A2ZVENDING Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 Forgive my mistake, I bought a Univend 4 (16 of them actually). I did get a great price so I don't regret it quite yet. I ran across many of them while looking for my machines and mistoook this to mean they were popular and/or abundant. Come to find out, I cannot find manuals, parts or any info about them at all. No one that even sells new ones. Any one know where to find parts and/or manuals for these? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerformaVending Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 A picture would be very helpful if you have it, as I'm going to have to base it on speculation and guesstimation here without one. Alas, there were quite a few machines released under the "UniVend/Univend" moniker, and they varied quite a bit. If you've got a couple pictures of the "guts" of the machine too, that would help immensely. Bulk gear may vary wildly in design, but the basic functions and concepts are all about the same, so granted it's not too crazy one of the guys here or I can probably work out the technical details for you. We can probably figure out your options for parts too. It is not at all uncommon for older machines to not have service manuals. With so many defunct Biz-Ops and imports out there, I'd imagine most off-brand bulk gear doesn't have a proper manual. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musser Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Technical details? On s gumball machine?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerformaVending Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 Technical details? On s gumball machine?? I'm thinking like mechs, vend wheels, etc. One machine I found under the name was patterned more after the Vendesign (where a bunch of NW parts would work) whereas another was a triple with wheels that looked more like "Oak" wheels. Sorry, should have been more specific by what I meant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A2ZVENDING Posted September 8, 2015 Author Share Posted September 8, 2015 Thanks, the machines are the Univend 4. I am trying to attach pictures, but again, "newbie" can't figure out how. At some point I will probably need wheels and coin mechanisms but currently it's more the plate that the wheels set on that I need to replace I've broken one. hopefully you can see what I mean by the pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A2ZVENDING Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 Here is a picture of the Univend 4. I bought 16 of them. I have now broken one taking it apart. There are three pics of the breakage. It's a piece of flat plastic that all 4 wheels mount upon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMD Snacks Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Maybe because i'm a mechanic and also no nothing about that brand..but I think that is a cool looking machine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerformaVending Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Ah, the Univend quad! Phew, nothing "too" crazy weird. The parts (coin mechs, vend wheels, brush housings, baffles, etc.) are all going to be compatible with Northwestern components. Drop in/snap in and you can roll with them all- though the mechs might be a little tricky dealing with the small coin door and the conflicting chutes. Not sure if it's got the "flat" coin trays inside or the deeper ones- I only knew one guy that ran any big number of these. Now, the bad news. The Biz-Op that sold these things went out of business (judging by the info I was able to find anyway) sometime in 2002. Parts have been basically nonexistent since then, and I was only able to find a couple things on eBay for them- and not the lower housing like you have there. Not to worry, there is no machine problem that can't be solved with a little red-neckery. Most hardware and craft stores will sell pieces of thin balsa- find a piece roughly that size, mark the edge of the hole, install it between the plexiglass and the lower housing. So long as your wheels are set properly, and you don't have any real "little" products in that side, you shouldn't have any issues (I'd put gum and BB's in there to be on the safe side). A quicker/dirtier quick fix would be packing tape folded over- I don't recommend that for food-products or any long period of time, but if the unit has to move out today, that would give you another option there. I'll see what else I can find on this machine that might help you out. Until then, good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMD Snacks Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 also know nothing about the brand* ..that's what happens trying to have a conversation and type at the same time.. Performa, just curious, have you used nw parts in vendesign also? I do have a few of those myself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerformaVending Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 also know nothing about the brand* ..that's what happens trying to have a conversation and type at the same time.. Performa, just curious, have you used nw parts in vendesign also? I do have a few of those myself Yes sir. Vendesign copied NW for a lot of their stuff as well, though Vendesign could be bought new up until 2013 through a few importers (last I saw it was called the 4-in-1). The big thing with Vendesign was the mechs had the little "connector" at the bottom for the chute flap (pictured), so you couldn't just swap in a NW mech and expect things to work out okay- without the door your product would inevitably wind up on the floor, and then your location would be rid of you in short order. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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