Coin Mech for any coin?

[spazz]

Long time lurker, first time poster...

Is there a way to make a coin mech accept any coin? I plan on getting the Happs 4 Player Coin Door (with the mechs that come with it) and I'd like to use it kinda like a piggy bank... where I could put in anything from a canadian penny to a canadian quarter (maybe even twoonie) and have it trigger a credit in MAME. Is this doable by adjusting the mech?

Thanks in advance.

[Thenasty]

click my WWW page and goto the BYO gadget section. Take a look at the Ultimate All in One Coin Mech.

[MonitorGuru]

It's just easier to take to pieces of paperboard (like cereal boxes) or thin cardboard (priority mail box-like material) and sandwich them together and just make a straight channel from the coin drop to the switch.

No muss, no fuss. No cost as well.  Separate the edges from collapsing by using a few more layers of cardboard glued between them.

You could also use scrap plexiglass or formica to make it if you want it more rigid and look better.

A coin mech is intended to only allow one type of coin in. You'd have to mess them up a bit to make them like most coins but I dont think you could easily make them happy with all.  Just avoid the hassle and build a straight chute instead.

[Stingray]

No muss, no fuss. No cost as well.

No sound of the coin going through the mech, which is integral to the arcade experience IMO.

A coin mech is intended to only allow one type of coin in. You'd have to mess them up a bit to make them like most coins but I dont think you could easily make them happy with all.

But you can. Thenasty's mod is quite clear and easy to follow. I've done it to the mechs in all my cabs. Takes about ten minutes the first time, until you "get" what you're supposed to do. After that you can do one in a minute or so.

-S

[spazz]

Do the instructions work with the mechs that come with the Happs 4player overunder door (below)? Since I haven't ordered it yet I can really tell, the exploded views of most of their mechs look similar but I'm not even possitive which mech I get with the door. If not, I guess I'll have to do the cardboard thing. Thanks for the help so far guys!

http://www.happcontrols.com/coindoors/40094600.htm

[coinguy]

I'm with Stingray, THAT sound is part of the experience.

I think the dampner weight or sizing lever are the parts that make
the sound.  If one modifed the gate to always move the coin
to the coinbox side you would be ok.

If the coin falls too fast, will your IPAC or other keyboard adapter
see the coins?

[Stingray]

TheNasty's instructions work fine for every mech I've tried. There are differences & variations among the different mechs, but once you get a handle on what you're supposed to do you can apply it to pretty much any mech.

-S

[spazz]

I'll give it a shot then, probably won't get the coin door for a couple months but I'll make sure to save those instructions!

[leapinlew]

HOLY BUMP!

I'm looking to do this mod on Nintendo Coin Mechs, and I figure some of you guys have never seen these posts. I'm going to fiddle around with the mechs this week but was wondering if anyone can confirm it works.

Here is a link to instructions
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?board=2;action=display;threadid=19200

[severdhed]

nintendo mechs are a little different than most.  i successfully modded mine to accept steel washers i have been using as tokens, but now they dont work with quarters.  the way they are designed, it is difficult to make them work with different sizes of coins.  they have a little rail that the top of the coin needs to ride on..it has to be adjusted for a specific size of coin, if the coin is too big or too small, it just won't go through.  there may be a way to replace that piece with something else in order to accomodate that, but using the standard parts, it is difficult.

[Dafu]

I bought an old cab with fixed 25c and $1.00 mechs. Something along the lines of: http://www.happcontrols.com/gaming/coin_comp/42028300.htm

At first I spent some time trying to figure out if I can somehow change them to both take 25c, or tokens. In the end I gave up on that idea, and instead studied the path a coin takes, took a pair of wire cutters and cut away the minimal amount of parts to make a $1.00, and 25c go through. The coin still hits a number of things on the way down, so I still get a metallic clang, but now it works with any coin, and even buttons!:)

Unfortunately I don't have any photos or detailed instructions.

Good luck.