Pinball Machine Repair Log #1

In this blog article I'll summarize what we've been doing on repairs for the past 2 weeks.

First, we installed it. We put the baby on its legs the first time.

Then we switched it on, to see what it did. It seemed to work!
That is, until we discovered it wouldn't load new balls into the plunger* section. We discovered the left flipper* didn't work.
By now the game refuses to start altogether. Pressing the credit button* results in a "take-off" sound, but the game would forever stick in "game over" position.

We opened the game. We lifted up the play field* to check what's wrong.

It's FULL OF WIRES. It's VERY full of wires. The sheer thought of having to check all of them for breaks was enough to make me sweat.

I made a list of things that need repairing. It's ever growing. It seems like, every time we check, there's something new that breaks.

• The lock of the cash machine *was violently opened by the previous owner. Apparently the key snapped in the lock. As the table won't play unless the door is properly shut, there needs to be a new lock.
• The headboard also has a lock. The key was missing. We had to open it using scissors. That needs a new lock too.
• There is a clasp that holds up the headboard, so it doesn't fall off the body. This clasp was broken and replaced by a new one. We unfortunately had to drill three holes for it.
• The previous owner used DUCT TAPE to hold up the headboard. This has of course left nasty residue that needs cleaning.
• The entire table needs cleaning. It's never a good idea to have anything that needs to be dust-free kept out of the dust jacket, whether it's a harmonica, vinyl record, or pinball table.
• There are several nuts and bolts missing. The leg misses a bolt, and so does the table-headboard hinge.
• The circuit board needs new screws. The old ones were worn.
• There are also several lights missing.
• The left flipper was broken. The system that holds the solenoid* had snapped. Dad welded and re-installed it. It now is repaired.
• There need to be spark-eaters for the flipper solanoids. Now, every time you flip, there's a huge spark. This is scary and dangerous.
• The pinball programme needs to be checked. Does it still work the way it should?
• There are 3 mysterious wires that are loose. We need to identify them before we can fix them.
• There was 1 burnt solenoid. This one was replaced only yesterday.
• On the circuit board*, a resistance* and two transistors* had blown. These need to be replaced.
• The knocker* is currently unattached.
• The player 1 and player 2 scoreboards are loose. This is not really a problem unless we remove the glass plate to open the headboard. At the moment we have a temporary tape solution, but that doesn't work well.
• The rubber bands all seem to need to be replaced.
• The circuit board batteries need to be replaced.

Nothing has been easy on it this far. The flipper solenoid holder had to be welded together, something my father did at work. The burnt solenoid is not just soldered, but also held in place by hexagon-head screws in awkward positions. In order to remove the circuit board, we had to remove screws that were worn AND in nasty positions.

Fortunately we are now on the right track. We now have to install one transistor, then we can re-install the circuit board and take it for another test drive.

Glossary:

1. Plunger: The system you use to bring a ball in the game. On newer tables this goes automatically, but on older tables it's a stick with coils.
2. Flipper: A stick that moves around a pivot point, operated by the player. On recent tables they point down and are placed at the bottom of the play field, but initially flippers pointed upwards
3. Credit button: If you insert money, the pinball computer remembers "credits". If you push the button, you use up one of them and start a new game.
4. Play field: The wooden board the ball rolls on.
5. Cash machine: The thing you put coins or bills into.
6. Solenoid: A coil wrapped around a metal bar: an electromagnet. These are used to move objects on the pinball table, like flippers and the knocker.
7. Circuit board: A large green plaque all the electronical dealies and information are mounted on and connected to each other.
8. Resistance: A resistance stops a certain amount of electricity from going through it. So that when the electricity moves to the more sensitive dealies on the circuit board, they don't get so much current they'd blow up.
9. Transistor: A transistor is a dealie with three legs. It amplifies or switches electronic currents.
10. Knocker: Located in the top right of the headboard, this is a metal pin that drops onto a metal plaque making a knock sound. It does this whenever a player has been performing so well, he's earned himself a free game.