MetalworkingFun Forum

The second ground lead also looks to be holding on by crimped insulation! If it were me I would check them all.

I think you are on the right track regarding the safety switches. I'd isolate each and test it or short them out (assuming they are standard NO switches). However, this is just me and I'm not advocating that others work on power circuits (you know, the usual legal/safety stuff).

Actually - forget everything I have said and call the company back up and tell them what you have found and ask (demand) that they fix it. Tell them that you are concerned for your personal safety and how your wife would kill you if your house caught fire due to their shoddy wiring.

Either way - I would take the time to map the wires out and complete the incomplete wiring diagram, just in case you need to consult it again into the future.

  Those are some $hitty crimps. Also, they should be using either ring terminals or the locking type spade terminal. Especially on the high voltage wiring. Any chance of you taking a picture of the wiring diagram and posting it? I'm guessing it's probably like the one in my lathe manual, and I use that term lightly. Mine doesn't have a wiring diagram but what's called a ladder diagram which is intended to show current flow and not necessarily how it's wired up.

Here's a reasonably decent, brief description of the differences between a ladder diagram and a wiring diagram, if anyone is interested.

http://www.automatedbuildings.com/news/s...brese.html

Ed

In my opinion, the crimp is just to hold the wire in place for soldering.

Tom, I may have misunderstood you but if one were to crimp the extended plastic insulation and then try to solder the connector and wire, the plastic would melt and create a sloppy mess of goo.
Crimp fittings are solderless and work fine, provided they are crimped properly and not like the ones shown in Arvid's pics.

You can solder the insulated ones Steve but it just takes a big iron or a torch so you can solder them quick before it makes a mess. I prefer to use the bare ones and insulate with shrink tubing if necessary, like I did on the controller for my anodizing bench.

Tom

Soldering crimped terminals that use stranded wire is a big no-no in the electronics field. The stranded wire needs to remain flexible otherwise it will break easier and by soldering it you make the stranded wire into a solid wire and it can't handle much flexing and will likely break.

Ed

The safety circuit may also involve the chuck key being in its holder?

In Aerospace, connections are always crimped never ever soldered.

Re the ladder diagram link: Amazing that an article on diagrams doesn't include any!!

(11-21-2014, 06:08 PM)TomG Wrote: [ -> ]You can solder the insulated ones Steve but it just takes a big iron or a torch so you can solder them quick before it makes a mess. I prefer to use the bare ones and insulate with shrink tubing if necessary, like I did on the controller for my anodizing bench.

Tom

trick to crimping the terminals is to throw the parts store crimper/strippers away and get yourself a damn good pair of Sta-Con crimpers made for the terminals that you use.



they make them for both insulated and uninsulated


I carried a pair like the ones in the photo for close to 20 years without wearing them out of the joint springing, still have em 

DA

In England, we call those "bodger's crimps", you can't inspect.them properly and most get crimped with sidecutters so they're halfway cut through the ferrule and all the way through the insulation...
Bare terminals, ratchet crimpers (I have a whole toolbox full, upwards of a dozen for different terminals) and clear slide-on boots is the way to go :-)

It runs!!

An email from Matt suggested the following:

• Check the gear cover safety switch ... if the lathe has one ... he could not remember.
  
• Check the foot brake switch.
  
• Check the spindle shield switch.
  

There is no gear cover safety switch.

I removed a cover an started with the foot brake switch.

[attachment=9552]

[attachment=9553]

Upon inspection ... a task that does not seem to be in the manufacturer's repertoire] ... I found that the switch would close only about 40% of the time the foot brake was released. "Well just turn the bolt and re-adjust the Allen bolt." As I put a wrench on the lock nut the bolt and nut fell out of the doughnut. They were lucky it worked even 40% of the time as the bolt was not even screwed in and there was only one bolt thread sticking out of past the lock nut.

I loosened up the set screw on the doughnut and pulled the doughnut off the shaft. Next was to actually screw the Allen bolt into the doughnut and lock it down. Finally re-install the doughnut on the shaft, adjust it so the Allen bolt would close the switch and then tightened the doughnut set screw.

Plugged it back in and the spindle rotates. A sigh of relief and Bev is no longer wondering if I had made a mistake.

On to mounting the DRO head to the top of the lathe. Removed the DRO from the box and ... what is that noise? Turn the DRO head in any direction and something inside the head would rattle inside the case to what I am assuming is the low spot.

Oh Darn!! [this is a family board so ...]

I will give Matt at Precisions Mathews credit in that he does answer his emails on Saturdays and does agree to reasonable solutions. I sent an email describing the rattle and my concern that if it is something metallic it might not be good for the electronics. I indicated that I was willing to take the back of the DRO head but doing so would require me to destroy the "No user serviceable parts inside" warranty sticker or I'd pack it up and he could have UPS pick it up and send me a new one.

He responded that he would be good for the warranty even if the sticker has been violated and I should open it up.

[attachment=9554]

Not exactly sure what it was but I can certify that it is now trash. I put everything back together and mounted the DRO.

Following Darren and Ed's suggestions I checked the other crimped connections on the DRO power cord. At least they are consistent. 3 disfunctional insulation crimps out of 3 attempts.

[attachment=9555]

I'm now off to hardware store to get new connectors. Assuming I can do a better job than they did I will declare that "it is now a lathe that runs" rather than "a collection of things that confirm the law of gravity is still in effect" and start a new thread over in the Lathe forum.

Thanks to everyone that is following this thread and offering help, suggestions and encouragement during this this adventure.