Star Tech Journal

November 1986 (13)
STAR*TECH Journal
ESD Pool Table Coin Slides
By Todd Erickson
SUmmit Amusement
St~ Paul, Minnesota
A year and a half ago, I purchased two new
pool tables {Dynarro) to replace nw
Valley's that didn't work. The coin slides
in each of these tables failed in less
than ninety days!
After these major blunders, I would hope
·they have the engineering expertise to
make a dependable coin slide. It amazes me
that a major pool conpany could install
these units as original equipment without
a proper test. To date, I have yet to get
90 days of dependable service out of these
units.
TEST EQUIPMENT
Beckman Industrial 9020 Oacilloacope
with built-in component tester.
That's what I call real quality. (In the
autorrotive industry they call this a "tail
pipe guarantee".) When I attended last
year's 'A1!0A show, I became acquainted with
the Vice-President of FSD, and after he
assured me that they had been thoroughly
tested and that there were no flaws, I
purchased two new coin slides for my
tables. In less than sixty days these
units failed!
Features:
* 20 Mhz, Dual Trace
* Delayed Sweep
* Curve Tracer
* x-v
* Variable Hold-Off
* Beam Finder
* Includes two x1/x1D Probes
Specially priced at $475 plus $16 shipping
and insurance. Includes Beckman 1-Year
warranty. Call/write for additional specs.
They locked up tightly because the right
and left slide was the wrong size. Also,
due to thin material, the screws holding
the push plate would strip out easily. (I
discovered that a nylon nut and washer
could solve this problem.) When I spoke to
ESD about these malfunctions, I was told
that the slides had only been tested on
washing machines!
******************************************
All my units were replaced at this point.
They agreed to stand behind the units for
one year. The coin slides ran well for
several rronths; then I began receiving
service calls reporting malfunctioning
slides. The screw that holds the bracket
for the front springs started corning
loose, causing the price-adjusting parts
to jam up the slots. A nylon nut cured
this. Hopefully, this will be the last of
the problems.
If it fits in a socket, or can be clipped
between two Leads, SCOPEMATE-2 will
probably test itl
Conceptionally, the unit is well-designed.
All mechanical asserrblies, such as slides,
etc., need to be field tested, which means
it has to be tested in the machine it will
be used in. Pool tables place alot of
strain on the coin slide.
The ESD has one excellent feature we need,
and that is the option to change our
prices to 75 cents. However, the front of
the slide still needs beefing-up. I don't
know if they have yet done anything about
the front screws corning loose.
Beckman SC0PEMATE 2 IC and Component
Tester. Fast, easy testing of most
electronic components.
Features:* In- or out-of-circuit testing
* Use with any •scope with X-Y
* Tests: DTL, TTL, CMOS, Op
Amps, Comparators, Regulators, LSI such as
uProcessors and Peripheral Devices,
Optoisolators, PLA's, Diodes, Transistors,
Capacitors, Inductors, Resistors, etc.
Discount price $375, plus $10 shipping
and insurance. Includes Beckman 1-yeer
warranty. Cell/write for additional specs.
STAR*TECH JOURNAL, an authorized Beckman
Distributor. POB 1065, Merchantville, NJ.
SERVICE MANUAL
I
Instructional and reference manual
entitled ELECTRONIC GAME REPAIR covering
such subjects as: Basic Electronics,
Semiconductors, Video Game Systems,
Electronic Pinball Systems,
Troubleshooting Techniques, Tools and Test
Equipment, Schematic Reading and more.
This 8-1/2" x 11" manual contains 65 pages
of technical information for the servicing
of electronic amusement games and is
priced at $24.95 plus $2.50 shipping.
Distributed by STAR*TECH JOURNAL.
POB 1065, Merchantville, NJ 08109.