Pool Sharks
Bally, 1990Howdy!
The (upper playfield) diverter randomly fires on my Pool Sharks:
I’ve cleaned the diverter assembly and coil sleeve, making sure that it moves freely. I also replaced the diverter’s switch and diode with new ones. However, the issue remains.
Any ideas as to what might be causing this issue?
Quoted from kevmad:What happens when you go into test mode, does it work reliably in test mode?
In the coil test mode cycle, the diverter coil fires and releases. If I pause the test cycle and hold on the diverter, the coil fires and releases repeatedly like it does during regular gameplay.
is your diverter working properly?
The diverter mechanism has 2 positions. Each activation of the solenoid, cycles the diverter to the up position then the down position then Up, etc
It looks like your diverter is not holding in the down position.
Not sure if this is a cause of your problem or a byproduct.
I would look into that first. There is a plastic cam on the diverter mechanism with a spring. check to see if the spring is still there.
The plastic cam on the back of the diverter is probably worn. It’s supposed to go back and forth with each up and down motion. My guess is it’s not always doing that and the coil fires again to try again.
Quoted from chuckwurt:The plastic cam on the back of the diverter is probably worn. It’s supposed to go back and forth with each up and down motion. My guess is it’s not always doing that and the coil fires again to try again.
This is a common issue with Police Force. A replacement cam should be easy to find.
Here is the part number from Marco
https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/03-8090
Here is a video that shows the police force diverter, essentially the same in Pool Sharks.
Keep it simple, the first thing I would check is to make sure the spring is in place on the cam.
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/williams-bally-pinball-playfield-ramp-1634693053
Quoted from Pin-Pilot:is your diverter working properly?
It looks like your diverter is not holding in the down position.
If I manually push the diverter down (with the machine powered off), is it supposed to hold in the down position? (I do have the cam and its spring.)
6A955241-43EF-41D0-8722-889C03232D43 (resized).jpeg
Quoted from chuckwurt:The plastic cam on the back of the diverter is probably worn. It’s supposed to go back and forth with each up and down motion. My guess is it’s not always doing that and the coil fires again to try again.
It doesn't appear to be different than the one at Marco, but perhaps it's worn in ways that aren't easily noticeable?
370FB5F9-8ABB-4024-B1D7-D930E8456575 (resized).jpeg
That looks in good shape.
Yes, if you push the diverter down it should lock in the down position.
Push it again and it should cycle to the up position and continue in this cycle, up, down, up, down and lock in each position
Check your microswitch to confirm it is also working. That senses when the diverter is in the down position.
Quoted from Pin-Pilot:Yes, if you push the diverter down it should lock in the down position.
Push it again and it should cycle to the up position and continue in this cycle, up, down, up, down and lock in each position
When pushing the diverter down, it DOES NOT lock in the down position; it just springs right back up. However, with a better understanding of how this thing is supposed to function (thanks to your info), I began to suspect that the spring attached to the cam wasn't strong enough to pull the cam over into the lock position. I replaced the spring with a new one, adjusting for just the right amount of pull, and the diverter now works as it's supposed to.
Thanks for all of the help, guys!
Quoted from Fatsquatch:When pushing the diverter down, it DOES NOT lock in the down position; it just springs right back up. However, with a better understanding of how this thing is supposed to function (thanks to your info), I began to suspect that the spring attached to the cam wasn't strong enough to pull the cam over into the lock position. I replaced the spring with a new one, adjusting for just the right amount of pull, and the diverter now works as it's supposed to.
Thanks for all of the help, guys!
Glad to hear it was a simple fix!
Quoted from Pin-Pilot:Glad to hear it was a simple fix!
Being that I usually don't get off so easily, me too! 
Quoted from chuckwurt:Nice work!
Thanks!
Quoted from Fatsquatch:Being that I usually don't get off so easily, me too!
Diagnosing and actually resolving pinball problems can be all over the place. Some that you think should be super easy to fix turn out to be a pain then others that you think are going to be big problems almost fix themselves. Love the easy fixes. However the hard fixes when fixed are quite satisfying.
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Harrison, TN