Ideal 55 Coin Mech Problem

[oldmanjoe]

Hi,
I found this forum while trying to find a fix for my machine. I believe it is an Ideal 55 and I hope someone can help me. I would also like to add that I'm new to posting on forums so if I screw up, please don't laugh. I do want to attach/insert a photo and I have read your  instructions; hope it works.

I've had this machine for a long time and it always worked, but I sort of neglected it. Now the coin mech is not working properly. It would not accept coins, nor would the coin return work, but after using some wd-40 I got the coin return to work, but it only very rarely accepts coins. I think I could tinker with it to get it to work, but I can't access the mech. I'm afraid it has to be removed completely and I do not know how to do that. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I've have attempted to attach a photo collage.

Thanks so much,
Joe

[Slapshot42]

Joe,

Welcome to the Site.

If you remove the coin drawer, directly behind the drawer there are (2) screws.  Once they are removed you slide up the entire cover to remove. This will allow you to see the inside of the coin mechanism. The coin rejector which is the top square portion can be dirty causing vending problems.  There are a few tabs on each side in which it can be removed and cleaned. I clean them with hot soapy water, and use an air compressor to dry them.  

Try that and see what happens.  

Jared

[oldmanjoe]

Thanks so much for your response Jared-I will give that a try in a couple of days and let all know how it turns out. I usually tend to figure things out, but often screw stuff up!

Again, Thanks!
Joe

[johnieG]

Your machine is also hiding a mystery! The Coke sign is attached with rivets, which means either it was a generic branded machine made into a Coke, or perhaps some other embossed flavor hiding underneath?

[Slapshot42]

Newbie's luck it's a Dad's, Barq's or Orange Crush!   

[kbareit]

If it's not a generic my guess is either a 7-Up or Hires. I see a lot of white paint under the red.

[jholmgren]

Your machine is also hiding a mystery! The Coke sign is attached with rivets, which means either it was a generic branded machine made into a Coke, or perhaps some other embossed flavor hiding underneath?

You beat me to it Johnie, I was about to mention the same thing.   

[oldmanjoe]

You guys rock, thanks for the Info. Well, maybe I can solve the mystery! If I don't bore you too much I will tell you the provenance on this machine  !

Many years ago my wife found this machine at a sale. Supposedly this was from a local TV station and she bought it for me (what a wonderful wife I have)! Anyway, I knew because of the plate it was not a Coke and the bottle cap remover is stamped 7-UP-so I guess it was a 7-UP machine at one time. At one time we had a Vendo 39 that had a Pepsi plate over the embossed door; I was told it was probably a Coke machine at one time. I did a lot of work on that to get it working, especially getting the drum to work correctly, but it turned out well. We eventually sold it (probably too cheap)  

We also have a Coke Vendo 56 that is working well; not plugged in, but I did manage to get the coin mech to work and it still does!

Again, thanks for all the responses and keep them coming. As soon as I have the time I will try to fix the slider-I'm probably gonna need more advice!

Hope my story didn't bore you!
Joe

[Creighton]

Welcome to the board and Vendo 56 club !!
Always enjoy those type of stories. Picture of the 56?
Thanks,
Creighton

[Ltransam]

Welcome to the site !!

A lot of great people here !!

 

We're is the Vendo 56 ?

[oldmanjoe]

Hey guys, give me a break; I'm old and it takes me awhile to get going Anyway I just took some pics-thanks for the interest and the welcome.

It's a little rough, but it works; at least the coin mech, I haven't plugged it in for over 20 years.

As soon as I get motivated I will attempt the repair on the 55-I'm afraid I'll screw it up. Will keep you informed and will always welcome any input. I'll try not to bug you with too many questions.

Thanks again,
Joe

[Creighton]

Great looking 56. That will clean right up. Ask all the questions you want.
Creighton

[jholmgren]

As soon as I get motivated I will attempt the repair on the 55-I'm afraid I'll screw it up. Will keep you informed and will always welcome any input. I'll try not to bug you with too many questions.

Thanks again,
Joe

Joe - don't fret over the coin mech.  If you can't get it back together or working right there are several guys here that can take care of it for you - and at a pretty reasonable price.

Jim

[oldmanjoe]

Thanks Jim,
I'm going to give the repair a shot tomorrow. I live in San Diego and had called some of the local vending companies to see if someone could help. They were nice, but I only had one response and he didn't have a clue, but he was going to try to contact others; very nice person.

I do not mind paying for service at all, but it is really hard to find someone that knows about old machines. Thank goodness for the Internet and great folks like you. We have an old drugstore scale that quit working and I found a site that helped me tremendously to get it fixed-I actually figured out how to do it myself ; another nice person.

Thanks, and I will keep in touch,
Joe

[MoonDawg]

      Welcome Joe.
      Most "high tower" coin mech's for the 55's had 2 coin slots and 2 slug rejectors, one of each for nickles and dimes.
      Yours is the more uncommon style with one coin slot and one dime/nickle rejector.
      The only problem you have is a dirty slug rejector. Enclosed is a picture of your style, remove it and clean the coin paths then bench test it.

      Ray and I are in the Ventura/Santa Barbara area so help is not far away.

[oldmanjoe]

Well I got the cover off and the mech out. I worked on it a bit using air mostly. Still can't get it to work properly. Once in a while the coin will go through, but most of the times it will hang up where I showed in the pic, or a little higher up. Before I took it apart it would stop higher up where the coin return would eject it. Any ideas?

I also found this screw in the coin tray; couldn't find a place where it could have come from. Again, any ideas?

Thanks for all the help,
Joe 

[MoonDawg]

        I see the dime made it almost past the magnet, did you remove it and remove any metal shavings and gunk in there?

Would the dime pass through if you moved that little adjustment bracket or, maybe the screw is too long?  If it is, add a washer.

[oldmanjoe]

Sorry to be so ignorant, but is the adjustment bracket the thing just below the dime. Is it in the correct position and should it be loose or tight? Also, I did not remove the magnet for fear of everything falling apart. Can I just unscrew it and remove it?   Forgot to say that the coin will not move if I move the bracket, I have to push it through; every once in awhile it will work correctly!

As I said earlier, sometimes the coin would hang up before it got to the magnet and the coin return would eject it.

Sorry again for not knowing what I'm doing,
Joe

[collecture]

Sorry to be so ignorant, but is the adjustment bracket the thing just below the dime. Is it in the correct position and should it be loose or tight? Also, I did not remove the magnet for fear of everything falling apart. Can I just unscrew it and remove it?  Forgot to say that the coin will not move if I move the bracket, I have to push it through; every once in awhile it will work correctly!

The bracket is called a deflector and you can remove it or slide it as far left as you can and tighten the screw.

Joe,
Slug rejectors are meant to function clean and dry, so never use any oil or petroleum based lubricants on them.
Try cleaning under the magnet with a solvent and pipe cleaner. Two screws is all that hold the magnet in place. If the coin path is clean and you still have an issue, try prying up a little on the magnet. I use a flat head screwdriver and a twist. Not too much as it can snap in two, so be careful. You can also pry up a little on the bracket that the deflector is screwed to.

[oldmanjoe]

Well, unbelievably, I got the mech working (for now anyway); all it needed was a good cleaning. It was rather easy, I was just afraid to fool with it; knowledge is King!. I want to thank all you folks that helped me and told me what to do.

I'm sure I will need help in the future and will check out the board frequently; I'll try not to bug you too much!

Thanks again,

Joe