Phonoland

After cleaning many contacts and using lube on anything that moved my 3700 now almost works. I select a few plays, the programmer moves and selects the right pins, so far so good...but the record carousel never moves. It is free, and I can manually turn it and when it lines up with a selection it locks in and plays the record, even returning it properly. (before the cleaning and lubing it occasionally went into "Frisbee" mode and sent a 45 sailing) but the carousel never moves and I can't hear the motor running.
I assume it is either a bad motor or the driver for the motor circuit. Any ideas or advice? Where is the driver (or relay) located?
Also, when I removed the lower speaker panel to shake out the remains of a rat condo I noticed a small lamp in there. After further investigation (getting a flashlight) I found about 10 or more on a bar. None were lighting up so as an experiment I put in a #44 lamp from my pinball spares. It lit! Now the only way I see to get to the other 9+ bulbs is to remove the bar (3 screws + wiring). I can't see any hinges or latches to get inside the unit any other way. I there a better way or is this why nobody replaced the bulbs in the first place?

Thanks for any assistance,
Tony (Geezer49)

Tony,
Do you have a Service Manual ? If not, probably the "best" one is for the 3500, as they "left out" a bunch of "stuff" in the 3700 manuals--
Going from my great--but not too long memory, when a "pin is released", it also should energize the "scan control coil" which mechanically latches the "play control contacts" closed--these often fail to make a good contact, and are the cause of that problem.
Will the record basket turn if you use the "service switch" ? If so, it should make two revolutions (when the switch is returned to "normal") before stopping. If it does do that, the above mentioned unit may just be "sluggish".
As for the lamps--I assume that you are looking at the "selection now playing lamps" ? If so, I would not put a # 44 lamp in there. I do not remember, but if they are "transistor driven", using the wrong # lamps will blow the transistors. Once again--from my memory--WurliTzer used either a #159 or # 259 in most cases--I do not recall which---
Ron Rich

Hi Ron,
Thanks for the info, but I stumbled on to the solution today! I wish it was from skillful troubleshooting but it was more like a lucky accident. I spotted a label saying "safety switch" and looking at the switch (mounted at the base of the arm that grabs the records) I could see there was nothing visible that could depress it. Of course, I poked it with my finger to see what would happen, and the carousel moved! I jumped in surprise and almost whacked my head on the open lid. Looking closer, there was a pin through the arm that was apparently out of position. I slid it over so it would contact the switch and now it works great! It seems to be an interlock so the carousel won't turn without the arm in the home position.
The lamps I mentioned before are in the bottom front panel of the juke that holds the large speakers. They appear to be for appearance only, and would add a little floor lighting in front of the juke. The 1847 bulbs are 6.3v .15a and the #44 is 6.3v .25a. The 1847s are also a longer life bulb (5000hrs as opposed to 3000hrs on the #44). I checked with Marco (the company I get pinball stuff from) and they had them for a little more that 30 cents ea. I ordered two boxes of 10.
Once I got the juke running I noticed the "9" bulb was out and one sound channel was dead. It also needs a new cartridge as the sound drops down occasionally until you tap the cartridge.
You are right about the 3700 manual, I bought one online and downloaded it. Other than some adjustments and parts blow-ups there is little or nothing on maintenance, replacing parts (ie:bulbs), operation etc. Is the 3500 functionally the same as the 3700?
Now to figure out how to replace the "9" lamp. It looks like I'll have to remove that bank of lights from behind before I find out if they are soldered in or not.
When I bought the 3700 (from a thrift store of all places) it came with a key for the front panel but not one for the money box. I found out I can order one if I have the lock number, but there is nothing stamped on the front of the lock. Do you know if this info is stamped inside the cabinet somewhere? I have it in my basement set to free play but I cleaned up the coin unit and plugged it in to see if it would work (it did). Now I have 2 quarters locked away in "savings"

Thanks again for the response!
Tony

Tony,
The "Safety Switch" is there for a reason--should it fail, or be just slightly "Mal-adjusted", the jukebox will bust every record in it--seen this happen more then once ! See the Service Manual for proper adjustment procedures !
As for the 44 vs. 1847--looks OK to me-- Once again, this info should be in the Service Manual package-- I do not buy SM's "online" as they seldom have the whole "package"--see "where to find --" above, in "announcements section"
The 35 and 37 mechs are basically the same--function control is different in that they replaced relays with triacs.
Door keys, unless lock was changed are "service keys" and available -- I will add the source to the above post-- Cashbox locks are individual, and usually not numbered on the lock--must be changed if key number was not noted--
# 9 lamp--once again--should say in the SM package--
Ron

Ron Rich wrote:Tony,
The "Safety Switch" is there for a reason--should it fail, or be just slightly "Mal-adjusted", the jukebox will bust every record in it--seen this happen more then once ! See the Service Manual for proper adjustment procedures !
As for the 44 vs. 1847--looks OK to me-- Once again, this info should be in the Service Manual package-- I do not buy SM's "online" as they seldom have the whole "package"--see "where to find --" above, in "announcements section"
The 35 and 37 mechs are basically the same--function control is different in that they replaced relays with triacs.
Door keys, unless lock was changed are "service keys" and available -- I will add the source to the above post-- Cashbox locks are individual, and usually not numbered on the lock--must be changed if key number was not noted--
# 9 lamp--once again--should say in the SM package--
Ron

Hi Ron, I'll check the settings on that switch, I didn't realize it was so critical. Hopefully that adjustment is in my book. I found the Wurlitzer part number from the manual and did a cross-ref on the internet to a 159 bulb. I just ordered 10 of those too. It is starting to look like I may be drilling that lock out to change it. Not a big issue, I will be using freeplay normally anyway..
In exploring the 3700 I found the programming card in the BO/AC 555. There are a few people on Ebay selling 10 packs of these cards for about $5. It may be fun to play around with it but I couldn't find programming specs on line. The Ebay ads say the specs are in the 3600 Manual. Is the 3600 book more detailed than the 3700 or is it "slimmed down" too? If it is more complete it may be worth the investment. (I am assuming the 3600 is another offshoot of the basic mechanism)

Thanks again for the responses,
Tony

Tony,
I don't recall the 36 series books, and I SURE do not believe "eBay ads"-- ---all from the 34 on up are similar---
Ron Rich

Ron Rich wrote:Door keys, unless lock was changed are "service keys" and available -- I will add the source to the above post-- Cashbox locks are individual, and usually not numbered on the lock--must be changed if key number was not noted--
# 9 lamp--once again--should say in the SM package--
Ron

I got the lamps (#159) and that is now working. I ended up taking a screwdriver, hammer and vicegrips to the cashbox lock and just used the "armstrong" method of lock picking. After opening the cashbox door (and turning the old lock to schrapnel) I found a lot of mouse bedding, my two quarters I tested the coin mech with, and....the spare key! ...go figure...

Logical to me--I always hide the spare in the cashbox ?? Ron Rich