New Life Games Tech Forums

Hello,

I have a Bally 809 and almost everything works with the machine.  Only the odd extras are still not functioning but none of those affect the play.  The one main thing I want to repair on the machine is the Hopper Overrun timer located in the bottom left back of the machine.   I can turn the timer by hand, and it runs back via a spring.   I put only a few coins in the hopper,  Played with a Big payout (Ball 5 coin) and let the hopper run an extra minute trying to pay out while empty.   Nothing happened with the timer.   I would like to fix it.  Can anyone help with my following questions?...

1).    How long does it take for the timer to start when no coins are being dispensed, or does it run always and every coin dispensed "resets" the timer?

2).     Does the circuit that operates the timer come from the Hopper?   In other words,   when the hopper is running,  does it close the circuit to the timer?

Lastly, and most importantly,  how exactly does the timer work?  There is a silver dial on it with numbers.  does this somehow allow me to "set" the timeout?   

What I have found...

The cutoff switch does work and cuts power to the machine...no problem.

Thanks for all your help in advance.

There's an extra notched plastic disk on the ratchet side of the payout counter, and a microswitch that opens and closes with the notches. This resets the overrun timer on every third or fifth coin out.

I found the switch...Awesome.  It was easy to find. Thanks!  However,  it appears to be working fine.  I don't think I am getting power to the overrun timer.   Is there an easy way to check this?   can I remove the timer and connect it to a battery to see if it works?   Thanks.

The timer motor is 110V AC and is on the same circuit as the hopper motor. On older games that's all there is - the time is set to about 90 seconds and if the hopper runs that long, the timer cuts off all machine power. On later machines the time is reduced and there is an additional relay, probably a small plug-in type with a diode and a big capacitor in the coil circuit. In this case the timer and the relay are fed through the microswitch on the notched cam. Between the timer and the relay, the game cuts off if the hopper doesn't step every few seconds. If your game is wired for the relay and it's missing, the safety timer will never run. I think the relay is mounted on the hopper somewhere but it may be with the timer.

With the Overrun timer,  I would like to test it out.  I am not even sure it's getting power.  If I were to take a small outlet tester and connect it to the leads for the timer, then got a payout,  would I see it light up?   I do not have a volt meter.  If I find that it is not getting power,  I can then check to see where the power comes from and see if that is the problem.  I checked all the fuses in the back of the machine and they are fine.  Thanks.

With a flashlite and a small telescoping mrror, put up a pay, and while the hopper is running, carefully poke the mirror back there to see if the silver wheel is slowly turning.  Try this with no coins in the hopper, to give it some run time, or set up a large pay.
If you've got good ears, sometimes if you pull out the hopper during a pay, you can hear the wheel reset as the payout stops.
I've got crappy ears....
Oh, and be careful not to short anything out with that metal telescoping tube!!!