Mystery Machine

[browne92]

In my "Introduction" thread, I posted a pic of my first machine:

pachi1.jpg

Max asked to see the back. I'm sure it's quite old, as all the covers that are usually plastic are metal:
heiwa1.jpg
There is no "tray empty" light or switch and doesn't look like there ever was one.

And the brand:
heiwa2.jpg

As I said, I got the machine some 10 or more years ago, and there are some mysteries abut the machine that I had forgotten over time. The first is the little hole and lever off to the right:
heiwa3.jpg
When I first got the machine, I thought the hole was some sort of 'double down' device, letting you shoot two balls at once. The lever seems to move a little 'elevator' that would lift a ball from the hole behind the hinge up the the jackpot (?), but there is no method for a ball to ever get there.

Another thing I noticed is that when you pull the lever back to empty the upper tray into the lower tray, the balls tend to bounce out of the lower tray, which I thought was a very poor design:
heiwa4.jpg

But what if it wasn't designed that way? After I saw the post where another member picked up a single shot machine (didn't know there was such a thing), I got to wondering. In the last pick, look at the indentation just to the right of the crown. They wouldn't have put this if it didn't serve a purpose. Also, the jackpot pays out in the lower tray, not the upper.

Could this be a single shooter machine that was retrofitted with a multi shooter front frame? I think this likely.

What do you think?

[Chumsize]

Is the knob/lever possibly a selector between single shot mode and autofeed flipper mode? Say, if you had no balls in the feed tray, would the machine function as a single shot if the knob as in the right place or something? I'm wondering if this is some sort of crossover machine that allowed players who didn't want to autoload to function in single load mode instead... So not so much a retrofit, but purposely built this way...

[pachiwall]

LOVE that machine! It appears to be a single ball conversion. A single ball machine, factory converted to a semi automatic. I have a couple of common ones.SBC 009.jpg DSCF6390.jpg Also a similar catagory...front overflow machines. front overflow 004.jpg DSCF7702.JPG OOPs I can't seem to rotate that one. Your machine falls into a fascinating catagory that I seek out. I would love to see more pictures!

[Moparformances]

there should -could be a double jackpot catch point... if two jackpots are hit one right after another a single shot machine holds the second winner and the lever is used to resend that winner to the jackpot for payout.. (if i rember right) it might send that winner back to the shooter as well? cant rember

my single shot has a lever for this

see pics

1989.jpg1988.jpg

[browne92]

It appears to be a single ball conversion.

That explains a great many things. Thank you. If you have specific areas of the machine you would like to see pictures of, let me know. I'll be glad to post them.

[browne92]

there should -could be a double jackpot catch point...

It appears that's what the lever is for, but it is no longer functioning, or even needed. It doen't have any trouble paying out multiple jackpots. I discovered this when the ball tray ran dry and the player hit a couple of jackpots before letting me know.

[pachiwall]

That explains a great many things. Thank you. If you have specific areas of the machine you would like to see pictures of, let me know. I'll be glad to post them.

Anything behind the ball shooter tray would be a treat! Normally it would open easily, but if a factory conversion is true...than anything is game! In your 4th image... It looks like a wingnut and a door, behind Plexi...makes it accessable only from the inside. There is also a hole in the Plexi below the ball drain. These things make me curious.
The balls pay out into the bottom tray only. They have to because of the early single ball design. They have to be hand loaded into the shooter tray. (single ball conversion) Where, it seems later, that balls pay out directly to top tray...and can be dumped to the lower tray, manually thru external pathways on the front of the door.(front overflow) Single ball conversions always (can I actually say that?) have front overflows.

[pachiwall]

It appears that's what the lever is for, but it is no longer functioning, or even needed. It doesn't have any trouble paying out multiple jackpots. I discovered this when the ball tray ran dry and the player hit a couple of jackpots before letting me know.

I agree on not needed, but very cool indeed. They still are quite a mystery. When designed correctly, and complete and working...they add another fascinating mechanical "solution" to a "perceived" problem. I have them on several of my machines. Some work perfectly, like on my New PrinceNOJP 010.jpg Wow! I thought I had a better pic. Here is a prettier pic from farther back.New Prince 003.jpg Although this is a single shot machine, the concept is the same. If too many balls reach the seesaw at once, they fall into this chamber. I think most of mine "only" hold 5 jackpots in reserve. This one uses a button to lift the ball from the "jackpot reserve chamber" back up in front of the seesaw to get you the payout that you already won. Since I have only once seen this happen in actual play...I found a new use for it. I trip the seesaw into the "wrong" position. Then drop 5 balls into a jackpot. They will fall into the "jackpot reserve chamber" and wait for me. When the play tray runs dry...I just press the blue button for 15 more balls!
My Heiwa has one that I can't figure out.Heiwa KOGYO.K.K 023.jpg There is a button.Heiwa KOGYO.K.K 002.jpg It works a linkage that lifts the ball...017.jpg I hardly recognize it, it is the metal bar above the battery clips. I can't figure out how a ball can even get into the reserve chamber. I can't find the pics, but they are in this thread.Heiwa kogyo.k.k All the mechanics, and no hole big enough for a ball.
Stone simple...Comicgo 010.jpg Comicgo 011.jpg Then, on both of my Ginza machines is a windowGinza 004.jpg But, NO actual way for ANY ball to get in or out. There were even a couple of very old rusty "captive" balls in the window...but no "jackpot reserve mechanism". If you got 2 jackpots quickly, and they both reached the seesaw at the same time...1 would pay, the other would fall into this tray Ginza 012.jpg that surrounds the seesaw. The ball rolls around the seesaw...and is returned to you into the lower(only) tray. I learned about that little trick here.Ebay Auction: Single Shot on ebay
So it is easy to say they store jackpots. But some don't. Ginza appears to deceive. Heiwa seems to do nothing at all...but should!
Yours looks like it has a zip strip attached to it. What does it do when you push the lever? Take some pics of that area. Maybe we can fix it.

[browne92]

If too many balls reach the seesaw at once, they fall into this chamber. I think most of mine "only" hold 5 jackpots in reserve. This one uses a button to lift the ball from the "jackpot reserve chamber" back up in front of the seesaw to get you the payout that you already won. Since I have only once seen this happen in actual play...I found a new use for it. I trip the seesaw into the "wrong" position. Then drop 5 balls into a jackpot. They will fall into the "jackpot reserve chamber" and wait for me. When the play tray runs dry...I just press the blue button for 15 more balls!Heiwa KOGYO.K.K 002.jpg

Great idea.

If it doesn't fall there until there are 5 jackpots waiting, it may be more functional than I thought. But mine is missing the cover that gets the ball from one hole to the other, though you can see the holes from the nails or screws. It may have had to be removed for the conversion.

I'll get you more pics, but it will have to wait till next week. Big busy weekend.

Thanks again!!

[mxfaiman]

Sorry I haven't had a chance to post lately.

Thanks for posting those pictures. Very neat machine you have there. I own a Heiwa Front Overflow machine which is the newer version of the one you have (which is a single shot conversion). I would give you a build year but I am clueless as to yours and mine. I would say yours is probably 1969-1971 and mine is about 1971-73.

Here are some pics of mine. (sorry about that first pic; I keep meaning to take a better one and always forget to haul out the machine)
003.jpg002.jpg

[browne92]

Anything behind the ball shooter tray would be a treat!

Sorry it took so long to post these, I kinda forgot about the project. Picture quality is not what I would have liked, but here you go:

heiwa5.jpgheiwa6.jpg

Can't the date of manufacture be determined by the stickers? Maybe these will help:

heiwa7.jpgheiwa8.jpg

[mxfaiman]

Can't the date of manufacture be determined by the stickers? Maybe these will help:

heiwa7.jpg

Yes it can be. There should be a 2 digit number on the blue portion of that sticker. (Something like 48 or 51) Take that number and add 24 to it for the build year. Let us know what you find.

[browne92]

Yes it can be. There should be a 2 digit number on the blue portion of that sticker. (Something like 48 or 51) Take that number and add 24 to it for the build year. Let us know what you find.

My camera shoots rediculously large photos, so I always resize before posting. I went back to the original, did some cropping, and came up with this:

heiwa9.jpg

1969 it is!

[Rival]

All of the conversions were 1969. They are really just retrofits of earlier models. That was they year they lifted the ban on autoloaders. It took them a year or so to develop new models purposely designed for autoloading. 1970 saw the first new front overflow models, followed quickly in 1971 by the standard autoloaders we all know and love.

[pachiwall]

Sorry it took so long to post these, I kinda forgot about the project. Picture quality is not what I would have liked, but here you go:

heiwa5.jpgheiwa6.jpg

If all that is wrong maybe something can be made...what is the diameter of the holes? Also the distance center to center (easier to measure from 9 o'clock to 9 o'clock). Does the elevator lift when the lever is moved? My Heiwa has the same nameplate...Heiwa kogyo.k.k , but newer. Take some pics of the linkage connected to your lever, I'll dig mine out, and look see. Mine seems to work, mechanically...but no way for balls to enter the reserve chamber.
Is the inside of the ball tray door made of wood! Very interesting machine!
By the way, I might not have been clear. The jackpot reserve should capture EACH ball that reaches the seesaw when in DOWN position. It will show up in the window. If the seesaw is reset, you can play and use the 1 ball in the window for 1 jackpot...the window will be empty. I trip the seesaw and add 5 balls to the window because that is all it will hold. I then have 5 refills.
Put your seesaw in the down position and drop a ball into a jackpot. If it rolls out one (left probably) of the holes on the front...then we need to get you a window!

[browne92]

It appears the elevator functions but no longer serves a purpose. There is no way for a ball to ever get to it, even if the front had the cover that went from one hole to the other.

In the first picture, note the 'L' shaped piece denoted by the red arrow. it is only held in place by the pressure of the see-saw cover.

heiwa10.jpg

When you remove the see-saw cover, you see this. When the first ball enters the see-saw, it tilts and the tab (blue arrow) stops the second ball. The "red arrow cover" from the first picture stops the second ball from falling out the opening towards the back (green arrow). The second ball has no option but to wait for the see-saw to tilt back. The yellow arrow points towards the elevator. Also note that it looks like plastic was removed from the cover in the second picture to allow installation of the "red arrow cover". I hope all this makes sense.

heiwa11.jpg

Pachiwall, you seem to be so excited about this machine, I'm going to leave it to you in my will. Bad news is, cardio doc says I'm good to go, so you might have to wait awhile.

[pachiwall]

After looking at the pics...makes me wonder if the tab (blue arrow) was added (by the parlor)? If no tab, and a window/chamber was present...it looks like if the seesaw was in the down position, the next winning ball would roll across the top and fall over the side (towards the camera), land in the greenish yellow cover, and roll into the lower hole that has no other access. If, of course the cover has enough clearance between it and the seesaw. The cover is shaped to guide the ball into the lower hole. It would then roll to the other hole that leads to the elevator, where it can be lifted to the seesaw again. The plastic covers on back look correct and unmodified, as best as I can see...but cant tell about the blue arrow tab. With the seesaw in the up position, put a ball in the elevator hole, it should be the lower one on the left, move the lever and see if it goes in the seesaw and trips the jackpot. That should work from what I can see, but how they get into the window is still confusing me.
I copied and pasted the pics from posts #16 & #11...therefore they won't enlarge, you have to scroll up to enlarge them!

[Moparformances]

After looking at the pics...makes me wonder if the tab (blue arrow) was added (by the parlor)? If no tab, and a window/chamber was present...it looks like if the seesaw was in the down position, the next winning ball would roll across the top and fall over the side (towards the camera), land in the greenish yellow cover, and roll into the lower hole that has no other access. If, of course the cover has enough clearance between it and the seesaw. The cover is shaped to guide the ball into the lower hole. It would then roll to the other hole that leads to the elevator, where it can be lifted to the seesaw again. The plastic covers on back look correct and unmodified, as best as I can see...but cant tell about the blue arrow tab. With the seesaw in the up position, put a ball in the elevator hole, it should be the lower one on the left, move the lever and see if it goes in the seesaw and trips the jackpot. That should work from what I can see, but how they get into the window is still confusing me.
I copied and pasted the pics from posts #16 & #11...therefore they won't enlarge, you have to scroll up to enlarge them!

these instructions make perfice sense to me.. what windo are you refering to??

[pachiwall]

The holes on the front of his machine should have a window, something like this... It holds the jackpot balls untill the elevator pushes them back up to the seesaw. This window is on a Heiwa of mine that I also have "jackpot reserve chamber" issues with. It is actually my avatar...here is the front. I think my window would be a correct match for browne92's machine. Something functional could be made...PRETTY might be another issue!

[jodini]

WOW Pachiwall...that is a nice looking machine!