Taking on a Fish Tales pinball repair near Frome was a great reminder of how several small mechanical faults can accumulate on a 90s classic. What initially sounded like a switch problem turned into a hands-on mechanical troubleshooting session across three distinct areas of the cabinet.

When I arrived, the autolauncher was operational, but the ball-lock fishing reel was failing to feed balls during multiball play. Lifting the playfield revealed that the reel drive motor was spinning, but the belt was slipping against the pulley under load. Without a factory belt immediately on hand, I fabricated a shim to increase tension on the drive wheel, eliminating the slip and restoring solid rotational torque.

Next was the iconic animated fish topper, which remained completely lifeless during gameplay. After testing the drive transistors on the auxiliary driver board and finding them fully functional, I inspected the topper assembly directly. One of the coil wire terminals had broken off at the solder lug from years of mechanical vibration. Re-soldering the winding wire directly to the terminal brought the fish thrashing back to life immediately.

A routine board inspection also uncovered compromised alkaline batteries leaking fluid inside the backbox. Fortunately, the previous owner had already installed a remote battery holder, preventing any trace damage to the MPU board. I cleanly desoldered and replaced the corroded holder with a brand-new unit.

To complete the visit, I stripped the high-traffic areas of the playfield, performed a deep chemical clean, applied a protective wax coat, and replaced tired rubbers. The game now plays fast, registers all lock stages, and looks fantastic.

If your machine has developed mechanical faults or needs a thorough revival, feel free to contact me here for an on-site pinball service.