Sportsman Payout Pinball

Jennings 1936

Jennings Sportsman Payout Pinball

The Jennings Sportsman is a payout pinball. The gambler puts in a nickel, shoots five balls and may get them placed in the correct holes. If a winner is indicated, the player pulls the handle down and the pinball machine pays out nickels in the tray underneath.

This game has beautiful castings and a lot of bright work that needs to be buffed and shined. The payout mechanism is complicated and well engineered to prevent the payout of coins not won. It has some idiosyncrasies and is difficult to adjust. Once adjusted it is reliable.

I restored two of these, one for a client. The second unrestored game was for payment and I restored it as well. This transaction taught me not to accept games in exchange for restoration services.