stepper unit designs?

[Frog]

Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

Well, being the lazy bastard I oiled the stepper unit in my target alpha to
get it unstuck, and it seems to work nicely now. However, I had looked at
my 300 to compare the action between the two stepper units. Did Gottlieb
use different stepper designs between these two, Target Alpha and 300? On
the Target Alpha, the reset coil needs to pull in multiple times to reset
the unit, because it seems to 'step down' with an arm only allowing it to
reverse one step at a time. The 300 however, appears to be of a different
design, and the unit completely resets when the reset coil pulls in once.

Can anyone explain this difference, or do I need to rebuild the Target Alpha
stepper for proper action?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

frog wrote:
> Well, being the lazy bastard I oiled the stepper unit in my target alpha to
> get it unstuck, and it seems to work nicely now. However, I had looked at
> my 300 to compare the action between the two stepper units. Did Gottlieb
> use different stepper designs between these two, Target Alpha and 300? On
> the Target Alpha, the reset coil needs to pull in multiple times to reset
> the unit, because it seems to 'step down' with an arm only allowing it to
> reverse one step at a time. The 300 however, appears to be of a different
> design, and the unit completely resets when the reset coil pulls in once.
>
> Can anyone explain this difference, or do I need to rebuild the Target Alpha
> stepper for proper action?

There are a couple of different steppers-
1 coil to keep going in the same direction
2 coils to step up and step down
2 coils to step up and reset back to zero

It depends on how the units are used. It is fairly easy to see when you
move the mechs with your hands to verify they are working.

Kirb

 

[frenchy]

Archived from groups: rec.games.pinball (More info?)

300 only has to keep track of total increments (equivalent to # of
balls in the backglass I believe). Game length accumulator.
Target Alpha has to do that also, but has to use the decrementing steps
to add the bonus points to the score at end of ball, so it has to do it
in steps instead of in one swoop.