There's a relay that operates that during the storm at start up.If you lift the playfield up it's a little square board on the very bottom about 2 inches square. It has a little box relay on it that's white.That's probably the one that's giving you trouble.I think Marco has them for sale.The part number is 5768-12221-00.It did the same thing on my WW.

I don't know how you would test it but I've had this issue on my WW and ES with this board.They have them at MAD Amusements for $20 part #C11902.It's a common occurrence with this board if the back GI doesn't turn on after the storm at start.

That is if the bulbs are OK.

Did it work prior with regular bulbs?

When you turn the machine on the left and right corner lights and the light directly across from the left corner should be on.When you plunge the ball they turn off and the flasher bar above the playfield lights flash .Then the back GI lights come back on.These GI lights are controlled through the relay I was talking about.Are the corner lights ever on?

In my experience when those back panels don't light it's usually the Male pins on the board itself. Right where the connector hooks on. Just reflow the male pins with fresh solder and reconnect. The relay connector is common too as jhanley points out but it controls more than back panel. Todd

Actually theirs 4 lights that are turned off and on from that relay board. The other is right in back of the single drop target with the tornado on it.

Not sure on that game, but most that use a relay board usually have a 2nd one somewhere for another purpuse. One trick is to swap the relay board with another to confirm/isolate the problem.

Relay boards are nothing but a relay which is a low failure item, and a connector which is a high failure item. So like Lost said, check/reflow is a good start prior to purchasing a new one.

WW only has one. There was a spare board in my ES so I swapped it in and it's been working for years now.Maybe I'll check the pins on the old one.

Sorry'I never noticed that one .That's a good idea to swap them .Are all 4 lights in the back off all the time?I looked on mine and they are all on a parallel circuit with each other.

I was just tracing that other relay out.It turns the lower GI off and on at different times, notably the slings.

I thought you meant the GI lights in the back of the playfield.My bad.You mean the lightning strip above the playfield GI?

I had similar lighting problems at the rear of the game and it was the main connector coming off of the transformer. It is the first main connector (4 yellow wires?) off of the transformer. It had one pin connection that was burnt.

Alan

I would remove the Lightning assembly with board ,a screw on each end and unplug it. You will see a purple and white with purple tracer and test if theirs 25 v there.If there is its probably a loose solder connection on the board.I'll buy that relay from you .I could use a spare.

The white wire with the purple trace is the ground.The solid purple wire is positive.See if you have 25V there.The GI lights on the playfield should all be on when you test.Im going to have to trace it on my machine cause I'm not sure where it gets power.

Yep!

The leads on the multimeter might be to thick.You might have to poke them on the backside of the connector to make contact on the sockets.

It's possible. Somehow that row of lights is connected to that relay I was referring to.When the lights in the back of the playfield go on those lights go on at the same time.Did you try poking the leads in the back of the connector like I said?

Are these flashers or GI? If flashers, then 12vdc, if GI then 6.3VAC. And if GI you would go one lead each side of the input, not 1 lead to ground.

And trust me you do not want to shove meter leads into a socket. It is like playing the game of Operation, except instead of a buzzer when you slip, you can mess up your lamp matrix drivers. Been there, got a couple t-shirts.

Those are GI .

You are right.This is beyond me as I thought he had the same problem that I fixed with a new relay.If theres no power there were he's showing then I have no idea but to trace the wires back to the source.You know more abut this than me.I give.

Manual should show the location in the BB, I would say it is an issue with the interconnect pcb,, lose wire on connector, cold solder joint or fuse.

Also keep in mind that GI has 4 to 6 'strings' and each is protected by a separate fuse on the PPB. Make sure that it is not something as simple as a single blown fuse.

I know whats wrong.I traced it out.So easy to fix!

Grats! Now to figure out Pmaino...

Pmaino, the fuses will be in the manual on Page 40 of http://mirror2.ipdb.org/files/2765/Williams_1990_Whirlwind_Operations_Manual_Br_With_Schematics.pdf

To figure out which one is which,,, Page 96, Backbox Interconnect Board. Probably F5.

WilliamsSys11Fuse_(resized).PNG

I t has nothing to do with fuses

Ok you got me confused with these short posts.

Are you saying Pmaino's problem is not fuses? And you figured it out? Can you share?

Or are you saying the problem YOU had was not fuses

Need some context here.

I traced it out on my WW.The GI in the light bar is connected parallel with the GI on the back of the playfield which is connected to the relay I was talking about. Theirs a 2 prong molex connecter in between the head and the cabinet .I called the OP and he said he could see there were wires pulled out of the connector.All he has to do is reconnect them and BOOM it will work.What was weird when I first looked at the wires coming up and going down was they were the same colors but different gauges of wire.They change at the connector.

Ahh gottcha..

So it was an interconnector issue. Good catch.

Your welcome

Reviving this.
This board works for me Except. 1 flasher stays on?
Great finding old threads, wish some were exactly my issues LOL