#sync screw issues

[furbytech]

Hi - thank you for making so many helpful guides! I've got a 98 WT Leopard furb that just won't find home. No corrosion in battery compartment.

It looks like the small tongs match up like your guide, but I just can't get him to find the home position. Here's what he looks like at the moment:

I would be super grateful for any advice! Thank you 😀

Clean the sync screw contacts, if you haven't already! Isopropyl alcohol or some contact cleaner on a cotton swab should work, just give the touching surfaces a good scrub. I've occasionally had one so corroded that I had to take a buffing wheel to it, but in a situation like that it will be visibly very corroded.

If it's still not working and you have access to a multimeter with a continuity testing mode, use that to probe along the various solder joints between the contacts and the circuit board. Furbies don't always have the best soldering and it sometimes breaks during shipping. The wires (green and yellow on your Furby) are also pretty fragile, and may have breaks under the insulation. It's not a common problem, but if someone previously did work on your Furby it's a good thing to check.

(if you have a multimeter and don't know if it can test for continuity, check for a setting marked with a filled-in arrow pointing to the right with a line across the tip. Run a search for "diode symbol" if you need a visual!)

[formalfiasco]

after adjusting, readjusting, cleaning the contacts for the sync screw and adjusting again to no avail, i unseated the sync screw’s connecter. lo and behold the connecter is corroded!

[furbytech]

Hello!! I just got a 1998 furby who has two main issues that I don't know how to solve. The biggest one is 50% of the time, it doesnt recognize the batteries at all. I put the same batteries in my other furby and they work every time. The second issue is their tilt sensor doesnt appear to work (which makes waking them up difficult, as they have MSA!). They are an RL and came with no sign of a plastic tag (the paper tag is intact). Do you happen to know how to fix these issues? Thanks in advance!

I forgot to mention! They also have somewhat stiff eyelids and ears, and sometimes their mouth stays open after saying something! I'm guessing these specific issues are related to one another. If you have any tips for these issues as well, they would be very appreciated!! Thanks again!

Hi! It sounds like your furb just needs some electronics cleaned! For the battery issues, you’ll want to clean out the battery compartment as though you were cleaning out corroded batteries (wipe the contacts with vinegar or rubbing alcohol).Dirty tilt sensors are a pretty common problem (and, I think, may be part of what causes MSA) which I already have a guide on! You can check it out right here.The mouth staying open is probably either caused by mild sync issues or motor wear. I’d try cleaning the sync screw first, since it’s pretty simple. If the motor is worn out, it may move more or less than the Furby’s program is “expecting”, and land your furb in the wrong position. In that case, lubricating the motor bearing may be helpful! Lubricating the rest of your furbs gears should help with the stiffness in the eyes and ears, as well.

[furbytech]

I hope it's alright to ask for furby help! My furby seems to be I'm good condition except he's stuck in a permanent wake up dance! The prongs by the sync screw are touching and I've tried slowly loosening and testing bit by bit but he still won't go into 'home' Any idea on what I should do?

Have you tried cleaning the sync screw yet? If not, swab the sides of the contact that touch with isopropyl alcohol or contact cleaner. If that doesn’t work, swab them with a little white vinegar (and then clean up with isopropyl alcohol or water).

[furbytech]

Hey so, i tried to adjust the sync screw as well as cleaned it on my adult furby, but im still not able to get him to do anything other than the wake up dance. Any ideas?

You may want to try re-seating the sync screw’s connector. I have instructions for removing this kind of plug right here (scroll down to the third image)! Just unplug it and then plug it back in- just moving it like that should scrape off any oxidation.

If that doesn’t help, try cleaning the sync screw again! Make sure you’re cleaning the inner parts of the contact too. If it’s still not clean, you might consider lightly scrubbing it with something abrasive- I see baking soda paste recommended a lot for electronics. You’ll just need to scrub the bits that touch!

[furbytech]

Hey, I was wondering if you know if the (1999) baby furbys can go comatose? and if so, are they fixed the same way as the adult furbys? I also have one adult furby that seems to be stuck cycling through all the actions. i know furbys do that after resetting but its supposed to stop after a moment and go back to normal but it just keeps going. Any suggestions? And thanks!!

Yes, Baby Furbies sometimes need to be push-started just like an adult, and the process is exactly the same! It sounds like your other Furby needs it’s sync screw adjusted. I have a guide right here!

[furbytech]

after i sent that last ask, my baby wouldn't respond to anything, so i figured i'd push start her. it was going fine, she turned on, her motor started running, she started going through the range of motions like the guide said she should, except instead of seconds, it went on for about.... three minutes. even then i had to take the batteries out because she started overheating. any ideas on what to do?

Ah, you’ll need to adjust her sync screw! I have a guide on it right here!

[furbytech]

Sync Screw Adjustment

Or, “What does a correctly adjusted sync screw even look like?!”

When furbies do the wake-up dance (usually after putting new batteries in or pressing the reset button), they are searching for the “home” position. The motor runs in one direction, spinning the cam shaft until the nub on one of the gears pushes the sync screw contacts together. This makes sure that the furby is in the right starting position for all of the movements to be correct.

When the contacts are too far apart (the sync screw is too loose so they never touch) or dirty (something is blocking electricity between the contacts), the furby will keep spinning the motor until the batteries are removed, because it can’t find the home position.  When the contacts are too close (the sync screw is too tight so they’re always touching), the furby will stop the wake-up dance short, because it incorrectly thinks it’s in the home position.

I have some image references here, but it’s important to remember that the design of the sync screw area is WILDLY different between individual furbies, based on manufacturing date and factory. Your furby may look different, but they all work the same way.

This is what the furby should look like when it’s not in the home position. The nub on the cam is not touching the reader, and the contacts do not touch.

And this is what it should look like when the furby is in the home position. The home position reader slides up against the nub on the cam, which pushes the non-adjustable contact into the adjustable contact. This is what a correctly adjusted sync screw looks like. This doesn’t have to be terribly precise, and should be fine as long as the contacts touch.

If the sync screw is adjusted correctly and your furby still gets stuck in the wake-up dance, you may need to clean the contacts. Wiping the touching surfaces with rubbing alcohol on a q-tip or cotton pad should clear away debris.

(These images are my own. Please feel free to use them on other sites or in your own guides, but leave a link back to this post near the images if you do so.)