Beat me by 10 seconds.

Seems I spoke too soon. Problem returned. Did a little more research while out of town last week.

For those who don't know, the flipper circuit is pretty simple on System 6 games (couldn't find a diagram online): from the bridge rectifier through the power supply to the flipper coil then on to the flipper button switch and back to the MPU to ground. The MPU simply throws a relay when the game is started, allowing the flipper button switch, when pressed, to complete the circuit to ground (sending current through the coil).

This got me thinking that my issue was likely related to completing the circuit to ground on three flipper solenoids simultaneously... seems the only way this could affect the MPU since there was no transistor or anything firing the flipper.

Anyway, since I was out of town and wanted to get this fixed with only a single parts order, decided to replace coils to rule that out (several of the solder tabs were simply eroded away and guessed my solder job may have compromised something). Figured what the hell I'll do rebuilds on all of them while I'm at it so ordered the complete assemblies from Pinballlife (Terry was happy to replace the EOS switch with vid's suggestion 03-7811 on each). Opted for the original replacements vs the newer version since I didn't have the playfield around to verify clearances.

Soldered those suckers in this morning. No beuno. Replaced the 9-pin molex where the flipper circuits return to ground (2J12). Nada.

About out of ideas now so removed all connectors and pulled the MPU (Rottendog 327) to look at the back side. All good there. Hmm. For kicks, installed a jumper wire under one of the mounting screws when I reinstalled it and connected the other end to the ground braid.

Voila. That was it. Poor grounding on the MPU was resetting the game when all three flipper coils were energized simultaneously.

So, after all the hair pulling and parts-replacing, it was $0.10 worth of wire and crimp-on ring connectors that fixed me up.

At least I've got a bulletproof power supply, fused bridge rectifiers and snappy new flippers now. Should be good for a while.

For what it's worth, I replaced the right-side flipper switch as well. One of the contacts had gone south and a previous owner tied both flipper circuits to the same contact. I've got staged flippers now too.

Is it possible to compile a part listing so the relevant parts can be ordered from other suppliers such as Mouser? Great Plains seems to be running weird on stock lately, and many of the part numbers and specs don't line up (well enough for my feeble brain) on Mouser.

Even something as simple as the 6A4 diode brings up dozens of options on Mouser.

Or should I do my own damned homework?

It takes some practice. Each type of part has a set of specifications. It largely boils down to what type of component it is, what it's rated for, and what kind of footprint/mounting it has (and depending upon the type of component, a few other specs as well).

Spec sheets are invaluable even if you don't fully understand everything in them. They usually list the individual component and all the specs, footprint, measurements, tolerances, pinout, etc. If the component is part of a series, it will show all the components in the series and what the differences are.

It can take some time to research, but if you do regular repairs, you can just make a note of what you purchased, and when you need to buy something again, just look back on your notes or previous orders.

So I just brought home an Alien Poker. Played fine the first night, went to play again last night and now my right flippers won't work. The left is fine, everything else works on the game. I cleaned contacts on flipper switch, tried reseating connectors. Just struggling with how one side would work, and the other not. I will replace diodes tonight on them, but is there any other suggestions on what to look for?

I just had the 40 pin connector replaced as well before it was brought home.

See my post #552 just above. The flipper circuit is pretty simple. Really no MPU interaction other than the relay at the start of a game. If the solders look good on both coils, I'd suspect one of the connections. You've got one on the power supply board, one between the bottome of the playfield and the cabinet (from the coil to the flipper button) and then one on the MPU where the relay ties in. The flipper button leaf switch sends the circuit to ground via the relay so you should have power at the coil at all times. You can check that and off the top of my head, you should have power on one side of the flipper button leaf switch at all times. Should help to determine where the connection is bad. I'm going memory here so someone else chime in if I'm leading him down the wrong path.

Thanks, I assumed connector somewhere but with the boards not being labeled at all makes it a pain for a novice to find stuff on them.

I know. I'm impatient. GPE has run out of some components (as of yesterday).

how do you break a melted connection? My DIP switch broke on my Hot Tip MPU board. I put a new one in, and carefully checked the connections both closed and open on the bottom with a meter but I screwed it up somehow as the configuration would not change. So I reheated and added more solder and I must have overheated it because now, although it registers changes made with the switches, it starts going crazy - lights flickering, extra game solenoid banging away, loud humm.

Looking at a closeup, I think it looks like I managed to connect the trace with the pad of 4 under the green (red arrow)

Is there any way to fix this? scratch at it with a needle or something? or is this not the problem.IMG_8276 (resized).JPG

IMG_8275 (resized).JPG

Going to do my first complete rebuild using this guide on a Phoenix that I've been chasing gremlins.

SOOO much good information in this thread... I am new to this but have a life of electronics experience and decided that it was finally time to have some fun... Of course, the first thing I jump in on is a Williams system 8 (Pennant Fever) and I am finding basically zero information out there for it. I bought it because it was working enough to make me believe I could fix it with minor repairs, Plus I loved this game as a kid!!!

Game goes into game over and basically plays (see issues below)

Issue 1:
flashing display which after 24 hours turned into no display. My assumption is that the HV caps are toast, look at the pics... I would like to do the complete upgrade (bullet proof) to the Power Supply but was curious if Williams changed it in System 8? I will attach pictures.... Before the display went blank I was able to do all tests successfully and play the game in free-play. This leads me to think the CPU board is Okay:

Checking power to the board for display 1J18
+5v is good (+4.95VDC)
+90 is BAD (+47VDC)
-100 is BAD (-47VDC)

Issue 2:
Batting coil... this is a total hack job by someone and I need to replace the coil with a new one to include the bat control rheostat which has been removed..

Issue 3. Back lighting. All the game lights (pennant March, game over, high score, tilt) work well. the light strips behind the players and the words "pennant fever" do not light. Is this mostlikely cooked wire / power sup issue?

Issue 4. coin lock out.... does nothing and I will look at this later...

any advice from anyone would be great.... I am really looking forward to working on "fixable" electronics, jsut like the good old USMC radio days of the 80's...

20171010_185729 (resized).jpg

20171010_190736 (resized).jpg

20171010_190343 (resized).jpg

Those are some crappy looking caps for sure

yes, I pulled the power supply tonight and found out it is a D-8345-1914 power supply. I will tear into this weekend and figure out what exactly is bad. i am guessing it is not only Caps but in the bridge rectifier. Does anyone know if there is a manual or specific instructions for this power supply?

8954218265330895077-account_id=0 (resized).jpg

Pretty sure they used the same power supply for system 7-9. System 7 uses a D-8345 board, but doesn't specify the last few digits like on yours

I don't know how helpful this will be. I am rebuilding my Laser Cue boards, Sytetem 7. I took a picture and labeled the parts to make my ordering of parts easier. Your power supply might be slightly difference, so look closely at what you've got. I can't guarantee this is error-free.

laser_cue_power_supply_el_cap_layout (resized).jpg

Also, C9 1000 uF 25V can be replaced with the axial version, which is just what I will be doing in the upgrade. The pad for the axial cap is above and immediately below the left side of the heatsink.

The lower right Molex connector on my power supply was fried. Apparently, this is common on these power supplies.

DSCF3194 (resized).JPG

I am going with the original configuration - the Molex connector soldered to the board and not the pigtail. Ed said I needed GPE parts 15-31-1026, 19-09-1029 and the 02-09-1104 contacts for this.

The bridge rectifier is 35A 400V. I will be replacing the original with GPE part number GBPC3504W, recommended to me by Ed. Thanks Ed!

This board is not really fried anywhere and overall is in pretty good shape. I need to take the time to run through the entire circuit and see what is good and bad. I am finding that I am only getting 45 volts out of the HV circuit which leads me to believe some of the zeners are bad. The caps are all original and need to go, good or bad.... I have done some preliminary tests with components in the circuit but need to pull them to do accurate testing. I have to set up my bench to get started. Hopefully this weekend.

Look at the pic, mine is jumped... vs yours.

I would think that a schematic would exist for this with component values...

Are there any full on Williams Technical Manuals (TM's) available? one that shows voltage and signal path with values and test points?

2017-10-12_11-14-56 (resized).jpg

2017-10-12_11-23-21 (resized).jpg

This schematic and layout is universal for this type of board.
The suffix numbers are most of the time game numbers.

I've also attached a older file for for the HV-repair.
The website links do not work anymore, but the www.pinwiki.com also holds this information.

Peter

Williams_Power_Supply_D-8345.pdf
Williams_Repair_HV_Kit.pdf

I'm in the process of rebuilding my Firepower and have done all of the updates in this thread. A year ago when I got the pin it wouldn't boot, two solid red lights on the MPU. Tear everything down, rebuild the boards with kits from GPE and info from this thread. Today I reinstalled the boards, reconnected everything in the backbox, threw the power switch and two solid red lights on the MPU again. Hmmm. Voltage on the testpoint #9 was +5.05v and testpoint #1 was 12.4v. Looks fine. Time to do some more reading on this topic and educate myself on what to do next.

This is where things get strange. I always start with power when I don't know whats going on. So, turn the power off and unplug all the connectors from the power supply board to check voltages. AC circuit fine, solenoids fine, lamps fine, but the +5v outputs on 3J5 and 3J6 read +12.4V. What? Input leg on fuse F5 reading +12.4v as well. So, I'm not sure exactly whats happening here. I'm guessing a bad 5v regulator but then how did I get 5v at the tp#9 on the MPU a few minutes earlier?

I figure I should replace the 5v regulator on the power supply but I'm having trouble sourcing one or equivalent. Looks like LM323K are hard to find. Any thoughts or suggestions welcome

This is supposed to be a drop-in LM323K replacement - https://www.ezsbc.com/index.php/featured-products-list-home-page/psu5.html#.Wd-1LmhSyUk

Thank you for posting those part numbers. I have a System 7 PS where that connector got so hot, it unsoldered itself from the board and is missing. I was going to guess at the part numbers to order, now I don't have to!

Perfect, thanks you so much.... now to get started...

Thanks, I'll check into that.

I would remove that jumper and re-install the fuse holder clips to restore the GI fuse.

Page 35 of the Black Knight manual on IPDB has the schematic for the 7-9 power supply. http://mirror2.ipdb.org/files/310/Williams_1980_Black_Knight_English_Manual_with_paginated_schematics.pdf

I will do that, you can see has gotten hot on the right side.. bad plan by someone

J

Thanks to Inkochnito, I've made a diagram for upgrading the System 7 power supply high voltage section. I find it easier to work with pictures. I have gotten so much help from this thread that I'm glad I can finally give something back.

laser_cue_high_voltage_upgrade (resized).jpg

View the full size picture. It is clearer and easier to read.

After the new parts have been installed.

DSCF0025 (resized).JPG

Notes:

The two diodes, 1N4001 D3 and D4 can be replaced with any 1N400X diode where X = 1, 4 or 7. For example, I replaced D3 and D4 with 1N4004 diodes that I had on hand.

Please note the polarity/banding when replacing the new diodes and zener diodes so you get the orientation correct.

Per Vid's instructions, R1 and R4 were installed so they sat slightly above the PCB for airflow.

If you have low voltage LED displays, or you will be getting them, there is no need to upgrade the power supply high voltage section.

I've been working on a sys6 firepower board. Three lamp columns are out 2,4, & 6. All transistors and things look good so does this mean I have a bad pia(IC11) or IC10. i changed out IC13 already. is there a way to ground a pin or something on the chip to see if its bad. I don't have a probe tester.
thanks!!

IMG_7214 (resized).JPG

A friend of mine brought me a Gorgar that was resetting when both flippers were pressed. I've dealt with this issue ad nauseum on WPC89 systems, but a system 6 I have not. The power supply amazingly is all original (caps and all). While I'm fairly confident "bullet proofing" will resolve the issue, is there anything else I should look at?? Of course he brings it to me and I play 4 games without issue...

Start with reflowing the header pins on the CPU and power supply boards. Look for connections that have overheated and replace those pins and the associated connectors.

Check the large diodes on the power supply board 5V section to ensure both are working (these rarely fail).

Make sure all boards have at least 2 mounting screws and they are snugged down.

If all this fails, recap the power supply board.

Do you have a meter with a diode test? You can use that to test each of the transistors in the lamp matrix to see if the column 2,4 and 6 transistors test differently than the others.

Yeah this was a waste of time. I did most of Vids recommendations with great results. I was nervous about the above suggestion as no one on this thread has mentioned anything about it since the OP. Well I gave this a go and the result was all lights stuck ON. Ended up pulling out the IRFZ34NPBF's and going back to the original. Lucky I was careful about removal.

any possibility you put them all in backwards?

You must have done something wrong. I replace all my lamp matrix transistors with MOSFETS on both the rows and columns and it works flawlessly. I've even done it on system 11 games with similar results.

Thought of that. Reversed them and the game went insane.

I have replaced the 8 TIP42 lamp matrix transistors (Q63, 65, 67, 69, 71,73, 75 and Q77) with IRF9Z34N MOSFETs on multiple games with great results. But this was the first effort at replacing the TIP41's with IRFZ34NPBF. This did not go well. If you have some decent photos of a full swap on a Sys 6 Driver board I would love to see them posted.

My Gorgar power supply had a few puffy looking caps so I got a replacement kit from Big Daddy. Everything worked previous to replacement. All the capacitor values were checked and polarity was verified. Upon reinstallation the game works but there is now a loud buzz that sounds like it might be coming from the +5V DC regulator but it's a bit hard to tell. When I pull F1 and start it up the buzzing is completely gone. It's pretty loud. Any idea what I might have messed up, or what to try now? After initially having the buzzing I reflowed the solder on everything with a pin on the board and now I'm stuck.

edit: If I touch the disc capacitor underneath the replaced 100uf capacitor on the left the buzz changes so I guess that might be the source but damn is it loud for coming from that little thing. I tried reflowing that just in case but the problem persists. It looks like the cap says "Z5V 0.1uF DC500V" but it's not very clear. Is this an acceptable substitute: https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay/S104Z93Z5VL83L0R/?qs=MZE%2f3ll%252bp%2fba6C%252bzoK7Jpg%3d%3d

If it's doing the buzzing you think it went bad, or is it just a symptom of a different issue?

Digging through my stuff, and yeah, the IRFZ34N is what I used in my Black-Knight about 8 years ago. Still running strong and haven't had a single failure with it, and no issues of note.

Hey, good news! A few people have asked about my old pages for the restoration work I did on my Firepower and my Black Knight. I finally found the files for these, so they're back up on the website!!!! At least, most of it is. Still looking for a couple pages, so there will be a couple dead links in there.

http://www.siegecraft.us/blackknight.htm
http://www.siegecraft.us/firepower.htm

Too Funny. I have your original BK playfield. In the process of restoring the artwork and clear-coating it. Nice to see some early before pics of it.
Mike

I replaced that disc capacitor but still have the buzz. That part does not chance the pitch of the hum when touched like it did before. Is this normal and I just didn't notice it before? The game plays fine but I'm worried something is about to pop.

Did you redo the caps on the sound board as well? Don’t forget the sound board has its own independent power circuitry.

I was going to replace them but I accidentally orders a kit with a 4700uf cap instead of the 12000uf so I just put the power kit in. The buzz is definitely coming from the power supply board.

When does the 40 pin connector look like where the driver plugs onto the CPU board? My Blackout had 5 of the pins broken on the driver that weren't making connections.

There were also a ton of cold solder joints at the connectors around the driver board and anything like that needs to be addressed first before changing any chips. I put new connectors for the 40 pin interconnect and the fixed all the others. All of those were removed, cleaned, and I made a tool to fix them. They were cut almost flush with the board so I 3D printed a spacer to put on the back side the thickness of the board plus the amount of lead I wanted to extrude from the other side. Put each one in the vice with thin cardboard on the jaws of it and it only takes seconds to fix them. It evened out all the pins and pushed through about 1/32" which made all the difference when soldering. There is still plenty of pin on the top so the connectors still plug in ok.

Robert

When you swap the tip41 for IRFZ34N do you remove that sides resistors like on the tip42 side upgrade or do those remain? Thanks!

I assume you are referring to the .4 ohm, 3 watt resistors? I never remove those or the 27 ohm resistors for that matter.

Looks like Great Plains is back off break and has some kits back in stock.

Sorry, other life stuff been pulling me away from pins. You did not mention what game you tried this on. AFAIK anyone who has done this on Williams has had no issues, but there were some issues seen in DE, There was a thread about that somewhere where the fix is to add a small value resistor back into the circuit.