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I'm just curious how the hell some reel strips get so damaged?  I have seen some machines that have strips that look like they've been wadded up, run over by a truck, burned, cut, etc.  How the hell does this happen?  Granted I had to learn how to install/uninstall them too, but I don't understand how this type of abuse is possible.  Maybe they get thrown in a closet, toolbox, shop floor, etc.

Any stories around this?

Thanks,
Jason

I had one of my (minty) reels on the floor because I was doing some work on the machine and accidentally dropped something on it.  :8- So accidents for sure. But probably just general abuse like you said - thrown in a box with other stuff..

Your picture for example here depicts one of fade and burn out, and wapped reel basket scrubbing the pay line glass before it tilted.  There over a million diff. explanations for damage on reel strips.  The newer reel strips are cleanable,thicker,use led back-lit (less-heat) etc. .  A igt burns at 1/2 power on back-lit lighting at idle.  If it does not get played much it will burn-in over time.  These machines ran 24/7 so there you go.  The hacking is do to idots.  B.

what game are those strips from eddy?

TDD Deluxe w/cheese.

There was a period of time IGT was using some crappy material on their strips.  Any water or moisture and the strips would get messed up.  These strips are also prone to major fading as the one pictured.  I noticed that on one of my Vegas trips back in the mid 2000's when I noticed that all major casinos had a lot of these faded strips on games that were not more than a year old or so.  I think IGT has since moved to longer lasting materials.  Of course most of the new stuff has "virtual" reels and use a two layer LCD screens for depth.

I believe that when we discussed this a while back that one of the more plausible explanations for the non-washable strips was that early on during the S2000's run, IGT had contracted with a company to produce the strips and they failed to put on the protective laminate. IGT either dropped them or ensured that they produce the strips properly from then on, but not before large quantities of the strips had made it into the field.

I had brought something similar to that up before as I got it from an IGT insider... Basically a huge batch of strips were not laminated when they changed from in house manufacturing to sub contract outside manufacturing of them. It was not discovered for a while. :279- This is why so many are out there! :279- :8- :37- I have too many of them! :30- :30- :30-

CH :95-

For what it's worth, according to that Modern Marvels episode that was produced recently and aired this past November, IGT is (again) making reel strips in-house.

Of course, the house is in China.  :262- :200- :72- :72- :72-