Neotec 25E Neck Board Creaking/Arcing/Sparking

[PinballGiant]

Any idea would could be causing this sparking on the neck board socket? Neotec 25e.

It's where the wire from the fly back inserts. Chassis was working fine after a recap and new fly back but after being on a couple hours it developed some very subtle horizontal lines and the HOT blew after I adjusted the H frequency on the remote board. I replaced the HOT once thinking it was a cheap eBay part. Monitor energized for a second but HOT blew almost immediately. I next switched all of the metal film safety capacitors from a known working chassis and put in a new HOT since I read those can cause HOT to blow. I also checked the neck board for bad solder joints or bad horizontal frequency pot on both the main board and remote board. I fired it up with new hot and those changes and now it makes this terrible noise. Monitor doesn't energize, but it's not going into shutdown like it was before.

 

[PinballGiant]

Bump

 

[PinballGiant]

Bump

 

[PinballGiant]

weekend bump

 

[luke9511]

pull the neck board and check for anything causing shorts

 

[PinballGiant]

Trying to get back into this one. I know the tube is good because it works with a known working chassis. I just swapped known working neck board with neck board for sparking chassis and the problem persists...seems that the problem is coming from the main board. Any tips appreciated.

 

[JukeboxJon]

Looks like there is lightning by the neck socket, rare but possible bad neck socket, solder bridge that should be there etc, you dont see the lightning near the neck when you turn it on, looks like it to me video is not the best quality

Actually looks like its near the socket but not the actual socket. Good pics of the front and back of the neckboard would help…

 

[PinballGiant]

Thanks for the reply. I'm confident it's coming from where the focus wire from the flyback attaches to the neck socket.

 

[PinballGiant]

Given that swapping neck boards causes it to arc in the same spot it must have something to do with the flyback itself? The flyback was replaced at the same time I did the cap kit and has been working well…

 

[PinballGiant]

Swapped an old flyback from a known working chassis and it fired right up. Diagnosis = bad flyback which took out the HOT. Will need to order a replacement. Frustrating because I had previously replaced the flyback with a brand new one from Arcade Parts and Repair and it seems to have failed for some reason.

 

[JukeboxJon]

Swapped an old flyback from a known working chassis and it fired right up. Diagnosis = bad flyback which took out the HOT. Will need to order a replacement. Frustrating because I had previously replaced the flyback with a brand new one from Arcade Parts and Repair and it seems to have failed for some reason.

Hmm thats rare, but neotecs were known to have shitty flybacks more commonly after being on and adjusted properly they would get really bright or really dull on their own. At least ive heard, personally ive only had one neotec were ive had this happen and that was exactly it.

They are easy to work on chassis but imo neotecs are just B grade a perfectly working neotec never looks as good as a perfectly working Wells Gardner or let alone the holy grail a hantarex polo. Seems like their contrast is always kinds poor, idk just my experience and ive dealt with a lot of them and yes very shitty HOTs replace it with the FJL supermax turbo ultra.