So I re-pinned the connector today adding two wires on the yellow and yellow/white pins. Easy mostly because the Molex crimper I bought on ebay with the locator makes it simple with beautiful crimps.

Here's what it looks like. Now I am going to evaluate what I like best. The Comet kit has clear buttons and colored LEDs. I also have translucent red and blue buttons and single red and blue LEDs. I also have dual red and blue LEDs was well as duals in white. I will post the final job when it's done but this is the connector as it looks now.

Thanks for any feedback.

///Rich

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Excellent! Thank you for making these!

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I like it. Nice clean installation. I’ve never gone in for that particular mod but you e got me thinking about adding it when I do my cabinet restoration (eventually.)

You could probably just install a Yoppsicle LED and save a bundle over those purpose build mod kits, BTW.

Hey guys, i'm at work wondering about the GI on pinbot.

Prior owner has the all red all blue on the sides, and i loathe it.

I want to redo it, but wondering if i have to pull the plastics on top, OR, hopefully, the sockets/bulbs can be changed from below by just unscrewing the sockets and changing.

Anyone know?

My playfield just happens to be up, so I thought I'd take a look. Appears that most/all of the GI sockets are the kind that staple to the underside of the pf, so yeah, you're shit outta luck, gonna have to pull the plastics.

You're welcome. Looks great! Is that a Jackpot plastic I see next to your lift ramp?

Kinda thought so. Blah.

Thanks for checking!

If memory serves, I think a lot of those socket are stapled in. You have to pull the plastics to get to them all.

Looking for 2 good used plastics
If anyone has them from a resto they did i am interested. shoot me a pm
Thanks

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There should be a plastics kit that includes just these two.

Most broken parts on Pinbot usually with the exception of the Vortex ramp and the topper plexi...

I pulled the broken red vortex to replace it with a new one and the wire under the 5,000 point hole looked sheared, and there’s no switch at all. Just a floating wire. Is this like a dampener to slow down the ball? Do I replace it? Thanks!

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It's a one way gate so the ball doesn't skip backwards over the hole.

Just realized that it’s broken. The wire doesn’t extend enough through the hole. How would I replace it? I wouldn’t even know what part number it is lol. Thanks!

Just checked the manual with no luck. Feel free to double-check my work and let me know what you find. I need this part, too!

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Here's mine. Looks like you still have all the curves so you could use your old one as a pattern.

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Marco doesn’t have it. Anyone know the wire gauge of this part? Manual is not forthcoming on this.

The part of the wire that sticks up thru the hole should be exactly 5/8" long, from the bend to the end.

Notice not many PIN*BOTs with cabinet leg protectors, I was thinking of adding yellow ones to mine, and suggestions?

Since the Pinbot cabinet is screen printed and not decaled, it's fairly rare to see significant damage from the legs.
Cabinet decals can get wrinkled around the legs pretty easily, but you really have to overtighten the legs or bash the game around to damage a screened cabinet.
When protectors are used, I prefer the ones that you can't see.

https://www.pinballlife.com/metal-cabinet-protectors-set-of-4.html

I'll be making a dedicated restoration thread for this game eventually, but here's something I've been up to. A few years back, there were two project Pinbots for sale (together) on the marketplace, and somehow I managed to get them in the end. One was essentially a lost cause, missing so many critical parts (and with what was there in too bad of shape) that it would've cost as much as a very nice restored example just to get it functioning. It served its purpose as a parts machine, and its sacrifice will not be forgotten; pretty much nothing went to waste, as I will even be using the cabinet for another project I have cooking up for the future.

As far as the other one, it had some big issues that led to three owners in a row giving up on it. I promised myself the cycle of abandonment would end with me, and although moving and Covid and a homebrew kept me too busy to work on it for a couple of years, I got it set up in the corner of my workshop a short while ago and began digging in to see what I could do with it. Getting it through the door required removing the head, which means I had to chop the connector-less lamp cords that a previous operator had run from the transformer. So in the process of hooking things back up, I pulled out the transformer along with the whole power wiring harness. It was... not pretty.
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Issues:
-Transformer and wires were dirty (cosmetic, but gross to work on)
-Multiple wires torn out of main connector, but some exposed cuts/splices were still live
-Five different wires in main connector bypassed by brown lamp cord
-Nearly all zip ties removed, leaving big mess
-Five or six different wires covered in long lengths of electrical tape, with violently scraped-off insulation underneath (wtf happened to this thing?)
-A few bundles held together with tape rather than zip ties

I didn't have the "correct" main output connector on hand, but Molex MiniFit plugs appear to be rated high enough to take their place, so I divided it into two plugs, six pins each. I had white and clear plug housings on hand, so I used both, with male/female ends reversed for one of the harnesses to make it impossible to plug together the wrong way. I cleaned everything up, replaced damaged sections of wire and heat-shrunk the splices, collected and zip-tied every branch, and protected the main trunk under some flex tubing. I'd have to say my new power harness is just a tiny bit tidier and safer than it was...
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Looks like I will need to remove/separate the back box of my PIN*BOT to get it down the stairs to my basement.

I know this is not the best course of action. Other than taking lots of good pics of wire harnesses, connecting points etc...and proper labeling, is there anything else I need to do or watch out for?

Thanks in advance,

Slowly and carefully. Take extra care not to bang the topper into anything. And don't forget to unbolt the hinges from the head before trying to lift it off. It's really not a difficult job as long as you're careful. And while you have the head off, you can touch up any paint or fill in missing wood on the neck.

If the connectors are original, it will all go back together one way. But pictures are always essential.

///Rich

Finally installed my PEMBOT roms from interconnect and they work great. Having the ball save feature really makes a difference!

I’m replacing this under playfield relay. There is no ground wire, just the 28 volt wire that’s jumpered across. Is this correct?
Thanks

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Yes this is correct. This is an A/C relay that switches just the power side of the voltage. The red +28 volt power is switched between the orange power wire and the brown power wire. The label GRD. is really not correct for this board it should read NO., as this board is also used for a snubber relay board. When this board was used for a snubber relay, a ground wire would have been connected there along with a cap a resistor.

Now for the new relay you have there, coil (NO) should have the orange wire. NC should have the brown wire with no stripe. DRV should have the brown/blue striped wire. +28v should get a small red jumper wire that will be connected to the thick red wire that goes to the GRD terminal.

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Hello All...im trying to remove my ROMs to install PEMBOT ROMs... I tried to remove my current ROM circuit boards and they're not budging...im worried I might crack or damage something...any recommendations or suggestions to remove the circuit boards?

Thanks in advance

I like to use a tiny watch screwdriver flat head for these. Pry one side, then the other.
NOTE: make sure your screwdriver is under the rom and NOT also the socket.

Hmmm. Is that maybe your issue? You’re trying to pry off the chip but you’re prying under the socket accidentally? The rom chip is inserted into a socket. They pancake each other.

Thank you!

Yes I know its in a socket...im trying to lift in between the two...yes I tried a small flat ahead...but I wasnt really trying two sides bit a t a time...ill try that...so no special tools required? Just noticed the whole pcb board was flexing as I was pulling.

They’re usually really tight.

Just pry one side up a bit then the other

Yup. Those roms been in the board a long time.
It's a little nerve racking but go slow. Pry one side and then the other with that tiny flat head screw driver. Pembot roms are so worth it.

These small pry bars work really well to help remove ICs from sockets:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0875LSTD3

Ok I just got the switch done...booted up but getting an "adust failure"...
Sorry I've tried researching and not sure what I did wrong. I didn't remove back up battery I have before the switch (I have watch battery board upgrade) ...which is what I thought I read (afterwards) one person told someone to do. I now recall reading some kind of reset is needed?...but can't seem to find official install guide though...I did remove the battery and put it back but no change BUT maybe battery needs to be removed while roms are out of socket? Hope not cause I hate removing and installing these chips.

Can anyone let me know, would be much appreciated.

Its ok, got it now...did a boot up with coin door open then closed and seems ok now.
Thanks

The adjust failure message is normal when you switch out the roms. Did the same for me. It does the same if you replace the batteries.

Ok good to know...that microchip switch out was nerve wrecking!...wasn't easy alining in the microchip prongs to install them in either....jeesh...plus also needed a good amount of force to push them in, and couldn't use prying technique to help like i was able to use pulling them out.
Glad I dont need to go through that again (I know they sell the special socket add ons with levers too)
Was worth it just for ball save feature alone in PEMBOT though, as after I tested it.

Thanks again for the insight.

Looking for some ideas on fixing my audio. The game will play all (most?) of the basic sys11 synth sounds - bonus count, drop target awards and timer, etc. It will also play the CVSD samples e.g. PINBOT'S CIRCUITS ACTIVATED. However, I get no music, and some of the bigger sound effects are missing as well.

The CVSD quality is horrible, but I'll cross that bridge later. The game is currently running a Rottendog Sys11 CPU and I've heard that's a known issue with that board.

A couple things. Are you running original known good ROMs? Or did you burn a set based on the images on IMDb.org or the ones on the planetary site? Both are flawed and when using those there wil be missing sounds. There is a separate image for the U22 chip on IMDb.org that has the correct image for that chip. I ran into this myself and could explain the missing sounds.

Can you post pictures on how the wires for the sound are plugged in? Also of the Rottendog board. There are a couple versions of that board. I believe the latest has a couple multiturn potentiometers to adjust the sound section. Did some testing with that in a Grand Lizard and worked perfect. Never tried it in Pinbot but may at some point if I get a Rottendog board in for repair.

Interesting, thank you for the insights! I will try and remember to check on a few things when I get home today.
I don't know the source of the ROMs, but the "Sounds & Music" ROM on the sound board *looks* original if I recall correctly. The two on the CPU board have replacements that I have tried - there was a set of originals from a parts machine, and a set of repros from K's Arcade. I get the same results regardless of which ROMs I use. I don't have any spares of the chip on the sound board.
For sure I'll grab a photo of the boards and wiring. I checked it based on several images and it seemed correct (also reseated+reversed the ribbon cable, correct Pin 1 orientation), but it doesn't hurt to confirm.

Well U22 is messed up on all the official ZIP file images of the latest Pinbot ROM's so if they used them that may explain why you're missing sounds.

Without knowning the history of the machine who knows if the external sound board is working correctly or not or what the history is of the replacement MPU and what the original board was doing or not doing.

I sent both my cpu and sound board to Clive.

Pinbot is notorious for sound/music issues. And they’re difficult to track down.

If the CPU is in fact the problem, there may be an additional saving grace - a spare board I picked up a while back that's already fitted with Pinbot ROMs. A friend of mine tried it out while I was too busy, and reported that it didn't work. But it may be worth trying to fix in the future - considering that it has no battery damage, unlike this game's original board.

Good point about the sound board. That was something I wondered about myself, might have to dig a bit deeper to figure that out. Can I at least assume that if I pick up a replacement Sound+Music ROM (on the sound board itself), it would not be a defective binary?

The only ROM image that I am aware of that was bad is the U22 sound ROM on the MPU board. The images for the external sound board should be fine.

If there isn't much battery damage it is totally worth repairing the original MPU. I have rebuilt many System 11 boards and do repairs on them.

That's good at least, should offer at least one simple thing to try before I have to look into component issues.

The original MPU from this specific machine (not the spare I picked up) had severe battery damage, up into the resistors and inductors and throughout the reset section. I was planning on attempting to reconstruct but wasn't well equipped for desoldering, so the project was shelved. I think the second MPU has a considerably better chance at life; haven't looked into what may be wrong with it yet. And then the RD generally works but with minor issues.

When I pre-bend the ROM legs so that they are vertical there is typically very little force needed to insert the chips. The attached images shows a brand new chip on the right. Inserting this into a socket is a pain because the legs on one side act as springs making it hard to align the legs on the other side. On the chip on the left I used a pair of pliers to bend the legs vertical. This chip slides into my sockets like butter.

Sometimes I change my ROMs a dozen times during a single coding session. I used to install ZIF sockets for this but now I don't even bother. With straight legs and as decent pry tool swapping is a breeze.

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I do this too. My method for straightening the legs is different. I just just push one side of the the IC against a hard surface and the do same to the opposite side. Takes seconds and make things much easier.

Don't do this, the legs are bent like this for a reason. It keeps the chips from working out of the sockets. When inserting chips, align one side of the legs and insert them @ 1/3 of the way. Then push the chip towards the side you have started inserting until you flex the legs enough to start the other sides legs. Then ease the chip home bay rocking it side to side until fully inserted.

We all have our own way of doing things but I straighten the legs too and have a few different tools specifically for straightening the leads.

There are several reasons to straighten the legs of the chips. One it does seem easier to insert the chips in the sockets. This is critical if you happen to have machine pin sockets as the alignment is not very forgiving on those.

The other reason is that I've found just the thin part of the lead ends up bending and the upper part doesn't. So when the chips come back out the leads are bent like this:

\
/

Less likely to happen when the leads are straight.

This is the first I've heard of leaving them flared out to keep them from coming out. I can understand the reasoning but if the sockets don't have enough force to properly hold the chip by the leads then it is usually time to replace the IC sockets.