Star Tech Journal

Sega Controls Maintenance Program
James Beck
Greater Southern Distributing Co.
Atlanta, Georgia
1. You've obviously owned the game for some-
time now, and you undoubtedly keep track of
the money income, so anticipate problems
BEFORE they occur. You don't wait until your
car throws a rod or wastes a bearing before you
replace the oil doyou?No, you keep track of the
mileage and replace the oil when before it
becomes a problem.
Well, consider the coin meter an odometer and
set up a regular cable replacement schedule
based on the data you collect from past failures
(i.e. the average number of coins before a failure
occurs). That might seem a little extreme, but
not when it comes down to the difference be-
tween having the game up for the weekend in
addition to having to send someone to that
specific location to repair the game. The cost of
the extra cables could easily be recouped.
2. Pre-lubricate the cables before putting them
on. Devices to do this can be found at nearly
every motorcycle shop, and they are very easy to
use. I recommend using "TEFWN" or a graph-
ite-based lubricant. That will definitely increase
the life of the cable.
GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS
The bottom line is the bottom line. The game must
make money or you wouldn't keep it in the field, in
other words the controls wouldn't fail if the game
wasn't being played regularly. That's the good news.
The bad news is, yes, the controls can be a bitch to
keep up, but with care you can help keep the main-
tenance costs from eating up your bottom (line).
3. Avoid sharp angles when mounting the cables
to the handlebar assembly. After installation let
the cable rest naturally then pull it into place
and install the hold downs.
4. Tighten ALL nuts, bolts, and screws. A kid
pulling on a loose bolt etc. will tum that 1 /32 of
an inch play into a broken joint or a welled-out
hole in no time.
5. Lubricate everything that moves. You can find
the recommended lubrication points in your
owners manual, and use grease if possible. Oil
just gets slung around and can cause other
problems.
6. To avoid premature pot failure, adjust the
cables properly so that no pot hits the end of its
travel, and keep grease and oil away from the
pot's shaft and body. If you give the pot a little
coating of spray epoxy before installation it will
seal all of the seams and keep excess moisture
and oil out making it last longer.
SEND 'EM TO THE FIELD
Hopefully in the future the design engineers will take
us poor people in the field into mind before they flnis1l-,.
up a design, but until then do what must be done '
Maybe if the design engineers were required to do the
field repairs on their units, that were tested in the
field, they would have a different attitude!