smart crane problem fixed will work for all cranes with simular trolly

[Billnuts]

someone a while back was telling me about a problem with a smart crane (candy)

I did not have a candy crane to test or try to repeat the error on till i picked up one used 3 days ago.

but this will work on 90% of all cranes out there.

symptom

route operators get calls its not working inspect to see crane locked up with the claw dropped about 8 inches and when you reset the crane it works ok for a bit.

crane plays and moves fine, accepts money player hits drop claw button claw drops 6-8 inches and the crane stops working.

took me a bit to find the problem but i did manage to solve the problem

If you look at the attched photo.

if you look at area 2

you will notice a few things

a spring (broken on mine)

a switch to the left

a brass or metal tube that the string goes thru.

this failure was due to the brass tube sticking due to broken or worn spring, dirty and wear and tear.

when the claw drops the brass tube rises releasing the switch (left) so the cranes motherboard knows when the claw is on its way down..

when the switch does not activate the motherboard shuts off 8 inch's down as a failsafe

could also cause problems as this is used to tell the crane when the claw is back up top as well

keep this area on all cranes cleaned and use lithium grease and replace spring with correct tension.

replace tube if bent or severe wear and tear.. the five dollar part will save you from a whole months loss of a crane being out of order

i was able to duplicate the problem by holding the brass fitting with my fingers and it did the same problem over and over.

area 1 is also a area to keep a eye at the switch there needs to hit that arm when the claw meets the bottom.

sometimes the metal roller arm gets bent over time or can have a hidden hair-line crack not visible to the eye

i allways keep these switches around and replace them offen i test this switch by bending both ways with a little pressure

if there is a crack it will surface when you move the roller- switch the opposite way

i am also working on a perment fix for united cranes as well

i will post my results soon

bill

[dogcow]

im having a similar prob with a rainbow crane but those dont work quite the same

i think i know the issue but i dont have a working one to compare it too, i notice theres

to springs in the gantry that hold the roller in and this controls how the down switch is

activated/deactivated one of the springs seems to have less tension than the other but

im not sure if that is intentional or not.

but the issue is similar, claw drops a few inches, stalls out with error

if i hold the down switch on,it drops all the way

[havending]

Great to know thank you

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2

[BorderJerry]

Yes, nice lesson. Thank you.