tblake05 Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 Is it possible to update the boards in these two machines to suppert MDB so I can install credit card readers? Both machines do not have the 4 wire plug for MDB interface (unless I'm missing it). And its unfortunate for me because they are our busiest machines. Soda consistently nets 100.00 a week, and snack about 75-100 a week in cash sales. In the summertime we have gotten 150.00 out of the soda machine. I'd like to start credit card readers on these two machines. Like stated, I don't see the MDB plug, and don't know what a dex plug looks like, but I doubt they had that either. Is there a board update I could do to them to convert them to MDB? Also, where could a credit card reader mount? I'd hate to drill into the nice artwork on the soda machine, but it may be the only option. The snack machine, I just dont know.... Machine model numbers are: Snack - USI-3184, Soda - Selectivend CB500 Any Insight would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 22, 2018 Author Share Posted December 22, 2018 PS, We are not to the point financially to be able to afford newer machines. I'd like to, trust me, but that is out of the question at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZVendor Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 Apparently you don't know anything about MDB or you would notice that both machines have MDB coin mechs in them. They won't give you cash sales through DEX but you can put card readers on them. You will have to mount them externally since there are no extra cut outs on the door for a card reader. You will need to drill 5 holes for the mounting screws and the harness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anacapa Vending Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 You probably just need an MDB harness (from the board to the validator) decent machines. I see no reason to buy new equipment. 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngryChris Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 If the soda machine has an MCB12 board in it (and it likely does, judging by the keypad) then a card reader will not work on it. The snack machine will connect (F80 board) and work but you won't see cash sales through telemetry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickers Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 Is that .85 candy in there?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 17 hours ago, AZVendor said: Apparently you don't know anything about MDB or you would notice that both machines have MDB coin mechs in them. They won't give you cash sales through DEX but you can put card readers on them. You will have to mount them externally since there are no extra cut outs on the door for a card reader. You will need to drill 5 holes for the mounting screws and the harness. Correct, I know basically nothing about the dex/mdb/pulse. Basically know how to swap parts out and thats it. I'm learning though. As far as cash telemetry specs, it would be nice, but I've got a spreadsheed on my laptop that I update that gives me all that info per machine and sales specs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 16 hours ago, AngryChris said: If the soda machine has an MCB12 board in it (and it likely does, judging by the keypad) then a card reader will not work on it. The snack machine will connect (F80 board) and work but you won't see cash sales through telemetry. Ugh, so I need to check if the soda machine has an mcb12 board? And if so, can I change it to a different board to support mdb? (This is getting expensive... fast) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 32 minutes ago, Snickers said: Is that .85 candy in there?!? Yes... Ugh. Candy bars will go up to $1 if I can get card readers mounted, believe me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickers Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 18 minutes ago, tblake05 said: Yes... Ugh. Candy bars will go up to $1 if I can get card readers mounted, believe me. Take them to 1.00 now. Lol It’s 2019 next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southeast Treats Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 Candy should be $1 already, I am probably going to raise all mine to 1.25 in the new year. C stores are already at 1.39 to 1.49 plus tax. Looks like your chips are at .50, that is too low as well in my opinion. Really think about phasing in some price increases, you deserve to make a profit for your labor and investment! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anacapa Vending Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 Unless a location does over $300 a week we charge $1.25 for candy bars. Its 2019 next week 😉 Candy costs us .59 - .62 each... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 I agree guys. Last time there was a backlash when we increased prices, so this time I was hoping to get a reason to... (Card readers). Then I could blame it on the cost associated with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anacapa Vending Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 One of the hardest things in any business is telling the customer the price or in this case raising the prices. Learning to be strong in this area is key to your success. Beginning of the year is a great excuse. When you add card readers you will have to add two tier pricing to help with the costs as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 You guys talked me into it. First of the year, candy bars go up. Now back on topic..... Although expensive, I like this idea. Anyone have any experience with them? Seems like a good idea knowing that if I decide to go back to just cash in the future, I can just put the old validator back in there and not have to look at gaping drill holes in the machine. Of course both machines now have coinco validators so they would need to be converted to mars. Plus can these CC readers be used with USAT or parlevel? Or is there a specific company that handles them? (Suppose I would need to contact USAT) https://www.ebay.com/p/Mei-VN-27p2r-U5m-Bill-Validator-Mars-Vending-4in1-Credit-Card-Recycler-Dollar/17016323637?iid=382410641060&chn=ps Thanks!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngryChris Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 2 hours ago, tblake05 said: Ugh, so I need to check if the soda machine has an mcb12 board? And if so, can I change it to a different board to support mdb? (This is getting expensive... fast) Nope. USI told me there was no way around it. They told me that their MDB signal doesn't send/receive the right data for a card reader. Coinco makes that board (and the F80 board, and some Royal boards) but the MCB12, in particular, cannot work with a card reader. In fact, it would technically be possible to add a card reader if it had a micromech plug but the machine is MDB so there's no conversion kit you could even use. This info came from USI tech support after i mounted a reader and it obviously didn't work. Also, while the snack machine will work, i don't remember if USI had an upgrade to bring the F80 board up to a GVC2. I know they did for SM6 and i think they did for the F80. If so, the board wasn't too expensive (2-300) and drop sensor was maybe 100, but the drop sensor really isn"t all that important on that machine to be honest. They vend pretty reliably anyway. Regardless, you could get an InOne board from D&S depending on the model of snack machine for about 315 + tax and shipping and you would get cash sales. But, in reality, you would be wasting your money in upgeading the snack JUST to report cash sales if the soda didn't even accept cards at all. You would be better off investing in a used royal 650 or DN 501E. Even a vendo 720 would work. The only exception to any of the 3 is that, if the Royal has a white button, it won't report cash sales. Royal told me boards with blue buttons can be upgraded so i'll order an eprom and confirm that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 Damnit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngryChris Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 14 minutes ago, tblake05 said: You guys talked me into it. First of the year, candy bars go up. Now back on topic..... Although expensive, I like this idea. Anyone have any experience with them? Seems like a good idea knowing that if I decide to go back to just cash in the future, I can just put the old validator back in there and not have to look at gaping drill holes in the machine. Of course both machines now have coinco validators so they would need to be converted to mars. Plus can these CC readers be used with USAT or parlevel? Or is there a specific company that handles them? (Suppose I would need to contact USAT) https://www.ebay.com/p/Mei-VN-27p2r-U5m-Bill-Validator-Mars-Vending-4in1-Credit-Card-Recycler-Dollar/17016323637?iid=382410641060&chn=ps Thanks!! I edited my post just so you know. Those credit card masks work fine, but for $600 for one machine or $1200 if you tried to do this for both, you could practically replace the soda machine with something that is ready to go (minus the card reader). Having cash sales is nice, but it really only gets useful IF you keep track of it daily (or in real time) and IF your time is limited. If you are new and small (and i don't know if you are) then you are wasting your time. How many machines do you have? Maybe you have a soda machine you could swap with this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 We are relatively small. 15 total machines across just a couple towns. Reason I'm looking into card readers is specifically the location is asking for them. Plus with fewer and fewer people carrying cash, cards are the wave of the future. Why not impulse buy a candy bar and soda with my credit card.... I should have a few dollars left before I max it out again. Seems legit, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anacapa Vending Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 That link you provided is way too much. I've found those MEI validator/cc readers bezels for $150 all the time. But if you do that route you still need to buy a modem. Also those validator/cc reader combos only do credit card swipe. No EMV chip or contactless (smartphones, smart watches,apps, etc.) Or you can leave your current setup and add brand new credit card reader/modem for $300 or less per machine. I prefer Nayax VPOS as they are the only company that offers EMV chip readers currently. Flush mounting cc readers is super easy. You need a drill, uni bit, a screw driver and a small level (if you want it to look professional) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anacapa Vending Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 Oh that link you provided was a bill recycler. I wouldn't waste money on that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tblake05 Posted December 23, 2018 Author Share Posted December 23, 2018 Yes, I was just using it as an example of the 4-in-1 bezel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bvending Posted December 23, 2018 Share Posted December 23, 2018 You can get the 4 in 1 refurbished for ~130 or new ~250. You will still need a telemeter (we use usat), a power reducer and an adaptor harness. And the 4 in 1 will do swipe and contactless, just not chip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTVFC Posted December 24, 2018 Share Posted December 24, 2018 7 hours ago, tblake05 said: We are relatively small. 15 total machines across just a couple towns. Reason I'm looking into card readers is specifically the location is asking for them. Plus with fewer and fewer people carrying cash, cards are the wave of the future. Why not impulse buy a candy bar and soda with my credit card.... I should have a few dollars left before I max it out again. Seems legit, right? Maybe consider PayRange. The ROI should be good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickers Posted December 24, 2018 Share Posted December 24, 2018 I would drill holes on the metal doors and surface mount the cc readers. PayRange is also a great alternative if this is used by regulars and not the public. Your looking at about $250 each on the card readers + $9 month each + 6% on all swipes. PayRange is about $60 each no monthly charge 4% on swipes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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