Cabinet Finish, Dirty Running Horse Unit

March 28, 2016

As you can see, there has been a significant delay since the last report. Part of that is the life got in the way. (I spent weeks trying to fix a Hafler amplifier I built back the 1980s. I got two to work and one is permanently dead.) The other problem is that I was making so much progress cleaning the running horse unit, I did not have time to update the restoration description! However I am back and determined to finish soon.

wear in front of capture hole

The rusted bell in the bottom of the cabinet is just another example of the damage caused by a moist environment. I see evidence that the bottom of the cabinet sat in water. The rest of the game suffered from damage but it does not appear to be caused by being immersed in water.

mounting the score board

The cabinet has been cleaned and the rust removed from the metal parts. The one patent number I could find on the game was for the illuminated shooter gauge, seen in the lower left of this picture.

After installing the playfield some significant adjustments were required to allow the ball lift mechanism, also seen in the lower left of this picture, to raise the ball easily and completely.

mounting screws

This is the dirty horse running unit. There are five horses, each with its own solenoid stepper unit. You can see label for the horse in the upper right corner of the stepper. On the back side of the stepper is a reel and a set of pulleys that hold the string used to make the horse move.

While not obvious in this picture, each stepper is offset from the others and is directly under the horse that it controls. Horse One is closest to the back and each successive horse is closer to the camera.

Also notice all the metal bars that reinforce the steppers and the running surface. The bars help keep the units firm and the strings tight when moving the horses.

mounting screws

The individual steppers are not complicated. The red solenoid steps the horse one jump ahead. The black solenoid resets the horse back to the starting line.

There is a Bakelite insulating board with two contacts on the back side. It tells the game when the horse has reached the step just prior to the finish line indicating "also ran". There is another contact at the very finish line indicating the horse won.

mounting screws

This only part of the horse running unit visible to the player is the very top. The horses clip on to a small carriage under the unit. The carriages are moved forward and back by each individual stepper unit.