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Awesome Vintage

Restoring a Vintage Lottery Machine

Restoring a Vintage Lottery Machine

After impressing us by restoring a vintage pinball machine, Old Things Never Die is back with another project video. This time, they took an antique coin-operated lottery game that tumbled tiny balls inside a metal sphere, then dropped one behind a window at its bottom. The color of the selected ball corresponds to a prize.

Manual Typewriter Typing Robot

Manual Typewriter Typing Robot

If you’ve ever played with a vintage manual typewriter, you know how hard it can be just to hit those mechanical keys with enough force. JBV Creative built a custom robot that uses 3D-printed “fingers” and servo motors to type text and ASCII art on an old Remington Rand Office Riter. Money shot at 15:34.

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Restoring a Vintage Pinball Table

Restoring a Vintage Pinball Table

Modern pinball machines have hundreds of electronic components and complex wiring harnesses. But back in the day, pinball relied on gravity and simple obstacles made from nails and bent metal. Old Things Never Die got their hands on a time-worn 1930s pinball table and painstakingly restored it to like-new condition.

Package Tying Machine

Package Tying Machine

We always enjoy seeing how industrial machines are engineered. In this video from author and maker of things Theodore Gray, he shows off a 1963 Bunn packaging machine that was designed to quickly wrap items with string. What makes it really interesting is how it ties a knot and cuts the twine perfectly every time.

The Terrifying Mr. Potato Head

The Terrifying Mr. Potato Head

Since the 1960s, Mr. Potato Head toys have come with a fake potato body made of plastic. But when they first came out in the 1950s, they were strictly bring-your-own tuber. Vintage TV Commercials dug up this 1952 Hasbro promo that shows just how creepy and weird looking the original Potato Heads could be.

San Francisco: Before the Great Quake

San Francisco: Before the Great Quake

On April 18, 1906, San Francisco was devastated by a horrific 7.9 magnitude earthquake. This fascinating footage of Market Street gives us a glimpse of what it looked like just four days before the quake hit and leveled much of the city. NASS used AI tech to enhance and colorize the film, and added ambient sound effects.

Video Through an Old Lens

Video Through an Old Lens

Camera technology has come a very long way since World War I, though a lens is generally still just a lens. Photographerr Mathieu Stern decided to see what kind of video he could capture with a lens he snatched from a 100-year-old Eastman Kodak camera. The footage is quite good, with a dreamy and warm quality to it.

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The Special Effects of Karel Zeman

The Special Effects of Karel Zeman

This excerpt from the documentary short The Special Effects of Karel Zeman showcases some of the late Czech filmmaker’s wildly inventive methods for creating movie magic with miniatures, fluids, smoke, forced perspective, and other camera tricks. You can watch the full documentary on YouTube.

Silent Movie Special Effects

Silent Movie Special Effects

Today’s movie VFX rely on green screen and CGI, but in silent movie times, neither of those existed. Pedro Cinemaxunga created this fascinating analysis of vintage moviemaking techniques that shows how in-camera effects managed to fake out audiences. We always thought Harold Lloyd was really hanging from that building.

Restoring a Vintage Spinner Game

Restoring a Vintage Spinner Game

You might think this object is a rusty bicycle wheel on a stand, but it’s a vintage game of chance that decides who will pay for the next round of drinks. Old Things Never Die tore it down to its components, stripped off the rust, and restored it to original condition. The clicky sound it makes when spun is so satisfying.

Inside the Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines

Inside the Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines

With locations in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia, the Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines is filled with vintage arcade machines that date back to the Soviet era. Incredibly, the machines have all been restored and are playable. Baklykov. Live takes us on a tour of the museum, its machines, and other artifacts.

Las Vegas c. 1975

Las Vegas c. 1975

Today, the Las Vegas Strip is an ever-changing landscape of mega-resorts. This footage from the Kino Library gives us a glimpse at the Strip as it appeared in 1975. While Caesars and the Flamingo live on, most other properties on display have since been bulldozed. Though you can still find their signs at The Neon Museum.

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The Sure Defender

The Sure Defender

Forgotten Weapons takes a look at an unusual piece that dates back to the 1860s. The Sure Defender combined brass knuckles, a wavy dagger, and a single-shot pistol in one. It wasn’t the most practical weapon, but it certainly gave users a variety of options.

Restoring a Mechanical Coin Bank

Restoring a Mechanical Coin Bank

The cast iron toys of yesteryear were subject to rusting and corrosion like nothing else. But in the capable hands of Awesome Restorations, old things can look as good as new once more. Watch as they breathe new life into an old 1930s coin bank, sandblasting off the caked-on rust and giving it a shiny coat of enamel paint.

13 Vintage Halloween Songs

13 Vintage Halloween Songs

It seems like Halloween songs have become a bit of a lost art. But back in the 1920s and 1930s, we had plenty of creepy songs to choose from for our trick-or-treat playlists. History Tea Time with Lindsay Holiday compiled an appropriate quantity of these vintage tracks to set the mood for your festivities.

Defusing an Old Mine

Defusing an Old Mine

This vintage newsreel footage provides a fascinating glimpse into the dangerous process that WWII soldiers faced when disarming mines. Watch as these brave Royal Navy servicemen approached and disassembled a German “murder” mine that washed up on the East coast of Britain.

Undone Vintage Killy Watch

Undone Vintage Killy Watch
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Undone’s handsome dress watch spiffs up any outfit with its classical styling. The typeface on its creamy beige watch face and propeller-inspired hands pay tribute to vintage watch design, while its Seiko quartz chronograph movement and hardened K1 domed crystal make it anything but dated.

Restoring the Michelin Man

Restoring the Michelin Man

The Michelin Man, aka “Bibendum,” is one of the most iconic advertising mascots of all time. Awesome Restorations, got their hands on an antique metal sculpture of the rotund character and sandblasted away years of rust, then repainted it, restoring its former glory. He looked like a toasted marshmallow man before his makeover.

Papercraft Heidelberg Letterpress

Papercraft Heidelberg Letterpress

Korean artist Lee Ji-hee created this incredibly intricate papercraft replica of the original Heidelberg Letterpress. She made the sculpture from paper and corrugated cardboard, to celebrate the history of the printing industry in Seoul, South Korea. Find more of the artist’s awesome work in her Behance portfolio.

Classic Truck Carries Classic Cars

Classic Truck Carries Classic Cars

While visiting a classic car show in Nebraska, Tim from Pickup Truck Plus SUV Talk came across the most appropriate method of transporting collectible show cars. What he saw was this restomodded 1947 Ford COE Semi carrying some sweet hot rods and vintage wheels, and snagged an interview with its owners.

Replicating a Rock Cannon

Replicating a Rock Cannon

Back in the 19th century in Wales, one of the common ways of celebrating was with something called a rock cannon. Tom Scott reminisces about these forgotten gunpowder displays and works with a professional pyrotechnician to reproduce their explosive effect.

Timex x MadeWorn Watch

Timex x MadeWorn Watch

Timex teamed up with Blaine Halvorson’s MadeWorn to create this special timepiece based on their American Documents. This variant has a two-toned dial that splits day and night, a one-of-a-kind patina finish, and a rough-hewn leather band for a lived-in look. Each one is handmade in America with a quality Swiss movement.

General Admission Playing Cards

General Admission Playing Cards
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Inspired by the look of vintage ticket stubs, designer Jackson Robinson’s playing cards for Kings Wild Project definitely stand out from the crowd. Each card is splashed with a patchwork of colors and halftone patterns, while the court cards feature full-body images of the royal crew.

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