Help with Rockola 100 3

That "yellow stuff" is "Lubriplate" --real hard to remove--die-no-mite is help-full here !
Ron Rich

Hi,
I have not been able to fix my Rockola 1003 and have had another repair person try to fix it.
Does anyone know of a person in the Cleveland, Ohio area who may be available to take a look at my machine?
Thanks in advance,
kgrif

Lithium grease is easily removed with more lithium grease. lol. The spray kind. Spray on, wipe off, work the mechanism. When free, use cleaners/solvents to remove lithium and replace lithium with a good modern lube. I would NOT recommend tearing the gripper apart unless you are pretty handy with mechanical things.

kgrif: Have you replaced the battery in your S3? Defective batteries cause a variety of malfunctions in Rockola controllers in the '80s models. You can find several postings in this forum recommending removal of the battery from between the boards and running leads to a 3.6gv ni-cd (only) battery outside the controller. I do not have a RO 1000, but I thought they had the S2 controller, pn 54910-A, as found in that year's 494 and the earlier 490-1. I have S3s in 496s. Same advice on battery issues either way.
Patrick

Thank you so much for your help and replies.
I don't know much about electronics, but try to study the manuals.
How would I test the battery? It looks clean without leakage.
Is it possible for me to replace the battery with the same type in the same place? And who would be a reputable supplier?
Thanks in advance.
kgrif

Test the battery with a volt meter. You can do this while its on the board. Polarity is marked. With the juke turned off, you should have around 3.6 volts. Turned on, the charging battery will measure around 5.7v. If it's OK, you might delay replacement, but soldering a battery between those boards is not Rockola's best work. I would not recommend replacing it with the same, and don't let anyone sell you a lithium battery to replace it (they explode. Been there. Junked an S2 unit.) Buy a 3-cell clip and 3AA Ni-cd rechargeable batteries and run leads off the board away from the controller to mount. I also install an inline fuse on the + side. It's so easy even I can do it, and I'm below novice in soldering skills. This may not be your issue, but those batteries cause a variety of problems, so it's a good place to start. Once you get past that, examine the pricing scheme programmed into the S3. If that's screwy you won't be able to select. Or, with LEDs at "normal" press the center button that adds credits. Might get you pointed in the right direction. Good luck.
Patrick

Thank you Juke-rocks for the great info.
I tested the battery and it is 3.6 off and 4.07 with power on.
I assume that it make the battery "bad"?
If so, it must be soldered in?
I do not have any soldering skills.
Thanks in advance.
kgrif

kgrif: Can't say if your measurements prove the battery's condition. But it's easy to perform this operation. I have limited soldering skills, but I can do this. Carefully heat the solder joint at each end of the battery while gently pulling it loose. Take care to not heat up anything else (think: "what's the worst thing that could happen if I melt this?"). After removing the battery, solder wires to those same two places. Pay attention to the polarity markings on the board. Pass the wires past or through the S3 front cover as it's reassembled. Run these to a 3-cell AA battery clip which you can mount anywhere out of the way inside the cabinet. I also install an inline .5 amp fuse on the + side. Put three AA NI-cd (NOT lithium!) batteries in the clip and you're done. I've done this several times and it usually solves a variety of problems. It at least rules out some.
Patrick

Why install the fuse ? There is nothing to protect ??
Ron Rich

True. I do this because I've charged them out of the machine on a wall charger. I assemble them with quick connects so I move battery packs from machine to machine. No, the fuse would not be necessary for installation.
Patrick