FT woes - 2 solenoids stopped working

[MarkS]

My FT has been working perfectly (serviced by Andy@PM earlier this year) until yesterday:

In the middle of a game the ball wouldn't pop out into the shooter lane. I expected the game to cycle through the solenoids trying to find/eject the balls but the only one that seemed to fire was the shooter lane. So I powered off and on and the fuse blew on the plug. [* see footnote about this!]

I replaced the fuse and tested what I could with my *very* limited knowledge of pinballs/electronics, but with the help of a friend who knows electronics and reading the FT manual/schematics:

* I tested the solenoids and 02 (Catapult) and 10 (Ball Release) both failed. [13 (Drop Target Down) appeared to fail but upon looking closer I think it's working but failing to trigger the catch to release the drop target - is that a weak solenoid that needs replacing perhaps?]

* So I tested the 2 relevant fuses (F104 and F105) and these are both OK

* From looking at the Solenoid Wiring diagram these 2 solenoids are actually on 2 different power lines, and other solenoids on those lines are OK

So I'm stumped. I just seems weird that 2 different solenoids have stopped working at the same time. From my friend's recap of "Electronics For Dummies", it seems to me/us that the only explanations now are (a) both solenoids have blown, (b) there is a fault on the actual wire from the board to the solenoid (x2), or (c) there is a fault on the actual board? Is there anything else I should check?

I don't even have a multi-meter, let alone a soldering iron, so not sure what else I can check easily? Any ideas?

Thanks for any help/suggestions/explanations!


[* for 2-3 days we have had lights flickering in the house, and last night the house opposite lost all power completely - the electric company are currently digging up the road and bringing in generators - is it possible a power surge has damaged something? Should I be using a surge protector like I do on my PC?]

 

[mark9]

edit: think I'll leave this to the experts!

Think your right about the power company causing surges, I lost a washing machine last time they dug up the road near me!

 

[Moonraker]

You can take the balls out and check underneath the playfield to see if there's any wires hanging off coils or switches in the trouble areas.

It's not unknown for more than one fault to occur at the same time as most parts are manufactured at the same time thus expiring at the same time.

Yes I would use surge protection. It could have been the cause but it's one of those you'll never know things...

Your next step should be to invest in a multi-meter...!

 

[pinballmania]

A clue here might be the difference between the solenoid numbers , 10 - 2 = 8. This points to data addressing. So with power off, reseat the short grey ribbon cable and press the square chip on the CPU firmly home with your thumb. Retest.

 

[MarkS]

Thanks for the quick replies (esp on a Bank Holiday!) and apologies for not replying sooner but I've been up to my elbows in blocked gutters and drains with all this rain

I had already checked the wiring to the solenoids which had looked alright, so I tried Andy's suggestion - I wasn't sure which one was the short grey ribbon cable, so I reseated all 3 that I could see on the board, pressed the CPU and hey presto I have a working machine again... thanks a million


Not urgent at all, but does anyone have any idea on why the drop-down target solenoid wouldn't be working properly? Is that more likely to be a weak solenoid that needs replacing, or a mechanical issue? It seems to drop OK when I manually move the switch, although it seems to me it needs to go the whole way (ie. 3/4s of the way doesn't trigger the drop).

 

[pinballmania]

The drop actuator tends to become too far away from the solenoid for the coil to be able to pull it in. put a tie wrap loosely around the coil and assembly to prevent it moving too far away from the coil. Make sure it's not too tight that the finger touches the drop target itself.

 

[MarkS]

Thanks I will try that (once I have acquired some tie wraps!).

 

[xenon325i]

Yes my FT did exactly that with the drop target. I used a small screw by the solenoid such that the metal yoke the solenoid pulls is closer to the coil. Works fine now.

 

[Jay Walker]

The drop actuator tends to become too far away from the solenoid for the coil to be able to pull it in. put a tie wrap loosely around the coil and assembly to prevent it moving too far away from the coil. Make sure it's not too tight that the finger touches the drop target itself.

I've seen a couple of instances like that on Star Trek Next Gen; the frame that supports the small 'dropper' coil had suffered a fracture of the bent-around arm which held the moving plate/dropping finger up close to the coil/target. With the arm missing, the coil works harder attempting to drop the target, and can be damaged through overheating. If that's the problem, then apply Andy's remedy or, if you're particular, replace the coil support, which is listed as 'Frame & Eyelet' on the parts diagram.

 

[xenon325i]

Yes, that's exactly it ^^

 

[MarkS]

I actually managed to just bend the brace slightly with my thumb which did the trick... the solenoid/gate tests fine now and seems to work in play too - result!