This Taiyo Electron - junk or not?

[wrkey]

I think you've made the right decision. You might want to copy some of these posts that list the concerns and forward them to the seller. Or... just retry to contact them after about two weeks and see if he's still sitting on it and willing to make the RIGHT deal.

Again, welcome to PachiTalk and I look forward to seeing photos of your new machine when it arrives!!

[marietta_ken]

You folks are never gonna believe this one. I just got an e-mail from the owner of the "basket-case" arepachi machine -- yes, fully TWO YEARS later -- offering me the machine for free if I'm interested in driving down to pick it up. Dang, I thought I had escaped this significant challenge by walking away before. Now...I might have to take it on.

Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that I FINALLY, literally in the last couple of weeks, got my Pachinko in a cabinet and mounted on the wall. Looks great, btw, if I do say so myself. So much more usable and interesting up there on the wall.

Anyway, just thought I'd share that this story apparently hasn't yet ended!

[yose]

Welcome to pachitalk.The other members here know what their talking about,I to have read and learned so much from this group of dedicated,and very inventive people.

[Moparformances]

congrats on your long search ending.. and the final price is right on..

i dont think its a total loss... its a bit of a mess but there are a few things there to get you on the road of recovery... we have made leaps and bounds on restoration work since i joined.. and this thread was started...

fixint the cell is going to be the easy part.. and i can see from the pic that the original cell patern is a comon one... im sure we/someone can get your a good pic of what it once looked like..

good luck and keep us posted...

[Meathead]

Pics!! If you mount a pachi in a cabinet or in a wall, the rules here require you post pictures. (I'm sure I saw that somewhere)

I still think the other one is hopeless, but I've seen some very talented members restore a machine to pristine condition that I would have tossed in a barn.

[marietta_ken]

Thanks, Mopar. I did see the "new" sticky last night about cell restoration. I had envisioned doing something along those lines back when I first saw this machine, but it's awesome that others have done it and provided nice instructions. Stayed up 'til 2:30 am this morning studying, comparing, etc..

That's also great news about maybe being able to get a good photo/image of the playing field. I did notice that one of the youtube videos of an arepachi (I think it's the owl one) appeared to have the same design. Can't tell if coloring is different from factory or just due to the sorry state of "my" machine. Regardless, if someone could indeed provide me a good image that would be much welcomed!

Looks like I'm going to have a good bit of re-chroming to do. I have had that done to some parts on a 1937 Brunswick Balke Collander pool table I restored, but will check this board to see if there's a good source for rechroming these machines. Don't want to get too crazy with investment.

[Lt Teddy]

Well I must say the price is right. As far as finding pieces and parts for this Taiyo you are going to have a huge problem. You are missing the coin receiver on the front of the machine and you only have one half of the insides showing in pictures. You should have another computer board on the back and with where this has been and the rust now on it I am thinking you are getting a bunch of parts. Average price if you do not know what you are doing with the electronics is about $200 to just start troubleshooting it. Alot of parts but from experience it would take one big lot of dollars to ever see this machine run. That being said I wish you the best of luck. I have three taiyos in my albums and if you need more pictures or anything just let me know.

[marietta_ken]

Didn't realize it's missing a circuit board. Pics of what's missing and some idea of what the function/complexity is would be awesome! I am an electrical engineer, so if I need to build up some basic circuitry then I am OK with that. Don't really feel like adding a micro or doing any programming to emulate more complex electronics if that's what is missing.

I have some ideas, and some limited fab capability, for the plastic parts. My goal there would be to get to an authentic-enough look that nobody but pachi (and even arepachi) enthusiasts would notice as less than perfect. None of my crowd knows a darn thing about these machines, so good looking and good functioning is good enough given the inherent novelty.

How much do arepachi machines typically go for in non-basket-case condition? Doesn't appear that they are often available -- are they truly pretty rare? I know a "re-worked" model like this would be compromised in value, but don't really care IF I can make it work and look good. However, if I am likely to just run across one somewhere for not too much then I can surely pass on this project.

[Lt Teddy]

I do not know whether or not it is missing a board till I could see the full insides. Price is like everything else if their is enough demand it will go up. That being said the arepachi to be worth much has to be a functioning machine. In other words pays correctly and plays correctly. The conditon of the machine that I can see is pretty bad.

If you were thinking of repairing it and selling for a profit I can tell you that is not going to happen just figuring the problems I see and not counting the ones I cannot.

[emmadog]

I'm an optimist when it comes to these things and anything can be done nowadays thanks to the internet and tons of do it yourself materials and info out there. I've acquired 5 of these that others passed up on and 3 of them now look and function as new with two more in the works.
One of my Taiyos was missing the same coin insert strip you're missing and a member here made a new one using an old one as a model. It's a carbon copy of the original right down to the color. I've also had an engineer fab new electronics for me using a micro controller for a Satomi arepachi. I don't know if yours is missing a circuit board but you'll have to decide whether it's easier to make a microcontroller yourself or reproduce your boards. I say this because the boards in that machine are probably shot, not to mention all the connectors and associated components.
I agree with not worrying alot about authenticity so much as getting it looking nice and working in this case. The more authentic the better it's value but vintage pachinko collectors are a very small group and you're unlikely to find many or any (if this works out and you want to sell it someday) that are willing to pay for the amount of time and effort this machine is going to require.
Anyway, I've restored several of these before and am doing extensive restoration on two right now so feel free to ask any questions.

[marietta_ken]

Thanks for all the input so far. I'm going to go ahead and pickup the machine so that I can size it up more fully. I, too, am an optimist and not looking so much for a return on investment as much as the satisfaction of having saved this somewhat rare machine if I can.

Once I get it in my posession and have my bearings, I'll post some pics and begin asking more specific questions.

Oh -- and my apologies for referring to my cabinet without pics. See below for my fairly straightforward build.

[Lt Teddy]

Both a nice looking cabinent and a nice machine.

[yose]

Very well done on both.

[hanabi]

That's a great looking cabinet, sets the machine off beautifully

and good luck with the rescue mission too

[prunfarm]

Sorry, can't help w/ the arepachi, but I love the cabinet! The plexi front on the ball hopper is slick!

[marietta_ken]

So, two years later...I now have the machine in my possession. Upon picking it up, I was somewhat pleasantly surprised at the appearance. Key is that the chrome will likely be salvageable with a good cleaning. Though it will definitely have some "character," I think it will likely be passable.

Next, from a 20,000 foot perspective, the machine isn't simply "mush," so to speak. Though it's clearly rough, it's not simply nasty (everyone following these descriptions?).

Got it home. Blew it out with compressed air, which of course sent flecks of the playing field a-flying. Just tried to get the heaviest dust/lint/debris out of the machine. Checked the fuses -- both OK.

Plugged her in (wearing safety glasses!) and...the clunk of a relay! Hey, good sign. Manipulated a few contacts and heard some responsive clicks. Feeling a little optimistic. Tripped the coin trigger and ca-chunk -- the ball dump solenoid activated, then released! Feeling really good at this point!

Dropped a ball into the #3 pocket -- bummer, no light. Maybe burned out? Try #2 -- works! #1 and #4 -- work!

At this point I know she ain't dead -- and am feeling energized and glad I went to fetch this thing.

Last couple of things. Checked function of both tulips -- both work properly. Balls shoot properly (though there's some crap in the ball feed causing some blockage. Also, the big spinny-looking thing with sprung contacts rotates a few degrees with each coin trip. Very good sign that it is "thinking."

So, now I pretty much need to determine the balance of time to spend evaluating vs. just dismantling and cleaning, then evaluating. I'm thinking I'll go ahead and get all the flaking playing field removed, dismantle the backside components to clean, lube, etc and check individual parts for functionality. Replace bulbs -- basically take care of the obvious items and put it back together. I'll then try to learn this machine's play and see if it is fully functional feature-wise.

From there I've got the daunting task of locating or fabbing any missing or damaged parts, pulling all the nails (any rec's for best thread on that topic??), and figuring out how I will refurb the playing field. I gotta say, though, having the electronics basically working will make all the cosmetics much less daunting!

Took a ton of pics. Will select a few, resize and post as soon as I get a chance.

[Lt Teddy]

Well My taiyo owl has the closest of my taiyo to your insides. Here are some pictures for you. You should note even the sweep is different and the puter parts. Part of that is the different set up on the board. Sounds like the mechanics might be salvageable and good luck on the playfield. I do not think you will find a good match for the broken tulip anyplace you might consider redoing both sides.

[new in town]

Easy Share to the Rescue.

[emmadog]

Some members came up with very inventive devices to pull nails but I don't think any of them can beat this thing:
9-3/4" Multipurpose Pry Bar - Pry Bars - Hand Tools
I pulled an entire play field in maybe 10 minutes. You can pull the nails close together out two at a time with this thing and it costs a few bucks.
I'm surprised and glad your machine is functioning. I'd start dismantling and then clean each part. It's the most thorough way to ensure things get as cleaned as possible. Also, don't lube anything on these machines other than a couple of drops of light oil on the ball shooter bearing.
Now you can be reasonably sure the machine is functioning electronically and that's the most critical part. Now comes the cosmetics and that just takes time and a little patience.

[ACMech]

Here's the response to your PM, I used your pic and put in arrows. Good luck