The
metal bar that runs all the way across the top of the front of a
pinball machine. It actually holds the
glass in place on top of the
machine. If a ball gets
stuck, an
arcade attendant (if he knows
anything at all about
pinball machines) may get it loose by removing the
glass, and he'll need to remove the lockdown bar to do that, and then slide
the glass out.
When the strip of foam insulation that is supposed to
be between the lockdown bar and the glass is present, it provides a
place to store quarters.
A few odd games have buttons on top of the lockdown bar.
Riverboat Gambler had roulette betting choices here, and Black Rose
just had one button to fire a cannon.