I'm trying to troubleshoot some switch issues for a friend of mine. Both right outlane switches are giving me issues.

The top right outlane switch (bottom in the first column) triggers the top 3 switches in the column as well. Those are single drop target, buy-in button, and start button.

The bottom right outlane switch (bottom of the fifth column) triggers the top 3 switches of THAT column. Those are "U", "R", and "E".

I have replaced the diodes on both switches and the issue is still there. I have a "band towards the bend" thing that I say so I make sure to put the diode band towards the pivot (bend) of the switch body. The green wire is on the center lug of both switches and the other wire is on the side opposite the bend in the switch, just like the working switches on the game.

What else do I need to look for?

I did the switch matrix test on pinwiki where you unplug the connectors from the MPU and touch point to point with a wire. Both switches acted as they should so that means it’s a short somewhere in the wiring or bad diodes. If it’s a diode, isn’t it the one that triggers the other switches? The switches that are being triggered when they shouldn’t do not register any others when they are pressed.

The letters all test out good without having to unplug the green from the outlane switch. Same with the drop/start/buy-in buttons.

I did a visual inspection on the letter switches and none of the diodes are broken, no shorts that I can see, but did not test them yet.

This happens when I press the bottom right outlane switch. I happens fast, but you can pause it to see that the one switch lights up three switches on the column.

That's a great little bit of info. I do have some other switch issues on the POA that I want to get to after this start button issue is gone. Might be the same thing.

Still having fun with my right outlane switch issues, but also trying to troubleshoot the POA motor. I get 12V to both tabs when it's hooked up but it won't move under test. Outside of the test I can ground the tab of the transistor to make it go, right? Well, neither Q30 nor Q34 do anything when grounded. I tried testing them with a multimeter but it's really tight in there and I'd like to make sure I'm force testing them correctly before tearing things apart more.

Does the orientation of the wires matter for the POA motor? If so, what wire needs to be on the tab closest to the cabinet? Thanks.

Much appreciated.

Next question. The motor is wired as shown above. When I power on the game the POA rotates to the left and stays there. It will not let me center it manually. I pulled the driver board and Q30 tests fine. I know a driver can test fine and still be bad, but is there anything else that I should check (maybe on the POA motor board) before replacing Q30 and putting the board back?

This one has been replaced and I’m guessing the red dot is the same as the indent on the original motor.

I replaced Q30 and the POA now no longer locks itself to the left. Instead it does, nothing. I can pivot it by hand and the optos register in the POA test. But it’s not moving left and right when I press the flipper buttons to move the POA left and right. Sort of at a loss and looking for guesses others might have.

UPDATE: Well I left it in test mode typing that up and the POA locked on to the left so likely just killed Q30 again. Any chance the $90 POA board under the playfield is killing Q30? Strange it didn't happen right away.
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I reversed the wires and still isn't moving in either direction. If anything it should move, just in the wrong direction. I'm getting zero movement even though the motor has 12V on both lugs. The motor does work. When I pulled the POA I hooked up a 12V power supply and the motor spun just fine.

Again, in mini playfield test mode it says ERROR! a bunch and says it failed. Once in the next screen where you can see the switches and direction the motor is being told to rotate the opto switches work and it isn't pivoting to either direction.

I got a new Path of Adventure motor control board and the POA is now working, sort of. Going left is fine. Going right is a little choppy. It shows that the right opto is registering and then not over and over as the path pivots over. When it does actually break the opto it stops as it should. Need some ideas to check out. Path and the finger that breaks the optos are both tight.

I played a few games and it was very nice to have the POA back again. The jerky movement to the right was still there and noticeable, but not a show stopper. While I had the POA off the pivot shaft I pulled the opto board in the top left corner and it looked good and the wires didn’t cause any issues while in the POA test mode. I will look on the underside at the opto board tomorrow and see if anything looks suspect.

I cleaned the upper opto and it was fine for a little bit. Then it wasn't. Back to being jittery. I tried a few things, all while moving the POA to the right, sometimes back and forth over and over. Pulled and reseated the connector on the POA opto board. No change. Covered the optos from any light source. No change. Then I started pushing on the top opto like a controller joystick. In, up, down, left, right. It worked! I have had this board pulled before and inspected all the solder joints. They are perfect. The optos are also newer as my friend replaced them shortly after the issue popped up. They were replaced by another friend at work who does prototype electrical assembly, and does very good work.

If I push on the opto from the left the POA is still jittery. If I push from the top, bottom, or right, it moves perfectly. So what are my options? Replacing the opto makes sense, but it's pretty much new, so that would be unfortunate. The leads are all soldered in properly, so if I had to guess there is an internal issue. Too bad this board is buried in that top right corner.

I just pulled and inspected the POA opto board again. Looked fine. The leads are really close together though. I reflowed and added a little solder just to see if that would do anything. Turns out it did. Tested the board after putting it back in and it's working like a champ.

Yeah, after a few games it started acting up again. Going to replace the POA opto board. Where should I get one from to avoid undesirable versions?