the circuit is designed so:
1] if the delay relay doesn't power, the safety motor runs when the hopper motor does and the game shuts down in a few seconds
2] if the delay relay does power, the safety motor runs when the microswitch is closed.
removing the microswitch lever would keep the switch open, but you still need to power the delay relay, strap down the armature plate, misadjust the switches or rewire the thing to prevent the hopper motor power from reaching the safety motor.
the safety motor resets when power to it is interrupted. The diode allows the capacitor to charge, and the capacitor charge keeps the delay relay powered while the microswitch is open ... that allows the safety motor to spin back to reset then starts winding up again when the microswitch closes.
replacing the cap, diode and microswitch lever is still not enough to make the circuit work as intended. Somehow the safety motor is disabled or unpowered or the delay relay is being powered (or acting like it is).