Re: Tech: Dialing down a "hot" game

On Wed, 19 Apr 2006 19:03:31 +0000, zilla wrote:

Are folks sure there isn't a potentiometer or something that might clear
this up?

No. There isn't. You're going to have to open it up and get your hands
dirty.

Some later generations of pinballs have a SOFTWARE adjustment for coil
power, but a Bally of that era, no. The solenoid power supply is
unregulated, so no adjustments there either.

Other posters already pointed you to the most likely suspects; have you
checked them? To summarize:

Modified coils:
===============
Some owners remove several turns from the solenoids in an effort to make
them play faster. Look at the solenoids; to they look like they've been
modified?

Coils replaced with wrong type:
===============================
There should be a part number on the coil; check it with the part number
in the manual.

Haven't worked on a Flash Gordon specifically, but IIRC
most Ballys of that era use xx-26-1200, where 'xx' is a two-letter code
that indicates the bobbin and sleeve style. (The 26-1200 means 1200 turns
of 26AWG wire)

Transformer wired for wrong line voltage:
=========================================
The transfomer has several taps on the primaries for various common line
voltages from 100V-240V. There should be a card near the transformer
showing how to set up the jumpers for various line voltages; make sure
it's set up correctly for your line voltage. If the card is missing, look
in the manual under "Set-up Instructions."

It's not at all uncommon for owners or operators to select a too-low
voltage to get more power out of the solenoids. For example, if your line
voltage is 120V, and your transfomer is strapped for 100V, it's getting
20% more than it "expects," so all the secondaries will be high by 20%,
including, of course, the solenoids.

.

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