SOLVED! WCS94 Ball Trough

[bstock]

So I'm having my first major problem with WCS94 since I've had it. In the middle of an awesome game, it started doing all kinds of crazy things. I restarted the machine and after the test it displayed "OPTO TROUGH BAD CHECK CONNECTORS, WIRES, AND 12V SUPPLY".

I disconnected and reconnected all of the connectors on the opto boards on either side of the trough, as well as on the switch opto board under the playfield. and the restarted the machine and it tested fine. As soon as I hit start it started doing the same crazy stuff again so I turned it off and back on and now the same message is displayed.

What's the next step for this noob?

Thanks in advance!

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

I should also clarify that I am totally inexperienced with the tech part of this. If someone could let me know how to go about "checking the 12V supply" as well that would be greatly appreciated. I've got a good multi meter but I've haven't used one since college and I'm not sure where I should be specifically checking on the machine.

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

After some help from Lloyd on pinside, I have tested the 12V and these are the findings.

As far as I can see, there are two test points that are 12V. The first is marked TP1 12VU. This one tests at solid 14.05V.

The second is marked TP3 12VR. At this point the voltage varies mostly around 11.40V. It jumps up as high as 12.2 occasionally and it dropped as low as 9.5. I tested this several times and it seems to really jump around.

Lloyd had mentioned that this was not normal and could be a board issue. Any suggestions or opinions?

 

[Menace]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

Yeah, the TP3 12VR stands for 12V regulated so that 12V should be bang on and not floating around like you are seeing. (the 12VU is un-regulated and the reading you are seeing is right where it should be) I would have to check my notes, but I agree with Lloyd that this does sound like a board issue and if you have little experience with that you might want to have someone look at it for you.

If I think of anything for you to try I will post back later... I'm tired and turning in.

D

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

Ok so I took the trough apart and cleaned the components, disconnected and reconnected all of the connectors and same issue.

Now I'm back to the board. I pulled up this schematic http://www.pinwiki.com/wiki/images/1/11 ... _Power.pdf
on pinwiki and found the the 12VR is converted from 18VDC, so I figured I'd check the 18VDC at TP8. The readings are all over the place. For the most part it sits around 14.6V but really bounces around between 12.5 and 15.5V, so I would think the issue is actually in whatever converts the power to 18VDC.

I'm trying to figure out which components the power passes through before it gets to each of these points and which component is the likely culprit. If someone could continue steering me in the right direction that would be great.

Thanks

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

Alright update time!

My ego being what it is, I decided not to quit just yet. I've pulled off the power driver board and with the help of pinwiki I've tested the bridge rectifiers. I tested all of them and they all pass with flying colors, except for BR1. I checked the schematic and sure enough, BR1 is what feeds the 12VR.

I must say although I was at first very irritated to know that I had a board problem, I'm now learning at leaps and bounds and really having a fun time working this out. Trial by fire I guess! Next step is to get my hands on a bridge rectifier and replace BR1.


When I pulled the power driver board and looked on the back, it looks very clean. It looks like some of the caps MAY have been replaced, but if they were whoever did the work really knew what they were doing because it is super clean.

I did notice a bit of heat wear in the area of the 5VDC regulator. Can anyone tell me if this is acceptable considering it is a high heat area?

Thanks

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

I've made some progress. I removed the power driver board and checked all of the bridge rectifiers. Sure enough, BR1 was bad. I've successfully replaced it and now the 12VR reads 12.15 steady without any movement! I am very pleased that this has been fixed.

Unfortunately even though the 12VR supply is now exactly where it should be, I'm still getting the same error message.

About a week ago after poking and prodding at a few things, I had it working for about 1 game. During the game some funny things started happening. The left saucer would not recognize a ball present when there was one, and the kickback would not work.

After I replaced the bridge rectifier and had the same issue, I went into the switch test and it seems like the optos in the ball trough are working fine. I let the balls drain into the trough and they all close one at a time. The switch for the kickback, saucer, and ball lock do not test during the switch test though.

Any further advice?

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

Well I've figured out that all of the switches in question which I'm having trouble with are in row 6 on the switch matrix. Not all of the switches in this row have failed though. The two striker targets (switch 16 and 66) test fine. However the remaining switches in that row (26 upper kickback, 36 trough stack, 56 left eject hole, 76 lower lock mech, and 86 kickback) do not show up when depressed in the switch test.

Where do I go from here?

 

[bstock]

Re: WCS94 Ball Trough

Problem solved. The culprit? One of the blue and white wires that is associated with row 6 had broken off of the striker target (switch 66) but was still making dodgy contact. It was difficult to see but as soon as I pulled on it it was clear that it was broken. I guess the 12VR was just a coincidence and I hadn't actually seen any negative effects from the bad bridge rectifier. Suppose it's better that it's fixed though!

 

[brad808]

Good job with the fix. Thanks for sharing all that.

Sent from my Nexus 4

 

[Menace]

Been on vacay for 2 weeks and just got back to see these posts. Glad you got it all sorted. That heat damage to your driver is minimal, normal and nothing to worry about.

D

 

[bstock]

Thanks for the confirmation that the heat damage is normal. That puts my mind at ease.