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AMI/Rowe Jukebox technical tips
Last update December 23, 2022


Rowe Transistor Cross Reference PDF - thanks to Erwin Boot (Flamingo Records/Auto. Music Co. AU) for this list!

When first looking at an older AMI/Rowe jukebox (prior to 1970's) the very first item to be checked is the condition of the electrical cords within the jukebox AND the power cord for signs of deterioration. The "lamp" cord used in most of the 40's to 60's models is breaking down by now and you will see at the plugs or on the wire itself that pieces of the insulation are shattering off. This is both a fire and safety hazard! You MUST replace any brittle wiring within the jukebox! This is a relatively easy job as this wire is normally just used for the lights and the amplifier, and can easily be traced, and replacement wire installed. 

As for the power cord, be sure to flex it close to your ear and if you hear any crinkling sounds from inside the wire cable, then it too MUST be replaced. 

Common problems with the AMI jukeboxes - including the Continental series - include:

Gummed selection pins due to the use of oil or WD-40 - these must not be lubricated! Here are pictures of the take-apart and reassembly process. Wash the pins in solvent along with the metal spring clips and the holes they fit in (Q-tip or similar) to get them moving smootly with no trace of gumminess. I think the pictures below are pretty clear, but can expand if requested...

Removing & replacing pins on AMI jukebox memory.

 


The wiper ring blades that connect the ferris wheel drum electricals to the machine are dirty.


Here are the wiper blades and their rings, you can see these from under the front of the mechanism towards the center....clean the copper rings with an ink eraser and check that the wipers have some pressure on the rings once remounted.
Restore-AMI11.jpg (311740 bytes) Restore-AMI12.jpg (316445 bytes) Restore-AMI23.jpg (312303 bytes) Restore-AMI14.jpg (310908 bytes) Restore-AMI15.jpg (306932 bytes)


The microswitches that control the selection and cancel of the pins are faulty.

Check all the machines microswitches with an ohm-meter. The readings should be steady once the switch has 'clicked' (either way). If the reading bounces around while pushing on the microswitch actuator after hearing the click then I suggest you change the micro-switch. Best if you have an analog meter, but a digital one works fine as long as it is not one of those auto-ranging ones.
Restore-AMI16.jpg (317196 bytes) Test all microswitches with Ohm-Meter Restore-AMI18.jpg (295902 bytes) Restore-AMI20.jpg (296988 bytes) Restore-AMI21.jpg (297194 bytes)
For the folks new to multimeters about the safest use you can put them to for servicing jukeboxes is the Resistance tests. These are all best done with the jukebox unplugged. You simply need to gain experience in reading resistance across contacts of switches, microswitches, and blade switches/wipers to learn if they are working correctly or not.

It is very important to have a good connection between the probes of your meter and the item you are testing. I recommend using a healthy pair of alligator jumper wires that with one end on each of the probe tips, and the other to grasp the lug of the switch in question and read the resistance when the switch is both open and closed.

A point to consider when testing switches is if the switch is still soldered into the circuit when the switch is open it still may indicate a short as an switch somewhere else in parallel with it may also be closed (cancel circuits for example)

I am using the convention that the letter "R" is used to indicate the period place holder when measuring resistance.

With an ohm-meter (resistance) set to the lowest setting (200R or less) a good switch will show about 0.2 ohms (0R2) resistance - remember to check the lead resistance first and to mentally subtract that from any reading - probes shorted should show about 0R2 to 0R4 (ohms).


The cam switches (blade style for the A through K, microswitch after) are faulty - common symptoms are 8/10A Slo-Blo (1A Slo-Blo is OK, nothing higher please!) fuse pops and the gripper motor is jammed. Clean the cam switches carefully, do not lubricate with ANYTHING. Polish the contacts with a burnishing tool - you want the contact faces to reflect a smooth, mirror-like finish...

Symptoms/Problems:

SELENIUM RECTIFIER REPLACEMENT:

Slow gripper motor. and/or rotation of ferris wheel -check for 24VDC at the motor when the motor is running, it should be no less than 24V. If it is then check the bridge rectifier in the transformer/fuse box, if it is a Selenium Rectifier (a series of metal plates on a central shaft with three or four lugs that wires are soldered to) then you probably need to replacc it with a modern Silicon Bridge rectifier (10A/100PIV minimum) taking care to match the negative and positive and AC terminals to the old part. I'll post some pictures the next time we do this conversion... Some folks are still making these.

(needs editing pictures to follow - Oct 17, 2021) You can replace the original Selenium Rectifier with a more modern Silicon bridge rectifier, you just have to first identify the output fuse on the original device and that will be replicated on a new fuse and holder that you will add to one of the AC input terminals to the new bridge.

How to identify the terminals on the original selenium rectifier:

There are usually five terminals coming radially out of the centre of older selenium rectifiers. The centre most terminal is the positive terminal. The next terminal on each side of the positive terminal is one of the two AC terminals. The outermost terminals are normally shorted together with a heavy solid wire and are the negative terminals.

You can replace this with any bridge rectifier rated at 25A or more, and a minimum of 100VAC (for spikes),

You absolutely MUST add a fuse on the one or both AC terminals (both if the secondary windings that feed the bridge is Centre-Tapped) and the value of the fuse can't be more than the total of the original factory recommended fuses for the DC output(s). It can be Slo-Blow. It is there to protect the transformer in case the silicon rectifier shorts out...(needs editing...)



These pictures show various test points and assemblies used in the Ferris wheel style Rowe/AMI jukeboxes.


This is the side A / B rocker showing the spring assembly
if you've taken it apart and can't recall how it goes back together...
Restore-AMI1.jpg (301647 bytes) Restore-AMI2.jpg (304382 bytes) Restore-AMI3.jpg (306066 bytes) Restore-AMI4.jpg (309406 bytes) Restore-AMI5.jpg (305478 bytes)

Here are the !@#$! cam switch blades...I dismount them for ease of cleaning... checking alignment carefully when putting back!
Restore-AMI6.jpg (315667 bytes) Restore-AMI7.jpg (308094 bytes) Restore-AMI8.jpg (308952 bytes) Restore-AMI9.jpg (314443 bytes) Restore-AMI10.jpg (308816 bytes)



PDFs now available for the AMI Model D: R-200 Mechanism Service Manual (D-40) This needs to be printed on Ledger size paper - 11" X 17" and then folded. 3.66mb in size...

Full copies of most of the early AMI manuals are available from us for $25 - $35, email the model you need.

1980s & 90s ROWE/AMI jukebox tips...

Many of the record playing mechansims may have trouble lifting the tone arm enough so that the sytlus needle will clear the gripped bow, due to wear on the lift portion of the tonearm CAM. The solution is simple, simply bend the lift lever slightly either inwards or outwards from the worn indent by about 2cm (3/4") and then adjust the tone arm lift for proper clearance. A dab of grease where the lift link rides up the cam would be in order as well.

 

R-86 and earlier models in the R-XX series, these all used single sided Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) and this creates a problem with the Molex pin connectors used to connect any of these boards to the jukebox wiring harness - the solder connections can fracture at the base of the pin. So, what our shop does before doing any other repairs is we remove the Central Credit Computer, the Coin Programming PCB, and the Mechanism Control PCB and we touch up all the pin connections where they are soldered to the logic boards. In many cases you will see cratering around the pin in the solder connection

Central Computer PCB pins - examples of cracked solder connections and repairs:, and battery location:

CCC cover CCC PCB Cracked solder 1 CCC cracked solder 2 CCC & Battery Battery removed Battery solder side

 

Mech Control PCB:

Mech control cover Mech Control PCB Mech Control PCB cracked solder1 Mech Control PCB cracked solder2

 

Pricing Control PCB - examples of cracked solder connections and repairs:

Pricing PCB Pricing PCB cracked solder 1 Pricing PCB cracked solder 2 Pricing PCB cracked solder 3 Pricing PCB cracked solder 4 Pricing PCB cracked solder 5Pricing PCB cracked solder 6

Cross Reference chart I found back in 2011 and forgot to add to this page!:

ROWE - NEW # ROWE - OLD # POLARITY TYPE GENERIC ALT'S - check pinouts! Used in
700-300-01 S300A NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR MPS 6513 X32B4680; SPS6978;
700-300-02 S300B NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR MPS 6514 BC 548; X32B4682; SPS6979;
700-300-03 S300C NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR 2N5210 GE X32B4686; SPS6980; ? MPS 6513 ??
700-300-05 S300E NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR 2N5219 2N3391(check pinout); TZ1205; SPS1481; 2N5209; X32B4683;
700-300-08 S300H NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR MPS-A06 TI: SKA 3368 CD juke power supply Q503














700-301-04 S301D PNP SILICON TRANSISTOR MPS-A56

700-301-08 S301H NPN










700-302-04 S302D NPN DARLINGTON POWER TRANSISTOR 64 WATT MJE6044

700-302-05 S302E PNP DARLINGTON POWER TRANSISTOR 64 WATT MJE6041

700-302-06 S302F NPN POWER OUTPUT DARLINGTON 120 WATT 2N6284 PMD1602K; MJ4034
700-302-07 S302G PNP POWER OUTPUT DARLINGTON 120 WATT 2N6287 PMD1702K; MJ4031
700-302-08 S302H
DARLINGTON 2N654B NSD-U45; D40K2
700-302.09 S302I or J NPN Darlington










700-303-01 S303A NPN DUAL NPN MD8002 2N2919;







700-304-01 S304A PNP SILICON TRANSISTOR TIP32B RCS32A; 2N6125; MJE5194
700-304-02 S304B PNP SILICON TRANSISTOR TIP32B RCA32B; 2N6126; MJE5195
700-304-03 S304C PNP










700-308-01 S308A PNP Darlington POWER TRANSISTOR TIP136 2N6041
700-308-05 S308F PNP Darlington



700-308-07 S308G NPN Darlington
2N6055








700-309-01 S309A
J-FET N CHANNEL 2N5484
Rowe CD juke amp's







700-310-03 S310C NPN










700-320-03 S320C NPN

Might be same as S320A
700-320-04 S320D PNP

Might be same as S320B







700-330-05 S330E NPN SILICON TRANSISTOR MJE5191/TIP 31A RCA31A; 2N6122
700-330-06 S330F NPN

















700-350-02 S350B Diode - Silicon
1N4002 DO-41 ITT, 1N4002GP
700-350-04 S350D Diode - Silicon
1N5401 S3A1, MR501







700-350-07 S350G Diode - Silicon DIODE 1N4148 1N4448; CD8502;
700-350-12 S350L Diode - Silicon DIODE 1N4148 !! 1N914







701-351-01 S351A Diode - Germanium
1N191 1N270







700-353-03 S353C LED
NSL5056 TIL-220, FLV-117, FLV-110







700-355-01 S355A Zener 5.1 Volts; 5% 1N4733A

700-355-12 S355L Zener 24 Volts


700-355-06 S355F Zener 13 volts


700-355-16 S355…... Zener
1N4746A

700-355-20 S355…... Zener 7.5 volts 1N958B

700-355-22 S355… Zener 15 VOLTS, 1% 1N965B








700-365-07 S365G
VOLTAGE REGULATOR POS LM 317T
ROWE CD JUKE AMP'S
700-365-08 S365H
VOLTAGE REGULATOR NEG LM 337T
ROWE CD JUKE AMP'S







700-381-02 S381B
Thyristor Triac


700-381-03 S381C Triac Thyristor
T2801B T2800B; T2500B; TIC226B

 



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