Coney Island Boxer Restoration Project – It Works!

I plugged in the boxer for the first time to test it today and received some good news. It works! I also cleaned out the inside, ran the tests, and did a few minor touchups to the display holder to make it usable. Here are some pictures:

The back of the machine.
The back of the machine.

I did some research, and from the stickers + labels on this unit, it seems to be designed by a company called Pigallegame, manufactured by a company called Pitt-BT (no website), parts supplied by a company called Novo-Parts (and they don’t even carry all of the parts), and licensed by Coney Island Arcade. It was made in Hungary in 2006. 3 of the 4 companies are based in Hungary and have poor english language support on their websites. I contacted each of the companies for support, and only Coney Island Arcade responded. I’ll be ordering the electromagnet/solenoid from them ($120 shipped to NY) if I can’t get one of my own to work. Coney Island’s website was down during the duration of this project.

The board diagram + testing options.
The board diagram + testing options.

Notice the broken english everywhere. Also, the wiring diagram for the coin selector is inaccurate and dangerous to follow, as it will destroy your coin acceptor. I’ll write a post later on about getting a generic (the machine is supposed to be used with an Alberici mechanism, which is really expensive) coin mechanism to work with the machine.

The display holder prior to installing the newly-fixed display.
The display holder prior to installing the newly-fixed display.

The display holder was a mess. Notice the broken plastic all over the place.

The CPU board. Notice the coin counter on the upper-right corner.
The CPU board. Notice the coin counter on the upper-right corner.

Here’s the CPU board. The coin counter says around 77000 coins have been inserted over the lifetime of the board. The little board above the CPU board is a power tap and the coin mechanism connection board.

Another shot of the CPU board.
Another shot of the CPU board.
The display board, installed.
The display board, installed.

I used the wing nuts that I had purchased the other day from Home Depot to install the display board. It fits nicely using only the screw holes on the cabinet itself, so I won’t have to replace the display holder which was quoted at $110 by Coney Island Arcade to replace.

The speaker and top of the inside of the machine.
The speaker and top of the inside of the machine.
The transformer + coin mech slot. The manual and a parts list was also included, in very broken english. I'll try and post pictures of both later on.
The transformer + coin mech slot.

Here you can see the transformer, coin mechanism slot, all the broken pieces of the display holder, the manual and a parts list. The manual was in very broken english. I’ll try and post pictures of both later on.

A shot of all the electronics boards.
A shot of all the electronics boards.
The newly-installed display holder from the front.
The newly-installed display from the front.
Moment of truth. Will it work? I sure hope so.
Moment of truth. Will it work? I sure hope so.
It works! I'm guessing this 6.27 is the software version currently loaded on the CPU board.
It works! I’m guessing this 6.27 is the software version currently loaded on the CPU board.
Woohoo!
Woohoo!
E. 1 Error.
E. 1 Error.

So, I turn the machine on, wait a few seconds, and this error pops up. What could it be? As it turns out, the machine tests out the solenoid at each startup, and uses the optical sensor to ensure that it’s working. If you manually release the arm during startup, the machine won’t detect a problem, and will work just fine.

I also ran all the tests available in the testing and options menus (activated by flipping the 2 DIP switches on the main CPU board to on). The light test showed me that all but 3 of the strength indicator lights were burned out, and the sound test showed me that the person who recorded the english phrases wasn’t a native english speaker – this makes for some hilarious insults if you score low on your punch. Difficulty can be adjusted along with the volume.

What’s Missing:

  • 1 Top Halogen Light Bulb
  • Punchball
  • Solenoid/Electromagnet
  • Coin Acceptor
  • Some Screws + Nuts

What’s Needs Fixing:

  • Plastic Display Holder – It looks like someone took a sledgehammer to it…
  • Buttons – All of them are mismatched, and one’s sticky.
  • Foam Hand Guard
  • Many of the Mini Lightbulbs for the Strength Indicator are burned out
  • Display Board – Wires… Everywhere!
  • Cabinet needs some buffing/TLC
  • Coin/Mech door on the back needs a lock + screws

15 thoughts on “Coney Island Boxer Restoration Project – It Works!

  1. I need to find some parts for my Jakar Boxer and my Kriss Sport Boxer 1…..do you know where I can get them?

    1. Depending on which parts you need, I can point you in the right direction – I’ve found that Jakar parts are really overpriced, and you can usually get away with generic replacements for most of them. Not sure about the Kriss Sport.

  2. This page has been very helpful!! I am curently restoring a Coney island boxer machine myself. Is Coney island NY the only place to order parts?
    also my solenoid went on mine aswell, after the install it worked a couple times but now just makes a buzzing noise and will not release the punching bag. Any ideas what that could be??
    Thanks very much

    1. NY is the only “official” place to order parts from. Novo-Parts (the company on the label on the back of the machine) also sells all the parts, however, there is a minimum order of 100 Euro + VAT (it wasn’t worth it for me). If you need more common parts (ie. punchball, bulbs, cables, speaker, nuts/bolts, etc…), then you’d be much better off buying replacements from other places; for example eBay or an amusement machine parts supplier that carries the Boxer (such as the Playdium Store here in Canada).

      As for the solenoid, try checking the glass fuses on the CPU board with a multimeter. The buzzing noise you hear is the relay (which is on a different circuit) activating the solenoid circuit (the one protected by the fuse) – You’ll hear this noise even if you don’t have a solenoid connected. If the fuse is good, test out your bridge rectifiers (the square blocks with four prongs) with a multimeter as well. If the fuse and your rectifiers are good, try removing the solenoid and testing it with a DC power supply. If the stroke (the middle piece) isn’t sucked in when the rated voltage is applied, then you’ve probably somehow killed your electromagnet. Let me know if this solves the problem :).

  3. Justin,
    I have the same machine I just purchased at auction. I need the “on/off” switch.
    Any ideas where to get it. I have very little invested in this machine so far, I want to start simple as I really have no idea what I’m doing.
    Thanks for any help

  4. First, let me say thank you for compiling all this information into one spot.
    I have been having an ongoing headache about my boxer for about a year now.

    Alberchi went out, got a new one(didnt work) sent it back, they reprogrammed, (then worked for about $5 worth of quarters. Then quit again.

    Because of your post, i ordered a generic coin mech.
    It accepts quarters but only gives credit for the first one.
    Also machine give a credit whenever turned on, regardless if mech is plugged in or not.

    Starting to suspect a board malfunction but can’t see anything obvious.
    Was wondering if you might have any insight On anything I might have over looked.
    I dont want to send my board to coney island to be tested for $200 just to be told i need to pay $900 for a new board.

    Any responce is much appreciated.

    -Kevin

    1. Sounds like you might have a short somewhere (check to make sure wires aren’t crossing at the coin mech connector). Anytime you have things happening on startup that shouldn’t be, it usually means either one of your switches are connected as NC (normally closed), or wires are crossing.

  5. Fantastic detail in here. Thank you. I just received one of these as a gift recently. Fully restored. I was wondering if you had some easy advice/instructions for turning off the coin/pay feature. The company sent some very haphazard instructions. I removed the coin slot, twisted off the large button both on the side and inside. I am told to remove the black wire on one of the wire/bub mechanisms And reinsert it into Another. Its pretty confusing. Have you done this on your or anyone else’s machines by chance?

    1. Hello,

      To enable free play on this machine, you can either set your credits to 99 (for temporary free play), or connect the start button to the coin mech circuit.

      Best,
      Justin

  6. Hi Justin,

    Trying to save a 1993 Zamparala Punch Ball, need a manual or any info you provide would be greatly appreciated. Surprisingly found very little info or even inside pictures. Do not believe there are any PCBs designed into it, just electro-mechanical. However missing two coils and a coin mech.

    Best regards,
    -James

  7. Can you give me a rough idea of what these sell for used? Found one with cosmetic damage and some of the segment lights are not lighting up. Not sure what to offer.
    Thank you..!

  8. im having trouble with having my punch bag drop after pressing the start button. was wondering what can it be? then it says e-1 i sometimes get it to work by tapping the bag after pressing start but it dont drop on its own. what can it be?

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