I got my machine at home!!! What do I do next.


Make sure your machine is working correctly and is parts complete when you get it.  The validator should accept all
bills of varying condition (I only used crisp ones myself) and only reject the really messed up ones.  All lights
should light up when they are supposed to light up and your hopper should pay the right amount of coins when you
cash out.  The reels should spin freely with minimal noise, and check to make sure the right symbols line up
when you hit a winner, if they do not, you may have a wrong Eprom installed on your machine, or your reel strips
may not be the right ones, or installed in the wrong order.  Call your dealer and he should be able to help you,
if you get nowhere, post a message here and someone will answer. Try using coins and observe the reject rate.  A 
good comparitor should not reject too many coins. If you are getting more than 1% of your coins rejected, change 
the sample coin and try it.  If it doesn't change anything, you can try adjusting for less sensitivity.  There's 
calibration adjustment on most comparitors and it's changed by turning a little potentiometer (there's a little 
hole where a phillips style screwdriver fits into a plastic head) on the bottom right of the coin comparitor. Your
machine may have an X10 comparitor, if this is the case, you may need to reset it and re-train the comparitor.
There's a manual on the download database on how to do that with various slot machine brands.  If your machine
has a pull handle, make sure it doesn't stick and it springs back into the original position.

You should also clean the machine.  Remember your machine was in a casino storing up loads of fun stuff like 
tar and dirt from the environment.  Use a water based cleaner to clean the machine and watch all that yellow 
gunk come off from every surface.  If you are lucky enough to get it "pre-cleaned" consider yourself extremly
lucky.  Don't be afraid to open up the machine and look at the inside.  The better acquainted you get with all
the internal workings of your machine, the more you are going to enjoy it.  I should stress the importance of
not using an Amonia based cleaner for the plastic parts because these will yellow over time if you do so.  The 
chrome and glass is safe, but not the backing of the glass.

Another item you need to check is the hopper.  Depending on the hopper type you get it may have something called
an agitator.  This is a 3 pointed (or sometimes 5 pointed) rubber star that "agitates" the coins as hopper
spins so that they line up into the slot of the wheel that pushes the coins out.  See photo here. 
This agitator disintegrates over time leaving a gooky black mess all over your coins/tokens.  Make sure your 
agitator is in good condition and is not beginning to fall apart.  A good sign of a messed up agitator is 
black gunk around the agitator.  If it does have this stuff, replace it now before all your coins turn black.
If your hopper is a holley wheel type, you do not have an agitator, you can tell it's a holley wheel hopper because
the wheel that spins where the coins go into have round holes in it. Typically if you have a $1 or higher
denominated slot, you will find this type of hopper.

If you purchased a video based machine and the monitor looks messed up when you first power up, but then gets
"fixed" after an initial "warm-up" period, you need to get a new cap kit instaled for the monitor.  If 
you can live with the initial "warm-up" time, then it will continue to function that way until the caps 
eventually give out.  Installing a cap kit on a monitor is not for everyone as you will be dealing with
potentially several thousand volts of electricity while discharging the various components.  So if you are
not "electronics savvy" or are afraid of HIGH voltage (and who isn't), I would take the monitor to a local
repair shop.  Any tv repair shop should be able to install a cap kit.  You can download the schematics for
various monitors on this website and give to them if they don't have it.  Another thing you need to do is
calibrate your touchscreen if it has one, just to make sure the touchscreen panel works correctly.  This is
typically done through a diagnostic menu.


Optional cool things to do to your machine

If you are the adventurous type, you can add these things to your machine.

1. Jackpot bell - Add a really LOUD bell to your machine, it rings when you hit jackpots.  Pretty cool, 
   and reasonable to obtain (around $10 to $20).
2. Progressive display -  These are the displays on the top of the machine that increment as you play the games.
   They are available in various forms and if you have 2 or more machines, you can have them linked up in a bank
   so that they all contribute to the total jackpot.  Prices on this gadget vary depending on the type you get.
   expect to pay around $70-$125 for stand-alone displays and $500 or so for a linked setup for 2 machines.
3. You can change the lights in your buttons from incandescent  bulbs to LEDS.  The LED bulbs use a lot less
   power, they last longer, and it makes your buttons look a more modern white glow (instead of that yellow glow). 
4. The clear cap on the buttons (called the lens) can be replaced for clear new ones, so if your buttons are all
   scratched, get new lenses.  These run about a couple of dollars per lens.  You can also change the legends (the
   white square under the lens that say "bet one", "Play Max Coins", etc).  These are a couple dollar each as well.
   They can be purchased at happcontrols.  The lenses they sell at happcontrols fit their pushbutton assembly, so
   the ones that come with your machine may not fit.  Happ does sell complete set of pushbuttons for an S+ for 
   around $38.00.
5. If you got a video machine, there are LCD replacements for your monitor, to give it that modern look.  They
   don't get burn-in, use less power, and last longer.  They run around $700 to $1,100.00 depending on size.
6. If your machine accepts bills only 1 way, you can upgrade the validator to accept all 4 ways.  Depending on
   which validator you have, costs range from $50 to $120.00 depending on what you need to buy.  Ask in the
   forum for updated information regarding availability of bill validator types for your machine.  Most validators
   can also be upgraded to accept the newer currency.
7. As mentioned before, most machines can also be changed over to a different game (within the same platform). So
   let's say you have an IGT S+ with a Doulbe Diamond game on it, you can change it to a whole host of different
   games like haywire, Triple Diamond, Red, White, & Blue, Wild cherry, etc.  Ask around in the forums for what's
   available.  Prices range from $30.00 up to several hundred depding on availability of the game kit.
8. Change the denomination on your machine.  If you have quarters, you can change them to nickels or vice-versa by
   buying a coin entry guide (that's the little slot where you put the coins) for the the right sized coin and a
   a new shelf wheel for your hopper (this "wheel" will hold the coin against the edge of the pinwheel, so as 
   the hopper wheel turns, the coins don't fall out prematurely).  If you have a dollar, or want to change to a
   dollar, you will need a new comparitor, coin entry bezel (not just the guide as it is different), and may
   need a new hopper or shelf wheel and pin-wheel.  It's easier to just get a hopper for the right sized coin you
   want, as disassembling hoppers is not for everyone.

I'm sure there are other things I left out, but these are the most common requests.  Best of all, once you have
your machine, PLAY IT, that's what you bought for in the first place.

Happy HOME Gaming - remember, no gambling in the home.  Have fun.