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    Leisure & Allied Industries "Skill Tester" (Type 2)

    Arcade Claw Machine Leisure & Allied Redemption Skilltester
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    No, you're not seeing double. My last machine restoration post was also about an LAI Skill Tester. ​​It's not often I get a double-up of machines, but while I was in the throes of finishing up repairs to the first LAI Skill Tester, I saw an ad on Facebook from someone who was giving another one away. Sweet! These machines aren't worth much, and there don't seem to be many people who have the desire or ability to fix them. But I'm a sucker for retro technology, so it's right up my alley! 
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    CollectFest 2025

    Collectfest Demolition Man Events Fish Tales Getaway Johnny Mnemonic Judge Dredd Super Mario Bros Tee'd Off Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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    Another pop culture show? You bet! This one was a big one. CollectFest is a new show for all things collectable, whether it be collectable cards (Pokemon, Magic, etc.), comics, action figures, coins, stamps, video games, or anything in between. It's exciting whenever a new collectables show appears as it shows how much demand there is for these pop culture events around Australia. CollectFest had done shows in Brisbane and Melbourne, so Fiona and I put out hands up to contribute some pinball machines to the Sydney event in Darling Harbour to round-out their Experience offerings. We were excited about this because the CollectFest team were really keen on the retro vibe of an arcade, which is exactly what we wanted to give to patrons of the show.
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    Collector Con 2025

    Collector Con Events Getaway Judge Dredd Maverick
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    ​A couple of weeks ago, Fiona and I attended     Collector Con in Minto. This is another great local collecting and pop culture convention run in the local area. While we like doing some of the bigger shows such as Collectfest and Pinfest, we also enjoy spreading the joy of pinball in our local area at smaller events, so we were happy to contribute three machines for patrons of Collector Con to enjoy.
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    Australian Collectables Expo 2025

    Australian Collectables Expo Events Johnny Mnemonic Super Mario Bros Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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    ​I'm writing this after a monster of a Saturday. I just got up after a 12 hour sleep and I still feel tired! I'm smashed because Fiona and I spent yesterday at the     Australian Collectables Expo (also known as the Campbelltown Card Show), and we spent the couple of days prior to that getting ready for it. Only a week after our appearance at TCXPO, we decided to contribute to this show because it was local (only ten minutes away from home!) and because the van was already half-loaded with the machines and parts from the last show, so loading up wouldn't be too difficult! And, of course, it helps us in our mission to spread "pinball to the people". ​
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    TCXPO (Trading Card Expo) 2025

    Events Eye Of The Tiger Super Mario Bros Tcxpo Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
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    Trading cards? What's that got to do with pinball? Well, not much. However, I like to take any opportunity I can to spread the joy of pinball around. So whenever a pinball or pop culture-related expo comes around, I like to offer my services as a "Pinball Advocate" and bring some machines for the public to experience for the first time, or enjoy for the thousandth time, whatever the case may be. TCXPO is the latest venture of Amy from Collector Con, who organises several pop culture events throughout the year. It was on for the first time on Sunday, and it's awesome to be a part of an inaugural show!
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    Leisure & Allied Industries "Skill Tester" (Type 1)

    Arcade Claw Machine Leisure & Allied Redemption Skilltester
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    Normally I start each blog entry with an image of the flyer for the game I'm going to be working on. Unfortunately, Leisure & Allied Industries (LAI) produced very few flyers for their games, particularly the simpler redemption games. However, there are few games that were as ubiquitous in Australian arcades as the classic skill tester claw machine by LAI. This particular example was one of the cabinets from our container-of-games pickup several years ago, and it was basically in working condition when I got it. However, it had never had a proper clean, and a few small issues were starting to appear, so it was time to give this machine a good going-over.