Doesn't need it. Apart from the fact that pins can be on for 24 hours with no problems, fans pull dust into the head which causes more harm than heat.

This is a pointless venture. The temps inside the back box don't reach levels that would cause components to fail prematurely. Beachfront and boardwalk arcades ran pins in extreme temperature conditions without issues.

Putting LED's in the backbox is one of the best ways to bring temps down. That's the main reason to use LED's, not because they are brighter, that's just an extra perk (or drawback to some).

+1

As much as I'd hate to agree with this guy I think I might. No one thinks this would help with bad solder joints or burnt GI connectors? Seems like it would have to. Yes LEDs would fix the problem also but there's many people who don't use them for any # of reasons. Yes dust would be a factor because we love our pins and don't want any dust on them. The dust Dosent hurt our computers and it won't hurt out pins. But it will be annoying and dusty. I own an appliance service company and most appliances have fans in them to prolong life.I personally won't use them since I'm using LEDs in everything. I don't know what kind of filter system your thinking about but unless you use a expensive filter it would have to be cleaned every few days. That's not practical. To much maintainince already. I can't see it being a good business venture though. It would only be worth $15_$20 and that's only to a few select people. And half of them wouldn't buy shit from you. So with that being said you should take a loan out against your business and another mortgage out on your house and start mass producing fans with hepa filters.

I've seen this discussed on RGP 45 times at least...

Here's one for example, from all that I've read over the years I wouldn't bother adding fans...

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/8ca94f662c3f5f51/67113b8720389de2?lnk=gst&q=backbox+fan#67113b8720389de2

First of all I'm not your son. If I was I would do the world a favor and blow my brains out. Partially for having a father that can't spell "loan". Second off ill post anything I damn well please. Lord knows you go around saying anything you want to anyone you want. So if you can't take it don't dish it out. I've never tilted you before but I'm one step away from joining the we hate bvm so let's tilt him club. I'm the only one who agreed with you. So I'm with everyone else now. It's a stupid idea, how about you stick a fan up your ass and cool down, son.

I still see this "venture: as nothing but a waste of time. It won't help anything. This would not help connectors or joints. These issues are caused by heat, but not by the heat in the box, it is the heat from the electricity running through the circuits. If you cool the inside of the box down by 15 degrees you will have achieved nothing in helping your long term useable of the machine. LED's reduce heat, but their true benefit is in power consumption and not the heat.

No one cares if you sold a machine, you are a super douchebag though...congrats on that!!

why not just turn down the ac while you have them on?

+1

the fans I put in my boxes I have blowing outward.... heat rises to the fan and is sucked out...

+2 and I recently bought a bunch of #555 frosted white LEDs from PBL and changed the backbox for all my games. This would be the main source of heat in the backbox anyways and I've burned my fingers a few times changing out bulbs after just turning the machine off. I also wasn't too keen on the look initially because there is a cool white glow and then warm yellow glow on the bottom. But the looks trade off is worth it for cooler temps in the head and less stress on the connectors/boards and most importantly it doesn't affect game play.

+1 Especially for HUO. If it ain't broke don't fix it....

not on me... I can take a few when I get home from the salt mines...

I've so had enough of you.... You try to come back here, change your name, change how you are, put little smileys at the end of all your pompous and idiotic posts, but inevitably, all that is “you” just flows like a leaky toilet no one cares to fix.

Why don’t you make a forum on your for sale site you hose people on, and anyone wanting to give a crap can view your little annoyances there.

Your still not getting it dude. But have fun.

Even when it clearly isn't needed?? It's your pin, do as you please.

People have put filtered fans on pinball games before, no big deal. Frozen CPU has 5 pages of them:

http://www.frozencpu.com/cat/l2/g47/c223/list/p2/Fan_Accessories-Fan_Filters.html?o=title_az

The GI connectors melt, not because of the ambient temp of the games interior, but because too much current is drawn through them.

A $27 (100@$39 - 30% volume discount) bag of 100 clear LEDs from Pinball Life will drop the interior temp of the game 30 degrees or more. It will also drop the power draw of the game by 60%. Drawing less power will preserve the power supply and of course protect the GI connectors.

If you don't like the look of LEDs, get the Retro bulbs for GI, or only put LEDs under the playfield and inside the backbox where the color is filtered by the inserts anyway.

The air temp will be cooler, there is no doubt about that...unless the flow is extremely low or the room air temp is very high; it is essentially simple physics.

To see if it's effective, it's more important to see the effect on either a hi-temp component or connector.

If you can't show that you can materially change the temperature of the connectors or components, then the usefulness is limited.

By-the-way, you will also need to measure the room temperature during your "study"...to remove it's affect.

Robert

Last Summer I was working on my Pinball Magic. It was about 95 out and no AC in the room with the PM. The Bridges were running extremely hot. I thought of adding fans but never did. Still I don't think it can hurt the situation. I would have added small two fans both blowing out from the top vents.

ok this is the back box for star trek 25th another fan was added.. not by me, but I left it... one blows air in and one blows air out...

100_5212.JPG

this is one I put in .05vdc blowing out...

100_5210.JPG

and one more for kicks.... not done by me It worked...

100_5213.JPG

The examples above are a perfect reason why after market fans in pinballs dont make sense. In the first picture the fans are so close they do nothing but recirculate each others air. No cross ventilation In the second it probably does very little because there is once again no cross ventialtion. The last is the worst. I cant tell the direction but the hot capacitors are feeding warm air into the hot heat sinks on the resistors.

The best way to get air flow by using fans is cross ventilation. So you would have to make a vent on the left side of the head and blow air across the components and out through the right side.

This is all pretty much useless becuase of the layout of the components, the wiring, and the surface area of the backbox. Everything is in the way. And little PC fans dont have the CFM's needed to cool such a large surface area.

I'm pretty sure BVM wants to win the millionth post award.

lol...

ya I left the first one alone... the second one I added, just thought it might help to pull some hot air out. the third one, well that board was just replaced... see my post on problems with mad amusement.