Beginner's Notes
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1 Introduction
The biggest thing to understand with a pinball machine is that it is a mechanical device and will eventually have some type of problem. The other thing to note is that, despite popular belief, there is more to it then randomness. On the flip side, all major pinball machines that were ever built were designed to be industrial-grade equipment, specifically designed to take the abuse of being on location.
The information on this website should be more than enough to be able to get anyone fixing up their own pinball machine. If there is something unclear on any specific topic, feel free to ask questions in the forums about your problem.
A good source of information is the rec.games.pinball newsgroup FAQ document available here: http://www.xmission.com/~daina/rgpFAQ/coolrgpFAQ.html
2 Required Tools
- Mechanical Tools
- Hex Key set/Allen Wrenches
- Ignition point file. Used ONLY on EM contacts.
- Leaf switch adjusters
- Needle nose pliers
- Nut driver set. Should include 1/4" and 5/16" at minimum.
- Screwdriver set. Should include #1 and #2 Flat head and Phillips head at minimum.
- Security Torx Bit set. Used on newer machines for lock plates and topper domes.
- Socket set, open end, or box wrenches. Should include 9/16 and 5/8 at minimum. Used for leg bolts and head bolts.
- Electrical Tools
- Crimping tool
- Desoldering equipment
- solder sucker http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062745 (personal favorite because you can cock it with your thumb)
- desoldering iron, or desoldering braid
- Multimeter with diode function (spend more than $10.00)
- http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103176 or http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_03482141000P?prdNo=7&blockNo=7&blockType=G7
- Side cutters
- Soldering iron (a higher dollar temperature controlled one is a MUST for board work) for example: http://www.cooperhandtools.com/brands/CF_Files/model_detail.cfm?upc=037103001122
- Wire strippers
- For newer, solid state machines, a good logic probe is a must have.
3 Good Tools To Have
Coming Soon!
Soldering in Your Pinball Machine
4 Internet Pinball Database
The internet pinball database (www.ipdb.org) is a great place to research games. The database contains photos, descriptions, production counts and other valuable information. The database is an ongoing project with data added continually. It is not a repair site but can provide helpful information on game specific issues. Many machines have both external and internal photos available that can assist in restoring a game. Make this database your first stop when researching a game.
5 Electro Mechanical or Solid State Games
Pinball machines come in two basic flavors, Electro Mechanical(EM) or Solid State games. EM games can usually recognized by the score display. EM machine have either light box scoring (lights on the backbox indicate score) or score reels the click over when points are registers. Solid State (SS) game have electronic scoring with either LED displays or in more recent vintage dot-matrix displays.
EM machine generally do not have any circuit boards, all scoring and playfield devices being mechanical fired off with relays, switches and solenoids. Solid state games will have relays and solenoids and all scoring and games rules contained in the circuit boards. SS games can and do have a richer rule set because of the advantages of solid state circuitry. SS games also have more sounds, speech and music, EM machine being limited to bells and chimes.
During the manufacturers conversion from EM to SS games some games were release in both an EM and a SS version. The Bally game Mata Hari being an example. Bally produced over 16,000 games in the SS version and only 170 as an EM machine. If you can find an EM Mata Hari you have a real collectible.
6 Opening Your Pinball Machine
One of the first task you need to learn to work on your pinball machine is how to open the front door and remove the glass. Most pinball machines come with a locked front door. Often this key is lost. Before you drill out the lock search around for the key. Look in the backbox if it is open to see if a key is hanging in there. Sometimes the latch on the back side of the lock has been removed and the only thing holding the door closed is the dirt, gunk, or even minor bends in the door itself, so give a bit of a tug on the coin return area to try to open the door before going any further. If you can't find the key and the lock is still intact you will need to drill the lock out to open the door.
Once the door is unlocked or the lock drilled out simply swing it open. If it is stuck you can put your hand in the coin return slot to get a better grip.
Once you have the door open, look inside and you will notice a bar near the top of the machine. Move the lever down by pushing on it. This action moves a locking bar and releases the lock down bar. If the machine has been setting idle for years it may be difficult to swing the lever from accumulated gunk. One method I have heard to get the bar moving is to tie a weight to the bar and let it hang there for awhile. Eventually, the gunk will give way and the lever moved to the open position. When the lever is in the down position pull up on the lock down bar and remove it from the game. On some games (Chicago Coin and Data East) the lever may be spring loaded requiring you to hold the lever in the open position while removing the bar.
With the lever removed it is a good idea to clean all of the surfaces to prevent more sticking problems. The next step is to remove the glass. One must take safety precautions in removing the glass. Most pinball glass is tempered, some is not. Before I remove any glass I put on heavy work gloves and safety glasses. Before removing the glass have a safe place to put it. I use a thin foam pad to place my glass on and not on a concrete basement floor. If moving the glass across the room make sure the path from the machine to the glass storage area is clean with no obstacles on the floor that you could trip on.
Start by placing your hands on the glass and sliding it out along the track. You could have more gunk in the track making sliding the glass difficult. I have also encountered machines where the cabinet is not square, putting pressure on the glass and making it difficult to remove. If the machine was drug the floor, across which puts pressure on the legs, the cabinet could be out of square. Use the Armstrong lifters to raise and lower the machine to hopefully put it back on square, at least some.
Once you have moved the glass somewhat you can push it from the upper part of the playfield. Proceed with caution and remove the glass and place it aside. Your now have access to the inners of the lower cabinet and can start to make repairs.
7 Fuses
All pinball machines have fuses. Fuses are used in the machine to protect the internal components from damage in the event of an electrical short. If you have turned on the machine and did not get the expected result, check for blown fuses. Remember that a blown fuse is usually an indicator of an electrical short. You will need to find the cause of the short to bring the machine back to full working condition. The fuses in a machine all guard a particular section or voltage. One fuse may be for score displays while another is for solenoids and still another for the general lighting.
In replacing a fuse always make sure you are using the correct value, or amperage. The amperage of a fuse is stamped on the one of the electrical contacts of the fuse. DO NOT assume that the fuse in the machine is the value that should be used, always check the game manual or schematic to verify the correct rating. Someone repairing the game earlier may have put in a higher fuse value to circumvent an electrical problem. Do not swap out fast acting fuses for slow blow fuses, always use the correct rating and type.
Fast blow fuses can be easily checked visually, not so for slow blow fuses. Fast blow fuses, when blown, usually have a scorched appearance and the internal wire will be severed. Slow blow fuses will be intact, close visually examination will reveal that the rope looking conductor is twisted and show defects when blown. The best way to check a slow-blow fuse is with a multi meter set to resistance mode. Place the probe on each side of the fuse, a slow-blow blown fuse will have a very high resistance, in the mega-ohm range.
Fuses can be located anywhere within the game. Often there is a bank of fuses in the bottom cabinet. Other fuses may be located on the underside of the playfield and more in the backbox. In solid state games, fuses can also be found on the individual circuit boards. Each fuse should have a label next to it indicating which fuse it is for reference in the schematic and game manual. Sometimes these labels have gone missing in the machine. If this is the case in your machine, mark the the board next to the fuse with a sharpie when you have correctly determined its label. It is also a good idea to write down the rating of the fuse next to the label.
Radio Shack still carries a good deal of fuses and values. When needing fuses that is a good place to start. Always have a good stock of fuses on hand in your parts drawer.
Sometimes fuses can be difficult to remove from the machine. You can gently pry them free with a small screw driver, being careful not to pry on the glass part of the fuse but on the metal sides. Insert the small screwdriver under the fuse in the fuse holder and pry. If you find that the fuse holder no longer has much spring, it needs to be replaced as it will not make good electrical contact. This can cause intermittent problems, which are the hardest to find.