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  4. » EM Keeps Blowing Fuses - Newbie here
(Topic ID: 224361)

EM Keeps Blowing Fuses - Newbie here

By Murphdom

5 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 22 posts
  • 9 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 years ago by Murphdom
  • No one calls this topic a favorite

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#1 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

hello everyone,
First off I would like to say that I am brand new to all of this and this is my first machine I am looking to fix. I picked up a 1970 Chicago coin big flipper for cheap money. The guy who sold it to me knew nothing about it. Taking a quick glance while I was buying it I noticed that several fuses were blown so I was hoping that was the fix. I called up Steve at the pinball resource and he had the most impossible fuses to find. I put them in and it turned it on and everything lit up. I thought I was good to go. I then put a quarter in to get a credit and a fuse blew. I replaced the fuse and now as soon as you turn on the machine the same fuse blows. Its a 15 amp fuse. Should a be using a slow blow or fast blow? Is it the plug where it might not be grounded as a two prong? Any thoughts?

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#2 5 years ago
 
AXE

YeOldPinPlayer

Inactive member

Unknown

8y 111K 6,454 4 12

It's a fast blow. You have a short somewhere, probably a coil or relay that's bad.

You should replace the cord with a modern three prong and ground your cabinet. Pinball Life sells ground braid.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/replacing-line-cords-plugs-wall-sockets-vids-guide

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#3 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

How can I tell if a coil or relay is bad?

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#4 5 years ago
 
AST

astyy

Pinside member

GB Basingstoke

9y 52,050 472 4

For starters something may just look wrong, here's an example from my latest EM project

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#5 5 years ago
 
MVP

Grizlyrig

Pinside+ Frequent

9y 111K 3,370 1

Pm sent

-Mike

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#6 5 years ago
 
ARF

AlexF

Pinside member

US Edgerton, WI

11y 116K 5,766 9 8

Good point. Look for a burnt coil. Wrapper is often toasty brown.

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#7 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

I’m assuming the one on the right is toasted.

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#8 5 years ago
 
ARF

AlexF

Pinside member

US Edgerton, WI

11y 116K 5,766 9 8

I was expecting something more dramatic but potentially...

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#9 5 years ago
 
AXE

YeOldPinPlayer

Inactive member

Unknown

8y 111K 6,454 4 12

Maybe. Can you move the plunger inside it? Does it have zero ohms resistance?

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#10 5 years ago
 
???

currieddog

Pinside member

US Springfield, MA

7y 63,550 3,312 6

OP
Quoted from Murphdom:

I’m assuming the one on the right is toasted.

Don't assume anything, unless you like paying to replace good coils. Check with multimeter. I've had some that looked like hell, but they worked fine.

Check for wire shorts as well.

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#11 5 years ago
 
???

Playdium

Pinside+ Frequent

US Barnstable, MA

10y 82,550 2,164 6 2

Quoted from currieddog:

Don't assume anything, unless you like paying to replace good coils. Check with multimeter. I've had some that looked like hell, but they worked fine.
Check for wire shorts as well.

Well said.

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#12 5 years ago
 
BKC

pinballbrian

Inactive member

US St. Louis, MO

7y 33,800 542

Can you turn credit wheel by hand and push start button.see if fuse blows then.if game starts,it's in quarter switches.are they those micro switches.try to isolate problem.

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#13 5 years ago
 
JCH

embryonjohn

Pinside member

US Marblehead, MA

11y 110K 5,772 4 7

Can you post a picture of the complete underside of the playfield, back of the backbox and looking down into the cabinet?

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#14 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

Hey John,
I see you found my handle/post. Thanks for pointing me in the direction of pinside. Here are the pictures

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#15 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

Fixed it. Where there were no credits on the machine and one of the reels was stuck on a number which kept a circuit hot. I was finally able to nudge it to zero and it fired right up. All the other reels moved no problem when I zeroed them out. Now the game plays no problem but it doesn’t keep a score. Thoughts?

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#16 5 years ago
 
BKC

pinballbrian

Inactive member

US St. Louis, MO

7y 33,800 542

Do score reels turn at all.if not check score relays.there the three farthest left in pic.clean those switches on all those.then while game is on,manually push in relays and see if reels turn.if score reels turn .we need to look at relay coil circuit.

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#17 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

The machine itself is filthy. Except for the playfield some how. It’s Like the machine came out of a chimney covered in soot. The reels are really dirty. Any suggestions on how to clean them? I’m new to this whole thing. Maybe a good clean will help. The hundred reel on player one moves sometimes but nothing else and player two most of the numbers work.

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#18 5 years ago
 
BKC

pinballbrian

Inactive member

US St. Louis, MO

7y 33,800 542

Ok.take pics before you take apart.always!!.close ups of wires ect..then go online to you tube videos,pinball score reel clean ,rebuild,ect .next go online to empinrepair.com .go thru steps.he also shows pics of parts.let me know if those help.its not that complicated.but do take pics from different angles before you disassemble anything.

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#19 5 years ago
 
BKC

pinballbrian

Inactive member

US St. Louis, MO

7y 33,800 542

Sorry,it's pinrepair.com .go thru his steps cleaning and typically what's wrong steps.hope this helps.

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#20 5 years ago
 
???

currieddog

Pinside member

US Springfield, MA

7y 63,550 3,312 6

Check Clay's famous guide. It has just about all info you'll need for everything: http://www.pinrepair.com/em/index1

Go carefully, doing one thing at a time. Take pix, take notes.

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#21 5 years ago
 
AXE

YeOldPinPlayer

Inactive member

Unknown

8y 111K 6,454 4 12

Do not spray lubricant on them. That's a good way to start a fire. The gasses can get set off by the sparks that are common in an EM pinball machine.

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#22 5 years ago
OP
 
CDL

Murphdom

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 80,550 1,701 13

Thanks everyone

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