Anyone heard of a STATUS brand Video Poker slot? CAN'T get it to do much!

[shortrackskater]

"4 of a kind:" that's what my wife says about my friends and I when we adjourn to
the basement gameroom with chips, booze, and cigars. Beats anything on TV!

If you decide to re-diddle (that's a technical term   )  with the switch,
I suggest you start by lubing (WD40) the rocker-arm mechanism including the tip roller.
Hangup or hesitation in that very heavy mechanical train will exacerbate any switch misadjustment.

But far more important, it is absolutely critical that you reframmify the geschunztenhauer;
otherwise the entire schnauzenzable will...... (uh-oh, it's almost 1am and my wineglass is empty; be right back.....)

Shoot! I better pour a glass so I can understand your "Wineglish" speak! 

[shortrackskater]

I am absolutely positively convinced it's not the switch. I did check the rocker arm, lube the roller etc (actually did that earlier before I posted). What I also did was check that switch when the error was happening and it still was making and breaking contact as it should, without the meter reading the coin count out. BUT, when I powered off and on the machine, and manually flip the micro-switch, it then counts out.
So... I'm lost. It again worked for about twenty minutes, then didn't work, then did again! I can't seem to re-create any circumstances where it consistently fails. 

[Op-Bell]

Ok, so now we're going to have to look at the board. Most likely the problem is associated with a resistor that has broken internally and goes open circuit when it warms up. You're going to have to probe around and find which one it is.

One side of the microswitch is almost certainly ground. Trace the other wire back to the circuit board and find out where it comes in - most likely on the 25 pin connector, as I think the thick wires at bottom left of your pic on page 3 are power supplies. Use your meter, find the pin. Then trace the track on the board from the pin, to whatever it goes to. Somewhere along the way it will either go through a resistor to a chip, or to a resistor to 5V, or both. Change every resistor on that line. The ones on the board are all cheap and nasty carbon composition resistors that have a solid rod of carbon inside a little tube with the connecting wires buried in the ends. The rod inside may crack, or the wire come loose inside. Either will give you this kind of intermittent problem when the resistor warms up a few degrees.

I may be wrong, but even if I am, this is the very next thing I would check. If it doesn't cure the problem, the next step will be to replace the chip it goes to. I guess it's in that row of 1k resistors at the top, R14-R22, and the associated chip is the 8255, U11. Before you start chopping out resistors, inspect the board very carefully for bad joints, corrosion or shorts in that area, which can cause the same problem. These old boards that have bare tracks without a solder mask are prone to almost invisible shorts when they get old. It could also be in the connector. While you have the backshell off (to trace the wire) inspect the connections carefully.

[shortrackskater]

Hey Everyone...
I moved this entire thread to the NEW forum under the added category "Status Video Poker."

http://newlifegames.com/nlg/index.php?topic=663.0