These things are like vending machines that give you nothing for your money. Except once-and-a-while the machine malfunctions and spits out a little money.

I used to play these mnachines too. They have two basic "big" $150 payouts- the fruit bonus and cherry bonus. These do not hit very often- maybe once a day if the machine takes in $500 It will probably payout one $150 prize. You can only put money in these machines- no winning's come out. If you want a payout you must get a bartender to look at the machine and pay you. Needless to say most people who stick money in keep playing to they either lose it all or hit a $150 prize. You can easily lose a $100 in hour. The bad thing about these machines is the working person has a few beers and loses their judgement and money. I personaly have lost $150-$200 in a couple of hours several times- I won't go to bars anymore. I seen one young man lose his whole paycheck in an evening at this same bar a few years ago and he called his wife for more money so he could try to get his money back. They got in a bad fight and ended up dumping her paycheck into it. They hit the $150"big one"and stuck that back in and left broke.......................

Think its time to get in contact with Rock Co and Winnebago Co ,get some of these bad boys out of the bars and i know where to look ..

I play these machines when I am out. They are fun, and I have won more from the bars, than I have ever won in a casino, and I spent ALOT less money on the bar machines. If people choose to gamble that is their right. No one is forcing anyone to do it. Id they were made legal, they would pay out MUCH less, because Uncle Sam would have to get his cut first.

its not illegal to have the machines is illegal for them to pay out

I saw a guy sit at a Cherrymaster in Milton and put $5 bills into it all night long several years back. This was going on when I got there about 7pm and went on until after midnight. He only stopped to go to the bar and get "change" and then came right back to playing again. This would indeed seem in line with an 80% payout and a paycheck-sized stake.

If you didn't have a chance to win a substantial amount of money, you wouldn't have people spending that much on them. These machines are probably returning a much higher percentage to the player than any legal gambling, so the crime that they are committing is stealing less from the players than the state or the native gaming establishments.

There is something revealing about the fact that the people who wanted to legalize the machines couldn't understand the question.

I have not been in this bar nor seen the machines, but from what I understand, it is still illegal to own gambling machines, right? So maybe these are machines in which you only put money in and play - none comes out?

fbcoach....One woman put over $1500. in a machine in less than 1 1/2 hr.By the way she has a bar ! These machines need to go ! Another place has said they pay their taxes with the profits from 2 machines,they have 5.

We had a chance to have the machines legally but when the vote came up, two things happened. 1. A lot of the supporters did not get off their ass and vote. 2. The question on the ballot was very confusing and seemed to be written to make you vote opposite of what you wanted. Therefore, many who did actually vote checked off the wrong answer.

80% payout??? what a friggin joke!!

fbcoach66- you do the math. $50k a machine per year is only $1,000 a week per machine. Or another words about $142 a day..................

truth teller:
where do you get your information There is NO WAY a bar with 5 cherry machines haul in that kind of money. If we assume $250,000 at 365 days, the machines are typically set to pay out 80% of what they take in. That would be $2740 a DAY going through the machines. That is roughly $45 to 60 an hour going through each machine constantly. Have you ever been in a bar that has that kind of people plugging money in? I've worked in 8 different bars and I've never seen it. So truthteller, it may be the truth in your mind but the math doesn't add up in reality.
******
And if the Native Americans and the government lottery can do it, why not the mom and pop bar owner, most of them aren't skipping town to spend weekends in the Bahama's etc.

Yeah,they shouldn't have any gambling machines. After all, they haven't paid off the governor with campaign contributions like the Indian tribes to have the right to have gambling on their property. Who do they think they are trying to circumvent ole' Diamond Jim out of his rightful payout.

An average bar with five cherry master machines rakes in $250,000+ of unreported income a year. Do I feel sorry they got ripped for $1,500 when they rip off the working man/woman for a $1/4 million a year? heck no!! I have seen many a times when someone has a few beers and lose their judgement and lose their whole paycheck..........

Too bad, they should'nt have gambling machines anyway.

What a shame. It's too bad there is no cure for stupid. They have the best bar food. The burgers are the best anywhere.