Coin Door Howto

[gmillerd]

i am searching for guidance on constructing a coin-op door to work with my mame setup.  most documentation that i see for peoples cabinets merely mentions the fact that they have such device on their door and doesnt go into detail on the parts or the pc2coin-op interface.

can anyone give me any sources?

thank you very much

[eightbit]

The coin door has a switch that the quarter hits causing it to register a credit. This button is wired the same way as any other arcade button. It doesn't require any power or special connections.

[AdamLotz]

I have my coin door on the way (used from ebay) and am also a little unclear... For instance, I'm not entirely sure what the coin switch looks like, just that yes it triggers a ground pulse just like any other switch.  But are these easily replaceable/repairable/generic?  

Also, I do have a question that I never see addressed.. everyone talks of coin mechs which I understand are the mechanisms that only allow "good quarters" to pass through... but can you use a door without mechs (would any coin fall through and trigger the switch?) ?  I ask only because I always see 3 distinct parts mentioned - the coin door itself, the mechs, and the switches... seems like you could have a door with switches but no mechs and *something* might happen when you put a coin in, but like I said - very unclear on that.    

I'm assuming it'll make a lot more sense once mine arrives.

[eightbit]

Its not a very good picture. Note this is a coin door with the mechs mounted flush some coin doors mount the mech perpendicular to the door like in the diagram below. In the picture above the closer coin slot is missing its mech. The mech guides the coin to the switch and rejects if its not the coin the mech is set for. The ones I've seen use the wire trip switch pictured.

If you didn't want the mech I'm sure you could fabricate something to guide the coin but new mechs are like $10 and used ones can be found for a couple $'s. Most coin mechs can be adjusted or modified to take all coins, if thats what you want.

Heres an exploded view of a coin mech, maybe this will help.


The fact that the coin slots work on my cab (not the one pictured) is neat to people but not very party friendly. I mounted credit buttons under the front lip that are wired to the same inputs as the coin slots.

[Silverwind]

On the coin mech diagram eightbit posted... take a look at the Coin Switch42-0394-00

You just hook it up like a standard button..


for more pics.. check this recent thread
http://www.arcadecontrols.org/yabbse/index.php?board=1;action=display;threadid=4186;start=0

some close up of coin doors... nice pictures taken by Kilgore

[hyiu]

I got that Happs coin door set... (including S&H... about $100....)
I think its pretty good.....

plz keep in mind...the coin door uses microswitches "LIKE" the ones we use on pushbuttons....

but if I did not remember wrong, the NO and NC positions are reversed....
(at least the ones I got from Happs are...)

they look VERY MUCH alike... and I think the internals are also very much alike...

but if you wire them incorrectly... (which mean... you hook up Gnd and NC)...

you'll get some strange results.... sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't...

just something to watch out....

[Zipper]

Why not put an electronic coin control in your machine? You can get these very cheap, and they allow for all coins to be used in your machine - varying the number of credits issued accordingly.

I've got the mars111 mech and a credit printed circuit board (pcb), which can be hooked up to a hack / i-pac etc.

You need to supply the pcb with 12V and 0V and this in turn powers the mech. via a ribbon cable.

You need to connect 'coin 1' on the i-pac to the 'credit pulse output' and ground (0v) connectors on the pcb.

Any there is an output called 'lamp' too, which will power the coin lamp when connected to 0v or 12v as well. My credit board actually flashes the lamp when I'm at 1/2 credit!! A great little feature.

You can then set the price of play using the dip-switches. Here's an example of how the switches can be set:

                              DIP SWITCH
Price of play.    1 2 3 4 5
  5                    0 0 0 0 0
10                    1 0 0 0 0
15                    0 1 0 0 0
20                    1 1 0 0 0
25                    0 0 1 0 0
30                    1 0 1 0 0
35                    0 1 1 0 0


There is also a second dip-switch on your board which set's things other than the price of play. Namely the length of the credit pulse sent to the i-pac (fast/slow), and 'bonus credits' for using coins of higher denomination. i.e. Did you ever notice that occasionally a machine set at 20p a go would give you 6 credits for entering a

[Brad Lee]

Same as everyone has been saying before but with a pic of the coin mechs you're most likely going to find

The switches look identical to all the cherry's and others for buttons and sticks. Mine only had the 2 conenctions(NO & Gnd) so there was no mistaking the correct ones*

Coin 1- red wire from NO to IPac coin1
Coin 2- red wire from NO to IPac coin2
The black wire is chained from the IPac Gnd to coin1 Gnd to coin2 Gnd
For the lights(1 behind each coin reject) I took a molex adapter(from a PC fan I believe), clipped the 5v(red) and one of the black, and used the 12v(yellow) and the other black to power both. They're a little dim but I think they're actually 14v bulbs.

Leave plenty of extra wire so that you can easily open the coin door fullyand wires arent in your way



*This was actually a "gotcha!" when  Iconnected my T-stick. I ordered the buttons and stick from ultimarc. The buttons were the regular ultimate horizontal(?) switches with only 2 connectors(NO & ground) and the stick had switches with 3 connects(NO,NC,ground) and the writing on the switches was the side that wasnt visible when they were attached, so I used the same pair I used on the buttons. It kept wanting to move the cursor up, till I pressed up, then it went down, or right, or left.

[kalkin]

While we're on the subject of coin doors.

My coin swicthes have a steel wire which bends and makes the switch trigger when a coin passes. Is that the standard for all/most coin doors. I mean, can I simply order "a couple of coin switches" from an arcade parts vendor and they'll fit?

Also does brand matter? For example the two coin switches in my old coin door are different brands - one CHERRY and one OMRON.

Oh, and one more question. What's part 42-0119-00 in eightbit's coin mech view called? Coin return door? Anyone know if they're sold separately somewhere?

[nipsmg]

Kalkin,

If you end up finding someone that sells that item (42-0119-00) Separately, let me know.  I ordered that part from Happs once, and it's PLASTIC (YUCK!), My door is all metal... so it was kind of a waste..

--NipsMG

[Brad Lee]

While we're on the subject of coin doors.

My coin swicthes have a steel wire which bends and makes the switch trigger when a coin passes. Is that the standard for all/most coin doors. I mean, can I simply order "a couple of coin switches" from an arcade parts vendor and they'll fit?

Also does brand matter? For example the two coin switches in my old coin door are different brands - one CHERRY and one OMRON.

Oh, and one more question. What's part 42-0119-00 in eightbit's coin mech view called? Coin return door? Anyone know if they're sold separately somewhere?

http://www.happcontrols.com/cc/42107500 is for the different switches they sell

as a matter of fact goto http://www.happcontrols.com, pick amusements, and then coin&currency supplies, they have replacement parts for a lot of different stuff

[gmillerd]

thanks a lot to everyone.

i neglected to ask before if the number of coin-slots needs to be the same (or greater) as the number of players you want to design the system for.

i have my eyes on a used happ billl changer + single coin door. but i would like to use it for my multiplayer cabinet.

[AdamLotz]

Ok guys, I just got my circa '82 coin door with mechs.  It needs a little cleaning up.  Before I disassemble it, could use some advice:

1) I only paid like $30 for this, but is there any reason I should keep the original wiring harnesses in place?  I hate to destroy a piece of history but frankly the wires are in my way and I don't think I'll reuse any of them.

2) There are a couple things I'm not sure about.  First, the coin switches have a capacitor (?) wired across the terminals.  What's up with this?  Should I snip it for use with my IPAC?  Same with the tilt switch.  

3) The game "odometer" ... Is there any way for me to do anything with this?  Should I snip it off or again, is this blasphemy?  The only reason I'm concerned about the old hardware is because, to do this right, I should remove everything, apply paint stripper, repaint the whole door and reassemble.  Plus all those wires etc will be unused and taking up space in my cabinet (And probably tangling with others)

4)  Someone took a screwdriver to one of the quarter slots.  These are the old school type as in the photos above.  Luckily, it looks like they bolt in... can I order just those from somewhere?

Thanks guys!  My mame cab is making incredible progress what with all the resources online!!!

[eightbit]

thanks a lot to everyone.

i neglected to ask before if the number of coin-slots needs to be the same (or greater) as the number of players you want to design the system for.

i have my eyes on a used happ billl changer + single coin door. but i would like to use it for my multiplayer cabinet.

Most games will work no matter what coin slot you use. Some games require that you put the coin in the coin slot of the player that wants to play. Especially 4 player games like tmnt and guantlet. By puttin a quarter in slot 3 you were picking a certain character in the game you then had to use the player 3 joystick. There are some 2 player games this way also so even if you only have a 2 player panel you need to plan for this. You could have an extra button for the secound coin slot if you want or you use a shifted button to get the player 2 credit. I've never actually tried it but I just had a thought. Can you map 2 functions to the same button? That way you could map coin1 and coin2 to your single coin slot. If this worked though it would effectively give you 2 credits for every coin you inserted. Has anybody tried this?

I love the coin door on my cab. To me its one of the coolest things on the whole thing. When I show it off people they say thats neat but how do I get it to play for free its annoying to keep putting quarters in. Thats when I show them the hidden buttons under the front overhang of the CP that insert credits.

[eightbit]

1) I only paid like $30 for this, but is there any reason I should keep the original wiring harnesses in place?  I hate to destroy a piece of history but frankly the wires are in my way and I don't think I'll reuse any of them.

2) There are a couple things I'm not sure about.  First, the coin switches have a capacitor (?) wired across the terminals.  What's up with this?  Should I snip it for use with my IPAC?  Same with the tilt switch.  

3) The game "odometer" ... Is there any way for me to do anything with this?  Should I snip it off or again, is this blasphemy?  The only reason I'm concerned about the old hardware is because, to do this right, I should remove everything, apply paint stripper, repaint the whole door and reassemble.  Plus all those wires etc will be unused and taking up space in my cabinet (And probably tangling with others)

4)  Someone took a screwdriver to one of the quarter slots.  These are the old school type as in the photos above.  Luckily, it looks like they bolt in... can I order just those from somewhere?

Thanks guys!  My mame cab is making incredible progress what with all the resources online!!!

1. Snip the harness if its in the way. Your not doing a restoration here, do what you have to do to make it work.
2. I've only seen the capacitor on games that have the odometer. My quess is their related but you should see if someone else can tell you for sure. Don't go on what I say.
3. You could try running 12v to it and then running the other wire to the switch so that when the switch closes it grounds the circuit this should cause it to increment. Of course maybe you need the capacitor so you might want to research that further before connecting juice to it.
4. Happs sells parts for most coin doors. If you can find the door you can probably find the part number. If you can find the part number you can probably get it from happs. Happs has a $25 minimum but I've heard some people have placed smaller orders it just depends on the person that answers the phone. Another source to try would be Bob Roberts, he is very knowledgable, always willing to help, and has no minimum order.

[gmillerd]

Most games will work no matter what coin slot you use. Some games require that you put the coin in the coin slot of the player that wants to play. Especially 4 player games like tmnt and guantlet. By puttin a quarter in slot 3 you were picking a

do you think it would be possible for buttons like your secret ones to be used as key modifers to allow for a single coin-op to work? the scenerio being 'hold down button of player # and insert coin to give credit to player #' and then just default the coins to player 1 as unmodfied?

[eightbit]

Depends on your interface, the Ipac allows you so specify a shift button. It doesn't have to be dedicated to shift. This button can be programed to any thing by default pn the ipac its player1. When you hold player1 and push another button you get the shifted function of the other button. You could say holding shift and inserting a coin would be coin2.

[gmillerd]

Depends on your interface, the Ipac allows you so specify a shift button. It doesn't have to be dedicated to shift. This button can be programed to any thing by default pn the ipac its player1. When you hold player1 and push another button you get the shifted function of the other button. You could say holding shift and inserting a coin would be coin2.

i see very good.

[eightbit]

do you think it would be possible for buttons like your secret ones to be used as key modifers to allow for a single coin-op to work? the scenerio being 'hold down button of player # and insert coin to give credit to player #' and then just default the coins to player 1 as unmodfied?

In a recent thread someone said the shift function was now built into Mame. I can't find that thread and I can't find any reference to this any where else. Can someone else confirm or deny this?

[canardo]

thanks for this information having never seen a coin door I wanted to know how it worked

[JuddWack]

The local arcade distributer (www.tntamusements.com) was great enough to let me have one of their old games they werent using, Hang-on.  It has just about all the parts needed for the arcade, except the actual board for the game.  Behind the coin door is a switch board with a few things such as volume control and button for free credits, to test the games.  Is it safe to hook this button and a coin door up to an IPAC?  

[alphasqorner]

very informational thread!!! thx!

[Violineb]

THis is exactly the kind of thread I needed. So I suppose any coin door+mech will work with a KeyWiz. And there's a way to wire it so that the coin mech and two buttons on CP both count as insert coin right? But using the same inputs. But how would you  do it? Would you run the wire from the KeyWiz input, then spit the wire into two wires and then run one to each the button and the coin mech? and then the all hook back into the ground? I hope I'm not too confusing. Also what's a good price to pay for two coin mechs+doors. I think I found something good on Ebay, but I better not mention it for fear of being out bidded.  

[mp2526]

Also what's a good price to pay for two coin mechs+doors. I think I found something good on Ebay, but I better not mention it for fear of being out bidded.  

Doors that need some work will run around $10-15 (missing mechs and various other parts, need paint, etc.), doors in good shape will typically run at least $25 and possibly up to $80.  Be prepared to pay about $15 in shipping and watch out for people who overcharge for shipping.