Problem with ArraKing

[Tony Junior]

I decided to remove all silver tokens from my ArraKing since it is so darn picky about accepting so many of them, which makes it a pain to play. Probably 5 out of every 10 tokens hang which means you have to hit the coin release button to get them out.

My idea was to try the "gold" tokens, since I understand they wehigh slightly more then many silver ones.

The hopper had several hundred tokens in it so Kyle unplugged it, dumped all tokens and I stood by to try the gold ones. He plugged it back in, added the new tokens, turned on the machine and we got an "E" error message.

Checked connections, tried reset, tried again and again and still nothing but the "E" message. The rest of the machine just remains dark.

Does anyone have any idea what the problem may be? We're stumped.

[Sid]

Sounds like it hates the gold tokens more then the silver ones..

[dritz]

You may still have a token jammed in the hopper. See if it spins freely.

[Tony Junior]

Thanks guys, will check after work...or maybe next day off.

[Czyotto]

Maybe the coin mech. needs a slight adjustment.

[melloed]

Take a photo of your coin mec. and post it so we can see it. Also did you make it to take quarters??

dave

[Tony Junior]

Take a photo of your coin mec. and post it so we can see it. Also did you make it to take quarters??

dave

Will get picture today.

Oh, I would never convert one of these machines to quarters! Although I almost did when I first got the Wai Wai Pulsar years ago. Then it dawned on me how many quarters it would take to keep it happy.

[melloed]

Your machine dont know if it is silver, gold ,brass, it is only the size of the coin so get a pair of calippers and check the thickness of you coins!! also have some one drop coins in and watch with a light and maybe you will see the coin when it gets stuck you may have a burr and can file it off or you may have some oversized coins good luck

dave

[bf_of_pf]

TJ, we have 3 Arra Kings, and have tested them all, and have never experienced what you are describing with the tokens or the error. Some suggestions:

(To fix the error message problem) 1. Pull the plug on the machine for a couple of minutes. 2. Then unplug/replug in the hopper. 3. Do a full reset.

(For the token jamming problem): 1. Drop tokens in with the door open 2. Keep a close eye on the coin/token mechanism and see what happens/when/where the tokens are jamming. Try different tokens and see if that makes a difference.

We have two Rocky USA 30's. One worked perfectly; one kept jamming. I put them side by side, and could see that on the coin mechanism that worked perfectly there was a half-moon flap that opened up about 1/4" when tokens were added. On the one that kept jamming, that same "flap" only opened up about 1/16". And that was were the jamming kept happening, obviously. We made the seller aware of the situation; he sent us another coin mechanism; and that fixed the problem. Putting the two machines side by side helped. Since you don't have that option, just look closely and see if it helps you pinpoint the problem area. I've noticed a lot of machines that had a bunch of crud built up along the track the token follows. Also, a couple of machines kept jamming until I changed the angle of the coin mechanism, as Czyotto suggested.

[Tony Junior]

melloed, obviously I didn't get the picture. Will try this weekend.

[bf_of_pf]

melloed, obviously I didn't get the picture. Will try this weekend.

You still getting nothing but the E message?

[bf_of_pf]

Man, talk about cosmic karma...I was getting ready to seal up in cellophane a Thunderbirds machine before taking it to storage. I had unplugged the hopper, then decided to turn on the machine for something. (Note: T-birds & Arra King are both Fuji models). I got an "E" error message. I thought: "Great, now I can figure out how to get rid of it, then I'll post it for Tony". Only thing is, no matter what I tried, I couldn't get rid of it! Resetting didn't help. Unplugging and letting it sit didn't help. Pressing the odds button didn't help. It still kept showing "E". It was very frustrating. I unplugged it again and let it sit while I did some other stuff. Then, I decided to try the hopper from another Thunderbirds machine we have, to see if maybe there was something wrong with the hopper cable. With the machine still unplugged I connected the "test" hopper, then plugged it in, turned it on, and it picked up right where it was before I unplugged it - right in the middle of a BB. No more "E" message. I figured the problem had to have been the original hopper's cable. I turned off the machine, unplugged it, took out the "test" hopper, put back the original hopper, plugged it in, turned it on, and it was fine. I have no idea why it took installing the second hopper to make it right again, but it seems like getting rid of that "E" message definitely had something to do with plugging in the hopper either the right way, or waiting the right amount of time after having gotten the "E" message. I don't know. But I do know it was frustrating. And I do know that somehow, it righted itself. Hope you have a similar experience.

[Tony Junior]

bf_of-pf, now that is interesting. I'd try that, but I only have the one Fuji machinbe.

Any other suggestions, or hopper I could use?

[Chris V]

the arra king (Fuji machines) has a connector that is quite different then any other machines I have seen. The use the same hopper as Sammy machines but the connector is different.

Chris

[bf_of_pf]

bf_of-pf, now that is interesting. I'd try that, but I only have the one Fuji machinbe.

Any other suggestions, or hopper I could use?

What I was suggesting was that you double check to make sure that the plug to your hopper is completely pushed in; I think that's what the problem was in my case. Either that, or the machine needed to stay unplugged long enough for it to reset itself after an "E" message related to there being no hopper installed once the hopper is reinstalled. It my instance, it had to be one of those two variables. What both of us had in common is that the "E" message was triggered by turning on the machine without a hopper installed. I only gave the example of trying the second hopper to highlight the factor of making sure the plug for the hopper was totally inserted, and/or to look at the time factor with the machine unplugged. If I'm not mistaken, some machines need a longer "off" period even to reset the odds properly, for example. It dawned on me that maybe the same held true as far as returning to a normal operating mode after a "no hopper" E message.

[bf_of_pf]

Update: I needed to remove all the tokens from our Arra King so I figured why not unplug the hopper with the machine off and turn it on to see what happens. I got the "E", turned off the machine, plugged in the hopper, turned the machine back on, and the "E" disappeared. So from that, I would conclude that timing probably does not factor into resolving the "E" message.

The reason I said something about the two T-bird hoppers is because the end of the cable on one of them is a little broken (the "squeeze" tab broke off a while back). It still fits, and works, but it's not quite as snug/tight as before the tab broke. That's why I tried another T-Bird hopper whose cable was 100%. (Note: The cable on the above-mentioned Arra King is likewise 100%.)

What to possibly conclude:

1. Timing makes no difference in removing the "E" message.

2. The hopper cable/how well it fits might be the determining factor, since a hopper with a damaged cable plug was not able to immediately remove the "E" message, whereas an intact cable was.

[Tony Junior]

Update: I needed to remove all the tokens from our Arra King so I figured why not unplug the hopper with the machine off and turn it on to see what happens. I got the "E", turned off the machine, plugged in the hopper, turned the machine back on, and the "E" disappeared. So from that, I would conclude that timing probably does not factor into resolving the "E" message.

The reason I said something about the two T-bird hoppers is because the end of the cable on one of them is a little broken (the "squeeze" tab broke off a while back). It still fits, and works, but it's not quite as snug/tight as before the tab broke. That's why I tried another T-Bird hopper whose cable was 100%. (Note: The cable on the above-mentioned Arra King is likewise 100%.)

What to possibly conclude:

1. Timing makes no difference in removing the "E" message.

2. The hopper cable/how well it fits might be the determining factor, since a hopper with a damaged cable plug was not able to immediately remove the "E" message, whereas an intact cable was.

Okay, both of your messages make sense. Now I have one other question that I think I know the answer to, but want to verify.

The Arra King is on a power strrip all by itself. Question: With the power strip turned off, now for three days, isn't that the same as unpluging the machine?

And thank you all!

[bf_of_pf]

Okay, both of your messages make sense. Now I have one other question that I think I know the answer to, but want to verify.

The Arra King is on a power strrip all by itself. Question: With the power strip turned off, now for three days, isn't that the same as unpluging the machine?

And thank you all!

I checked it out. With the plug in the power strip, but the power strip turned off, the light inside AK is off. As soon as I turn on the power strip, the light turns on. It would appear that turning off the power strip is the same as pulling the plug on the machine.

[alstonj1]

there is no difference between turning off the strip and unplugging the machine its electrically identical . now turning off via the off switch on a machine that had a transformer added is not the same as turning off via strip or pulling the plug the transformer remains live .....

[Tony Junior]

Thanks alston, that's what I thought, but wanted to make sure.