873 went Silent AND Dark Help Please

[RiseLikeRa]

Hello Group
Last night my 873 fruit, one of my most dependable games went silent and dark.  On any win the tower light would shine and the bell would ring.  Now Nada!  A quick glance, as it was late and I was tired, showed no obvious broken wires.


Any suggestion what I should look for that is common to BOTH the light and the bell?  Is it a relay or simply a wire. 


All other lights on the game work just fine.

I am rested and ready to get the sights and sounds of a Bally EM back in my basement.


All leads will be investigated.


Thanks so much 
Ra

[The Fatman]

When you get a winning combo ... does it pay out? Does the lights come back on when you replay the machine? Could be the switch bank on the clock side of the machine and might be the beau connection in the head of the machine. I would unplug the hopper, the head board and the reels and re plug them back in to see if it helps. Then if your problem still exists ... start checking the switches in that circuit along with the 6V fuse and holder.
Dave F

[Amechanic]

Now your saying the machine still plays and pays out jackpots, but your not getting the bell rings and candle light.. It's one of two places.. I would check the contact on the hopper just about the plug. See if you have a burn or pitted contact. It could just be dirty. I like to use rubbing alcohol. I have a burnishing tool to clean up contacts, a cold piece of paper or card stock works too. Wet the paper and put it between the contact. Close the relay with your finger and move the wet paper to clean the contacts surface.. NEVER USE A FILE.. That will damage it. The other place to look is in the top box.. Remove the glass. Then pull out the feature. You should see relay stacks. Look for one that might read jackpot relay, and do the same as on the hoppers relay.

Good luck and keep use posted.

Gary

[OldReno]

The common factor I think is the payout relay, if it rings/lights on ANY pay.
(bell rings on all pays...Ewwwww.  But then I've worked casinos for far too long to appreciate the noise.)

[RiseLikeRa]

Dave Gary and Reno I will investigate as soon as I can.  I lost a good friend and neighbor to a massive heart attack this week.  I am helping the family as much as I can.  He enjoyed my EM collection many times before his passing.


To be clear... The bell and light on this machine worked on ALL payouts even a single cherry.  The sound doesn't bother me (Reno).  The winner paid still lights as well.


Gang I will report my findings as soon as I can but it may be a little while before I have the time or the will to get inside of the game.


Ra

[The Fatman]

No problem .... sorry for the loss of your friend.
Dave F

[RiseLikeRa]

Dave:


Thank you for understanding.  Seems the older that I get the more people that you lose around you.  I remain prayerful for all of you.


Ra

[RiseLikeRa]

I dint know what I did but I did it.  After listening to other EM owners and reading the replies here I ended up cleaning every point contact in my 873.  I just sat there and went from top to bottom.  After I was done the game worked without any problems at all.  That is good however I don't know exactly what was wrong in the first place. If it ain't broke don't fix it so I am going to just enjoy playing my 873 and leave well enough alone.


Thanks everyone
Ra

[The Fatman]

Glad to hear of the success with your cleaning and adjusting efforts. 
Dave F

[OldReno]

It only takes a few minutes to go through and check all the switches and contacts on the machines.
Taking the time to do that can save many hours of troubleshooting.
Also, don't forget the judicious use of your jumpers to check coils and etc.

[RiseLikeRa]

Reno you are absolutely correct.


I have not made myself a set of jumpers yet but after 9 years of owning a Bally EM I thing that it is about time.  Thank you everyone.  My baby is singing again.


Ra

[zinda]

Reno you are absolutely correct.


I have not made myself a set of jumpers yet but after 9 years of owning a Bally EM I thing that it is about time.  Thank you everyone.  My baby is singing again.


Ra

I made some and I can tell you right now that it takes  an incredibly long time, best just to buy some. If you do make them I used some old printer cables (10 ft cables cost $1), plenty of wires in there, I doubled them up and used a separate set of 18ga wires for the 120 volt hopper wires

[OldReno]

By jumpers, I mean 2 three foot pieces of wire with alligator clips on each end.  This is to allow you to check all your voltages, to apply power to all your coils, and to check all your 6V lights, either in the machine, or out of the machine.
That's all I use when checking and working on machines, just 2 little jumpers...
There is a post somewhere here on using jumpers, I'll try to find it.

[RiseLikeRa]

Reno:


I know what you meant when you said jumpers.  I eagerly await the tutorial post.


Ra

[zinda]

I thought you were talking about cables to get your machine parts outside the cabinet while you worked on it, I'm sorry. It's just really hard to use jumpers when it's inside the cabinet.

[Amechanic]

The extension cables are a nice tool to have if your planning on working on the Bally EM Slots. It makes it so easy to trouble shoot a machine. I have two sets of 18 & 24's. I still need to build a 30 pin set.

[zinda]

I saw a guy selling them on eBay, I thought they were a steel at $40 each, he posted them right after I made mine, I would have gladly paid for them once I realized the amount of time I had to put into them.

[RiseLikeRa]

I bought a full set from the "ebay guy"  He is a member of this forum.  What a great person and the cables are of SUPERB quality!


Ra

[OldReno]

Thank you Ra,
I will do a tutorial on using jumpers, it is the most powerful tool you can make, and, next to being able to read and understand a schematic, will do you wonders as far as understanding and fixing the machines.
BTW, there are a couple of How To Guides at the very bottom of our threads page which I highly encourage newbies to read, and anyone else who hasn't yet.
Reno.

[zinda]

I bought a full set from the "ebay guy"  He is a member of this forum.  What a great person and the cables are of SUPERB quality!


Ra

I agree the quality looked exceptional! Mine were a far cry from what he had but mine do work and that's all I really needed at that timed. I found them helpful as a learning tool mostly, now that I've done some rewiring and mega troubleshooting I'm not sure if I will really need to use them in the future, Maybe if there is a mechanical failure and I need to see if a homemade part is lining up while in motion. Recommended for anyone who is just getting started at troubleshooting, makes the entire process much easier to follow. Which is key before even touching the machine or making any adjustments.