Help & Information

THINKING OF BUYING A BALLY BINGO

EBAY IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST WAY

The best advice given is do not buy a Bally bingo unless you are fully aware of what you are taking on.

Do your research first, lots of information here and within the Bally bingo community or at Phil Hooper's bingo.cdyn.com

We are aiming for the Bally bingo in Britain community to buy, sell or trade your Bally bingos on ballybingo.co.uk

Ebay bargain buys won't bring any value to these collectible games machines and you should never commit to buying a working Bally bingo game unless you have actually seen and played it yourself first.

Ebay "Private Listings" may allow anonymous false bids by the seller

If you buy an unseen Bally bingo machine and it is not working they can be expensive or even impossible to repair. On the other hand if you buy a restoration or project machine, though they can be time consuming and fulfilling and at least you know what you are letting yourself into.

If you want a bargain Bally bingo games machine to play then remember, "it's only a bargain if it actually works"

Please contact the Bally bingo community if you need any impartial advice

It will always be worth spending a few pounds on fuel to check the game out first before bidding

"If you do buy an unseen Bally bingo games machine off Ebay then you should probably expect it to be NOT fully working"

BALLY BINGO - GAME PRODUCTION

So, which game do you choose?

Bally first produced the bingos in 1951 and the features changed gradually over the next 25 years until they stopped production. The early machines did not have moving numbers but had features like Super Cards and "free numbers" that were awarded after depositing extra coins to gain higher odds etc. Sometimes there were a choice of numbers that had to be selected before firing the fourth or fifth ball. E.g. Palm Springs, Frolics and Palm Beach.

After a couple of years the vertical lines of numbers could be moved up or down one position to give more opportunities to get winning lines. Different machines were made that had 3, 4 and 5 moving lines. E.g. Variety, Gay Time and Big Time

The next thing was Magic Squares with the 4 numbers in each corner block revolving which allows numbers to be re-positioned by A, B, C and D buttons. E.g. Broadway, Night Club and Key West.

This was taken a stage further and not only were there 4 blocks of turning numbers but the bottom row of numbers also moved along making 5 buttons A, B, C, D and E (later another vertical row was added to make an F line) E.g. Show Time and Cypress Gardens (later Sun Valley and Beach Time.)

In 1958 the first of the magic screen games came along with an increase in the size of the head. The backglass went from 28 x 24 inches to 31x 25 inches. These games were very popular and are the most sought after of all the bingo's today. Some are more sought after than others due to various additional features that enhance the playability. E.g. Carnival Queen, Can Can, Golden Gate and Roller Derby to name but a few.

There were other games that appeared along the way that were one off's including Double Header, Miami Beach and Miss America (2 cards side by side with 5 horizontal moving lines) which is often argued to be Bally's most popular game because it was released four times as 57, 75, De Luxe and Supreme. There were also many 6 card games like Blue Chip and then came 20 hole machines that were never very popular here.

TOP 10 BUYING TIPS

STILL THINKING OF BUYING A BALLY BINGO?

Here's our 10 tips you should take before buying a Bally bingo games machine

1. Ask the seller if they would remove the playfield glass and allow you at least an hour to check the game out

2. Turn the power switch on underneath the machine and watch the game cycle - Replay counter should reset to zero

3. insert a coin and make sure the game cycles as it should - insert several coins to advance the odds / features

4. Shoot the balls onto the playfield, make sure all 5 balls are lifted correctly - check rebound springs, bumpers and lights

5. Cycle the game again but this time shoot the balls and place them in random win combinations (try 3,4,& 5 in a line)

6. Check winning replays are awarded correctly and then taken off as the red button is pressed to cycle the game

7. Press the ball light in each hole to make sure they all light up (you should hear the search relays chattering)

8. Shoot all 5 balls then push the yellow extra ball button to ensure E.B is working (you may not get all 3 but I would try)

9. Have a general look around, look for missing parts (open ended cables or taped up cables may give you a clue)

10. Tilt the game, restart the game, then have the seller refit the glass while you have a think if you want to buy that bingo

A decent seller would insist you check the game works before taking your hard earned cash!

If you want any further help or information feel free to contact us

Please note: These are our own personal opinions and may differ from others.

CONTACTS LOCAL TO YOU

REPAIRS, RESTORATIONS OR MACHINE SERVICES

Dave – East Midlands

Chris / David H – Southern England

If you would like to be listed then please send us your details

SELF HELP BINGO MAINTENANCE & REPAIR TUTORIALS

Looking to do your own restoration, maintenance or repairs

RICHARD GERLITZ - bingorepair.com

"How to repair Bally Bingo Pinball Games Machines "

WATCH DEMO

I have tried and tested these easy to follow tutorials which cover a wide range of Bally bingo details. Great videos by Richard and good value for money, easy to download and save. These get the Bally Bingos in Britain recommendation for sure.

EXTERNAL LINKS

Phil Hooper USA – @cdyn.com The best bingo site in the world from a great guy

Internet Pinball Database – Loads of pictures and history

Mr Pinball Classified USA – For sale and wanted ads worldwide

www.ballybingo.co.uk

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