It seems like the xe validators I've had serviced recently aren't as reliable as they used to be. They seem to have some issues with the bills going into the validator. When I inspected one last week, I noticed it had o-ring style belts, not the flat ones im used to seeing. Whats the scoop on the oring style belts?
xe validator o-ring style belts???
- Thread starter waright
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cwguy.com
The Eric
I personally like Hamilton changer the best.... But I use to bad mouth Rowe bill acceptors non-stop on my blog. Tim from Rowe.... informed me that all my BA-50 bill acceptors were being serviced with non-Rowe parts. So Tim and the Rowe people serviced my BA-50 acceptors with genuine Rowe parts and my BA-50 bill acceptors worked like they were brand new!
Basically just sending a bill acceptor to a serve location does not mean you are getting a decent service. My service place was also recommended to me..... I did not shop around for the lowest price either.
Plus o-rings would not even fit correctly on the wheels right?
Basically just sending a bill acceptor to a serve location does not mean you are getting a decent service. My service place was also recommended to me..... I did not shop around for the lowest price either.
Plus o-rings would not even fit correctly on the wheels right?
cwguy.com
The Eric
I agree with MEP001.... you should post who serviced your acceptor. I wish someone told me my service location was bad.
xcel electronics. I cant say for sure if they put the o-ring style belts on or if they were already on the validator. I had never seen these oring style belts and was wondering if they are a problem. BTW I have used both xcel Chicago and las vegas, and other vendors. I prefer xcel Chicago and will still use them. There service has always been great. Does anybody know if this style of belt is new and recommended or aftermarket and not recommended.
I.B. Washincars
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The Eric
What belts are we talking about? Are we talking about the drive belts? If so do they replace the wheels?
I.B. Washincars
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My XEs do not have flat belts like the ones in your picture. They are round like a rope. When not installed, they would look like a big o-ring.
cwguy.com
The Eric
I think this is an interesting topic.... It seems like a bad idea to use o-ring? But I have never used a XE validator or any Hamilton acceptor.
So do they replace the wheels?
According to the Hamilton manual dated 7/21/2011.... which is old. The drive belt part number is 46-8592. http://www.hamiltonmfg.com/downloads/manuals/validators/101-0079.pdf
KR sells the 46-8592 $4.26 belts and 46-8613 $1.26 O-Ring Drive Belts. So I guess they are new.
http://car-wash.kleen-ritecorp.com/search?w=DRIVE BELT, XE
About 3 years ago Hamilton started using the “O” ring type belt on the XE validators. They found that the flat belt was causing problems with bill acceptance and when the validator was cold or sat on the shelf for an extended amount of time the flat belts would take a set and become egg shaped, this caused a lot of problems with the motor making a grinding noise. It’s my understanding that Hamilton still has a limited supply of the flat belts for the XE validators, but they are gone all XE validators will have the “O” ring belt. XE validators that are sold today will come with the “O” belt unless the flat belts are requested.
I.B. Washincars
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It's just a different type of belt. It doesn't replace anything.
mrfixit
Member
Lol, i just got one seviced and it came back with a two oring belt on each side!
I was like wth is this.. Looks like potential for them to bind up and come off track.. Same wheels are used. I have spare belts here, but decided to give it a try.. Two weeks and havent had a problem yet.. Knock on wood i guess. We shall see, I'll post if i have to pull them.. Looked like a cheap cop out, but the belts are pretty cheap but not as cheap as an oring from the hardware store i guess. I haven't called excel but thoughy it may be something that has potential to work better for all i know... And reading randys post.. the belts can slip on bills when it gets dirty, so..
The best thing for the xe is to clean the eyes weekly to keep it accepting bills on the first try. Seems after a good rain they always need to be cleaned within a day or two.
I was like wth is this.. Looks like potential for them to bind up and come off track.. Same wheels are used. I have spare belts here, but decided to give it a try.. Two weeks and havent had a problem yet.. Knock on wood i guess. We shall see, I'll post if i have to pull them.. Looked like a cheap cop out, but the belts are pretty cheap but not as cheap as an oring from the hardware store i guess. I haven't called excel but thoughy it may be something that has potential to work better for all i know... And reading randys post.. the belts can slip on bills when it gets dirty, so..
The best thing for the xe is to clean the eyes weekly to keep it accepting bills on the first try. Seems after a good rain they always need to be cleaned within a day or two.
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The Eric
They even sell them cheap.
Also sounds like how I would fix the acceptor right before the weekend.
I thought the wheels were replaced and only one o-ring.Hamilton has been making acceptors for 30+ years? They have also used the same basic belts? Then decided to discontinue support for other bill acceptors and change these belts to o-rings around 3 years ago?
my concerns with the belt style began when I put a freshly serviced validator into an acw. I could never get it to accept a bill. the bill would go in about 80 percent of the way, then the belts/ wheels would begin chattering. I tried the validator in several different machines, but could never get it to work. I sent back to repair center and they said no issues found. So I tried it again and within 2 bills, it was chattering when the bill was about 80 percent installed. I really needed the validator this time, thanks to some jackass that stuck a prybar into the old validator, so I broke the warranty seal and tried to adjust the validator myself. I got It working for about a day. The oring belts seem so loose, I just don't know how to properly tighten them. I finally took the flat belts off the bent up validator and installed them on the oring belted validator and it has been working flawlessly for 3 weeks now. Anyway, thanks for all the comments.
The problem you are describing is related to the drive train in the validator. The “chattering” is from the belt on the drive motor. When the belts don’t turn the motor will chatter. You don’t ever want to try and adjust the belts, they are set to certain tolerance, by trying to tighten the belts your putting more pressure on the drive shaft and it will make the belts harder for the motor to turn the belts and then you’ll get “chattering”. You should ALWAYS install a piece of equipment after it’s come back from repair, it may or may not work, damaged in shipping etc.
I got an interesting call yesterday. This guy calls and said his validator in his pay station wasn’t taking money. I asked him what kind of validator it was, he said it is a Hamilton. Ok what model is it, I don’t know he said. He opened up his ACW and tells me it a HVX dated 2001. I tell him he needs to buy a new validator, I tell him to install a Mars validator and how much they cost, WOW that’s pretty expensive. He asks if I have anything cheaper, I tell him I’ve got nice recon XE validator for $450. No way he said that’s too much. I told him to think about it and call me back. I wonder how much money he’s lost from customers who can’t get the validator to accept any money. I get calls like this at least 3 times a week, mostly from laundromats. A lot of people don’t understand the importance of keeping their bill and credit card validation equipment at perk working over, all they seem to care about is what it costs.
I.B. Washincars
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It's the most important part of the most important part of your car wash. Of course you should get by as cheap as you can...
This reasoning reminds me of back in the days when I worked for my dad in the lawn and garden eq. store. I was at a service school for a brand of chain saw that we sold. Bar and chain oil was brought up and several guys so no problem with using used motor oil for this purpose. The instructor just shook his head and stated "If it's good enough to lube that bar and chain you paid a hundred bucks for, why did you take it out of your car?"
This reasoning reminds me of back in the days when I worked for my dad in the lawn and garden eq. store. I was at a service school for a brand of chain saw that we sold. Bar and chain oil was brought up and several guys so no problem with using used motor oil for this purpose. The instructor just shook his head and stated "If it's good enough to lube that bar and chain you paid a hundred bucks for, why did you take it out of your car?"
JimmyFetner
New member
Hi, Do any of y'all have any links to youtube videos or phone numbers of any technicians who may be willing to service old Hamilton HVX validators? I actually have 4 of them so I should be able to use some of them for parts so I looked on youtube but couldn't really find a good video.
Or do you think I should go through the manual and try to DIY? I am super handy and fix all my own equipment at our business and some of the stuff is similar but if there is a place I can simply send off and get back a good one I can use as a backup obviously I would pay a premium to save that time.
Thanks so much, I sure do appreciate y'all!
Or do you think I should go through the manual and try to DIY? I am super handy and fix all my own equipment at our business and some of the stuff is similar but if there is a place I can simply send off and get back a good one I can use as a backup obviously I would pay a premium to save that time.
Thanks so much, I sure do appreciate y'all!
There are no YouTube videos on how to repair your HVX or XE validator because Hamilton will only sell repair parts to a Hamilton service center. The XE validator replaced the HVX over 20 years ago, you might as well toss the HVX validator into the dumpster, there aren’t any parts that are interchangeable between the 2 validators. The only bill that the HVX validator accepts is the dollar bill, it won’t accept anything else, they aren’t upgradable. I’ve got a few XE validators that work well that I’d part with if you need a spare validator.
JimmyFetner
New member
Hi Randy, can you please PM me your info? I was able to get one of the old HVX validators up and running again so I have a back up but I know my new XE will go down eventually and the HVX probably won't last very long. I would like to talk to you about buying one of the XE's you have. I sure apprreciate your advice!
