First Pachislo - Sammy Ultraseven

[InsaneDavid]

Saw this on craigslist a few days after it was posted and figured it was gone. Seller got back to me saying they were waiting for someone to pick it up. The ended up flaking on the guy so he said he'd sell it to me the next day. My wife and I drove about two and a half hours round trip after work yesterday to pick it up.



Started with an E1 error as expected. Reset the machine and it seemed to work fine, however the coin hopper was jammed up and not spinning. Flipping the hopper switch didn't do anything other than give off a pulsing noise so I figured it was gummed up. Spent a couple hours after work today tearing down and rebuilding the hopper, cleaned out all the old grease from the gearbox and repacked it, and now it works great.

I've cleaned the entire front of the machine inside out and have been working my way up inside from the bottom. Going to probably do the reel cage and above tomorrow after work.

I do have a couple questions though!

I'm missing some bulbs and I'm going to order them from ftkservices on eBay, will probably just replace them all - in addition to ordering a pack of volume control pots.

I'm missing two of these bulb retainers:



Anyone know where I can source them or even what the proper name is to look for?

No medals included so I'll be ordering those from here in a few days. Its be converted to -other coins- but I'm guessing medals will still register, guess I'll see.

[takethecastle57]

Called Wedge bases

EBay Item # 282426941914

[takethecastle57]

EBay Item # 283792446483

These are the New L.E.D. versions and come Fully assembled just plug and play

Just $18.95 plus $3.90 for shipping

[takethecastle57]

And Brand New Golden Pachislo Tokens 780 of them for $105.99 plus $9.00 economy shipping

EBay Item # 284250348794

[Peteybob]

I have these if you are interested or I could do mixed silver ones for a little less.

https://www.pachitalk.com/forums/sho...lo-Tokens-25mm

[InsaneDavid]

Called Wedge bases

EBay Item # 282426941914

Thank you! I'll grab some of those. I'm going to stick with the standard bulbs as I like the warmer glow, going to order those from ftkservices -133158786010, since I need a pack of volume pots anyway.

[InsaneDavid]

I have these if you are interested or I could do mixed silver ones for a little less.

https://www.pachitalk.com/forums/sho...lo-Tokens-25mm

I was planning on PMing you next week to order some of those tokens, as well as some pachinko balls and a couple trays!

[InsaneDavid]

Continuing work from the bottom up, stripping everything out and rebuilding it -



Rebuilt hopper has been working great, glad I picked up the machine before the guy I bought it from kept slamming it with power -



Cleaned the harness and boards, refitting the mainboard here. On this machine the reset key (here replaced by a switch) and reset button are on a metal chassis on the side of the machine where the stop board is located.



Anyone know what's up with the stamp?



Completely tore down the reel cage and assemblies, they were positively filthy. The PCB here was also completely caked with grime and the whole thing stank. The residual solder flux on the board had broken down and turned sticky, so it was a grime magnet. Got it all cleaned off, harnesses cleaned, reels cleaned, and it looks 100x better. Can't believe how filthy it was.





I did notice that the left speaker has a problem, it's barely audible and sounds tinny. I unplugged the right speaker so I could hear it better and yeah, something's up. Cycled and cleaned the connector, no change. There's no volume adjustment added (only the usual cabinet "loud - louder - loudest" slider), so it's something I'll have to diagnose once I pull everything off the front for cleaning. Could be cold solder or an issue with the speaker, I'll swap them and see if the problem persists or travels.

[InsaneDavid]

Still waiting on a couple parts but teardown and rebuild is complete. Ended up pulling pretty much everything out of the machine for cleaning and servicing. Usually not anything approaching a "factory resto" type of person with stuff like this, generally stop at getting it clean and operable but this needed the full pull.

All good though, no more grime or abuse for this machine - it'll get to live out its retirement years in style.







Helps that I really love Ultraseven.

Even with volume adjustment pots installed, the audio relationship for the left speaker is still really weird. I plotted out the circuitry and everything looks fine but it's almost as if it's getting overdriven, which the adjustment pot allows me to filter down. The factory volume switch is pretty suspect and I didn't pull it just yet. I'm out of contact cleaner so I'm going to try that first before I replace or rebuild the component.

[InsaneDavid]

Couple small things as I finish up the restoration. Got the rest of my lighting parts, so that's all good and sorted. There were a couple tokens in the envelope with the wedge bases so I was able to get the coin mechanism tuned. Sure enough it was set for - other coins - only. All good now though and more tokens on the way!

Still need to address the factory volume switch to get to the bottom of the speaker strangeness but it seems each speaker is on its own channel - yet still share some kind of output through the volume resistor bank. When hitting a bonus the game plays the Theme of Ultraseven, and the left speaker plays some snare effects and rhythms, while the right speaker plays the beat, and both speakers play the melody. Until I have a chance to clean and properly address that switch I won't know for sure, so I'm still speculating when I should just go buy a new can of contact cleaner.

Thanks for the assistance so far everyone!

[InsaneDavid]

Got my order of tokens / medals in this weekend and everything is good to go! I get a bit of a power drain when the hopper is paying out during a bonus but it doesn't surprise me considering how gummed up the whole thing was before I rebuilt it. Everything is free and smooth though so I'll see if it improves over time.



Also although I know it's not required that pachislo machines use a three prong grounded plug, I'd still like to install one. The plug on the game could use replacing anyway. There's no ground connection or grounding braid in the machine, but I'm assuming if I run a power cord ground to the three points on the picture below (transformer chassis, power supply cage, hopper runner) I should be good to go.



Any advice on that from someone who grounds their machines?

[InsaneDavid]

Well damn, took a look at the transformer and it's rated for 12.6v at 2A - totally inadequate. Explains why I get dimming lamps and a big ol' bog down when paying out in a bonus round. Wonder if this thing ever worked correctly outside of a parlor.

Guessing I need to go 24v at 5A at least.

Is there a specific source any of you use for pachislo transformers?

[InsaneDavid]

4A, but I think this is what I'm going to go with as it's actually in stock. 24V @ 4A -

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/.../166N24/270149

[takethecastle57]

Having a Floating ground is really dangerous and yes, all and that's 2002 or newer is 24vac 9amp

On eBay you can get a super efficient best high end electronic Toroidal transformer


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toro...d_transformers


EBay item # 324465452951 Altronix cctv power supply 24vac 14 amps $24.95 plus $24.75 shipping and it's still sealed in box bran new in it's own metal power supply box

[InsaneDavid]

Having a Floating ground is really dangerous and yes, all and that's 2002 or newer is 24vac 9amp

On eBay you can get a super efficient best high end electronic Toroidal transformer


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toro...d_transformers


EBay item # 324465452951 Altronix cctv power supply 24vac 14 amps $24.95 plus $24.75 shipping and it's still sealed in box bran new in it's own metal power supply box

That's a bit overkill for this machine, not to mention it probably wouldn't fit inside easily due to how things are arranged. From what I've been able to find on Pachinko Vista, this machine is from 1997 and it doesn't have a screen or anything crazy, so I'm going to go with the 4A transformer. I found a good price on one and it's on the way. I don't leave things plugged in when not in use or unattended so it should be alright.

Still can't believe how underpowered what's in there is. It's a really clean install too, wonder if it was an importer who cheaped out or mixed it up. 12.6v at 2A seems like more like what you'd put in a vintage pachinko if anything.

[InsaneDavid]

Okay, new transformer arrived. Got one for a couple bucks that was an industrial pull, good as new. Pulling the old one out I was able to take a good look at it and it was in fact a 24v transformer - the embossed markings of 12.6v on it were if you wired it as center tapped. Couldn't see them clearly without taking it out, still only 2A however so it had to go. Get the new 4A transformer wired up, decide to mount it in the same place. Drill a single new hole as the case is a bit bigger, get it all screwed in and connected and.......

......it fouls the hopper because it's larger and the clearances over there are pretty tight.

So I pulled it out and oriented it differently in the same area and everything fits. Good clearance all around to prevent heat from being trapped and nothing fouls. Still want to replace the power cord and run a grounding line but I'll do that shortly.





Starting to realize why the transformers are mounted on the other side of the machine in a lot of them I see that are this configuration, either up next to the reels or down where the hopper overflow is (marked with yellow X's below).



I'm going to leave it at the bottom left as less wire running all over the place is good. Also the wide hopper on this machine is way easier to fill using the funnel to the right side of the reels and I would rather not have a mains connection right above that. As for putting a transformer where the overflow is... that's just crazy and asking for a short.

Anyway, working WAY better now. Much less heat, the machine doesn't struggle when turning the hopper on, and the hopper moves coins way faster. Whole game is much more snappy with no lag or bobbles.



I can trigger an HP error every now and then when cashing out but I still think it's just the hopper getting bedded back in after being rebuilt, as it's usually on the second coin ejected when it happens. The manual hopper switch activates the motor and there are no jams, and the door reset clears the error immediately so I'm not worried. It also seems to get better and better the more it spins - maybe it's the two little spring-loaded deals under the coin eject area - one of the two nubs is pretty worn.

Either way, everything will benefit from a shot of contact cleaner - the harness connections, slide switches, and the reel stepper motors. With how dirty everything was, I'm sure there's some cumulative resistance within all of that.

[Peteybob]

Nice job of taking care of everything you did with this machine.

[InsaneDavid]

Nice job of taking care of everything you did with this machine.

Thanks! I'm just glad the guy I bought it from never figured out how to clear the E1 error it had when he got it out of a storage locker buy - as with the state it was in, he probably would have just burned everything up after that. Was a nice dude but I could tell he was just totally not technically inclined.

Working great now, seems to be working out its last few growing pains. The sound is a lot better now that I have the 4A transformer, and sure enough it seems the left speaker is supposed to be quieter during normal play, as now during the bonuses the rhythms and sound effects from that side are at even volume with the right speaker and everything sounds great.

I gave the top of the cabinet a couple coats of gloss black acrylic paint to help hide the parlor mounting scars. The wood drank it right in and I think it looks more finished now.



Something else I noticed while playing today, what combination you hit to go into a bonus will introduce it differently - all sticking with the Ultraseven theme.



7-7-7 will do a transformation sound and effects and play the "Seven! Seven! Seven!" fanfare from the show's theme.

Windom-Windom-7 or Miclas-Miclas-7 each play a different sound effect flourish and have a different light pattern - which makes sense since they are two of Dan's capsule monsters, if you're unfamiliar with Ultraseven. And yeah, the Ultraseven capsule monsters directly influenced all the capsule stuff in Dragon Ball in addition to Pokemon.

Big bonus plays the show's battle theme, while the small bonus plays the show's theme song.

It's a simple machine, but for the property it uses it's kind of perfect in that neo-retro way.

[InsaneDavid]

For those still playing at home...

Replaced the power cord and ran the earth ground to a lug on the power supply chassis. That old cord needed to go! Picked up some contact cleaner and gave the slide switches and every harness / header a clean. I also pulled the reels out again and gave them a more detailed cleaning, including getting the last of the grime off the stepper motors. I know stepper motors are generally pretty bulletproof but I gave them just a bit of a contact cleaner treatment since the machine was so dirty and they feel and sound a lot smoother. Also took the opportunity to straighten up the third reel as it was just a bit too wobbly.

Got everything back together and working perfectly now. Full teardown and rebuild complete.

Speaking of the reels - I saw a video on YouTube a couple weeks ago of a guy that had a very similar model late 90's Sammy machine, probably from the same line. It wasn't working right and was pretty dirty but he was almost terrified to do more with the reel cage than to blow it off with a compressor. Of course you have to be careful with this assembly but it comes apart pretty easily and it's nothing to be afraid of. Granted, this is a simple machine and there's not much to it, and I'm not sure how useful it would be with other machines - but in the event that someone later on is looking to get this specific type of assembly apart, this is how you can do it...

Unplug the harness that runs from the mainboard to the board on the reel cage. I then disconnect the stepper motor and sensor plugs from the board on the cage and remove and set it aside.

Each reel is held in place by two screws on the top and two screws on the bottom. I'm removing the center reel here...



The other screws around the back and side hold the cage together and can be removed if you need to tear it down completely for cleaning. After getting the screws on the top and bottom removed, push the wires over into this little channel...



With the wires over there, the reel mount will slide forward. Be sure to keep the wires in the channel to prevent them from being pinched...



When you get to the end, the wires and their connectors can be pulled through the opening at the end to allow them to slide free of the cage...



And the reel mount slides right out...



The reel can be removed from the stepper motor by removing the screw atop the shaft and then the grub screw at the side. This will give you easy access for cleaning, in addition to the stepper motor and the optic sensor for each reel. Do the same in reverse to put it back together - easy.

[InsaneDavid]

I wasn't really happy with the tiny little volume adjustment pots after using them for awhile. The volume adjustment range is just way too narrow, they're fiddly to adjust as they require a tool, and I don't like how they're manufactured (the substrate they're mounted on is honestly pretty garbage). I ended up ordering eBay item 274054988325 to replace them. Sure I could just buy a couple 500 ohm pots but the local electronics parts supplier is only open when I'm working so I ordered the kit off eBay.



Kit is the key word, as it really does come with everything you need in the package. Two pots with long pre-stripped leads, wire nuts, double sided mounting tape, cable management clips, and basic instructions. If you have no tools other than a pair of scissors you can install this kit. I shortened the leads and soldered them in and then covered the joints with heat shrink, but it's cool that varying skill levels can install it.

Before... (one on each side obviously)



After... (again, one on each side obviously)



The adjustment range is still going to be kinda narrow with this method obviously, but these are so much nicer than the components I was using before. There's a lot more range of adjustment and it's far easier to dial the balance in to exactly what you want. They're way more robust as well.

As for everything else on the machine, it all seems to be working perfectly. No hopper errors and no issues with the game loosing track of where it is during a payout. I think the hopper rebuild just needed to cycle around and get run in a bit. The molybdenum grease I repacked the gearbox with makes it run butter smooth. I use it in high speed / high torque radio control car gearboxes and it does a spectacular job at lubricating them over the years. Of course having a transformer that can handle the current draw makes a big difference too - not to mention everything is really clean now.



A simple machine but I've still really been enjoying it but the theme goes a long way for me in that regard.