Quoted from Axl:Found some old pictures of my Whirlwind.
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Nice! The notorious 100A fuse and the chain bob tilt.
Richard
Quoted from Axl:Found some old pictures of my Whirlwind.
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How sweet is that make do on what u have on hand lol
Quoted from Axl:Found some old pictures of my Whirlwind.
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The tilt bob is very creative...should be the new standard
Quoted from harig:The tilt bob is very creative...should be the new standard
I was surprised by that. It's not a terrible idea. Not adjustable, but functional
Quoted from Axl:Found some old pictures of my Whirlwind.
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If I had a Centaur (or Junk Yard) I would seriously think about using a chain for the tilt.
Quoted from bigguybbr:I was surprised by that. It's not a terrible idea. Not adjustable, but functional
I wonder if a ball chain would work better?
I was surprised by the attempt to add in a tilt bob (chain). Normally all the games i buy are missing the tilt.
Quoted from Bmad21:Judge for yourself if my work was a bad hack job.
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Yes
Quoted from Deleenhe:My new AFM, works (mostly) but some sketchy repairs.
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The shooter solenoid fix works well to avoid buying a new $10.00 (plus shipping) coil. Typical failure of the winding snapping off at the wire terminal. A better fix is to unwind one more turn of wire and reattach to the wire tab for a more vibration resistant connection.
What is shown is likely fine for home use.
Quoted from Schwaggs:Well, at least you can still separate the boards!
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I think it is a clever repair. The wires are nice and tidy.
Quoted from cottonm4:I think it is a clever repair. The wires are nice and tidy.
No kidding, If that's considered a hack wait till you see one of mine!
Quoted from ViperTim:Far from worst but a nice example of how a work-around on the issue takes far more time rather than fixing the real issue.
Dirty EOS contacts, needs to be cleaned up with 800 grit.
Nope, let’s remove and solder the wires together.
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Is that spring arm extension standard or a hack? It might be normal, and I've seen similar set ups on other pins, but the design looks a little home grown
Quoted from bigguybbr:Is that spring arm extension standard or a hack? It might be normal, and I've seen similar set ups on other pins, but the design looks a little home grown
Data East
Not sure anyone has ever asked a question here, but...
Would you consider this a "hack"?
I have a janky 11pin IDC connector that also has a burnt pin (or at least starting to get dark from a resistance buildup from the shoddy connection over the years) on a GI connection of a WPC game.
I HATE IDC, and usually replace them with the corresponding number of pin position molex connectors when they eventually go bad. I checked my bin, and of course, I'm out of 11 pins. I do, however, have plenty of 5 and 6 pins.
If I matched the key position up and stuck a polarizing key in the corresponding connector so it could never be inserted incorrectly, would anybody consider placing the 6 pin next to the 5 pin molex to make the 11 pin a hack? I don't feel like paying shipping on a dozen or so 11 pins when I don't have anything else to lump into an order at this time (Of course I just placed a large parts order a couple of weeks ago...but hey! That's the nature of pinball parts ordering!)
Quoted from Grandnational007:Not sure anyone has ever asked a question here, but...
Would you consider this a "hack"?
I have a janky 11pin IDC connector that also has a burnt pin (or at least starting to get dark from a resistance buildup from the shoddy connection over the years) on a GI connection of a WPC game.
I HATE IDC, and usually replace them with the corresponding number of pin position molex connectors when they eventually go bad. I checked my bin, and of course, I'm out of 11 pins. I do, however, have plenty of 5 and 6 pins.
If I matched the key position up and stuck a polarizing key in the corresponding connector so it could never be inserted incorrectly, would anybody consider placing the 6 pin next to the 5 pin molex to make the 11 pin a hack? I don't feel like paying shipping on a dozen or so 11 pins when I don't have anything else to lump into an order at this time (Of course I just placed a large parts order a couple of weeks ago...but hey! That's the nature of pinball parts ordering!)
I do it all the time. It is just a connector that is soldered to the thru-holes in the circuit board. The new rectifier boards I have assembled come with 2 connectors instead of one. No big deal.
Quoted from cottonm4:I do it all the time. It is just a connector that is soldered to the thru-holes in the circuit board. The new rectifier boards I have assembled come with 2 connectors instead of one. No big deal.
I'm talking about the female plug end, not the board side male header pins, but same difference I guess.
Quoted from PINTEC:[quoted image]
Quoted from Grandnational007:I'm talking about the female plug end, not the board side male header pins, but same difference I guess.
One of the wire harnesses I got from Third Coast has connector that is not long enough to make the distance. Shawn was having trouble at the time obtaining the 28 pin connector wafer, so he had to use a 25 pin wafer and a 3 pin wafer. It was not a problem. Just make sure you install your polarizing key as you stated.
Quoted from Dono:Not only is this ugly, but it's not very functional.... I'd be running into that stupid glass covering all the time... just ridiculous on so many levels.
Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. How functional does a table have to be? It looks like you could eat your dinner on it, place your drink on it, and get in a game of solitaire, too.
3076 produced. Only 8 people want one. Not like it is a great loss in the pinball world.
Quoted from cottonm4:Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. How functional does a table have to be? It looks like you could eat your dinner on it, place your drink on it, and get in a game of solitaire, too.
3076 produced. Only 8 people want one. Not like it is a great loss in the pinball world.
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"63 known to exist, 8 people want one" would be more accurate given the data...
Quoted from Grandnational007:Not sure anyone has ever asked a question here, but...
Would you consider this a "hack"?
I have a janky 11pin IDC connector that also has a burnt pin (or at least starting to get dark from a resistance buildup from the shoddy connection over the years) on a GI connection of a WPC game.
I HATE IDC, and usually replace them with the corresponding number of pin position molex connectors when they eventually go bad. I checked my bin, and of course, I'm out of 11 pins. I do, however, have plenty of 5 and 6 pins.
If I matched the key position up and stuck a polarizing key in the corresponding connector so it could never be inserted incorrectly, would anybody consider placing the 6 pin next to the 5 pin molex to make the 11 pin a hack? I don't feel like paying shipping on a dozen or so 11 pins when I don't have anything else to lump into an order at this time (Of course I just placed a large parts order a couple of weeks ago...but hey! That's the nature of pinball parts ordering!)
Wacky Glue the two connectors together. Problem solved.
Richard
Quoted from someotherguy:Wacky Glue the two connectors together. Problem solved.
Richard
Big shrink tube...
Quoted from Grandnational007:Not sure anyone has ever asked a question here, but...
Would you consider this a "hack"?
I have a janky 11pin IDC connector that also has a burnt pin (or at least starting to get dark from a resistance buildup from the shoddy connection over the years) on a GI connection of a WPC game.
I HATE IDC, and usually replace them with the corresponding number of pin position molex connectors when they eventually go bad. I checked my bin, and of course, I'm out of 11 pins. I do, however, have plenty of 5 and 6 pins.
If I matched the key position up and stuck a polarizing key in the corresponding connector so it could never be inserted incorrectly, would anybody consider placing the 6 pin next to the 5 pin molex to make the 11 pin a hack? I don't feel like paying shipping on a dozen or so 11 pins when I don't have anything else to lump into an order at this time (Of course I just placed a large parts order a couple of weeks ago...but hey! That's the nature of pinball parts ordering!)
Just lightly sand the two ends and join with a drop of superglue. Works quite well, just be sure to have them lined up and correctly oriented.
Shawn
Quoted from Schwaggs:Well, at least you can still separate the boards!
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Hahaha! I’ve done this instead of waiting for connectors…just to see if I could get a machine working.
Went ahead, and used the 6 pin molex on the left side, and the 5 pin molex on the right side. Put the polarizing key in the correct 8th slot (2nd pin on the right side 5 pin molex).
As thought, worked like a charm, and happy with the results. Might put a zip tie around the wire bundle before the two separate connectors, and even sharpie 1-11 sequentially across the two, so it’s even more patently obvious to anyone in the future.
Top GI string in BSD nice and bright without having to jiggle the connector every few weeks, haha. Hack to fix a hack!
Thanks for the advice folks.
8916006F-4173-48B0-87A0-B37A6FD4D8AE (resized).png5A6375C5-5A37-42D9-B2BE-ED1A4398CC70 (resized).pngF76AC117-32A4-4418-8FA7-670F010986AA (resized).pngD9FF0EBC-CEC3-48DA-8B3D-5567DEE971A6 (resized).png85018452-0A1A-408E-BB79-768AC306DCF0 (resized).png
Quoted from pinballplusMN:Friday night route fix of Big Guns.
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I've seen this done with paperclips and they wonder why they have switch errors.
Quoted from pinballplusMN:Friday night route fix of Big Guns.
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I admit I've done this electrical tape thing before on route games when a coil bracket broke.
But, I repaired it properly once the part arrived.
I know some of you on this thread are old time location repair guys. In this day when there is the internet and almost any part needed to repair a pinball machine, what was/is it like when you are on location and need(ed) to make repair and you don't have the needed part?
How did you source your parts, in the "old" days, before you could sit down and make a few clicks on the keyboard?
Quoted from cottonm4:How did you source your parts, in the "old" days, before you could sit down and make a few clicks on the keyboard?
Product catalog books. Some of them were upwards 4" thick.
Obviously, those have pretty much disappeared with the transition to online catalogs/ordering. However, uline still insists on sending me physical catalogs a couple times a year.
Quoted from ForceFlow:Product catalog books. Some of them were upwards 4" thick.
Obviously, those have pretty much disappeared with the transition to online catalogs/ordering. However, uline still insists on sending me physical catalogs a couple times a year.
Let me rephrase. When you were out in the field servicing machines, how many times did you not have the needed repair part and had to resort to field repairs called "hacking".
I didn't operate games pre-internet, but things were different then. Games weren't left out for more than two or three years, so replacement parts were more likely to be available. You got your parts from the same people you got you games from, your distributor. The distributor had all the parts books and received parts directly from the manufacturers.
Back then, distributors only dealt with operators. Home buyers weren't a thing yet. Many distributors charged a one time fee to buy from them. Once onboard, it was to their benefit to keep their customers (operators) happy.
Quoted from Tommy_Pins:The good old days....hard to believe we survived 7-10 day shipping.
Sorry, the Flipper coil stops for your Gorgar (new design) are on Backorder. Tough titty.....
Quoted from undrdog:This looks like an upholstery tack in an old plunger tip. Any ideas?
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I've had similar looking -- thinking door stop rubber....
Looks like the rubber tip wore down and the metal end of the shooter rod has been striking the ball for quite a while and has mushroomed the end. You can cut whats left of the rubber away and use a file to get the end of the shooter rob back to the right shape, put a new rubber tip on and be good to go.
Quoted from tjw998:You can cut whats left of the rubber away and use a file to get the end of the shooter rob back to the right shape, put a new rubber tip on and be good to go.
It's going to come up short after all that filing. Unfortunately, to replace it, you still need to file it down to get it out of the housing. File it down, remove it, install new one. Also, as mentioned not a hack. Just poor maintenance.
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