Imperial Crown bandit - something missing?

[operator bell]

That's a pretty clean mechanism, Badpenny. Looks almost new! Does it really have half a million plays on it?

sxboy: don't worry, be happy, it's only a simple piece of bent steel and a bolt. You could make yourself one with no technology more advanced than a vise and a hammer. The pivot pin looks a lot like a 3 inch wire nail.

[badpenny]

It's a very shiny mechanism from a very shiny machine.
It was a salesman's example with every possible extra including star wheel plugs so it wouldn't stop on one of the jackpots.

[sxboy]

Topic merged - Site Admin.

Some time ago I bought a Mad Money type (Imperial Crown) bandit to try and restore but I can't get it to pay out.
Looking at it, I notice one of the horizontal finger bars on the payout mechanism looks like it is missing, as there is a space that looks like it should have a bar in it like the others fitted (see red arrow on pic).

As I'm a bit of a novice at all this, could someone please tell me - is this normal or is something missing from the above?

Also, to the left of the machine, is a little wheel that has a slot in it (Green arrow picture). What does it do ?
If I turn it out of line with the slot, every time I pull the handle on the machine a coin falls into the payout tray ??

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks.
A machine diagram would be great if someone has one available

[badpenny]

I've had several Sega bandits, but don't recognise that cogged wheel. If nobody else comes along with words of wisdom I for one would like to see another photo of the complete mechanism that includes its location please.

As for payouts, are you saying you can't get a single combination to drop or is it just one of them?
The levers you are indicating are called the horizontal fingers.

badpenny

[sxboy]

Hi badpenny,
Thanks for the reply.
Here is a complete pic for you.
I get no payouts at all, nothing in any combination

[badpenny]

Ok thanks for the photo, I've still not seen one of those little ding dang doodlies before.

If you're not getting any payouts then it has to be something quite fundamental.

I'm now wondering why you have an electrical plug hanging off the back. Is the payout one of those mischievous electrickery mechanical ones?

Can we now have a photo please of the front of the mechanism showing the payout slides and the bottom of the payout tube?

When you slide the mech back into the case what does that plug fit into? I'm hoping it's just lights but suspect there's something sparky going on either coin entry wise .... payout wise .... or special feature wise as in "when wotsit is lit every pull pays X"

You have something blue on the front as well. I've never had anything blue on my front, I feel deprived.

By the way you have the same number of vertical fingers as you have horizontal ones, so it looks like that was a bit of a red herring.

Badpenny

[andy g]

Had a quick look at your mech pics. Have you removed the mech in the position everything finishes or have you pulled the handle part way down and then removed from the case?
The picture seems to show that the mech has not completed its cycle - the payout fingers are still retracted. There was a thread on here about a similar problem when the main operating bar was not activating properly.
Hope this helps,
Andy.

[raj]

Hi there, you have a Sega Corrosion Special Award, normally advertised as: 'found in my granddad's shed, excellent condition, just needs a shot of WD40 & some Autosolve to get it working'. I see you have a box of new springs, some of which will probably do the job OK, but the large one attached to the clock looks well past its best and may have something to do with the machine not cycling properly. However, it is likely the payout slides are also corroded and rusty, so need removing and cleaning (NO LUBRICATION...as the actress said to the bishop). All or any of the moving parts could be rusted in place - work round the machine and check everything moves freely. This is where the WD comes in to free up the bearings.

There is a screw missing from the lower payout finger guide, which may indicate the horizontal fingers have gone out of line and don't operate on a win line correctly. The rotating cog seems to be part of a random jackpot or payout device on the top payout finger, which may be linked via the leckky cable to a light box display panel. For the purposes of getting it working properly, I'd take it out for the moment - it's just a distraction until everything else works OK.

There are plenty of knowledgeable people on the forum who can help you get it back to perfect working order, however, I've given up on Sega Light ups - they just seem to be a complete pain and take too much time to fix up, weigh a ton and don't usually make much money at the end of the day.

[treefrog]

Not sure an Imperial Crown is a Sega. Would be good to see a picture of the case, but I think I know what they look like - similar in shape to a Lite Up...

As BP said, if you get some pictures of the front, it may help. Most 20 coin payout machines use 6 slides, so your 5, I assume, means the payouts on your machine are lower? You will see also spare positions in your vertical slide guide. I am sure the problem will be a simple one to fix. The wheel on the side is interesting as a few years ago I posted something very similar on the side of an Aristocrat I have and could not work out what it was for and no-one else did. It also seemed to have some purpose over the horizontal slides, maybe for a special award. Mine below was a cam type wheel.......

[coppinpr]

I would definitely say it's just corrosion and bad springs. The top springs you replaced MIGHT work but I don't think they are the correct ones. Can't see the slide springs, but they must need replacing judging by the state of the horizontal finger springs at the back. The mech has to be cleaned and lubed and the payout slides have to come out and be cleaned and have any corrosion removed. If possible, replace the main bar spring at the back. If the mech is not cycling fully, this spring must be replaced. Taking out the slides is not a problem. Best if you remove the reel bundle to do this, as it will allow you to clean the clock and other hidden parts. If you need to know how - just ask. Please a photo of the case. Is there an electric switch near the clock?

[sxboy]

Thanks to everyone for your replies
I have added a few more pictures as requested. (I know it looks like it's been in a Carpenter's workshop for the last 40 years).
As long as I know the machine is pretty well complete, I think the best course of action is for me to strip, clean and lubricate the machine one part at a time (and yes I will check the springs and slides along the way).
It looks like the electrics are just for low level coin indication / lighting.

Raj
How do I check if the horizontal fingers have gone out of line (and don't operate on a win line correctly) as the vertical fingers bottom recesses don't show any correlation or uniformity to the horizontal fingers. Should they?
(see pic)

PS I'm also looking for the main case back plate (the big tin flat locking one) and also a cash box as my machine is missing both. If anyone knows of any available
If not, I could probably make them...

[treefrog]

Your machine only has two payouts: a 2 coins slide for all wins except the jackpot and a slide to push the jackpot token slide at the front. All the vertical levers will have been cut the same to operate only the 2 coin bottom slide, except the top slide which will only be cut to operate the next slide up. This pushes a lever below the middle tube at the front that releases a token.

The wiring seems to be for lighting up jackpot awards.

So you only have the bottom slide and horizontal lever to concentrate on. The top 3 levers are probably not used.

[coppinpr]

To check the payouts, cycle the mech outside the case and stop the clock fan straight away with a cloth. This allows you to rotate the reels, get them into a payout position (two cherries or whatever). Remove the cloth and see what the payout fingers do when the cycle ends. Do they enter the payout holes? Are they in line with holes?

[chris rideout]

Your machine only has two payouts: a 2 coins slide for all wins except the jackpot and a slide to push the jackpot token slide at the front. All the vertical levers will have been cut the same to operate only the 2 coin bottom slide, except the top slide which will only be cut to operate the next slide up. This pushes a lever below the middle tube at the front that releases a token.

The wiring seems to be for lighting up jackpot awards.

So you only have the bottom slide and horizontal lever to concentrate on. The top 3 levers are probably not used.

Also, the reel tapes are not the standard issue. I have never seen a Sega with beer mugs and red crowns. Also, your jackpot mechanism is missing. AFAIK, that toothed wheel looks like it is part of a series win where something is lit and pays nearly every time for the next 3 to 9 plays. The wheel could be set to stop after the required number of plays and the light behind the flags would switch off. The Sega "Monaco" or "Grand Prix" were machines that did this and lit up chequered flags. Any symbol on the first reel arriving with the chequered background would pay the advertised win. At least 17 of the 20 symbols would have the chequered background so the chances of getting a win every time was fairly good. That was presumably a way of getting round the law regarding maximum wins which were 1 shilling cash and 5 shillings in merchandise value in any 1 game. I have difficulty in remembering the exact details because these machines faded away from the public eye a good 40 years ago. They were in their heyday in the middle to late 1960s. Decimal coinage was on the way in at the time and quite a few machines had their payouts altered when the 1p and 2p coins appeared in February 1971.

Note: The original "Mad Money" reels had exactly the same discs as "Strike a Bonanza". The only internal difference was the reel tapes. The criss cross funny faces were replaced by £ symbols and they paid in exactly the same way, i.e. 27 ways to win 18 coins.