# How do non-US coin operated machines deal with different sized bills?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-non-us-coin-operated-machines-deal-with-different-sized-bills/382317>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [November 30, 2006, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-non-us-coin-operated-machines-deal-with-different-sized-bills/382317 "2006-11-30T14:31:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2006, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-non-us-coin-operated-machines-deal-with-different-sized-bills/382317/21 "2006-12-01T01:16:45Z")

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[QUOTE=Cunctator]  
In Australia it depends a bit on the machine. Those selling lower cost items usually take only coins (including $1 and $2 coins). Others will take notes. The ticket vending machine at my local railway station takes all coins as well as $5, $10 and $20 notes.  
[/QUOTE]

For what it’s worth, those Sydney Cityrail machines were purchased secondhand from Canada, so they must’ve worked there too (unless that’s why the Canadians offloaded them). They’re fifteen or twenty year-old technology (and soon to bite the dust too).

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**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2006, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-non-us-coin-operated-machines-deal-with-different-sized-bills/382317/22 "2006-12-01T07:13:23Z")

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[QUOTE=Schnitte]  
Leaving a bill close to a loudspeaker ought to ruin the magnetic stripe?  
[/QUOTE]

I’ve seen the episode of Mythbusters where they experimented with magnetic fields to see how easy it was to damage the data on a credit card. Not very easy at all was the answer - you certainly couldn’t do it accidentally around the house.

In any case, the bar code on Euro notes is a series of large metallic strips running most of the width of the note, visible when you hold it to the light, so it can be read optically.

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**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2006, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-non-us-coin-operated-machines-deal-with-different-sized-bills/382317/23 "2006-12-01T08:44:04Z")

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[QUOTE=Keeve]  
Australian bank notes are made of plastic?  
[/QUOTE]

Thin papery plastic. They can still be folded and crumpled but are much more robust than paper notes.

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