Arcade Monitor Danger - The Truth

[myrmidon]

I have read a lot about the dangers of arcade monitors and the high-voltage charges, and whilst they won't shock you to death, should you get shocked, you would probably wish that you were dead.

However, the time has come for me to change the orientation of the 19" arcade monitor in my cabinet from Vertical to Horizontal, so I thought this would be a good time to establish the truth:

 
- Are the monitors really that dangerous? If I unplug the machine for some time, is there a level of

[clanggedin]

you don't need to discharge the monitor unless you are going to do work on it. That being said, I would be careful around the flyback and the suction just to be sure.

[RayB]

How long has it been since you powered it on? Just don't juice it up BEFORE doing the rotation. Dont rotate it with the power on. Don't touch anything but the FRAME when rotating. You'll be fine.

[th3wraithsh4ngrila]

If u r gonna discharge the monitor and take off the flyback line to the monitor then take a standard flathead screwdriver connect a alligator clip and clip 1 side to ur screwdriver on the metal part and the other end on a ground then u can pry the suction on the flyback line goin to the monitor out with no problems never take a chance with high voltage remember its unforgiving

[Xiaou2]

 Well, as an arcade manager way back...  I had to rejuvinate a monitor.   They sent me the machine to do it with.. and gave me instructions...

  I followed everything to a 'T'...  but upon starting to plug the monitor in.. I remembered I forgot a step.  Well, i pulled the cord out in less time than it would take to blink your eye.. so I figured that not much juice (if any) would have collected into the monitor.  WRONG!

 I had my hand 'near'  the suction cup..  and ZAP!!!   A bolt jumped right to my finger...  Send my arm flying backwards..   Since I was about 1ft away from a wall..  my elbow crashed heavily into it.   My finger had a black Char mark on it..  and there was a smell of something burnt.  (ME!)   Swore I almost broke my elbow.  My body was aching from the blast.  .  It went all thru my body.  I was pretty lucky it wasnt more serious.

 Always discharge a monitor before messing with it.  Wear some rubber gloves and rubber sole shoes.. 'just in case'.     After you set the screwdriver in.. let it discharge for like 6 minutes.   Then take it off..  leave the game sit for another 5 min...  then repeat.    Many times, the discharge isnt fully complete after a single   
time.  It can re-form a 2nd charge within a few minutes on its own.   So, always discharge twice... and leave the thing discharging for several minutes.

     

[Nipedley]

I've discharged several times now, I was scared as we all were once when I first did it, but now it's nothing - the danger exists yes, but as long as you discharge your monitor then you should have no problems (though some capacitors on the chassis can hold a big charge if you've had it on recently as I also learned). My procedure is to attach the clips, then just slide the screwdriver under... go away for 10 minutes come back do it again, and use the screwdriver to remove the anode - simple and easy.

[Rocky]

I've worked with a lot of monitors.  You don't need to discharge a monitor to move it, only if you are working on the circuitry.

Grab it by the frame and put it where you want it.

[grantspain]

if you are not removing the chassis from the frame then no need to discharge,this is something we had to do numerous times in the 1990"s when boards were changed on a regular basis-just dont stick your hand into the ht cap and you will be safe.its just a case of disconnect rgb and power input rotate the screen and reconnect should take about 2 minutes-btw i did take a fully charged ht zap whilst a monitor was on -rated about 25000volts and i am fine,apart from the flashbacks,loss of hair and the fits and psycotic bouts of violence.

[Q*Bert_OP]

hehe I do it several times a day aroung the shop, a resistor is really not needed. I've never worn rubber gloves or been shocked. Discharging is very simple to do. Use a test jumper cably and a small flathead screw driver.

[myrmidon]

Thanks for the responses guys, so the overriding opinion seems to be:

- If I am simply rotating the monitor, (and not working on the monitor PCB's), it's not neccessary to discharge it, just unplug and rotate it.

- Some posters say I should should discharge for 6 or 10 minutes. Is this realistic, does something that zaps you in a single jolt have the ability to continue zapping (hence neccessitating a 10 minute discharge)

-@Xiaou2: How 'near' was your hand to the suction cup? (Just wondering if I rotate the monitor without discharging, and my hand gets into the 'near enough' zone).

Cheers
Olaf

[APFelon]

hehe I do it several times a day aroung the shop, a resistor is really not needed. I've never worn rubber gloves or been shocked. Discharging is very simple to do. Use a test jumper cably and a small flathead screw driver.

Heh! In my old shop, I was told that you aren't a real tech until you have broken a pinball glass, fried a board, and taken a hit from an anode (not necessarily all in one sitting).

14 years in and out of the industry, and I finally cooked a board last month. Woohoo.

Myr- Look- When in doubt, discharge the monitor. If you are paranoid, discharge the monitor. If you just want to discharge the monitor for the hell of it, discharge the monitor. It hurts nothing, it is simple to do, and it will give you peace of mind.

APf

[Q*Bert_OP]

Yes, it is possible for a charge to build up between discharges, esp. if the monitor was on recently