Welcome to this, my second guide on the subject of Amusement Arcade coin or penny pushers. I have heard them called many things in my time - penny pushers - coin pushers - sliders - penny falls - shovers - coin cascades - slot machines, to name the most common. In the trade they are simply known as pushers, although the trade prefer them to be referred to as Penny Falls. Before you read any further it would be advisable to read my first guide "A GUIDE TO BUYING A REAL COIN OR PENNY PUSHER" first before reading on, (if you have not already done so) as this is a follow-up. That way it will all make more sense. Although listed under guides this is more an informative look at pushers for those, like myself, wanting to gain more knowledge in general about these particular types of machines. The pictures which you see here are all of my machines.
These machines interest me vastly, and have done since I was a very young age. It was always my ambition that when I grew up I wanted to own my own arcade. Sadly this never materialised, but I am happy to say that I have the next best thing - my own private arcade within my own property.
Since printing my last guide I now have more machines than I did then and have found out even more about them. I now have FOURTEEN different pushers in my private collection, consisting of seven single player machines, one table top / wall mounted single player pusher totally built by myself from scratch, four 2-player machines (three of which are wall models and the other is a back-to-back), one 3-player wall machine, and my latest acquisition a 6-player hexagonal machine which I am presently working on and restoring at the moment.
What is the fascination about them? I have often asked myself this question. Is it the fact that you can follow 'your' coin from the moment you put it in the slot and watch exactly what it does? Is it all that money piled up on the playdecks? Is it the lit up playdecks and fancy artwork? Is it the sound attract mode that some more modern machines have fitted to them? Is it just the fact that it is a pusher? Or is it all those coins hanging rather precariously over the ledges just waiting to fall when the next coin gets inserted???!!! I don't know! - perhaps a combination of all of the above!
Amusement arcades are obviously on a lot of people's minds when booking their holidays. Research shows it is the 2nd top reason why people choose seaside holidays. The top reason being Funfairs! The pushers can be responsible for up to 50% of a seaside amusement arcade's revenue. The pushers also attract a mixed age group. These machines are aimed more at families - grown-ups like them and so do the kids. Kids don't mind the fact that they have put a 1 of two's in a machine and got 10p back in return. It is the fact that they have won that 10p out of the machine by themselves which means a lot more to them! Pushers are the backbone of a seaside amusement arcade's business. On a good day they are capable of taking in 100's of pounds. Unfortunately British seaside holidays are not as common now as in years gone by - early to mid 70's being the heyday. Cheap foreign holidays where good weather is almost guaranteed, and home gaming consoles being the main contenders to blame!
After writing my first guide I received many e'mails from people interested in the machines. I am pleased that I am not alone in my fascination and now hobby of collecting these machines! I used to think that I was different to everybody else because I was so interested in them. Happily and much to my relief I am beginning to realise this is not the case! When I was a youngster I used to go to the local arcades and head straight for the pushers. My friends would soon wander off in different directions finding other machines more interesting to them. I've been told that it is more interesting watching paint dry than playing or watching these machines! Not for me though, I'd carefully examine all the playdecks of the pushers before finding one which I thought was most likely to pay out! As a youngster I didn't always get it right and often lost or should I say seldom kept what I won, and played it back in the hope of winning more!!! Nowadays, some 30 years later I carefully study a machine before I play it and seldom lose. My biggest days takings on these machines was at the Links Market in Kirkcaldy (a large annual Funfair
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