass. Both the piece that covers the playing field and the back glass. They look in good condition. It appears the someone along the way put a new bottom on and fabricated a new end where the coin door is (I think a conversion made this game take quarters). I will begin this project with a few little steps:

1) To begin, I will clean out the cobwebs and dust out the machine. Would I just use a blower? I will read any and all threads on cleaning the electrical components. I hope this can be done without disassembling too much.
2) Then I noticed that the electrical cord is missing. I have seen where some are concerned with grounding the machine. I will place a cord on order from one of the parts suppliers.
3) I thought that in order to know what works and what doesn't, I should start with all fresh light bulbs. #47 and #96 (if I am reading the markings correctly) populate the machine now. Is there a map that tells me how many of what bulb goes where? I read that #44 is the preferred bulb from the manufacture; however, the #47s are cooler. Some of the #96s look like they have been painted red. Do I just count the bulbs of each shape and then begin swapping them out?
4) Before I go too far, I will address some of the external cosmetics. On line I have found some examples of the Laguna Beach machines. Some have more colors, some have less. My boxes are flaking and I want to stabilize/repaint to an authentic motif.

Well, that is where I am headed. Please give your advice and suggestions. This is my first time to this dance. I will add more images as I uncover and explore.

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Thanks for the suggestion (and instructions) for installing a power cord. I will have that at the ready in the morning. Schematics and manuals will be ordered.

This machine WILL be for home use. Your suggestions on the light bulbs (I will be looking for the 55's). I hadn't dug into the bulbs behind the bingo grid. I will look for those that have the 'greater pop'. (1458 or 1464's) Here is an image of the bulbs I called #96s. As you can see, some are painted (?) red. Will I need to paint bulbs red.. and if so, with what?

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Good inputs (I have started a chart to identify what SHOULD go where).

My thought was to replace all the lamps because I was unsure of what worked and what didn't. By replacing all the lamps, I wold be sure that it was NOT the lamp that was a problem. Remember I am new to this. I started looking at bulbs last night and found that some of them were real beggars to get out of the bayonet sockets. I saw that there is a tool that can help. WHat is it called and where can I find one?

Off to get an extension cord.

Moving the machine around will be a challenge. Suggestions?? I thought I saw a motor cycle lift under one machine.

Phew...

After much reading and searching for documents, I have decided that I need to assemble this machine to be sure I have all the parts. One example of my learning....I need more balls! I have five, the machine requires eight to work properly.

I have purchased casters to make moving the machine easier, began cleaning an area I can dedicate to this effort, printed the schematic (2 x 6 ft.) so I can read it, and obtained a copy of Pinball Troubleshooting by Russ Jensen, read and re-read (as suggested) Restoring Arcade and Pinball Games. I have made donations and contributed to keep sites up and running. I will need a source for HELP! I have a copy of the Bally Laguna Beach Operating Instructions and Parts Catalog.

Thank you for all your encouragement. I understand, as Jensen says, "The bingo games are by far the most complex of any electro-mechanical games ever devised."

...and so the adventure begins

Harbor Freight is having a sale this weekend. I have been muscling by Laguna Beach parts around and I am considering the 500 lb. hydraulic table cart. I have read the modifications to it thread and ...

Will it handle a bingo machine?

Spent the day cleaning my work spot in the garage. Lights are coming. Built a workbench for the project (a place to keep all the stuff together). Called Harbor Freight to put a hold on the lift (25% off tomorrow). I think that I have done all I can ... no more stalling. It is time to begin.

Loving it!

Got the lift..assembled the lift and pulled the machine out to where I can work on it. Opened the box of stuff that came with the machine and found two keys. Opened the coin door and the head. Wow.. spider webs. Carefully vacuumed the webs and dust from everywhere I could reach. Smiling, I took some pics and began gathering questions. I noticed that the coin door end of the machine has been rebuilt but not painted. I also see that the bottom of the box has been replaced. I was glad to see that some of the things still have labels. When I opened the coin door, I saw a box of Watman's Sampler. No candies. This must have been used as a coin box (?). I did find some more balls in the bottom. I have the required eight now. I haven't unwrapped the glass yet.

Here are some images of what I found so far:

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I don't know what a trough swith cover/plate looks like! Is it one of these?

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Since my coin box is an old cardboard candy box (Watman's Sampler) I am not worried about snagging anything. Are coin boxes available anywhere (Maybe someone has an extra laying around)? I don't even know what one looks like....

... you got to love the world wide web.

Looking to see and learn what I didn't know, I found these two images. I can understand the importance of a trough switch cover.

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Looks like the coin box is a "tin box" that fits so that the coins fall into it. It also needs to be the right size for easy removal and dumping.

The Laguna Beach I have seems to be a quarter machine. Does that mean that someone changed it? (5 plays for .25)

I do remember feeding a machine (as a youth) nickels. That is what the return on a pop bottle was.

Is there reason to revert? In looking for cards for the play field, 5 an 10 cents seems to be what is available. What is involved before I change all my quarters to dimes or nickels?

I took a close look at the machines on Bingo Row in York looking for legs like those on my machine (see post #34). I didn't see any. My machine seems to be in a cradle welded between the legs. Is this a oddity? This cradle seems in good shape and appears to have been nicely restored/painted. No signs of rust.

Working to get my machine out of the cradle to begin paint restoration of the coin door. Thanks to the lift, I think I can raise the machine out of the cradle just high enough to do the painting. Thanks to images on the web I think I know what it is suppose to look like.

I went to Coos' site originally wondering about artwork and saw a video on how he cleans the inside of a bingo machine. Wow! Sorbo Blue Wonder, Magic Sprap, and hot water. Really?

Is this a recomended process...and if so, what is an equivalent all purpose cleaner available in the US?