Al's Garage Band goes on a World Tour
Alvin G. & Co, 1992
Mystery Castle
Alvin G. & Co, 1993It seems that some of these transformers had some shorting issues, and after consulting with a wide range of winding companies, I believe we are going to send in the old one and get a custom built transformer. The difference is it will only have the input winding configuration to work in the US (120 V).
So, if anyone in the US would be interested in buying an Alvin G. TRN-003 transformer, let me know! I'm trying to gauge interest and determine if we can get more than just one made.
I may be interested depending on the final price. It would be nice to just have a backup, as I don't see myself ever parting with this game. I could probably help sell a few more through my Alvin G site if you end up a few units short of getting a great price.
Brian
Quoted from Betelgeuse:I may be interested depending on the final price. It would be nice to just have a backup, as I don't see myself ever parting with this game. I could probably help sell a few more through my Alvin G site if you end up a few units short of getting a great price.
Brian
What is the name of your site?
http://www.tristatechapter.com/arcade/alving/alving.html
Nothing fancy, but the MC section is a pretty good resource.
Another Pittsburgh pinsider with a MC? What are the odds!
Awesome website Betelgeuse! I love reading about this machine, I'm surprised I haven't stumbled upon that before!
The price will be relative to the number of units produced. They won't cost any more than a regular transformer (~$300), but with 5 or 10 people they will cost considerably less (from $250 down to $150 I think). These are just rough estimates, but if you want an idea then go off of that! Some companies quoted all the way up to $1000 for one transformer (if they even bid on the project), so I just figured everyone could benefit from this.
So right now it looks like this:
Myself
goatdan (80%)
betelgeuse (maybe)
TM462 (depending on price)
I'll definitely be in for one. I might as well have a spare on hand to keep the Alvin G fleet running, just in case disaster strikes.
I'll try to get a list of which of the 9 Alvin G's used this particular transformer, and add it to the post, that way there's no confusion regarding which games it'll work in.
Thanks for taking on the project!
Matt
Thanks to everyone for all the help! I'll add you to the list!
I was going to say, everyone that I talked to doubted that the transformer was broken. I had one very respectable pinball repair guy flat out tell me that they don't break! Anyway, I think there really was some fault in the production of these transformers, because for such an uncommon issue, it's weird that there existed so many in relation to how how many games Alvin G produced. Who knows, maybe that was a factor in their untimely demise?
Anyway, I didn't think about it, but maybe more Mystery Castle owners/lovers would be interested in having a backup in case theirs arrives at the same fate!
Antek didn't respond, unfortunately. I'm going through someone at CustomCoils. A lot of people seemed genuinely disinterested or just quoted a really high bid. Custom Coils was really helpful and their end price was fair as well.
What does Antek usually charge for a transformer?
Hmm interesting. If you can get a hold of someone from there let me know! I couldn't get a hold of anyone!
Alright another to the list! I really hope we can get to 10!
Ok, didn't check my machine but found my notes on it. The power board is shot, although the transformer may be having issues too. Based on price, I'd be interested in picking up one for sure. Under $200, count me in for sure!
I did and then I emailed. I got no answer on the phone, and no reply on the e-mail.
Alright cool! I will see if we can get a few more people who want to jump in on this!
Alright, just an update, the transformer is being shipped to the company today, and when I receive an exact price on the build I will let everyone know!
Quoted from MattElder:I'll definitely be in for one. I might as well have a spare on hand to keep the Alvin G fleet running, just in case disaster strikes.
I'll try to get a list of which of the 9 Alvin G's used this particular transformer, and add it to the post, that way there's no confusion regarding which games it'll work in.
Thanks for taking on the project!
Matt
Okay, it looks like TRN-003 will work in AGBGOAWT as well, so any owners of that game might also like a spare.
I'm really surprised that Pistol Poker can't use this one (it uses TRN-002), but the secondary side is just slightly different....
Jakenjoi,
Now that we know TRN-003 does work in another game, it might be a good idea to amend the thread title. You may get some more sales from folks with that game....
Quoted from MattElder:I'm really surprised that Pistol Poker can't use this one (it uses TRN-002), but the secondary side is just slightly different....
You can add an additional secondary winding to make one transformer work for both games. There can be unused windings that are capped off for one game or another.
Weigh the difference in price of adding an extra winding vs. the cost savings of making a larger run of transformers.
(One of the reasons I love toroidal transformers is that I can add additional windings to them all by myself. If I need a quick 3.3v winding, I simply wrap wire around the doughnut, tape it down and go).
Quoted from vid1900:You can add an additional secondary winding to make one transformer work for both games. There can be unused windings that are capped off for one game or another.
Weigh the difference in price of adding an extra winding vs. the cost savings of making a larger run of Transformers.
Yes indeed, it would be very easy to do....and I can certainly get a voltage reading on my PP, or check out the manual for the specs. It's up to the OP if he wants to go further.
The only downside would be farting around with the secondary tap leads when you need to put the xfmr in another game. That said, it'd be a lot nicer to swap a couple wires in the Molex connector than to stock two different part numbers.
I still need to check out a few other games as well....I only have 6 of the 9 Alvin G's (soon to be 7 
), so I wonder what xfmr the others use. I have manuals for most of those games as well, so I'll see what I can find out. Maybe an all-in-one type of product is worth it....
Alright thanks for the heads up! I made an amendment to the topic title, but the engineer is out of town for the rest of the week, so I will have to wait and see if it is possible! Thanks for all the help and suggestions! Ill keep this thread updated with everything I gather! (I'm sure it's possible, I will just have to see if it is cost efficient!)
Alright, so...
The quote was a bit off. The company e-mailed me back today to tell me it would cost considerably more. I'm not happy about it, but I'm between a rock and a hard place. I'm going to go ahead and get one, but if anyone is still interested let me know! If we get 5 people to get one we will get a discounted price.
Thanks,
Jake
Of course, it is super easy to wind your own toroidal transformer (just like it is easy to add a new voltage tap to an existing one).
This is how audiophiles replace burnt up transformers in high power gear.
A pinball machine requires much less power, of course.
You can get a kit:
http://www.toroid.com/standard_transformers/transformer_kits/transformer_kits.htm
Or just get a core:
ebay.com link: Toroidal core for AC power transformer wind your own DIY Audio amp toroid 5 4
Someone can check my math, but if a game draws 4 amps max, then a 460VA transformer core would be all that would be needed (and probably much smaller if you use LEDs ).
I looked at Antek, but couldn't get through to them and now I'm out a sample. Can a toroidal transformer replace a bobbin transformer?
A Toroidal transformer is just a very efficient transformer, it can replace many different kinds.
It is popular with the DIY crowd because you can wind it yourself without any special machinery, or add on extra voltage windings to existing toroidal transformers.
There is lots of info on winding your own with simple math (like each loop around the doughnut adds .29 volts....).
Let's say you needed 48 volts but the existing tap was 63V, you just solder a new wire to the tap and then wind it backwards a few loops and the voltage becomes lower. A mad scientist's dream.
Did you try calling Antek on the actual phone?
What about the resistance? I'm guessing that just relates to the wire thickness?
I have not, but what would I need to know besides the input (120 V 60 Hz) and secondary or outputs (6v, 9v, 13v, 16v, 51v, 60v, 98v)? I would just need to know the Amps and resistance right?
You don't really have to worry about resistance of the old transformer.
You just need the voltage and amperage draw of each tap.
Then you calculate what diameter wire (amperage), and how many turns around the transformer doughnut (secondary voltage).
If you guys are really interested in this, I can contact
http://www.summitmagnetics.com/
They are right down the road from me and already make transformers for gaming...I have a PP and MC transformer I could yank and take to them to replicate.
If you could do that and get back with me that would be great! I'm going to call Antek now and see what they say.
Quoted from 320Gigabytes:Antek says they do not offer custom built Transformers.
That is odd because we have some back at the shop that are *very* custom from Antek and they are from last years stock.
Maybe we order enough to be worth their while?
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