Automatic Age

Issue: 1928 September

10
T h e A u t o m a t i c A ge
to let go. “ Them days are gone fo r­
ever.”
In all the country only one bunch,
Iowa, with eight members, have re­
mained with the old organization.
Every one o f the others have affil­
iated wi'.h the new one. But I am
going to Iowa to give the operators
first hand information and let them
take the'.r choice after hearing both
sides.
And if ever the Iowa operators
heard a vitriolic talk, they will hear
one then. I intend to lay everything
out open that has been going on. I
hereby guarantee to pay the ex­
penses o f every operator who goes
there if he says he is not thoroughly
satisfied with the show. Then we
will eee what happens out where the
tall corn grows.
ATTENTION
M ANUFACTURERS
The follow ing letter was received
from Mr. E. J. Breyere, A cting Chief
o f Specialties Division, Department
o f Commerce:
A t the present time, coin operat­
ed machines are classified in the o f­
ficial export statistics o f the United
States under the very general item
No. 9999, entitled, “ All Other A rti­
cles.” This classification is too gen­
eral to estimate the growing volume
o f the exports o f coin-operated ma­
chines.
In .order to establish a separate
classification, the administration o f
our statistical service makes it nec­
essary that a comm odity group given
a separate showing must run into a
volume o f from one to two hundred
thousand dollars a year
On September 20, 1928, we will
write some seventy American manu­
facturers o f coin operated equip­
ment requesting, not later than No-
vecber 1, 1928, a statement from
© International Arcade Museum
them indicating the total declared
value o f their exports o f coin oper­
ated machines fo r the calendar year
1927
A U T O M A T IC AGE is anxious to
have every manufacturer o f coin­
operated machines cooperate with
the Department o f Commerce in this
commendable undertaking to further
aid our industry. The need fo r such
a classification is great and can only
be obtained with the support o f ev­
ery manufacturer in the industry.
Swamped With Orders
Mr. Gottlieb o f D. Gottlieb & Co.
reports that the operators are well
pleased with their Husky Grip Gauge
and that they have been swamped
with orders which has placed them
about thirty days behind in deliv­
eries. They have moved into new
and larger quarters and have in­
stalled additional equipment in order
to increase their production.
The new improved model embody­
ing all the present features and
weighing ten pounds less will be
ready fo r delivery in about ten days.
Legal News
The Exhibit Supply Company has
taken and is taking the necessary
legal action to prevent the sale o f
cards not manufactured by it through
Exhibit machines and to recover
profits and damages from operators
who have thus passed off such cards
upon the public. Suits will be vig­
orously prosecuted against all such
infringers o f their rights. Several
suits have already been filed.
An interesting notice to the oper­
ators o f card vendors is the an­
nouncement that Exhibit is releas­
ing two new series o f thirds fo r Ideal
card vendors fo r September. They
are “ Movie Desperadoes,” and the
“ Round-Up Riders.”
http://www.arcade-museum.com/
T he
A u t o m a t ic
A ge
13
COLLECTING, WEEDING A N D
EXPAN D IN G
T he Fourth Article o f a Series
By OD IN TH O M A S
My last article was on the subject
o f installing a new route. It left off
with the new machines placed in lo­
cations and the route cards arranged
in order fo r the most efficient cover­
ing o f the route.
The most common form o f col­
lecting and servicing is to go around
on the route regularly and visit ev­
ery machine every two weeks or so,
not knowing in advance whether it
is going to need servicing or not.
This is a very inefficient system and
is a great waster o f time. There is
a better way o f doing it.
Let us assume fo r sake o f illus­
tration that we have a machine with
a capacity o f four dollars in pennies
when completely empty. Obviously
the most economical way to service
it would be to go around to it just
before it is completely empty. Fill­
ing it up when only a dollar or two
has been taken in is a waste o f ser­
vice time because under such a plan
you would have to spend your time
servicing it two or three times to
take in the fou r dollars which is its
capacity. How, therefore, can we
systematize things so we shall get to
each machine when it is just about
empty?
W e have started a system o f a
record card fo r each machine as ex­
plained in my form er articles. Let
us keep these cards in mind.
Make a rule to visit a newly placed
machine let us say ten days after it
is set out. Make your collection, fill
the machine and see that it is work­
ing properly. Suppose that our col­
lection fo r the ten days is two dol­
lars gross. The capacity o f the ma-
© International Arcade Museum
Odin Thomas
chine, as we have stated before, is
four dollars. The machine has taken
in an average o f twenty cents a day.
Therefore, at that rate, it would be
completely empty in twenty days.
We may therefore call this particu­
lar mach'ne a twenty-day machine.
It is now reasonable to assume that
if we come back in twenty days, our
machine should be almost empty
again.
Remember to leave the self-ad­
dressed stamped postal with the mer­
chant so that he may advise you if
the machine empties before the es­
timated time. This postal was de­
scribed in my August article.
Now take your record cax-d fo r
the particular machine that you have
just visited and mark on the top of
the card, 20-D AY M ACH IN E.
Go to your stationer and get a
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