Bally 5 reel Bonanza model 1070

[5reel_bonanza]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum so if there's something wrong during this topic i apologise... Problem is I've a Bally model 1070 'Bonanza' that doesn't add credits. It's an exportmachine (I live in the Netherlands) so it doesn't have a hopper. It has a creditmeter. Example; if you got a cherry left or right you've won two credits. It does take coins and the 'hold' feature works. But... it won't pay any winning combinations. Nor does the bulletlights advance in the topunit. I've cleaned and adjusted all the switches. As it's an exportmachine I can't find a wiring diagram. Is someone outhere who could take me in the right direction?

Kind regards, Jurjen

[OldReno]

Nice machine.
Pull out your top glass, and check out the top unit thoroughly.  Make sure your odds disc advances and resets when you manually operate each of the solenoids. Step up the odds disc and note if your lights light up or not, you may have burned out bulbs, or it may be that the odds unit is not advancing as it should.  Lightly oil odds shaft and the odds disc contact wipers.
That's a start for you anyway.  More pics of the insides would be nice.
Welcome aboard.

[5reel_bonanza]

Hello, thanks for your fast answer. Glad I've found someone who can help.  I've posted two more pics; one of the top unit and one of the unit where normally the hopper sits. The odds disc does nothing... allthough i've cleaned it thoroughly. If I advance it by hand the bullet lights advance too. I've checked all the bulbs. If you need more pics I'll post them.

Jurjen

[OldReno]

If you can pull the unit in the hopper and take a few more pics of it that would be cool.

Normally, the odds disc does not step up until after the first coin is accepted and the handle released.
It does this through a Normally Open switch on the handle release stack of switches.  Look for one that is not closing when the handle release drops.  You might look for the wire colors blue/yellow and blue/red, but could be different on your machine.
With the top unit plugged in, try pushing down on the armature of the odds step up relay coil and see if that advances the odds disc.  It should be one of those 4 relays in the background of your top unit photo.

[5reel_bonanza]

If I'm back from our holiday I'll take some more pics. Thanks so far!

Kind regards, Jurjen

[5reel_bonanza]

Hello! We're back from our holiday. I've taken some new pics, hopes that they're helpful. The big disc moves when you drop a coin. For a guilder you get 4 credits (it fires 4 times). The other discs are for the 'any star pays 20 credits' and 'any horseshoe pays 20' feature. The stack switches open and close as they should.

Jurjen

[5reel_bonanza]

Lower unit pic

[5reel_bonanza]

Hi,

Just tried to move to odds disc with a relay. It should be one of the four in the photo. However, none of them move the disc. They're labelled 'delay', '2 1/2 guilder', '1 guilder' and 'anti-cheat. Pushing the armature of 2 and 3 results in 10 and 4 credits. Nothing happens when pushing the armature of number 1. Behind these 4 are more relais. They're labelled: register credit, feature, x2, bonus, coin and payout #1. Should it be one of these?

Jurjen

[OldReno]

Jurjen, this is one complicated slot machine.  I am hoping that OpBell will log in with some ideas, as he is more familiar with European machines than I.  I have no idea what steps up your odds disc, so you will have to do some wire tracing to see where it leads.  Trace the wire from the odds step up solenoid that is not the orange wire.  It either goes to a switch in the top unit somewhere, or goes into the wire loom and back down into the machine.  It seems that not only is this a selectable reel hold and draw, but also it automatically makes change?
Very impressive.  Could you post a closer photo of the top unit glass so that we can see what it says.
Keep tinkering with it, you should do no harm by closing those relays, at worst what should happen is that you might blow a fuse.
Also, I have never seen a handle release assembly like that.  Normally there is only one latch relay, but yours shows a solenoid which it seems will deny a handle release.  I am thinking this is in response to some kind of bonus from the machine, or at least to delay handle pull until after credits have accumulated.  very interesting....
Your good photos will help to document this machine in the event others have similar machines, and is certainly adding to our base of knowledge here in the forum.  Thank you.

[5reel_bonanza]

Hi, it is certainly complicated... In the past i've managed to repair a few Bally EM flippers, so I thought: why not a slotmachine from the same area? After I'd found the wiring diagrams of the flippers I managed to get them repaired quickly. This one is totally different. Of some units I don't know what they should do... The left big disc in the lower unit for example: when it moves the whole disc turns and runs on some kind of plastic rail so it moves from it's home position. I think it has to do with the bonus feature. Difficult to explain. I've posted the flyer of the machine; it's the only thing I could find searching the web. Maybe it helps to understand the game. I got the odds disc working. It's fired by the 'bonus' relay, one of the 9 relays in the top unit. Strangely it does this only when the're no credits on the meter. If the're are credits on the meter and tapping the relay makes the scoremotor run and nothing happens. Also, when it is at its end it doesn't reset. It does light the feature light ('only feature pays'). Keep thinking and again thanks so far.

Jurjen

[5reel_bonanza]

Hello,

Just want to say that I've got the machine partially working. The only remaining issue is that the cherries don't pay. All others do. So 1 cherry left or right don't pay (should give 2 credits) and 2 cherries left or right (should give 5 credits) don't pay. The rest of the game, including the indian and mustang feature and the bullets, are now working. Are the cherries wired different? I've got continuity from the payout board to the wipers behind the reels. What do I overlook?

Kind regards, Jurjen

[OldReno]

Jurjen, good work!!!
Try to find the wire coming from the cherries off of your reel boards.  They might be red with yellow trace, or red with white trace.  See if you can find where they go to.  Also, check that your reel wipers are hitting correctly on the buttons.  Look for a broken wire on the back of the reel boards perhaps.  Also check your payout board thoroughly, and send a pic if you can of it, showing the wiper fingers.  You may not be hitting with the fingers on the two pay tab correctly and also 5 pay tab.  Try stepping the payboard one step with the cherries on the reels and see if that does anything.
Most excellent work so far.  Surprising how much you can fix without a manual and just with a little common sense and perseverance.
Does it remind you of pinballs?

[5reel_bonanza]

Hello,

I took a picture of the board; hopes it helps. The 2 and 5 tab look okay to me... When i manually step up the board it loses contnuity after 2 and 5 steps. Yes, I've read your article about how to ohm the board out. Very helpful. The colors are correct: red/yellow and red/white. I can trace them to the wipers boards. So there's contnuity from the tabs on the payout board to the wiper boards. Still no pays for the cherries... Must be missing something. The wiperarms have different connections I noticed; the wipers are connected in pairs. Reel 1 and reel 5 have the top 4 wipers connected followed by 2 wipers connected, so 4 wipers and 2 wipers. The remaining 6 aren't used. Reel 2, 3 and 4 have 3 x 2 wipers connected, so 2 wipers, 2 wipers and 2 wipers. Again the remaining 6 aren't used. Do you know if this is correct?

Jurjen

[OldReno]

That probably is correct.  The wipers are cut not only to help separate the different kinds of pays, but also to separate the two voltages used.  The top part runs 50V, and the bottom part usually runs the 6V that is needed to power the bell circuit.  You don't want to run 50V through the 6V circuit, and the cuts in the wipers prevent that.
Let me ponder this for awhile....
Check your continuity on payboard by placing one lead on the F (feed) tab, and the other on the 2 pay cherry, and 5 pay cherry tabs and see if it works as you step the board.  Also check your 10 pay, 14 pay etc. just for kicks.  Lift up the lower and the 2nd lowest two payboard fingers, and see if they snap when you release them, indicating good contact.  It sounds like the payboard works, but instead of kicking out coins, it just adds a digit to your collect meter.  Very clever.  I like it.
Oh, look at the back side of your reel wiper boards to see which portions of the wiper fingers are wired.  Unwired portions are not used, obviously.  So that should help explain the circuits somewhat.

[5reel_bonanza]

Is there a (safe) way to fool the payout board and make it add 2 or 5 credits? A pinball (EM, that is) is easier... Perhaps with a wire diagram this was easier too. Still, the moment that it added credits was fun! I know now at least the different types of boards used in this machine and what they're supposed to do. What do you mean when you said 'the bell circuit'?

Jurjen

[OldReno]

Don't know about a safe way to add credits right off hand, but it probably could be done....
The bell circuit is for slot machines that have a bell that rings either during a payout, or during a jackpot.  It's a 6V bell with a clapper, and is quite noisy.  Generally found in the cabinet above the handle box.