My one and only experience with putting a Nickelodeon out on location
was in 1971 when I placed by Seeburg K (art glass removed and with a
make shift quarter slot) in a recreation room in a Senior Citizens
trailer park on the beach front in Ventura California. Every Monday
morning I would collect between $30-50.00 in quarters and change rolls.
One Monday morning I walked in to find it on, not rewinding, not playing,
just all the lights on and the motor humming. Upon opening the cabinet,
I found that the shifter arm has sheared right through the drive shaft;
sort of acting as a grotesque lathe. I asked the management why they
hadn't called me or at least unplugged it, they replied "we thought it
was rewinding" and I replied "it's a Seeburg - it doesn't take the
entire weekend to rewind a ten tune roll". I then retired it from
being on location, replaced the shaft and made sure that there was
plenty of grease on the shifter arm opening, plus used 0000 steel wool
to make sure no invisible spurs existed on the metal edge. I never put
another machine out on location then and today I wouldn't dare.
Cheers,
S.K. Goodman
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