Picked up a Defender Cocktail in La Grange, IL

A couple of months ago gentlemen reached out to me looking to sell a Defender cocktail with a cool little backstory and a direct connection to Williams.

Home Use Only Defender cocktail?

As luck would have it, I was up in Chicago in April at a conference and I got an email from Kevin who was looking to sell a Defender Cocktail.

Kevin worked for a print shop from ’93-01 and the print shop had done some work for Williams. This game had been sitting in the shop’s basement for a number of years. When he concluded his tenure at the shop he took the game and has had it for the last 17 years at a couple of different locations including his home in La Grange. His speculation was that the shop had used the cabinet for some promotional photos and then was stored away.

In some ways, the Defender cabinet definitely looks like it has never been routed. The one control panel overlay still has the thin plastic and the aluminum kickplate on one side has a white plastic covering. The cabinet inside is clean and doesn’t have the dust and grime buildup that is typical for games of this age. In other places the game was showing some wear – the edge banding is coming off and the black screened artwork under the glass has some spidering in the corners.

Regardless, a cool story and really happy that Kevin reached out – and a lucky happenstance for me I was in town with a rental Expedition that could fit the cabinet. A big thanks to Kevin for the opportunity to purchase the game and share a bit about its history!

Here are some photos showing the cab.

Defender – Heading back to the hotel

Defender – Angled, Notice plastic still on kickplate

Defender – Top View

Defender – Overlay still with the plastic

Defender – Boards, Clean

Defender – Inside Cabinet, Clean

This purchase had a touch of irony, as I had a close friend that used to live in the La Grange area who recently moved to Alaska. It would have been perfect to connect him and Kevin, as he had always wanted a Defender cocktail. Timing can be funny sometimes I suppose.

Buying arcade games

I’m always interested to buy arcade games and commonly purchase games out of the Chicago area. If you have an arcade game to sell please send me a message on my contact page. I purchase games all over the United States, not just surrounding states like Illinois so please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Here are some similar arcade posts

• Picked up a gorgeous Ms. Pac-man / Galaga 20 Year Reunion
• What’s it worth? Williams Defender sold in Georgia
• Picked up Tron in Columbus, Indiana
• A gorgeous Magical Spot surfaces in Missouri
• Added an Italian Import to my collection

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