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My Congo Adventure: Phase 2

I'd only ever seen machines in arcades as a kid, so it felt like I'd nicked it or something having one in my home, I couldn't believe my luck just awesome:thumbs:

There's lots of lingo in this hobby, this is a good reference - http://ipdb.org/glossary.php
 
the lingo is driving me CRAZY astyy and even when I know what it means I don't really understand it, and can't identify some of the mechanisms on my own machine.

agree with you on the feeling, can't believe it's mine!
 
I didn't know there was a pinball "scene" until after I got my first machine (a mate gave it me to help clear his storage it was heading for the tip!) now I've got 5 here + a full size arcade cab - I haven't learned how to sell any yet, I'm a hoarder:tut:
 
Hello again, Bogus,

The Highest Scores (Grand Champion excepted) can be reset to back-up values simply by holding down the Enter button (for a count of 5, as I recall)

To include the Grand Champion score with a reset, the Utility function U.3 shown above can be used

To alter the back-up values themselves, you'd need to get into the Adjustment Menu again, but this time select "H.S.T.D" Menu, which contains entries for Champion and the scores 1 to 4 (but not always for any other contested feature), the awards for reaching the H/Score table and the counter for automatically resetting the scores
 
Don’t forget to set the time and date on Congo, then if you can stay awake start a game at about 2 minutes to 12 at night. There is a hidden midnight madness mode which is fantastic.... flippers go dead, a heartbeat with flashers then 1 minute of ball after ball after ball. The DMD is hilarious in a batman type of way.
 
Toxteth O'Grady Midnight Madness was GREAT!

Jay. Tried this mutiple times, says it's cleared and the scoreboard remains the same (though I am now 4th on that board with just over 1 billion and a diamond champ with 101). I'd love to be able to get the scores to 0, but does the machine HAVE to have some scores on there?

Loving the gameplay, making notes as I go. Any tips on making the Volcano shot more ofren.

Only managed to active the AMY x2 score twice. Whenever you hit a letter you can hit a flipper and change it, but as play continues, I've seen the letter change again. What gives?

Any tips on how to activate skill shot and jungle jackpot, both are eluding me so far.

Can anyone explain how the Travi Com Sattelite works, I do you have to light the wings before the blue center lights up, what determines what lights up first? I can't be the only one who finds this really hard? You can't track the on-screen prompts as the ball flies of the targets so quickly.

PROBLEMS: My machine has started clunking and clanking mid game, loading extra balls and firing off multiballs without me achieving them. Will changing the batteries stop this. Had it a month now, so looking to change soon. Any recommended videos on how would be really appreciated, especially as I'm not very physically able, so I'm a bit worried about this part of the process.

Finally, I have to remove that damn ape that is impeding play, I keep knocking him with the ball and now he's **** up, obscuring some nice artwork. Do I need a specific tool to remove him?

Thanks in advance guys. I'd love to know your favourite/least favourite aspects of gameplay, tricks you picked up and breakthroughs you made in smashing your best scores.
 
Hello again, Bogus,

If I'm right in thinking that you'd like to reduce the back-up values to zero, then according to the manual the values allowed are 00 to 999,000,000

The H.S.T.D adjustments are "A.4 ##" in the Adjustment menu, with the Back-up Champion as A.4 10, followed by No.s 1 through 4 as 11, 12, 13 & 14 successively. Adjust each of these to zero, and then use the full h/s reset, found in the Utility Menu as "U.3", to load them (though this will lose your existing No.4 and Diamond scores)

The spurious multi-balls are most likely to be caused by some problem with a switch or switches on the playfield, and changing the battery wouldn't help for long, if at all. Is there a Test Report stored, with a dot after the words 'Free Play'?

To avoid having to re-install any changes, most people change the AA 'batteries' with the machine On. If you'd rather not do so, then a full reset installing factory settings will occur when the machine boots up afterwards
 
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BogusJourney said:
PROBLEMS: My machine has started clunking and clanking mid game, loading extra balls and firing off multiballs without me achieving them. Will changing the batteries stop this.
Click to expand...

It sounds like you're describing a ball search. The extra balls being fired off sounds like a trough switch issue - possibly just need the opto's cleaning. Are there any error messages on start up?
 
image.jpg I had a similar problem with my Congo, balls would fire from the lock in the volcano at irregular intervals. The diverter by the airplane plastic on the right would twitch and click even though it was not being triggered by play. I tried everything including taking the volcano apart and cleaning all opto switches, to no avail.
The problem was finally rectified by unplugging and replugging the orange/grey connector block which leads to the volcano (pictured above).
I can only assume it was making a partial connection somehow and that was what was affecting the gameplay.
 

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Thanks for this guys. Only I've had a MAJOR ****ING ISSUE while a mate was playing. He turned it on. Balls started firing right away. He waited for them to clear, then hit start. Nothing happened. He switched it off on the rocker switch underneath and when he tried to turn it back on, nothing. Pin appears to be completely dead. Any ideas/suggestions welcome.
 
Check the fuse on the wall plug. If it’s 5amps replace it with 13amp. Check that the power lead is firmly pushed into the back. Check the next fuse that sits inside the
Machine above where you’ve been switching on/off. It’s in a black twisty thing.
 
pinballmania, thank you so much for this response. You'll have to bear with me with as this sort of thing is not my forte and not being able-bodied makes accessing this stuff more difficult. That said, we've checked the fuse, which is 13amp (though I may replace it anyway). Everything appears to be plugged in as firmly as can be, so I now need to ask about how exactly I access the next fuse that sits inside the machine. Do we unscrew the switch from the bottom, removing the panel that runs across the whole bottom of the machine, go in through the coin door or through the glass from the top?

Toxteth O'Grady, thanks for all your suggestions and attached, though I should point out that my random multiball is occurring from the firing mechanism/plunger. The volcano may also b making a clunking sound too, but I can't b 100% till I'm back up and operational, though you could see the plunger lining up 2, 3 balls at a time and making a racket as it did so.

Wow, you guys said there'd problems, you weren't joking!
 
Switched out the wall plug fuse. No dice, must be the on/off fuse -- is it a specialist fuse I need? (T4AL?) Bought some fuses but they appear to be much bigger (obviously mains fuses). See pic

Will address the education i need on opto switches and the like for the multiball problem once I can actually get it back on!
Fuse.JPG
 
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doesn't have ampage on the holder I pulled out (maybe the number is scratched off?) but it is a T4AL fuse (and i would have thought 4A meant 4 amps), gonna take the dead fuse down to a place that sells fuses and try to match it. My worry of course, is that something caused that fuse to blow which means there must be a problem elsewhere. Thanks Kenny Taylor.
 
You can get the main fuse from Maplin if you have one local. They’re listed as 31mm time delay fuses. Don’t know which amp fuse for your machine but there may be a sticker on the metal box where the fuse inserts that tells you or it will be in the manual if you have one. It’ll say slo blo fuse but time delay is the same thing.
 
Hi guys. Major stress at home beside the pinball machine, as I've been applying for a job, which I reckon I've got in the bag!

Thanks for asking. Machine is back on with on/off switch fuse replaced, however, more problems:

1. First time I turned it on got the "check fuses F115 and F116 and opto 12v supply" message, though it hasn't come up any time since that first replacement of the fuse. But if on/off switch has blown, surely that means that's because there are problems elsewhere.

Manuel says it's either a blown fuse, then tells you where or at 4 different connectors on the power board. For the first bit, is it worth replacing the fuse(s) anyway, despite not seeing the message since? For the second part, what exactly do you do with the connectors on the power driver board? manual doesn't say.

2. Still getting multiball with the plunger where ball after ball is clunking out on almost every game now. Also, volcano is randomly clunking (often) but not spitting any balls outside of play. Outside of switches, Dave Bishop has suggested the connector on the CPU board might need reseating (which is likely what I'm describing in the second part of point above), but I don't know what this means, how easy it is and how to do it.

3. Jay Walker, it worked! Got scores to zero (took ages to do) scored my highest ever and it only lasted a night. Turned the machine on and it said "Restored to factory settings" which it's been doing on and off since I got it. Why is this happening? Of course, this also means I have to toggle free play on and adjust the volume frequently. Very annoying.

Help, haven't played in days as multiball ruins it. Getting me down.
 
Restored to factory settings is either you need to replace the 3 AA batteries on the MPU board, batteries are not making good connection or battery acid has damaged your board caused by leaking batteries.. Hope its not the last one..
 
is there a good youtube video to show how to do this. I guess if it's the last one, it'll be pretty obvious? By batteries not making a good connection do you simply mean they may not b in their compartment tight enough, or is there anything else I can do?

Any thoughts or links to videos on the othr points? Cheers, Kenny.
 
BogusJourney said:
is there a good youtube video to show how to do this. I guess if it's the last one, it'll be pretty obvious? By batteries not making a good connection do you simply mean they may not b in their compartment tight enough, or is there anything else I can do?

Any thoughts or links to videos on the othr points? Cheers, Kenny.
Click to expand...
It really is just checking that the batteries are in the board and making a good connection. I would simply replace them. It'll be obvious when you lift off the translite and open the door on the backboard. Just note which way the batteries go in.
 
In the battery pack the connection may have slightly corroded. Just lightly wipe the connections with steel wool or fibreglass pen if you have one. Can you send a pic of the backbox with the translite off. Will help us investigate further..
 
Let me know if you need instructions on taking the back glass off etc and I will send photographs.
Please post some photos of the inside of your backbox when you do remove the glass, I’m sure that someone here will be able to help out.
Stick with it fella, it’s gonna be worth it!
 
Got the glass off thanks. No corrosion around batteries, so will replace them as a matter of course and see if that helps.image1.jpegimage1-2.jpegimage1-2.jpegimage1-2.jpegimage1-3.jpegimage1-1.jpeg
 
Sorry for multiple posts. That second (replicated) pic has batteries away from the circuit boards. Is that a mod?

For multiball problems, do i ned to do something in the Test menu first or do i go straight to replacing fuse F109 as book describes?
 
You mean that the whole board is a dark green, as opposed to light green of the others?

Only played this for 3 weeks tops, does that mean the board was likely that way when it was sold to me?
 
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