I plan to have a coin mechanism on my cab. It wouldn’t be complete without one. A quick search around some sellers online revealed there was quite a few to choose from. Most are what you would expect, a front panel for the coin and refund, while there are others that are an entire door.

All the coin mechs I came across had good flexibility in setting the accepted coin amount. Some are electronic, while others are mechanically operated. None seemed to come with a counter, these can but purchased separately and are only a couple of dollars.

The coin doors are much more expensive – up to 3 times the price of a single coin mech. These also come in electronic and mechanical operated. I didn’t look at the doors too much as they conflict with the design I am planning for the cab. A single coin mech most cabs just fine. But if you really want one, appear to be easy to come by (I found plenty on eBay and with parts sellers like OzStick / GameDude).

I have decided to go with an electronic operated coin mech – it can be powered from the JAMMA harness and I know will hook up with the coin counter I plan on purchasing. It set me back $30 including postage, which seemed reasonable after shopping around. Depending on the model you want, the price will vary, so you may find yourself paying a bit more just because the face panel is what you are after. These should work fine too with MAME cabs, although you will probably need an additional adaptor to hook it all up.

As a side note, I will be configuring it for 20c per play – the way arcade games should be 🙂