Thoughts on not accepting coins

[sgtvan]

Hello again!

I am having some fits with my IGT S+ Slant top.  It is not taking coins (or bills, but I'm confident I can get the validator working later with a set chip).

When I close the door, the reels return to the last played position, the bottom candle flashes, and the insert coins light stays on, but it will not take any coins.  They are all returned.  No error codes.

I took the coin comparator and optics out and cleaned them.  I tried different quarters in the comparator and tried adjusting the sensitivity dial several times.

With the door open the little white button on the comparitor does add credits for test spins.

They guy I bought it from sold it to me cause he was fed up with this problem.

After opening, piddiling with things randomly, and closing, I have managed to make it work twice.  It played perfectly for twenty or thirty minutes each time.  It stopped the first time after opening the door when the hopper jammed while cashing out (now fixed I think) and the second time stopped after I went broke and opened the machine to steal quarters from the hopper.

I was thinking the door optics might not be alingned correctly, then reading more here I thought the comparitor might not be working right.  Should I just buy another comparitor?

Any thoughts?

[stayouttadabunker]

Remove the coin comparitor and turn the sensitivity dial all
the way counter clock-wise to the left with a very small phillips screwdriver...
Then turn it clock-wise a quarter turn to the right.

Try jiggling the two gray wires coming out of the top.
Unseat the 2-pin connector then shove it back in snugly.

On the left side of the coin comparitor, there's your main connector
coming from the main wire harness.
Unseat that one as well and re plug it firmly and snugly.

What we're doing here is trying to restore some new life back into your game
at the connectors which are critical to your coin acceptance functionality.
Check also with deep scrutiny at the locations on these connectors
where the wires enter the connectors.
See if there are loose at all.
Push the wiring into the back ends of these little white Molexes and
make sure they're in there firm.
If they're loose at all, you may be getting slightly loose ground contact -
that is never good for electronics!

Please report back to us after you are certain you've checked every nook
and cranny at every wiring connection in that area.
Our members may have more diabolical diagnostics information for you!

[reho33]

Stout may or may not agree with this one: get some DeOxit spray at RS and spray the inside of the connectors. I reconditioned a slot that would not have one reel function by spraying all the harnesses and then it worked correctly. I had the same problem on an upright S+, Stout helped me with that one by replacing the comparitor, optics, and harness. Then life was good again.

[stayouttadabunker]

I gotta get some of that stuff!  DeOxit !
Great suggestion reho! 

What this stuff does is remove the oxidization from the metal pins and receptor pins.
That always gives New Life to Games! 

[sgtvan]

Remove the coin comparitor and turn the sensitivity dial all
the way counter clock-wise to the left with a very small phillips screwdriver...
Then turn it clock-wise a quarter turn to the right.

Try jiggling the two gray wires coming out of the top.
Unseat the 2-pin connector then shove it back in snugly.

On the left side of the coin comparitor, there's your main connector
coming from the main wire harness.
Unseat that one as well and re plug it firmly and snugly.

What we're doing here is trying to restore some new life back into your game
at the connectors which are critical to your coin acceptance functionality.
Check also with deep scrutiny at the locations on these connectors
where the wires enter the connectors.
See if there are loose at all.
Push the wiring into the back ends of these little white Molexes and
make sure they're in there firm.
If they're loose at all, you may be getting slightly loose ground contact -
that is never good for electronics!

Please report back to us after you are certain you've checked every nook
and cranny at every wiring connection in that area.
Our members may have more diabolical diagnostics information for you!

I adjusted the sensitivity all the way left and 1/4 turn back as well as numerous other positions. I inspected the wires and harnesses, all are not frayed or broken.  While cleaning the optics and stuff, I inspected all the boards and mechanisms.  All connectors seemed tight, no obvious excessive wear or damage.  The male pins on the large connector were bent slightly to the side, fan like, as if somone removed the connector to one side instead of straight, but not so much as it doesn't connect or make contact.  I jiggled all the wires specifically the grey ones.  They all seem seated in the connectors.

I spent about two hours inspecting, cleaning (it was fairly clean), and tinkering with the comparitor and optics.

I will swing by the radio shack for the Deoxit spray.  Couldn't hurt and I'm sure will have a thousand uses.

So it is likely a comparitor issue and not the door optics or something instructing the comparitor to not accept coins? What concerned me was when it worked, it worked perfect and when it didn't it was following a door opening both times.

[StatFreak]

...
So it is likely a comparitor issue and not the door optics or something instructing the comparitor to not accept coins? What concerned me was when it worked, it worked perfect and when it didn't it was following a door opening both times.

It sounds like the harness may have an intermittent open (break) inside the wires somewhere -- or it still could be the connections at the comparitor. That might explain why it would stop working after opening and closing the door.

[stayouttadabunker]

I wondering now...he has a slant machine.
Is there door optics or a cherry switch on an IGT slant?
Will it accept bills and play when the machine is closed up?

[sgtvan]

The main door has optics.  The other (top glass, validator, hopper access) doors have cherry switches. The coin bucket door switch is not hooked up.

It doesn't accept bills at all.  There is power to the validator as it runs for a couple seconds and the leds are on.  My assumption is that I need to activate it with a set chip, which I have not acquired.  It is the 145 type.  I removed and inspected it.  It appears to be in good shape.

[gordy]

Take off the comparitor front door. Re-solder all connections where plugs exist. Have seen this work over 30 times [ out of maybe 70 tries ]

[sgtvan]

Thanks for all the replies!

I just got it working a while ago.  It was the rake wires. 

I had checked the connections like was suggested... thouroughly.  I paid special care to wiggle the gray rake wires around, etc.  I took all the coin components apart and cleaned/inspected them.  Nothing.  I was beginning to think the comparitor was shot.  As a last ditch effort I took the door optics off and attached them together with a clothes pin to fool the machine into thinking the door was closed and then check everything again.

When I wiggled the grey wires this time there was a solenoid noise from the rake.  I attempted to seat them better and checked continuity of the connector with a multimeter and it was OK.  put the door optics back and played for a couple hours, opening and closing the door several times to steal quarters.  It worked perfectly.  Not one rejected coin!  YEA!

I'm so happy!  And I'm learning bucket fulls on how these things work.

[StatFreak]

Glad to hear that you got it working, and K+ for posting back with the solution.

[stayouttadabunker]

Later on when you get a chance and if you're handy
with a 700 degree hot soldering pencil, you might want to try this!
Remove the 4 screws and take the
cover off of the CC case and flip the board around>>>

[stayouttadabunker]

Then, with a hot solder pencil, go ahead and heat up the solder at the
2 points where the gray rake wires are attached to the board's 2-pin header.
The 700 degree heat on that old solder joint will bring New Life to your Game!
Remember to practice with some other cheap throwaway board like an old computer board
or something you don't care about before attempting this.
You need to see how long it takes to melt the solder and then watch it cool and harden.
If you have experience soldering then you know exactly what I mean!
When the solder hardens, that 2-pin header for the rake wires will be like brand new!
Clean the pins with you DeOxit spray and that area will like brand new!
Click on any photo to enlarge them!>>>

[sgtvan]

Very cool.  I will try this come the weekend.  I solder electonic things together for silly projects sometimes (fireworks launchers or what ever), but have not done IC boards before.  I do have tons of old ones to play on before messing up fixing the comparitor board.

So that I understand, I am just melting the connection and letting it cool to sort of renew the "joint"?

[stayouttadabunker]

Yup! Make sure you don't apply too much heat for too long or you'll lift the little line
traces up right off the board then you'll be screwed!
Like I said, practice makes perfect!

See if you can heat up two points close together on
a junk board and watch the solder harden up.
Watch the metal get very shiny then dull as you remove the soldering pencil tip.
It only takes a few seconds to happen when the tip is heated up at 700 degrees!

Make sure the tip is clean from the black overheated tar and residue (oxidization).
Some use sandpaper, some use those Brillo pads from under the the wife's kitchen sink...lol
Heat up one point at a time and watch it very closely through a magnifying desk lamp.
If they don't all melt into each other and create a bloody short, then you've mastered the basics!

I used to practice making a small box out of metal paper clips.
One you figure out how to do that - you're an expert at soldering!
If you're screaming like the guy on the left - then you need to practice some more!
I'm on my lunch break so I decided to make you one! LOL>>>

[stayouttadabunker]

Add all four legs together!
Don't do this on your wife's kitchen table or she will throw you out!LOL>>>

[stayouttadabunker]

I've found these to be amazingly strong when done right! 
I put the whole helping hands and soldering pencil on top of it...
Click on any of the photos to make them larger so you can see!>>>

[reho33]

Maybe they should have called you Solderoutadabunker!

[stayouttadabunker]

Maybe they should have called you Solderouttadabunker!

  You tryin' to make my stage name even longer? lol

[CaptainHappy]

Maybe they should have called you Solderouttadabunker!

  You tryin' to make my stage name even longer? lol

He could have made it longer... GetOutaDaBunkerSoHeCanSolderInDaBreakRoom!!!!

CH

Don't forget proper capitalization is required to log in! 

[CaptainHappy]

Maybe they should have called you Solderouttadabunker!

  You tryin' to make my stage name even longer? lol

He could have made it longer... GetOutaDaBunkerSoHeCanSolderInDaBreakRoom!!!!

CH

Don't forget proper capitalization is required to log in! 

AKA..........
T.O.M.toomanyletters!

CH

This will confuse some people!

[stayouttadabunker]

  You're one sick little puppy Capt Happy! 

[StatFreak]

Maybe they should have called you Solderouttadabunker!

  You tryin' to make my stage name even longer? lol

He could have made it longer... GetOutaDaBunkerSoHeCanSolderInDaBreakRoom!!!!

CH

Don't forget proper capitalization is required to log in!  

AKA..........
T.O.M.toomanyletters!

CH

This will confuse some people!

You're one sick little puppy Capt Happy!  

   
 

Hey, SolderANewBunkerOuttaPaperClips, have you sent me the royalty check for your avatar this month?

SF

[stayouttadabunker]

"I'm a Ghana put it in da mail"...

oh, Kirk got it...oops