[Jewelry making - Article 00524] - Re: [Orchid] Degussa Motorcast

[Peter W . Rowe]

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>         Is there something I am missing here? 

    I don't know the machine in question, but from that description, I'd
    guess an electrical switch or relay isn't switching.  Might be a bad
    switch,  such as a sticking internal contact, or just as likely, it
    might be just that the contacts have gotton dirty or slightly
    corroded, or some such.  If the button switch can be disassembled,
    you can clean the contacts, which should help if it's the culprit.
    Take care not to remove any lubrication that may be on moving parts
    of a switch.   if it's sealed, you can still try some spray contact
    cleaner (from Radio shack).  If that doesn't work, then perhaps it's
    time to replace the switch, if it's the faulty componant.  The other
    possibility is that the button switch drives a relay which drives
    the motor.  This is a common, and likely, situation if the motor
    takes significant power, since many types of small switches don't
    like to switch large loads.  Relays can go bad, or stick, and often
    are just plugged into a socket, which makes them easy to replace.  If
    these two obvious possibilities aren't the problem, then it may take
    someone with a bit more experience in troubleshooting to find the
    trouble.   Actual failures are easier to find than the type of
    intermittant problem you describe. they can be due to either the
    switches, as discussed, sticking at times, or it can be loose
    connections, perhaps from thermal stresses (you ARE, after all,
    warming up at least parts of the machine with your torch, not to
    mention the electrical heating that occurs in use.),  or any of a
    number of other, sometimes more difficult to find problems.   One
    other thing to check would be motor brushes.  If they've worn down a
    lot, it might be that at certain rotational positions of the motor
    shaft, the brushes don't quite make good contact any more, so if the
    motor is at that position, it won't start, while at others, it
    would. Check the brushes if this is a motor type that uses them.  (It
    probably is). 

Good luck.
Peter Rowe


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