Where To Find Vintage Barrels Of Fun Pinball Games

TLDR

“Barrels of Fun” can mean two different things: the modern boutique pinball company or the vintage Bally Barrel O’Fun bingo-style machines.
Modern Barrels of Fun games like Labyrinth, Dune and Winchester Mystery House are not vintage, but they may become collectible because of limited production and strong theme appeal.
True vintage Barrel O’Fun machines are early-1960s Bally electro-mechanical bingo machines, not standard flipper pinball games.
The best places to look are Pinside, pinball collector groups, regional shows, local estate finds and distributor networks.
Buy carefully. For older EM and bingo machines, condition, documentation and local pickup matter more than chasing the lowest price.

The Name Is The First Trap

The phrase “vintage Barrels of Fun pinball games” sounds simple, but it can point in two very different directions.

First, there is Barrels of Fun, the modern boutique pinball manufacturer behind games like Labyrinth, Dune and Winchester Mystery House. These machines are recent, not vintage. They belong in the modern collector market alongside newer Stern, Jersey Jack, American Pinball and Spooky releases.

Second, there are older Bally games called Barrel O’Fun, Barrel O’Fun ’61 and Barrel-O’-Fun ’62. These are true vintage machines from the early 1960s. They are electro-mechanical bingo-style pinball machines, which means they are very different from the flipper-based games most modern home buyers picture when they hear “pinball.”

That distinction matters. If you want a modern Barrels of Fun machine, your best path is the manufacturer, distributors or the collector resale market. If you want a vintage Barrel O’Fun machine, you are hunting for a scarce Bally bingo machine that may require patience, restoration knowledge and a willingness to buy locally when one appears.

Modern Barrels Of Fun Games Are Collectible, But Not Vintage

Barrels of Fun is a newer manufacturer with a very different profile from the classic Bally, Williams, Gottlieb and Stern machines people usually call vintage. The company’s recent titles are built for modern collectors who want deep rules, big presentation and a premium home-arcade centerpiece.

Labyrinth is the most obvious example. It became the title that put Barrels of Fun on the radar for a lot of collectors, especially players who like fantasy themes, detailed playfields and machines that feel distinct from the usual licensed-release rhythm.

Dune pushed the company even further into collector conversation. It has the kind of theme strength, mechanical ambition and early code-development discussion that makes newer boutique games interesting to watch. Some buyers love being early. Others prefer to wait until code matures, more owners report in and the resale market settles.

Winchester Mystery House is another modern Barrels of Fun title to keep an eye on. Like many boutique games, it has the potential to become more interesting over time if support stays strong and the player community keeps engaging with it.

So, where do you find these modern Barrels of Fun pinball games?

Start with the official Barrels of Fun site and distributor list. If direct ordering is open, that is the cleanest route. If a title is sold out, closed or allocation-based, distributors may still have floor models, cancelled orders, lightly used examples or future leads. The distributor route is especially useful because these companies often hear about trades before machines hit public classifieds.

After that, check Pinside Marketplace. Pinside is usually the most useful public marketplace for serious pinball buyers because it has game-specific listings, seller history, location filters and an active collector community. For modern Barrels of Fun games, saved searches are your friend. A machine may not be listed today, but the right one can appear quickly and disappear just as fast.

Vintage Barrel O’Fun Is A Different Kind Of Hunt

If you mean the older Barrel O’Fun machines, you are looking for Bally bingo pinball. That is a narrower and more specialized corner of the hobby.

The 1960 Bally Barrel O’Fun is an electro-mechanical bingo machine. Pinside lists it as a one-player game with mechanical reels, no flippers, no ramps and no multiball. That is not a criticism. It is just a completely different style of play.

Barrel O’Fun ’61 follows the same general lane. These games are part of the older bingo machine tradition, where the appeal comes from the ball launch, numbered holes, scoring patterns, odds, relays and mechanical behavior rather than flipper control.

That makes them fascinating, but it also makes them a risky blind purchase for someone expecting a traditional pinball machine. A bingo pinball game can be a wonderful restoration project or conversation piece. It can also be a very heavy box of switches, relays and mystery if you buy one that has been sitting untouched for decades.

For a true vintage Barrel O’Fun search, use several channels at once.

Pinside is still worth checking, but do not expect constant listings. Some of these games may show no current marketplace activity for long stretches. That does not mean none exist. It means they are rarely traded in the same way as modern Sterns or popular Williams/Bally solid-state games.

Facebook collector groups can be more useful for this kind of hunt than they are for common modern machines. Search for bingo pinball groups, Bally EM groups, regional pinball buy/sell/trade groups and local arcade collector communities. A lot of older games change hands quietly because the seller does not want to ship them and the buyer pool is specialized.

Local estate sales, Craigslist, OfferUp and regional auction houses are also worth watching. This is where older bingo machines sometimes surface from basements, cabins, garages or former route operators. The listings may not be perfectly named. Search for “Bally bingo,” “Barrel O Fun,” “Barrel-O-Fun,” “old pinball,” “bingo pinball” and “EM pinball.”

Best Places To Search First

For most buyers, the search order should look like this:

1. Pinside Marketplace

This is the best first stop for serious pinball collectors. Use it for both modern Barrels of Fun machines and vintage Bally Barrel O’Fun machines. Filter by distance when possible. Local pickup is often the safest path, especially for older electro-mechanical games.

For modern games, search by title: Labyrinth, Dune, Winchester Mystery House and Barrels of Fun.

For vintage games, search every spelling variation: Barrel O’Fun, Barrel-O-Fun, Barrel O Fun and Bally bingo.

2. Barrels Of Fun Distributors

For modern Barrels of Fun games, distributors are essential. Even when direct orders are closed, a distributor may know about available inventory, trade-ins or customers looking to move a machine.

This matters more with boutique manufacturers because production runs, allocations and availability can shift quickly. A public product page may not tell the whole story.

3. Regional Pinball Shows

Pinball shows are one of the best places to inspect machines in person. For modern Barrels of Fun games, shows can let you play before deciding whether the theme and shot layout work for you. For vintage Bally bingo machines, shows are valuable because you may meet the few people who actually know how to repair and maintain them.

Shows also create side-market opportunities. Not every sale is on the floor with a price tag. Sometimes the real value is meeting collectors, repair people and operators who know where machines are sitting.

4. Facebook And Local Collector Groups

For scarce vintage games, local communities matter. A seller with an old bingo machine may not want to crate it, list it nationally or answer messages from collectors across the country. They may simply want someone nearby to pick it up.

Be clear in your post. Say exactly what you want, include spelling variations and mention whether you are open to projects. A good wanted post might say:

“I’m looking for a Bally Barrel O’Fun, Barrel O’Fun ’61 or Barrel-O’-Fun ’62 bingo pinball machine. Working or project condition considered. Local pickup preferred, but I’m open to leads.”

That kind of wording helps because older machines are often misnamed.

5. Estate Sales, Auctions And Route Operator Leads

This is the slower path, but sometimes it is the only way to find obscure older games. Vintage bingo machines do not always circulate through normal collector channels. They may come from former operators, old bars, family estates or storage units.

The risk is condition. A game found this way may be dirty, incomplete, water-damaged or electrically unsafe. The upside is that you may find something before it has been priced for the collector market.

What To Check Before You Buy

Condition matters with every pinball machine, but it matters even more with older EM and bingo machines.

Ask for clear photos of the cabinet, backglass, playfield, coin door, underside of the playfield, inside of the head and inside of the cabinet. You are looking for water damage, missing parts, broken glass, hacked wiring, burned coils, corrosion and evidence that someone started a repair they did not finish.

Ask whether the game powers on, starts a game, launches balls and completes a full cycle. For a bingo machine, “it lights up” is not the same as “it works.” You want to know whether the game actually plays, scores and resets correctly.

Ask what documentation is included. Schematics matter. Original manuals, score cards, parts lists and prior repair notes can save a lot of time later.

Ask whether the seller can provide a short video. For a modern Barrels of Fun game, that video should show boot-up, display, sound, gameplay and any reported errors. For a vintage Barrel O’Fun machine, a video should show startup, ball launch, scoring behavior and reset.

Finally, be honest about your repair tolerance. A project bingo machine can be fun if you like mechanical problem-solving. It can be miserable if you wanted a plug-and-play home arcade piece.

Should You Ship Or Buy Locally?

Local pickup is usually the safer move for vintage Barrel O’Fun machines. Older EM and bingo machines are not fragile in the way a porcelain vase is fragile, but they do not love careless freight handling. Relays, steppers, glass, cabinet joints and old wiring can all suffer if a game is poorly packed or roughly moved.

For modern Barrels of Fun machines, freight shipping is more normal, especially when buying from a distributor or experienced collector. Still, use a pinball-aware shipper whenever possible. A cheap shipping quote is not a bargain if the game arrives with cabinet damage, cracked plastics or a mystery problem that was not there before.

The safest formula is simple: buy locally when you can, buy from known sellers when you cannot and always get detailed photos before money changes hands.

Final Recommendation

If you want a modern Barrels of Fun game, start with the official Barrels of Fun distributor network, then set saved searches on Pinside. These machines are recent, premium and collector-driven, so availability will depend on production status, distributor inventory and owner resale timing.

If you want a true vintage Barrel O’Fun machine, treat it like a specialized collector hunt. Search Pinside, Facebook groups, bingo pinball communities, regional shows, estate listings and local arcade networks. Be patient. These machines are not common, and the best lead may come from a collector who knows someone with one in storage.

Most importantly, know which version of “Barrels of Fun” you actually want. A modern Barrels of Fun game is a current boutique pinball machine. A Bally Barrel O’Fun is a vintage electro-mechanical bingo machine. Both can be interesting. They are just not the same thing.

FAQs

Are Barrels Of Fun Pinball Games Vintage?

No. Barrels of Fun is a modern boutique pinball manufacturer. Its games may be collectible, but they are not vintage in the traditional pinball sense.

Is Bally Barrel O’Fun A Normal Pinball Machine?

Not really. Bally Barrel O’Fun is a bingo-style electro-mechanical machine. It does not play like a standard flipper pinball machine.

Where Is The Best Place To Buy A Modern Barrels Of Fun Machine?

Start with Barrels of Fun distributors and then check Pinside Marketplace for used, new-in-box, floor model or trade-in machines.

Where Is The Best Place To Find A Vintage Barrel O’Fun Machine?

Use Pinside, bingo pinball groups, regional collector groups, estate sales, auctions and local arcade communities. These machines are uncommon, so broad searching helps.

Should I Buy A Non-Working Barrel O’Fun Machine?

Only if you are comfortable with electro-mechanical troubleshooting or already have a repair person who understands bingo machines. A non-working vintage bingo machine can be a rewarding project, but it is not a casual purchase.

Can Rock Custom Pinball Help After I Buy One?

If you are in Rock Custom Pinball’s service area, it is worth reaching out about setup, repair questions, custom work or machine evaluation. Older machines can vary widely in condition, so photos and a clear description are the best place to start.