This is an exhaustive (to the best of our knowledge) list of how to
get serial numbers off of various games from various manufacturers and
various eras.
I found the serial number off of the old Bally Centaur game at PAPA 5. This, presumably, holds true for all Bally-specific games (ie: the ones that are pre-Williams/Bally). The serial number is located on the left- hand side of the headpiece (while facing the game), up near the top. The serial number I got off of Centaur was: ECE4682. From more recent data, it seems that Bally serial numbers of that era start with an E (perhaps for "Electronic") followed by two letters that identify the machine and then a serial number of three or four digits.
On Bally games from around 1986 t 1988 there are two numbers on the
game. One is a six digit number sticker near the FBI warning on the
back, and this is not the serial number. The real serial number
is a three or four digit number printed at the top of the right-hand
side of the head (while facing the game) and on a bar code sticker
mid-left in the cabinet (although this sticker sometimes falls off.)
I picked up at least one serial number from a Chicaco Coin "Sky
Rider" pin. The serial number was located on a small square piece of
white cardboard with miscellaneous game or copyright/patent
information, located in one of the corners of the playfield, under the
topglass. The serial number of this pin was: 3172.
Their serial numbers appear on the back of the cabinet; not very
accessible. The upshot is, there is also a manufacturing date on a
separate sticker back there. The only other place I know it is listed
is inside the coin door on the inner wall; also not very accessible.
Except, of course, at auctions.
Older Gottlieb games have their serial numbers stamped/etched into
the wood on the front of the machine. These can often be hard to read
as some have been either damaged or painted over.
On woodrails or pre 1960 games, check under the backglass, imprinted
in the wood. The serial number may also be imprinted in the wood on
the front of the cabinet.
The newer Gottlieb/Premier games have a sticker, located near the
left flipper, on the wall of the bottom arch, facing the upper-end of
the playfield. The serial numbers here have always been in-tact. I
guess operators munge the ones they find on the fronts of the
cabinets, but perhaps most of them don't know where Gottlieb/Premier
hides them. Unfortunately, G/P, to the best of our knowledge, do not
post anywhere on the game, the original manufacturing date.
Older Williams games are very much like older Gottlieb games. The
serial numbers are stamped/etched into the wood on the front of the
cabinet. This holds true for anything prior to say, oh, 1984/1985, or
around System 9. Occasionally you have to look hard for it, like the
Joust game at PAPA 5. I did find it eventually, serial number for
that game was: 624985.
Overall, you'll find these stickers on the fronts of the cabinets, on top of the head, on the back of the cabinet (along with an encoded manufacturing date), inside the coin box, and on EVERY major (and sometimes minor) board inside the game.
If you're on site, immediately check the front of the game. This is the easiest to find, and the easiest to destroy ... many are obliterated by various operators. If you can, get behind the game and copy the number down from there. If you can't do that, see if you can get a view of the top of the game, stand on a chair or something.
If you can get inside the backbox, write down all the sticker numbers you can find that are different. My High Speed game comes from the parts of many other High Speed games. All of these stickers/numbers are valid serial numbers. In the case of High Speed, all of those were High Speed game ID numbers. In the case of my Earthshaker, the Aux. Power Supply board came from a Police Force. With the game number intact, we now have valid serial numbers for both Earthshaker, and the presumably dead Police Force organ donor.
As I said, Williams/Bally likes to slap these stickers just about anywhere. I've seen 'em on display tubes (High Speed has five of these) and also on a 2" x 2" relay-board in my Earthshaker. If you own a game, it's well worth the extra investigation. It will also tell you a bit about your game's repair history.
Those are the majors ... I haven't really run into much nmore than the above. When you encounter an older game, I suggest you immediately scan the front of the game for a stamped/etched number. You might also scan the corners of the game, under the topglass for a cardboard card with the serial number on it. This appears to have been very common at one point in time.
As I run into different pins/manufacturers, I'll probably update this instruction list. If you find out stuff that's not listed in here, be sure to Email me and I'll add it in, along with your credits.
Where to look? Well, arcades are obviously the best place, little mini-arcades can be found at Miniature Golf courses, or general Family Fun Centers. Around here, Pizza Parlours and Bowling Alleys tend to have a decent set of games. Amusement parks (Disneyland) are also good places to go hunting. Auctions or pinball shows are also very good places to go looking. If you have a distributor who doesn't mind, swing by every month or so. The one down here keeps the games flowing so fast that every time I'm in, there are a whole new set of games to pull numbers off of. Liquor stores tend to have one game apiece (at least around here). Not heavily worth the effort, but if you're in the area, might as well, especially if the have a game we have little data on (ie: like a prototype Earthshaker or a Taxi where we're still collecting Marylin/Lola data).
All serial number finds should be mailed to the keeper of the lists, Sergio Johnson <dusty@charm.net>. You can 'CC' me if you like. You can use the WWW interface to submit numbers.
Happy Hunting!
Bill Ung <ung@filenet.com>