Williams Solved PIN·BOT (Williams, 1986) problem

[grgbcg60]

Hi All, I'm new to the forum.I purchased a Pinbot by Williams about 5 years ago,used).I put a lot of restoration work into it, such as all new bumpers,rings,lights,resistors ,playfield plastics and playfield work.Also a couple of alpha numeric displays.I love the machine.However, I forgot to change the three AA batteries on the main board.They wore down, and one of them (third from the left) leaked .As soon as I discovered this, I pulled the batteries and cleaned off as much corrosion as humanly possible.When I started the game up, a warning sound came on and "Adjust Failure" appeared on the alpha Numeric display.I went to my manual, and proceded to correct the adjustments. Since I use the machine for entertainment, "Freeplay" is the setting I want to keep it on.However, as soon as I turn the game off and turn it on again , the same warning sound comes on and the same "adjustment Failure" appears again.Freeplay does not stay on either, therefore the machine will not begin to play when the play button is pressed. Anyone out there have any ideas on how to correct this problem? I'd certainly appreciate any input/ advice!Greg

 

[spalmer]

Sounds to me like the battery holder is shot. Hopefully there is no board damage. Best thing I can recommend is to remove the board and unsolder the battery holder. Clean up any remaining corrosion and install a remote battery holder. You can find a 3 battery holder at Radio Shack very cheap. Mount it to the side on the inside of the backbox. That should resolve your problem. If not then you may have some minor board damage. If that is the case, post a picture so I can see what you have and we can go from there. Battery damage is a big problem on these machines since the batteries are out of site out of mind. I normally replace mine about every 6 months to be safe.

 

[grgbcg60]

Thanks, spalmer, can I or should I resolder the new battery holder back on the board (with great care of course) or is there great risk? I'm not sure I understand how to go about doing a remote install.Can you elaborate on the risks of soldering back onto the original position, and how I would do a remote install?

Greg

 

[spalmer]

The risk of installing the new holder on the board is having the same thing happen again. Installing a remote holder is pretty simple. When you insolder the old holder, note when the positive and negative posts go through the board. Solder a Red wire in the hole on the board that the positive post came out of and black on the negative side. Connect to your remote holder and install batteries. Can you post a good picture of your current battery holder with the batteries moved so I can see what I am looking at. I might have another solution that does not include removing the old battery holder. If you need to send by email, PM me and I will give you my email address.

 

[grgbcg60]

Thanks again for the reply! I went to my local Radio shack and they did not have the 3 AA battery holder. I was surprised.I looked further on this site and found a photo of the remote battery setup.Good idea! Still cannot understand why I can get the game working after playing with the settings, ie: freeplay and then when I shut the machine off and then turn it back on, I get the adjustment failure message all over again.Obviously it has something to do with the battery problem, but also I may be putting the wrong information back in when I try to fix the adjustment failure? I will soon Pm with my e-mail.Again, I certainly appreciate your help.
Greg

 

[Coil_Smoke]

Those batteries keep memory circuits energized when the power is off. Custom settings and things like High Score To Date will reset without that battery power.

 

[grgbcg60]

Spalmer & Coilsmoke:Thanks for your replies.as of a few days ago, I received the three battery housing from Betson corp. I installed it in my machine, and now all is working fine! I thank you again for your helpGreg

 

[yosemitemtb]

I'm having the exact same issues with my Williams Police Force. I changed batteries and cleaned up the holder as good as I could with the board still in the machine when I got the table, but the issue returned. Time to break out the solder iron!

 

[merkury]

I have owned a Pinbot for about 10 years and I have made "some" repairs to it, but I have never soldered anything on the boards. Could one of you recommend to me what kind of soldering iron, solder, etc. to use for a repair like this? Would you use anything different for soldering wires onto coils? I am about to start a restoration, so I need to prepare myself.

 

[faralos]

try to NOT use a standard soldering iron when working with boards
as the tip gets too hot and may melt or ruin the boards
invest in a good variable temp solder station
also a solder sucker works to get rid of the old solder and flux