Trade Winds

Production start date: 03/18/48 Production end date: 05/03/48 The photographs in this listing show that this game was produced in two different cabinet styles, each with its own art theme. One cabinet is painted with a three-color rainbow and stars, and its side rails extend a few inches behind the backglass. We presume this cabinet style came first because its art and this "side rail juncture" match that of Genco�s previous game, Triple Action. Because the artwork resembles feather plumage and these feathers appears on each cabinet face, for ease of discussion we will refer to this cabinet as the "Feathers" cabinet. The other cabinet is painted with simple geometric designs. The side rails do not extend behind the backglass. We presume this style came next because its art and side rail juncture match the two games Genco made after this one, Mardi Gras and Merry Widow (and probably the games beyond that). The backboxes are taller on this cabinet style and the Trade Winds backglasses mounted in them are taller as well, having a blue band of silkscreened paint at their tops and bottoms to make up for the extra space needed. The band at the top is slightly discernible at close view from the blue sky in the artwork. The inside measurements of the wood trim that frames this larger backglass are 21 1/2 inches high by 19 1/2 inches wide. These cabinets have not been repainted. Because the artwork has three circles, or dots, that appear on each cabinet face, for ease of discussion we will refer to this cabinet as the "Dots" cabinet. Measurements of these two cabinet versions are as follows: Backbox - measured edge to edge but not including any trim: Feathers: 21 3/4 inches wide, 28 1/2 inches high, and 9 inches deep. Dots: 22 1/4 inches wide, 30 5/8 inches high, and 9 inches deep. Wood backbox insert (holds all the mechanics) measured edge to edge: Feathers: 20 inches high and 20 inches wide (square). Dots: 22 inches high and 19 3/4 inches wide. Lower cabinet - measured from edge to edge and not including any trim: Feathers: 21 inches wide, 43 3/16 inches long, 12 inches high in front, and 14 1/2 inches high in back. Dots: 22 inches wide, 42 3/16 inches long, 12 inches high in front, and 14 1/2 inches high in back. Playfield - removed from the game, measured from edge to edge: Feathers: 19 3/8 inches wide and 41 3/8 inches long. Dots: 20 3/8 inches wide and 40 1/8 inches long. Legs: metal adjustable feet not included: Feathers: 32 1/2 inches long. Dots: 31 inches long. Note: It is assumed the legs are original to each machine. With longer legs on the shorter backbox, and shorter legs on the longer backbox, the top of the backboxes are the same height. Because the Dots playfield is wider than the Feathers playfield, there is extra space between the side bumpers and the wood playfield walls, and each outside rollover at mid-playfield has two extra posts to define the lane. Because the Feathers playfield is longer than the Dots playfield, there is extra space between the upper ball arch and the top-most bumper. The coin doors are a different size and thus are not interchangeable between cabinets. An apparent third cabinet style is shown in the Coin Box ad in this listing. It shows the cabinet artwork and the shorter backbox of the Feathers version yet features the side rail juncture of the Dots version. We have not yet seen actual games that match this style, and we note that the game shown in this ad is not a photograph but an artful and realistic drawing. This ad appeared in that trade magazine in April 1948, the month that the game was first available from distributors. We don�t know the reason why Genco would change the backbox and cabinet size during this production run or how many games were made in each of the two versions for which we have photographs. A theory is that, due to unanticipated demand, Genco extended the production run but then had to migrate to the different size backbox and cabinet that was intended for the next models, necessitating a revamped playfield with the extra space, and making larger backglasses by adding the blue bands to the existing art instead of paying the artist a second time. This theory presumes that new cabinets were in the pipeline anyway, and then the question becomes why change cabinet styles at all? The larger backbox of the Dots cabinet might have been needed to support new or larger backbox components that were planned for subsequent games. More internal backbox pictures would be useful to have for the Dots version and for the two Genco games that followed, Mardi Gras or Merry Widow, to further investigate if the increase in backbox size can be supported by anything we find. We present pictures of the Feathers cabinet and the Dots cabinet placed side-by-side for comparison. The owner of the Feathers game with pictures attributed to Kochever tells us that the silver color that is on the inside cabinet walls visible on each side of the playfield and above its top edge is silver spray paint applied by a previous owner. Under the silver is yellow paint. In the backbox of this particular game is a bell or chime unit in a white plastic case. Its leads are soldered to the terminals of the replay unit step-up coil below it, such that when a replay is added, this sound device is activated, if only for the duration of the coil step. With two bells nearby, this unit looks like an after-factory addition by an operator, taking advantage of the unused area of the insert. To the left of this chime box is a coil assembly, including five jacks, mounted to the left of the chime unit, and this assembly is not present in our shorter backbox picture. The owner believes this is the coin door lockout coil, moved to the backbox using plain white wiring when the game was taken off route and sold as a home use machine, and retained to facilitate starting the machine for each game play.