Ryan, an Add-A-Ball is different from a standard game in that it typically provides you balls to play rather than a ball in play counter.

In other words, instead of starting at 1 and incrementing to 5, it starts at 5 and decrements to 0 (game over).

Where an Add-A-Ball becomes a very fun experience is when you thwack the target or goal that gives you another chance (up to 10, typically), and you hear the replay knocker go off, and you get yet another chance to roll the score or hit the target again to add another ball.

Having a massive game on an Add-A-Ball is typically completely different from a replay game. Rolling the score several times becomes very possible due to the number of chances you get to play. Your skill not only keeps the ball alive, but allows you to earn up to 10 extra chances per ball! It won't go above 10 balls, but it's still amazing to think that your game could extend a full 5, 6, or 7 balls beyond what a typical replay game provides. That is... if you're able to complete the goals.

Contrast this with a typical replay game with extra balls. Yes, you get another chance, but after that chance is over, the ball counter continues to increment towards 5 and Game Over.

Hope that makes sense. I think I've done a show about this difference (an early episode).

Super excited that the pickup went smoothly and you had a fun time with the family. I happen to like Bally games quite a bit from the service standpoint, so start getting excited! I am!

Correct. Also, orinary replay games. Of course, the number of balls is adjustable, but why mess with perfection?

No density involved. This is a different style of game compared to what you're used to. The added balls do not pause the decrement count. They are a hard count of how many chances you have left. You can earn more, but it always informs you of how many chances you have.

On a replay game, they /do/ pause the increment.

You clamp the playfield (to the top of the sawhorses) so that it doesn't fly off the side of the sawhorses. This is especially important regarding what Joe mentioned about parts touching. This means that you have to move the horses farther apart to prevent things getting hit. When you do this, the playfield will want to collapse off of the sawhorses or implode the whole contraption.

They were only made for three states to skirt the law that you could not have games with replays.

As Bruce said earlier in this thread:

Anti-replay laws were made to counteract the 'evils' of one balls/payout games (mostly the one balls).

If they lubed the score reel plungers like that, I can't WAIT to see what they did to stepper plungers. Sometimes the score reels get the worst of the grease, other times it is the entire game... Whee!

Good job, right back on the wagon! You'll find several other differences between the Williams way and the Bally way (I prefer the Bally way, myself).

Question though - are you using a q-tip to clean the score reel? It's massively easier to clean using a microfiber cloth with a bit of novus on it. As I mentioned to you (off-thread) - be very careful with cleaning those yellow reels with novus. You may wish to switch to a soap and water mixture to treat it nice and gently. Again, no q-tip involved, unless the crevices prevent you from easy cleaning. The novus may wipe the numbers off, though you appear to have had ok luck with it so far.

Up to you, of course!

3-in-1 forever!
-Nick

Good job! Yes, those little alligator assemblies are tricky. You'll know if you've done it wrong if the reel doesn't advance and stop properly.

The dish soap is easier to use with a microfiber cloth to get off the big junk and the toothbrush for detail. You can also increase the amount of soap vs water. Perhaps your soap doesn't have a degreaser in it (like the brand Dawn)? Since the novus isn't hurting it badly (it sure looks like the digits are moving a bit), looks like you've got a good method for this game. Just be warned, anyone watching or Ryan on a later game, you can wipe the numbers right off on some reels with novus. I've never personally experienced that effect with soap and water. I always test on an inconspicuous corner of a #9 or a #7 to see what happens.

Congrats on the gif-age. I still don't know how to use those moving pictures (in general, not just on this site). Ha-ha!

I like Pecos' method quite a bit. Never used Bon Ami myself for cleaning, but I can see where it would help!

I do mix them together, but not in those quantities. Lots of soap + a bit of water. I clean the digits too. Soap + water shouldn't take the numbers off unless you're rubbing really hard. I use a little dish smaller than a ramekin, and squirt a bunch of soap in there. Then I pour some water in it and dip my cloth into the mixture. I wipe everything down with a damp cloth, then a dry cloth. I could be quite a bit more frugal with the soap if I used Pecos' method, but laziness compels me sometimes.

It's also possible that pics are not telling the whole story, and you're just fine. Sure sounds like you're treating them with kid gloves - but using either of our methods will get them cleaned faster (it sounds like).

Ha-ha! Yes, screws that deep near the coil were a common practice. They serve to both help anchor that mighty switch stack and prevent the coil front from flopping around.

Definitely grab those replacement bracket screws. Your sleeve and plunger will wear unevenly otherwise. (coil stop, too!)

Missing coil stop: the laundry inside was the attempt to fix temporarily instead of ordering a new bracket. Normally, the plunger will be mushroomed like crazy, but apparently this one actually worked (for once?!).

You will need a new bracket as yes, it does in fact need a coil stop.

Call Steve and see what he's got. Glad to see you on a roll again!

I'm REALLY SUPER curious to see what the thumper control unit does. My suspicion is that it handles the lighting of each bumper, but does so on a continuous stepper basis, so based on what's happening in the game, that unit will advance. If it turns out to be a timed thing... I am going to be impressed and I may have to make the trip just to play this game.

Oh, and you need to scrub those female Jones Plugs. A must! (Like cleaning the male counterparts).

Whaaaat?! Yeah! (Sorry I neglected to tell you this during Swinger!) Wire brush works well, but be advised that It is rather easy to either bend the female 'pins'/'plugs' and accidentally tear them off with too much pressure. You can also use the old standby: GSB.

Note that if you use either of these items, look for stray wires from the brush or GSB threads that may jump across two terminals on top or on the solder portion of the female plugs.

The male pins - you cleaned those though, correct? Again, wire brush, steel wool, GSB all pretty effective.

Ryan, you're double-checking to ensure that your units are stepping up/down appropriately after reassembly, correct? The notch in the gear corresponds with the extreme positions of the stepper. You're probably testing, just hasn't been mentioned - just want to make sure!

I'm just not a picture taker, so it baffles me that someone would take so very many. Whatever works for you is good, however, generally speaking, there's only one way many pieces of each unit can be installed that allow the other pieces to be installed or the unit to function.

Perhaps it's something I have an eye for? Dunno. I've just never enjoyed taking photos during the process of assembly/disassembly. I may take one before disassembling something, but it's usually of no help (because all my pics look like I am really shaky).

Extra rivet is possible... another potential is that the rivet may be connected to another on the wiring side. Common practice that allows current to travel to another area. Your schematic knows all.

Maybe also you might be missing things like the ground screw because it is such a chore to review that many photos?

...yes, I am easily befuddled by photos.

Final post for tonight - your units look really great. Very good job thus far!

Hey no problem on the ribbing - like I said I'm in the minority! You do have to deal with my half-hearted defense of text-only posts after an evening of stripping and soldering, though. Haha! I'm so happy to see your collection open up to the wide world of EM over the past year or so.

I'm also looking forward, when this game is complete, to hear your thoughts on the differences between Williams and Bally and which you like better. I'd love to hear the same perspective with a 70s Bally (or, dare I say it, a bingo?!).

When you make it to Gottlieb... we'll see what you think!

I want to reiterate that you're doing a great job, and I'm very much looking forward to your thoughts on gameplay, since it's been so high on your wishlist for so long.

This is a guess, because at this point, I don't have any knowledge of the Bally or other pinball manufacturing processes, but I believe those are both stamped as part of the same assembly.

If you notice, the nylon gear is different than the typical gears on the other steppers you've worked on. It needs to be labeled as such, when you're pulling parts out of the parts bucket to put together. 'This gear goes on the #14 assembly', which, if you'll notice, looks a whole heck of a lot like the credit unit in any other replay game (reference your Swinger, for instance).

That's one of the interesting things about add-a-ball games in general. Aside from Gottlieb, which did some other things to cut the costs of their add-a-balls down a bit (removing the credit unit entirely), the other manufacturers just used the same assemblies with different cosmetic appearances and a different mechanical setup for limits (upper and lower).

Later on, this allowed them to use the exact same game and, in Bally's case, add one additional relay (jones plug removable) to allow swapping between add-a-ball and replay play. My '67 Chicago Coin add-a-ball also works this way (credit counter repurposed as added ball counter, and jones plug to swap between replay and add-a-ball states).

I've only worked on one Williams add-a-ball. It was unremarkable (and I don't have any photos!). And Gottlieb is a whole different animal. It's very similar, but a bit easier to work on than the replay counterparts (in my opinion).

Hey, you remember that mystery stamp? #14? And how I said I thought it was related to differentiating those unit pieces from the rest?

I was wrong. Ha-ha! The stamp happens to be the exact same stamp as the qc stamp from the inspector. They apparently approved both components of that unit.

Pecos, you might try PM'ing Mk1mod0 on pinside - he has done an acrylic pinball cabinet and playfield, and is currently working on an acrylic bingo cabinet and playfield!

If anyone knows the answers to those questions, it'd be him.

Well, your suspicion is probably correct.

Try loosening the spider a little bit and see if that does anything to help the situation. Not a lot, mind you, but there's a small sweet spot between too loose and too tight.

Otherwise, your clock spring on the back is too tight and the ratchet action can't quite.... make it.

Your operator fix. I would suggest perhaps one of two courses of action. But first, here's the thing to note.

1) Your armature won't wear out any faster that way
2) Your coil sleeve/stop/coil bobbin will be destroyed over time.

There is slack now between the plunger and sleeve, and the bracket. That's bad (TM). Here's the stuff you can do:

1) Forget about it - this is on the thousands and with a good functioning tilt bob/relay (HINT) you'll be just fine. If you take this course of action, you'll want a nut on the back of the screw as well. Just for good measure. Probably a nylock nut. You can also use a longer sleeve, but really the plunger will destroy it regardless, but it would improve the situation.

2) Drill new screw holes, and tap them. This is difficult and requires specialized tools that you might not have.

3) Cut the switches and solder back together. This is easier than it sounds. You can do so with silver solder or otherwise break 'em. Not a great solution either.

4) Only attach one screw to hold the stack in place. (The one further back). Again, use a longer screw, back it with a nylock nut, make it very very tight. Be prepared for switches to come out of adjustment.

Which solution you choose is up to you. Your game and all!

Bell: yes, first of all, that's all from oils from your hands. Does it wipe off easily? If so, leave it alone.

If not, then yes, you're getting some tarnish or rust. You do need to protect it. Wax is an easy thing to add, and should help. Any tarnish will change the sound of the bell (but in this case it is so slight that you'll probably not even notice it). It will likely get worse, as tarnish tends to do. Caused by exposure to the air.

My suspicion is that it was plated, but you've wire wheeled all the plating away. Not the end of the world, just something to remember for the next game!

giphy.gif

For Ryan.

Agreed. As you can see from the pic above, the fuse holder started to fall apart with fuses being pulled and replaced.

Hopefully, it's something like a partially shorted coil vs. a shorted socket. But it may be both!!!

Luckily, you've fixed the holders now, so you won't chase your tail trying to figure out if the fuses are good...

For is right - inspector/employee 61.

Thing on the left is a terminal strip. Usually used to hold power cord (incoming) with power cord (to transformer).

Thing on the right is hard to tell from a pic.

Yes, missing/jumpered fuses could have caused match burning. Of course a shorted match coil that burned could also be the cause of fuses blowing, which might have caused the jumpers eventually when the fuse clips started to fail....

Chicken and egg. Once you look under the playfield and at the various trip relays and so forth things might become more clear...

Broken jones plugs. Unfortunately, it is difficult to replace a single broken tab. The issue is that you have to re-rivet, replace with a good one that you fabricate, then re-rivet.

Probably easier to find a new (used) four position female jones plug. I'll check my parts cache. You have to move over wires - one piece at a time.

Remember that female jones plugs will all break if you flex them. The metal is thin and will fatigue and break. Be careful.

The splayed out one can still conduct in that funky position, but you can test this. Issue is that with vibration,it may not.

Regardless - fixable.

Now let's talk hacked wires.

Someone put in an EMI filter (aftermarket).

To do this, they cut the original wiring, and spliced in new plastic coated wires.

Remember that plastic coated wires conduct at 110V and do have potential to kill you. Work on it with the game off and unplugged.

The filter is not needed. It can be removed.

The power cord should be replaced.

The green wire tucked in is a ground wire and not used or needed.

The other cut wires may no longer be needed. Note that the blue wires on the jones plug are doubled on the same position. Worry about that later... When something doesn't work. The wires are not bare and not particularly dangerous. You can cap them or cover with electrical tape if you would like.

In contrast, I don't find the Bally ones to be particularly terrible. But maybe that's because I deal with them so frequently? Regardless, it doesn't matter the manufacturer's jones plugs used. On most Bally games, the male side is actually the problem. It will curl. I don't know of they used fewer layers to shore them up, but they seem particularly susceptible to heat warpage.

Again, doesn't matter. You can replace with any four prong female jones plug and it'll work.

Also, that is either the match feature or a pricing plug. Is there a manual for this game? Probably not (too early with too many flippers) so your plug will be shown on the schematic.

Smallest I have is a six position female. It'll work, but do you want to look for a four position? Up to you.

Me too. Those Bally ones are sharp!

In all seriousness, let me try to describe the difference between the two - again, very little practical difference.

Gottlieb:
Older female plugs are rectangular and resist breaking and squishing. You would likely have to stomp on them to bend the plug closed (I haven't seen the stomp, but I've fixed ones that were squished). There is very little practical way to repair the Gottlieb female plugs.

Self-cleaning action: As the male pin is inserted into the female plug, the two outer sides scrape at the male pin. Unless someone yanked the male plug out sideways. There's usually at least one good surface left to hug even if they are abused.

Weakness: Pliers.

Cleaning: difficult - you have to squeeze something abrasive inside of it.

Bally:
Metal 'feels' thinner.
Hole in the top to insert the male pin, large sheet of metal that bends back in to touch the male pin.
Two tines on the inside that apply more pressure.
Plug will still make contact if the outer metal is broken off.

Self-cleaning action: two metal tines scrape the male pin as it is inserted/removed.

Weakness: metal fatigue by bending the outer edge. If you put a towel down in the bottom of the cab while soldering, be extremely careful when removing as it can catch and break off the edges. Also: heat is the enemy, probably moisture too. As I mentioned earlier, they feel less strong than their Gottlieb counterparts.

Cleaning: Hand-held wire brush or GSB pad. Simple to clean by comparison and easy to keep shiny.

Williams:
IIRC they used the same supplier as Gottlieb - maybe it's just that they are always dirtier on the games I work on, but something about the male plugs feels slightly different. The female side is similar to Gottlieb, though. I seem to always work on games where the female side has bent away from the male pin, tho, and have to squeeze with pliers to get back to proper shape. Most other folks don't seem to run into this frequently. Must just be a VA thing...

Exhibit:
Similar to Williams/Gottlieb

My personal favorite currently, though, is United - their dual-inline package is really slick:
Flat package - each 'pin' of the Jones Plug male side is on one side of the flat package.
Female side is a single channel with receiving pins - as tight as it can possibly be for the best possible connection. No adjustments or tweaking or anything to break or damage...

Weakness: Not much that I've found. United also tried to keep the plugs different sizes (physically) to prevent mis-plugging. I am not sure if they did this style of plug for their whole run, the only game I have is a 1955... but I would hope they did. They are that good.

Anyway, for those that are not familiar with Jones Plug variations, the above is a little primer. Different manufacturers did different stuff over the years.

Bally (from my understanding) wanted to make their own parts, so as not to be beholden to outside manufacturers (clever, probably a lot cheaper in the long run, and would allow for production numbers to be more easily concealed...), and to allow for different designs for things like lamp sockets to make them flat pack instead of protruding sockets - allowing for more lamps in a smaller area. This is of course, good and bad. Good for the reasons above, bad for any other you can think of. The flat sockets use a small tine to poke the nipple of the bulb and actually gouge it. The outer area tends to separate... leading to poor connections and flaky bulbs.

My guess is that everyone else got their female plugs from the same supplier. I suspect that Williams used a different supplier than Gottlieb for the male plugs. I have no real clue, though.

Anyway, hope that clears some things up and you don't just have two people talking up different manufacturers based on their personal experience.

Lastly, don't step on any jones plugs. I think they will all actually break in a similar way.

Yes, I missed that question - it's a sand resistor, and you can easily test it for the rated value (printed on the outside)! I've only ever had to replace one in my short career in pinball repair.

And that one was physically broken in half.

(They are pretty darn reliable).

You can use magic eraser and alcohol. I would not sand (for real) unless you're addressing something quite a bit more serious. The alcohol will dissolve the lacquer, but it will allow the dirt to be freed. The light sanding provided by the magic eraser will pull it away. You could also try something like naptha / also scrub a bit harder in that area.

It will not be perfect, as the dirt from the ball has actually ground into the playfield. But you can make it look a little better. You can also just leave it if you choose. Now that it is clean, run your hand on it - is it bumpy? If not, I might leave it.

Mine as well. I am not a fan of clear coat on EMs. I have used ME on my games and I agree: with conscientious cleaning and waxing, it's fine.

I only sparingly use ME on any game, though. My opinion is to leave it alone. Unless it bugs you, then do what you want.

Bally probably did.

Ad Posters likely also did. They were bought by one of the sons of the founders of Ad Posters, Thomas A. Grant. They, in turn, were bought by Illinois Pinball.

I'm assuming all the records are now in the same place with PPS, but finding them is likely going to take a lot of effort.

Reproduction burned down. Not once, but twice!

The second time, Gottlieb switched their business to Ad Posters, too.