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Picked this little guy up a couple months ago and finished restoring last week. My first pure mechanical trade stimulator/slot. I admittedly knew very little in regards to machines of this era (and still do). Other than the fact that I wanted to own some. I love the history of coin op in general and trade stimulators are a huge part of that.
This was a $100 buy in what was relayed as non-working condition. "Tavern" is a relatively rare trade stimulator that started demanding interest in the 80's-90's. As such there have been forgeries. Thankfully I did my homework before hand and now own an authentic example. Many Groetchen trade stimulators accept all denominations of American coins (1,5,10,25). "Tavern" accepts only nickels. The machine rewards a gumball or a piece of 'ball gum' as was said in the early twentieth century, upon pulling the arm and cycling the reels. This was intended to help garner the attention of customers and more importantly skirt the laws against gambling. Although missing on my machine, the 'Awards Card', mounted to the front of the machine would display winning combinations and there associated payouts. "Tavern" was unique in that its reels depicted beer steins, bottled beers, and whiskey instead of cigarettes and fruits. Upon playing a winning combination you would call over an attendant as this was a deferred payout trade stimulator/slot. They would first look for a played nickel in the coin window on the side of the machine. Verifying it was indeed 5 cents and not a washer/slug. Then check your winning combination against the 'Awards Card' and payout the type/number of drinks won. This is where the term 'Trade' in 'Trade Stimulator' plays a role. In reality many folks who were playing these machines were indeed seeking a payout of cash upon winning. Instead of just being rewarded with a free beer or whiskey the player would be offered either a drink or cash payout. There would be a monetary value associated with each winning combination as is seen with slots of the modern era. The payout was deemed a trade for the drink he/she had one. The attendant would then clear the coin window by pushing a button on the back door of the machine to insure that no future customer could claim a previous winning combination and nickel played. All this to disguise the fact that gambling was indeed taking place inside of a bar, saloon, drug store, or cigar shop.
This was a $100 buy in what was relayed as non-working condition. "Tavern" is a relatively rare trade stimulator that started demanding interest in the 80's-90's. As such there have been forgeries. Thankfully I did my homework before hand and now own an authentic example. Many Groetchen trade stimulators accept all denominations of American coins (1,5,10,25). "Tavern" accepts only nickels. The machine rewards a gumball or a piece of 'ball gum' as was said in the early twentieth century, upon pulling the arm and cycling the reels. This was intended to help garner the attention of customers and more importantly skirt the laws against gambling. Although missing on my machine, the 'Awards Card', mounted to the front of the machine would display winning combinations and there associated payouts. "Tavern" was unique in that its reels depicted beer steins, bottled beers, and whiskey instead of cigarettes and fruits. Upon playing a winning combination you would call over an attendant as this was a deferred payout trade stimulator/slot. They would first look for a played nickel in the coin window on the side of the machine. Verifying it was indeed 5 cents and not a washer/slug. Then check your winning combination against the 'Awards Card' and payout the type/number of drinks won. This is where the term 'Trade' in 'Trade Stimulator' plays a role. In reality many folks who were playing these machines were indeed seeking a payout of cash upon winning. Instead of just being rewarded with a free beer or whiskey the player would be offered either a drink or cash payout. There would be a monetary value associated with each winning combination as is seen with slots of the modern era. The payout was deemed a trade for the drink he/she had one. The attendant would then clear the coin window by pushing a button on the back door of the machine to insure that no future customer could claim a previous winning combination and nickel played. All this to disguise the fact that gambling was indeed taking place inside of a bar, saloon, drug store, or cigar shop.