Gi lighting question - differnt to my other thread

[Wotto]

OK so heres the situation.
WH20.

I have a GI bulb out under the left slingshot,I think no big deal,  I touch it gently with my finger from above the playfield and half a second later all my GI goes out. I check the 5 fuses for the GI and the one at the top of the bank of 3 is blow

With my LIMITED electrical brain I think it must be a short on that lampholder/socket and I proceed to make sure the tabs are not touching each other etc - I spend this time to check all the GI sockets as well.

I go to get a 5A sloblo..........and now realise I aint got any 
So I throw a 4A slo blo in and the GI lights up right away .............then fades over about 10 seconds as the 4A sloblo dies.

I dont want to throw a BIGGER fuse than 5A in just in case........

So based on the fact the 4A works but then melts do you think it will be fine when i get a 5A on Monday 


BTW - ALL the Gi was perfect on this game until this moment.

[Pinball Fixers]

It may have been a shorted socket that caused the original 5A fuse to blow, but it could have also been coincidence...

Slow-Blow fuses are designed to blow eventually, regardless of there being a problem or not. This is due to their design - they can handle more than their rated current, but only for short periods of time. The more often a slow-blow fuse has to handle a higher than rated current, the less time it has before blowing.

You can use a higher rated fuse in this case, but do not use it permanently... ie: use a 6.3A slow-blow fuse and see if it blows reasonably quickly. If it does, then you do really have a problem, and a 5A is not gonna last long! If the 6.3A lasts, then you have probably already solved the problem.

I wouldn't go any higher than a 7A fuse just in case, and do make sure you put the correct fuse in ASAP. There are only a few instances where you can get away with a higher rated fuse for testing only, and this is one.

[Strangeways]

I'd remove the globe from the suspect globe holder and watch the game over time.

Check from underneath that the globe holder is not shorting out to anything metal. They are cheap parts - just replace it !

[beaky]

I'd remove the globe from the suspect globe holder and watch the game over time.

Check from underneath that the globe holder is not shorting out to anything metal. They are cheap parts - just replace it !

i agree. if you go putting a higher value fuse than what is recomended and you leave it in you are going to end up with more problems later on, like burnt G.I. plugs, bad solder joints on the gi plugs, melted wires or in a worst case scenario a fire.

[Pinball Fixers]

I'd remove the globe from the suspect globe holder and watch the game over time.

Check from underneath that the globe holder is not shorting out to anything metal. They are cheap parts - just replace it !

i agree. if you go putting a higher value fuse than what is recomended and you leave it in you are going to end up with more problems later on, like burnt G.I. plugs, bad solder joints on the gi plugs, melted wires or in a worst case scenario a fire.

Definitely... which is why I didn't recommend leaving a higher rated fuse in for long - only for testing.

[Wotto]

Sorted 

I am glad I found this in the 1st socket I looked in , normally my luck has it that I find a problem after looking everywhere else for an hour

Looks like someone before me had a dodgy globe in one of the lampholders , it appears the base had snapped off the lamp ( see photo below ) and the snapped off piece was sitting IN the spring inside the lampholder obviously causing the short. What I dont get is the piece of wire coming out of the globe that had strategically been wrapped up around the base of the globe and left in that position ( as though the person knew the fault with the globe and couldnt be bothered putting a new one in.........I mean I understand it because whats a globe worth these days - about 2 cents 

Thanks again guys - its all good.
Now I just have to light up the mountains and WH20 is 100% perfect.

As a side note for WH20 owners I put a spare yellow  LCD in the 1 mountain of mine that I can currently light and it gives a REALLY nice glow inside the mountain and is not as harsh as the normal white globe.

[beaky]

well done.
now make sure you put a correct value fuse in.

[Wotto]

well done.
now make sure you put a correct value fuse in.

Already done 

[morrie]

So did your GI circuit work properly with a 4amp fuse in it ?

[Wotto]

Dunno.

I put a 5A back in it which is ( I believe ) the correct one.

I only tried a 4a yesterday as thats as high as I had without going overboard.

[Strangeways]

Well done wotto - fast becoming an expert with repairs 

[Pinball Fixers]

Nice find mate!

That's the sorta thing that no-one can teach you. You have to find these things out the hard way!

And after this thread, I'm NEVER recommending to use an over rated fuse for testing ever again... But I'm still gonna do it myself when testing if needed!