C.O.C.A. Times

incorporates an arcade machine within the scale. The
golf theme in the lower portion of the scale gives the
patron the opportunity to gamble after weighing them-
selves, thus presenting the opportunity for them to get
their penny back and receive their weight for free .
When you step on the foot plate of the scale the dial
always moves, making this scale all the more interest-
ing. The numbers on the dial are hidden as a little red
sign remains raised to cover them while not in use.
When you drop your penny into the coin slot on top it
falls into a balanced ann where the weight of the coin
drops the sign down reading "weight shown here" so
you can view your weight. When finished, stepping off
the plate kicks your coin out and the red sign returns
back into place. Your coin then falls into the top section
of the golf mechanism tee'd up and ready for play. Fi-
nally, with a quick turn of the knob on the right side of
the play field you can hit your penny with a miniature
golf club trying to knock it through one of the four holes
on the left. If you're skilled enough to make it through
one of the four holes, your penny will fall down, ring
a bel I, and come out into the coin return at the bottom
of the door. If not it will fall into the lake and into the
operator's cash box inside.
Strangely enough, all three Fair Weigh Golf Scales
have surfaced in Michigan, begging the question, could
it be possible an operator had several of these on his
route? According to Red Meade, The Colonial Scale
Company only produced 11 of these golf scales. The
first scale to surface has serial #757, pulled originally
from a penny arcade in Michigan. The arcade owner had
stripped all the white paint off, added columns on the
sides, and stained the cabinet to match his arcade decor.
Christopher Steele purchased this machine in Chicago
around 1977 for his collection. The Bill Howard col-
lection contains the second golf scale found, with serial
#543 stamped on it. This scale originally turned up in
the Fox Theater in Detroit, selling to a couple different
collectors before Bill acquired the machine for $25,000
at the Red Meade auction in April 1999.
The latest golf scale to surface, #538, looks to have
spent some time in the Cincinnati, Ohio area as well.
While restoring the machine some city decals surfaced
underneath the top layer of paint from 1949, 1956,
1958, and 1959. Scale collector and dealer Bill Bern-
ing turned up a non-golf version of the Colonial scale
in Philadelphia, also uncommon; this scale fortunately
had all the parts needed to complete the golf scale re-
cently acquired.
Now that three Fair Weigh Golf Scales have made
their way to the surface, one must ask-could there be
'fore'?
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