Bergmann Imperator - Fair Price

[brook222]

Can anyone give me an idea of a fair price to pay for a tidy almost working Bergmann Imperator that I have been offered ? It was working before storage so may be something minor. Many thanks

[clubconsoles]

Please forgive my ignorance, but what the hell is a "Bergman Imperator"??

[jonesthegarage]

[badpenny]

Almost working? ...... what have they done to it?

I expect the story started 6 years ago Clicky

Those were the days when we gave machines away for free.

[slotalot]

Those were the days when we gave machines away for free.

It's all your fault.................

[moonriver]

There's that deja vu feeling.

[treefrog]

I wonder if it is the same machine?

Back to the original question - I suspect no-one will be able to give a guide on price as very few of these machines I suspect made it to the UK. Obviously more popular in Germany and I've seen then on the German ebay. Not my cup of tea due to the electronics and being floor standing, but they look the part. If not the same machine shown in the links above which was restored by one of the members on the site, you will need to be confident with electrics. I would not put a high price on a non-working one, so my 10c worth without seeing a picture, less than £200, probably way less. The above restored one was given away for nothing before restoration.....so that gives you an idea.

[moonriver]

Bergman Imperator guide price (good condition and working) £400.

[jonesthegarage]

calling Slotalot, calling Slotalot,

had a go at bringing the Imperator back to life this afternoon with some limited success - it was playing and paying out correctly but then went off again, this has been accompanied by much contact cleaner and words my mother thinks I don't use

coin is getting this far and initiating cycle (but lights are intermittent), but coin not being released by the bit to it's right

I can do the same by depressing the left of this row of contacts and it will move all those red cams through the cycle but again lights are intermittent

and in either of these events on more occasions than not, neither the ball selectors nor these other bits are moving

[slotalot]

OPPS!!
I been some time since I worked on the Imporator but I do remember that the multi-pin plugs and sockets were suffering from old age, typical German thing were the metal starts to deteriorate. I did patch them up as much as was possible to get the machine running again, maybe it is time they were changed for modern ones
Have you tried Jer Jiggling them to see what happens?? see if things get better or worse, at least you will know then that you are on the right track.

[badpenny]

This machine is sure getting around a bit since I released it from my back garden.
Still whatever state it's in now it's still a thousand times better than when I had it

I'd guess it's time to get the meter out.
If you've checked fuses /cleaned contacts and using an insulated screwdriver to manually short circuit reed switches then I guess it's time to start chasing the sparks to see where they're getting confused. Like pinballs the internal plugs are crucial.

Intermittent activity definitely suggests dry contacts.

Good luck

BP

Edited once times to allow for fat finger trypinmg - also I noticed S Man had beaten me to it and wanted to check I wasn't contradicting him.

[jonesthegarage]

It's up and running again - just pays out 5 coins instead of 10.



I have got it on Ebay but it's a love/hate thing - the more I play with it the more I like it.

[moonriver]

If it had been a bedpost there would have been a lot of notches on it by now

[badpenny]

I have got it on Ebay but it's a love/hate thing - the more I play with it the more I like it.

I can't find it on eBay, did it sell immediately or have you described it as ... Kipper boxes ... or ...ex compost heap?

[jonesthegarage]

I am currently experimenting with a cunning plan which has not had any listings removed for about 6 weeks. Said plan means slightly restricted audience as it avoids certain key words! But has directly and indirectly lead to sale of 9 machines.

Try "art Deco style German arcade " as a search

[badpenny]

I am stupid, I was trying Bergman and Imperator in "slot machines".

Good luck!

[jonesthegarage]

Yup, I weighed up the chances of someone randomly searching Bergmann Imperator on Ebay any-time in the next thousand years and decided against using it in the listing, and it the weirdest thing because to me it cries out "Art Deco" styling even though it is from 1954.

[badpenny]

Quite right too, I was thinking maybe its name might have been in the description.
I'm from 1954 and am probably more Fart Deco.

[glittering-prize67]

These old mains powered German machines often use a live chassis or are grounded through caps. Even if you replace all these, like I did, if you have the modern trips it will keep tripping your consumer unit. These are not compatible with modern stuff. If you have the old fuses or a six inch nail jammed over the terminals then you will be OK.