Techno Stuff
How They Work - Search Disc

The most important thing the search disc does is scan for winners. On all game types but the magic screen games, this process is pretty straightforward and reasonably clearly documented in the manual.

surf club
search sequence chart

OK, so what does that mean...well, let's take a look at what needs to happen. When a winner is detected, the search operation needs to stop and payout occurs. In the pic below, current flows from [A] through all that junk and winds up at the following coils at the bottom of the schematic:

• the replay counter step-up (S.U.)
• replay register (number of credits)
• reflex unit step-up
• search index coil
• replay cams index
• sounder (this game has a knocker to make even more noise when you win).
• corners scoring counter. If you win a 4-corners payout, there is a seperate unit for it. This means that corners scoring is independent of in-line scoring (though you'd need at least six balls to get a 3-in-line and 4-corners win at the same time.

A key point for this to all make sense is the score disc to the right of the top [F]. It has three wires going into the top of it. The left wire is the 3-in-line winner, the middle 4-in-line, and the right 5-in-line (e.g. if the middle wire has 50V on it, a 4-in-line winner is detected). As a slight aside, the score disc determines the amount of payout, and the replay counter disc below it stops the payout when that amount has been reached. This is why only one three-in-line winner will score on this game. If the score disc says to pay 64 credits, and the replay counter has already paid 64 credits, then the replay counter is cutting off the circuit and nothing will happen (except a 4 corners score).

surf club
winner search and payout

Let's dispense with the secondary functions of the search disc now. Surf Club has four ways of scoring replays:

Corners scoring

As mentioned above, if the feature is lit, then you can win 200 credits for lighting the four corner numbers on the main card. The C.U. Search Disc box at the lower [F] switches between the two replay counters

Supercard scores

A 3-in-line on the supercards scores as 4-in-line on the main card. The CU Search Disc box above the top [F] switches the winner detected from the 3-in-line circuit to the 4-in-line circuit. The supercard disc and switch at [E] are enabling this. The switch closes when the supercard feature unit is at the top (second supercard lit), the supercard disc circuit closes when the first card is lit.

Superline scores

The superline is a row of five numbers beneath the main card. If this feature is lit, then two adjacent numbers on the superline lit scores 4-in-line, and three adjacent numbers scores 5-in-line. The stuff over at [D] handles this.

Main card scores

We'll look at this on the next page