Camster

Thanks again for all the info.  Like I said before I've worked on some sockets/chips before but they were always fairly new with plenty spares if something went wrong.  As someone else had said they had removed their one and a leg or two had broken off got me a bit worried as I don't have any spares of these one!

Happy to say I've removed the 4 game chips, boot chip and security chip with no issues, so they're ready to go on the new board.

Noticed there was an empty socket though - named "stats memory".  Is this usually empty?

Looked over the spare Lamps Board that came free with the machine - rattling around inside!! It has some pretty bad burning on two of the transistors (???) which has also melted part of one of the nearby plugs, so needless to say that must have been the original which has been replaced.  Going to give the currently fitted one a good look over as well but good to know I have a spare ordered.

Does anyone know the reason for this board to burn up?

Nick: I had never seen any Mario related machines before but now I have this one I don't plan to sell it and if anything would love to give it a decent restoration and get it looking good as new.  Even then though, got a feeling I wouldn't even break even selling it in perfect condition given the total price already paid out (purchase price + fuel to collect + parts on order) and that's not even including any restoration work.

Plan of action:

Fit new main board and mk2 PSU board and fire up the machine!

Any major issues with lamps and I'll change the lamps board.

If working at that point then I'll need to remove the battery from the new board.

Another question - what do all of the dip switches on the main board do?  They were all set to off.

Need to work out the two dip switch plugs on the prize/stakes board too!

Cheers all,

Cammy.

Another question:

Any tips on removing the rom chips from the old board?  Read a few where people had snapped a few legs off them.  I've done some soldering on boards before, to fit sockets, and swapped chips around but those were newer, sturdier ones.  Really don't want to break one of these seeing as it'll be 15+ years old!!  Does anyone on here do a service of copying the roms as that would probably be a good idea!

Cammy.

Thanks for the info guys.

I found another thread with a link to Swallow Amusement so checked them out.  Not sure how accurate their stock numbers are but I decided to go for the main board, lamp board and mark 2 PSU board.  Definitely need the main board and keen to get the mk2 PSU board if it is significantly quieter as I was surprised by the buzzing when I first powered it up.

Possibly don't need the lamps board but if my one is showing signs of burning on it now then maybe good as a spare.  Completely forgot that when I was cleaning out the inside of the cabinet I found a spare PCB lying around.  After I made the order I spotted the spare board and it happens to be a lamp board as well.  Not sure if it's a spare working one or maybe it's an old one that has been replaced by the one currently fitted.

On that note, what do the burn marks on the lamp board connector mean?  There doesn't seem to be any burn marks anywhere else in that area, just mainly on that black wire, 4th one down.  Is there a fix to stop this getting worse?  Was thinking of hooking up a PC fan to a 12V line and have it blowing right onto the connector - thoughts?

Definitely planning to keep the machine so need to get it working.  I knew how far away it was and that it wasn't working but made the trip anyway seeing as I might not have had a chance to buy another Mario Kart machine again.

Can't wait for the boards to arrive, hopefully it'll be working again once they're fitted.  I'll definitely sort out relocating the battery on the new board!

Cheers again,

Cammy.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply.  Good spot with the overheating on the lamp board, just pulled the plug and the 4th wire down (black) has quite a bad burn mark inside the plug.  The 3rd wire down (also black) has some lesser burning.  Would the burn marks suggest that the board needs replaced asap or is that something that would get progressively worse and would need replacing eventually?  Might look into picking up a lamp board as well, if only as a spare.

Also correct with the PSU PCB.  Checked some pictures of PSU PCBs and my one looks just like the mark one PCB, however my one only has one fuse near the front and not two like in the comparison picture??  If I was to buy a mark two PCB would that just be a straight swap for my mark one PCB or is it a case of mark one PCBs only fit in mark one PSUs and likewise with mark two?

Cheers,

Cammy.

Here are the pics I had to leave out, in case anyone is interested!

Close up of the PSU – clearly not a “new” one so I think the guy I got it from meant “new” as in “new to this machine, ie, second hand”.  All LEDS light up when powered on.  I’ve opened this up and had a look and it looks ok inside and has a sticker that says “Sept 99”:

Close up of the meters in/out:

Main board in situ:

Lamps PCB in situ:

Another question, bearing in mind I have no fruit machine experience.  Why when this sign states £5 prize (in one game?)…:

Does this clearly replaceable section show £10:

While another replaceable section shows £15:

Does that mean the "Super Jackpot" would only be £5 or is there a way to play 3 separate games but build up to the £15 prize?

Thanks again,

Cammy.