C.O.C.A. Times

larger than the traditional ten cent Lu Cats.
Bob did some checking and discovered that
no five cent versions where known to exist.
So what I presented was a rare version that
was not a recast. But this Lu Cat was still
destined to be sold at Atlantic City because I
was not interested in a complety repainted Lu
Cat without spots, even if otherwise original.
And it had to be repainted, as the paint condi-
tion was almost perfect.
So I arrived at Atlantic City and put my Lu
Cat out at the discount price as discussed in
Ottawa. Just as I put it out, an old friend from
my mechanical bank days, the grey fox him-
self, Donal Markey, appeared. Now the grey
fox can spot repaint or repair on metal faster
than a tramp can spot a bean. I asked him to
look at my Lu Cat for any signs of repaint on
any part of the cat. He proceeded to take out
his equipment, perform his autopsy, and turn
and say "what repaint, this paint has never
been touched. every inch is original". The Lu
Cat, pictured below, quickly went under the
table while I called Gus from Atlantic City to
tell him that I had bought the "oddball" Lu
Cat.
When I later confessed the true story to the
Ottawa Flash, he laughed, shook his head
and asked if I wanted to trade my Lu Cat for
his. When I declined, he mumbled something
about "Willie the Crumb," his nickname for
me.
The Lu Cat is, in my opinion, one of the
most desirable of trade stimulators, combin-
ing a rare mix of folk, gambling and vending.
The additional rarity of the solid paint, along
with the casting and coinage variation, as
well as its wonderful look, makes this ma-
chine a favorite of my collection.
it, or a hole in the casting to insert the pole.
And it operated on a nickel. He considered
it a recast and priced it to me accordingly.
I suggested he leave it with me a few days
while I gave it some thought. If I turned out
not to be interested, my booth at the Atlantic
City Antique Show was just around the cor-
ner. Neither of us were much interested in
recast or repainted machines. I also suggest-
ed he let me take his Tiffany window piece so
that the condition and repair "guru", the late
Bob Legan, could weave his magic and get it
going for sale at Atlantic City.
What awaited me at Bob's home in Mentor,
Ohio, a few nights later was the old "good
news, bad news". First, poor Gus' window
display turned out to be an unrepairable fake.
Some dirt bag had misappropriated an old
Tiffany label onto a framed contraption and
dumped it at an antique mall for some unsus-
pecting victim. To make things worse, the
internal mechanism was shot. After getting
the news Tom told me to move it at Atlantic
City "as is". It did not sell there, causing Gus
to take it and return it to the antique mall, the
scene of the crime.
What I learned about the "oddball" Lu Cat
was good news. The hole at the head of the
cat instead of a lable turned out to be a dif-
ferent style that allowed the operator to know
that there was sufficient paper for the next
play, as opposed to having the machine "run
out" in front of a frustrated player after he
inserted his coin. And we know how gam-
blers do not enjoy being frustrated. It should
be noted that (don't let the innocent gumball
or cat fool you), Lu Cat is, first and foremost
a gambling machine. Also, the "oddball" was
no recast, because the casting was slightly
ft:MA?!:~
SLOT MACHINES
~
♦
VIDEO POKER MACHINES
ANTIQUE SLOTS
+STANDS
TRADE STIMULA TORS
JUKEBOXES
Coin-Operations
Paul Hindin
GAIIBLBltS
GBNBIIAL
S'N>RB SLOTS
3712 W. Scenic Ave.
1\.-lcquon. WI 53092
262-242-3131 or 414-559-9681
E-mail : Bcd,·ibr8or@aol.com
We buy, sell, and trade.
GUM & PEANUT MACHINES
ARCADE MACHINES
800 South Main Street. Las Vegas, Nevada 89101
(800) 322-CHIP • (702) 382-9903 • Fax (702) 366-0329
www.gamblersgeneralstore.com
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