Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

General vintage slot machine related topics.
pennymachines
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by pennymachines »

Another Sapphire bandit, currently on ebay France:
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Sapphire2.jpg
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Sapphire4.jpg
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brigham
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by brigham »

Re-badged Aristocrat?
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badpenny
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by badpenny »

I like those, but quite a trek to Franceland.
£778.50 is probably acceptable in these crazy pox ridden times, but it's a lot of handbag for what appears to be an Arcadian with a different door to this curmudgeonly old git.

BP
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by pennymachines »

brigham wrote: Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:58 pm Re-badged Aristocrat?
I don't think so. These seem to be a unique product of Apex Amusement Co. Pty. Ltd.
pennymachines wrote:Trading from the 1940s to 1960 and based in Balmian, above Sydney, NSW, the company sold cloned or revamped versions of Mills' Hi Top, under the Apex name, before Ray Smith developed their distinctive 'Sapphire' model which was made in three and four reel versions.
Pokies From Down Under
treefrog wrote: Mon Aug 11, 2014 9:15 pm The overall size is actually quite small, smaller than an Aristocrat Clubmaster.

I have hunted everywhere and no maker's stamps anywhere, just serial numbers. Does not look like Jubilee in origin, closer to a Mills, but it not a Mills. I believe this has been made by the manufacturer. The reels are very unusual, they are solid tin.
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brigham
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by brigham »

Looks like I've been too long in the Retail Motor Industry to take things at face value...
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by magicz »

Hi,
I don't know if this is the same one, but does anyone know what they are and what they're worth and if it's worth getting fixed up?
Thanks.
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Re: Sapphire (Apex Amusements) bandit identified

Post by pennymachines »

:WELCOME: magicz,
Whether it's worth fixing up depends upon how much you like it. If you just wish to realize its cash value, I think you'd be best advised to sell as is, because the time and cost of restoring probably won't be recouped and, if done badly, could devalue it. Does it play and pay out correctly?

I think these four pages contain more about these machines than you will find anywhere else. In other words, it's a little known machine and its appeal is probably limited to a few bandit collectors looking for something different. You'd expect Australians to be most keen but, because of their legal restrictions on gambling machine ownership, there isn't a strong market for them there.

I'm amazed how many variants of the Sapphire there are. Yours is similar to, but not quite the same as, the first one posted to this topic.
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