Mechanical Memories Magazine

On returning home, I switched the machine on and the colourful round disc of red,
blue and green started to revolve in a clockwise direction. The orange and white arrow
in the centre blends in nicely, and when lit up, Rondo looked stunning.
The game play is identical to La Ronde - stop the arrow on any number to win,
but there is also an added extra to this machine. There is an orange coloured lamp
situated just below the marked l/- win (which flashes on and off). If the arrow is
successfully stopped on this middle position you win a shilling (twelve coins), but if
the orange lamp stays lit, the machine pays out a special prize token instead of the
twelve coins. Back in the days when Rondo was operated in the arcades, this token
would have been valued at around five shillings, and could be exchanged at the
change desk for a prize, a selection of which would be on display.
Looking inside my Rondo, the first thing I noticed was a 56 pin set selector unit,
which revolves around the pins very slowly. In fact, it takes a full two minutes for the
selector to complete a full cycle. This is very unusual for a Jamiesons 1960s electro-
Internal view of Rondo, showing the 56 pin set selector bottom left.
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