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★ Smart Pachinko & Smart Pachislot shipped worldwide from Japan — 7-day arrival warranty, English support, plain-box delivery
★ Smart machines shipped worldwide · 7-day warranty

Coin Feeder & No-Coin Setup

Coin Feeder & No-Coin Setup — Complete Specification

Everything overseas buyers need to know about how Japanese pachislot and pachinko machines work at home — without buying medals or 10,000 steel balls.

TL;DR — Every pachislot machine we ship to you plays at home out of the box. Traditional pachislot ships with our Silver coin-less unit pre-installed (removable connector — switch back to medal play any time). Smart Pachislot is already coin-less by design (no unit needed). Pachinko ships with 30 balls (enough to test); for hall-like play we recommend buying additional balls on eBay or adding a Circulation Lifter. Every machine is pre-wired for 100V-120V — USA buyers plug directly into the wall outlet, no transformer needed.

1. What does "coin-less" actually mean?

Japanese pachislot machines were designed for pachinko halls, where players exchange real cash for medals at a kiosk, feed those medals into the machine, and exchange the medals back for cash at the end. At home, buying and storing 1,000+ medals is impractical — so we install a coin-less unit (コイン不要機) that bypasses the medal slot entirely. It sends an electronic signal to the machine for every "credit" you want to add.

The exact behavior depends on the machine type you order:

Machine type Default coin-less setup Switch to real medals/balls? Data counter output?
Traditional Pachislot Silver coin-less unit pre-installed Yes — unplug Silver, reconnect original medal-slot connector From main body (standard)
Smart Pachislot (スマスロ) No coin-less unit needed (already coin-less from factory) N/A — machine has no medal slot From Smart Pachislot Unit (default-installed)
Traditional Pachinko 30 steel balls included (sufficient to test, not hall-realistic) Yes — balls are the native medium From main body (standard)
Smart Pachinko (スマパチ) No balls needed (already ball-less from factory) N/A — machine has no ball trays From Smart Pachinko Unit (default-installed)

2. How the Silver coin-less unit works (Traditional Pachislot)

Our default Silver unit is installed at the factory and connects to either your machine's 1BET button or the Settlement (精算) button. To play:

  1. Power on the machine
  2. Press the connected button (1BET or Settlement) — one short press adds 1 credit
  3. To fill credits quickly, long-press the button — credits will count up automatically to 50 (maximum)
  4. Play as normal — pull the lever / press start, stop the reels in sequence
  5. No physical medals are inserted or paid out — everything is handled by signal

Coin balance is not "real" — there are no physical medals entering or leaving the machine. The coin-less unit simulates the medal flow electronically. Bonus payouts increase your displayed credit; spins decrement it. Your machine never runs out of "medals" as long as you can press the credit button.

Switching back to real medal play

If you ever want to play with real Japanese medals (or sell the machine to someone who does), the Silver unit is connector-based — simply unplug it and reconnect the machine's original medal-slot connector. No tools required.

3. Coin-less tier hierarchy — Silver, Gold, Platinum

We sell three tiers of coin-less unit. Silver is the default on every traditional pachislot machine; Gold and Platinum are optional upgrades.

Default

Silver

Coin-less, removable
  • Connector-based — removable any time
  • Manual credit insertion via 1BET or Settlement button
  • Short press = 1 credit; long-press fills to 50
  • Full data counter output
  • Included by default — no extra charge

Gold

Coin-less + auto-play
  • Everything Silver does, plus:
  • Built-in auto-play — machine spins continuously without manual lever press
  • Same removable connector design
  • Recommended for collectors who watch sessions hands-free

Platinum

Coin-less + auto-play + remote
  • Everything Gold does, plus:
  • Wireless remote control — start, stop, and credit operations from across the room
  • Useful for display setups in larger rooms or game lounges

Note on Bronze — A Bronze tier exists in the Japanese market: it is hardwired/soldered directly into the machine and cannot be removed, making the machine permanently coin-less. We do not sell Bronze. Every coin-less pachislot we ship is Silver or higher, preserving your option to return to real medal play later.

Adding auto-play later

If you order a machine with Silver (default) and later want auto-play without upgrading the entire unit, the Auto-Play Unit is sold as a separate add-on. Contact us — we'll configure it for your specific machine model.

4. Pachinko: balls, A-Controller, and the Circulation Lifter

Pachinko works differently because the physical medium is 11mm steel balls — not medals. The coin-less concept applies to pachinko as the A-Controller, but the default setup is different:

Default ball quantity: 30

Every traditional pachinko machine we ship includes 30 steel balls — enough to verify the machine functions and play a few rounds, but not enough for a hall-like session.

For hall-like play, you'll want 10,000+ balls. Pachinko balls are heavy (1.0g each, ~10kg for 10,000 balls), which makes shipping additional balls from Japan expensive. We recommend buying additional pachinko balls on eBay — domestic US/EU sellers list bulk pachinko balls at much lower shipping costs than we can offer from Japan. Search "pachinko balls bulk" or "11mm steel balls".

Option 1: A-Controller (signal-based ball insertion)

The A-Controller is the pachinko equivalent of our coin-less unit. It simulates ball insertion by sending an electronic signal to the machine. Press a button = the machine treats it as if you inserted 1 ball. Press the auto button = the machine receives a continuous signal stream — the machine plays continuously without you doing anything, and all payouts are handled by signal.

The A-Controller is not default-included. It is sold as a separate option. Contact us for current pricing.

Option 2: Circulation Lifter (循環リフター)

The Circulation Lifter is a mechanical add-on that automatically returns balls from the lower payout tray back to the upper tray — so you can play continuously without manually scooping balls.

Important pairing — When using a Circulation Lifter, we recommend setting the machine to "賞球なし" (no-payout mode). In this mode, the payout signal is handled electronically rather than physically dispensing balls. With "賞球あり" (payout mode) plus a Lifter, the machine may dispense balls faster than the Lifter can recirculate them, triggering machine errors.

The trade-off: with Lifter + 賞球なし you get smooth uninterrupted play, but you lose the visual spectacle of balls pouring into the tray. To get the full hall-like ball-spectacle experience, you need 賞球あり + no Lifter + 10,000+ balls.

Volume control

Every machine includes a built-in volume knob — physically turn the knob to adjust sound level. This is not a separate option.

5. Smart Pachinko & Smart Pachislot — already plug-and-play

The Smart format (introduced in late 2022) eliminates the need for any of the above setup work. Smart Pachislot has no medal slot from the factory; Smart Pachinko has no physical ball trays. Both arrive ready to play — just plug in and switch on.

Smart machines do not output data from the main body. Instead, the Smart Pachislot Unit / Smart Pachinko Unit handles data output — and we install the data-output-enabled unit by default on every Smart machine we ship.

6. Power & voltage — USA is plug-and-play

Every machine we ship is modified at our atelier to accept 100V to 120V AC input. This is wider than the original Japanese 100V-only specification.

Country / region Wall voltage Transformer needed?
USA, Canada 110V – 120V No — plug directly into wall outlet
Mexico, parts of South America 110V – 120V No — plug directly
UK, Germany, EU, Australia 220V – 240V Yes — step-down transformer required (we sell one)
Japan 100V No (native voltage)

For 220V countries, see our step-down transformer. Rated for 500W minimum, tested with our specific machines.

7. Frequently asked questions

How many credits can I have at one time on the Silver coin-less unit?

The maximum is 50 credits, matching the Japanese hall standard. Long-press the connected button to fill from 0 to 50 automatically. Short-press adds 1 credit at a time.

Which button on the machine triggers the coin-less unit?

Either the 1BET button or the Settlement (精算) button, depending on which connector we use at the factory. The behavior is the same — press to add 1 credit, long-press to fill to 50.

Can I play with real Japanese medals instead?

Yes. The Silver coin-less unit is connector-based — unplug it and reconnect the machine's original medal-slot connector. You'll need real medals (sold separately, available on eBay or specialty Japanese retailers).

Do Smart Pachislot machines need a coin-less unit?

No. Smart Pachislot is coin-less by design — the medal slot doesn't exist on these machines. You plug in and play.

Does my US 110V outlet work, or do I need a transformer?

You do not need a transformer in the USA. Every machine we ship is pre-modified to accept 100V-120V input. Plug it directly into a standard US wall outlet.

How many pachinko balls do I really need?

For a hall-like experience: 10,000+ balls. The 30 balls included with the machine are sufficient to confirm the machine works, but for actual play sessions you'll want more. Pachinko balls are heavy, so additional balls shipped from Japan are expensive — we recommend buying balls on eBay from a domestic US/EU seller for much lower shipping costs.

What is the difference between Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum coin-less units?

The differences are removability and auto-play features. Bronze is hardwired (not removable) — we do not sell Bronze. Silver is connector-based (removable any time) — this is our default. Gold adds built-in auto-play. Platinum adds auto-play plus wireless remote control. All four tiers have full data counter output.

How do I add data output to a Smart machine?

It's already there. Smart Pachislot and Smart Pachinko output their data through the Smart Pachislot Unit / Smart Pachinko Unit, which we install with data-output enabled by default.

What happens if I just want auto-play but already ordered Silver?

You can purchase an Auto-Play Unit as a separate add-on after the fact. We'll configure it to work with your specific machine model — contact us by email or Messenger when you're ready to add it.

Can I use a Circulation Lifter with any pachinko machine?

Yes, but we strongly recommend pairing the Lifter with "賞球なし" (no-payout signal mode). In this mode the machine handles payouts via electronic signal rather than physically dispensing balls — the Lifter then keeps the upper tray topped up smoothly. With "賞球あり" + Lifter, payouts can overwhelm the Lifter's recirculation speed and trigger errors.

See machines in action

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for setup walkthroughs and machine demos — @apachinkoworld on YouTube.

See also — Want to display real-time stats above your machine like a Japanese hall? See our Data Counters & Data Lamps page for all available units (Data-tarou, Vega, Elecs, Panela, BigWooz, A-Counter, and more).

Still have questions?

Our English-speaking team in Okayama answers via email or Facebook Messenger before you order. We can recommend the right machine + coin-less setup for your home.

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