(added Rockler's shameful response) VS control on lathe acting up

[CarvedTones]

I have had this lathe about 4 years now:

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t=18552

I have been pretty happy with it, but recently the VS control is having troubles. Sometimes when turning it off and back on shortly afterward it doesn't work. Sometimes it takes longer than normal and then works, other times it starts to spin when I give up and power off. So far, it hasn't failed completely but it has me worried. I contacted Rockler support, but there is a wrinkle that worries me about how much they can do. They quit selling the VS model a few months after I got mine. Will see what they have to say, but figured I would post in case someone has a "check this" idea that it may be. I checked all the connections.

BTW, in my original post, I mentioned that it is a near twin to a PSI being sold at the time. Over time, I became more certain that they share nearly all parts. While that PSI model has also been discontinued, they still sell the upgrade kit to change a non VS Turncrafter into a VS:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/TCLVSKIT.html

That is the control box and motor that came with my Rockler, so I have this as a possible fix that gives me a good idea how much to limit repair costs to before it becomes a no brainer to just replace the motor and guts.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Following up on my own post. Reading mostly positive reviews of the upgrade kit, this caught my eye:

On/off switches have gone bad on four of the six kits, requiring replacement parts. Frequently blow sawdust out of switches with compressed air, if possible.

They still gave it 3 of 5 stars because of the cost and convenience. That was from a turning club converting Jets.

 

[randwool]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Depending on the manufacturing quality of the switches and control pots, spraying some contact cleaner into the housings of each should clear out the grime that sheds between the rubbing surfaces causing intermittent conditions. It is doubtful blowing compressed air would do much of anything to solve that problem. In the reports that cite several switches have been replaced to solve the problem, that either verifies the poor switch or users "shotgunning" parts to attempt a repair. This may need to be on your "tool maintenance day" list to respray the switch and pot occasionally.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Thanks; I will have to try that. After I posted that follow up, the more I thought about it, the more I felt certain it is the switch. The symptom of sometimes starting to turn on when I give up and flip it back off, which causes movement inside the switch, is the big clue (I think). Where do you buy electrical contact cleaner?

 

[ehpoole]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

You can get contact cleaner from Radio Shack (Deoxit), or many places online (including Amazon), even some hardware stores.

However, my advice differs a bit... and here is why.

Contact Cleaner's sole purpose and reason for being is to restore "contacts" (hence the term "Contact Cleaner") that have been degraded due to oxidation. If your switch is failing due to oxidation, then Contact Cleaner is precisely the solution you should pursue to address the failing switch.

However, in a shop environment -- or any other high-dust environment -- switches (especially young switches) more often fail due to excessive dust intrusion interfering with proper closure of the switch contacts. If this is the cause of your switch failure, then compressed air is the better solution.

Regardless of which is the cause, compressed air should be used first to ensure the switch is free of debris -- which contact cleaner will do nothing for (it is a wet solution and often ensnares dust and debris) and which will interfere with the contact cleaner. If the compressed air fails, then you try the contact cleaner since the switch is now (hopefully) clear of debris.

And why in that order? Because many contact cleaners contain residual oils which help to protect the contacts against future corrosion (typically a good thing). In a high-dust environment these residual oils are also going to capture and attract dust, potentially worsening the situation rather than improving it (i.e. it will work initially, but down the road the switch will now deteriorate at an accelerated rate due to the residual surface oil attracting new dust). If you do find you need contact cleaner in a high-dust environment, ensure that the contact cleaner is "residue free" and leaves no protective oil film behind. (Note: The Radio Shack contact cleaner is *not* residue free, I checked..)

In just 4 years, corrosion is unlikely to be a major issue with your switch unless you have been storing fertilizers in close proximity to your lathe or they were *severely* substandard even by Chinese standards.

I do agree, though, that the switch is where you should be starting your investigation into this issue and, given your description, is the most likely cause.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

I will try that (air) first. I don't know why I didn't last night before posting but at first I suspected other electronics. I thought I was noticing a pattern of speed at power off causing it to fail to restart and once I disproved that it was getting late (it took a while because when it came on I turned; if these were last gasps I wasn't going to waste them). I did recently router turn a dozen rock maple tubes that generated a lot more dust than usual (walnut, cherry and soft maple tend to mostly generate grass seed sized chips when I router turn them).

 

[aplpickr]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Be careful of some contact cleaners. They can turn your circuit board into garbage. Clean the speed potentiometer with air also.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Compressed air seems to be all it needed; I just pulled the safety tab and blew it out and it has gone about 10 for 10 since (I am not going to flip it on and off until it fails )...

 

[ehpoole]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Compressed air seems to be all it needed; I just pulled the safety tab and blew it out and it has gone about 10 for 10 since (I am not going to flip it on and off until it fails )...

I'm glad to hear there is a very happy ending after the most basic of maintenance, nobody likes to spend shop time repairing tools.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Still 100% since blowing it out. I feel more relieved than stupid (barely ). Thanks again!

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Got a reply from Rockler on this:

I'm sorry to have to inform you that a speed control box is not available for this. These lathes did have a 2 year warranty, but unfortunately the variable speed model was discontinued shortly after it was first introduced and replacements for it are no longer available.

I fixed the link in the first post that shows PSI's listing for a conversion kit that includes the speed control (I had it wrong originally). It bugs me that a Rockler product (it was and is a house brand; they still sell the non VS version) that is a power tool that should last many years is completely unsupported in less than 4 years.

Shame on Rockler! :thumbs_do

The one upside, if there is one, is that at least I am aware that they have dropped support and that the PSI Turncrafter VS is part compatible (also discontinued, but PSI still stocks parts for it because that's good customer service).

 

[Mike Davis]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

If you plan to keep this lathe I would suggest going ahead and buying the replacement part while still available.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

If you plan to keep this lathe I would suggest going ahead and buying the replacement part while still available.

I am considering that. I emailed PSI to ask about getting just the control box as a replacement part. I go back and forth about the long term viability of the lathe for my purposes. Sometimes I wish the slowest speed was slower and sometimes I wish it had more power. But for most of what I do it is fine.

 

[Mike Davis]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

I'm thinking about getting the kit for my second lathe, the little Craftsman 9 x 32.

 

[Vetteman9956]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Sorry Andy, but thats why I don't buy cheap tools. You got 4 years out of a $200 lathe, thats 50 bucks a year. Over the years I have learned that you actually pay more for a cheap tool than a good one because you keep buying it over and over. About 3 years ago, I bought Cathy a great used Jet 1236 lathe for a little over $300 and years from now I know that I can still get what I paid for it back. As for Rockler not supporting it after 4 years, that seems to be the norm. Have you taken your 4 year old TV or DVD player in for repair?, bet you can't get it fixed either. Rockler was responding to a customer requirement for a inexpensive price point lathe and in this case, it wasn't a good idea. Sounds like they figured it out rather quickly if it was discountinued in short order. One thing to keep in mind is the difference in how things are produced. In the US, we build to a quality point and then price it, but the asian manufactures ask the customer what price point they want and then build the quality based on that.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

I'm thinking about getting the kit for my second lathe, the little Craftsman 9 x 32.

Be sure to read the reviews. They line up with what I would say about mine. People generally like it, but it will not go very slow. They claim 650, but it rarely spins under 700 and only does that when under some strain. If you want a VS spindle lathe, it is a nice cheap set up.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Brad,

I got it at that price point by getting up in the wee hours on Black Friday. They sold them for $400, which was not substantially less than competitors. It is actually working fine again after the switch was blown clean, but having contacted Rockler to find out they no longer support it at all makes me nervous. Anyway, it was not advertised or sold as a cheap tool but rather as a good tool that had a door buster special I capitalized on.

EDIT - Sorry if I sound a little defensive, but this was actually one of the times I felt like I did not succumb to the bottom dollar near equivalent. I felt like I was getting a lathe that was on par with most of the name brand VS minis (like Jet, Rikon, Delta, etc) at a substantial savings by being willing to jump through a hoop. They had a large supply on hand and only a few were sold at the door buster price; others were being sold at full price. I still feel it is a good quality lathe; it is only Rockler's decision to stop supporting it that causes me concern, not its quality.

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

For the sake of completeness; PSI called me (their contact form has a field for phone and email) and told me the speed control (their part # ZTCL4-MCB) can be ordered separately for $45. The guy I spoke to told me that they still sell a lot of the upgrade kits, so they should have the parts for some time. I still may get one soon just in case.

 

[ehpoole]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Out of curiosity, was this (part# TCLVSKIT) the conversion kit you were referring to? I'm asking out of curiosity because I could not find one with the model number you quoted.

I was just curious as to what the part in question actually was.

Thanks!

 

[CarvedTones]

Re: VS control on lathe acting up

Out of curiosity, was this (part# TCLVSKIT) the conversion kit you were referring to? I'm asking out of curiosity because I could not find one with the model number you quoted.

I was just curious as to what the part in question actually was.

Thanks!

Yes, that is the kit I linked to earlier. The part number you have to use by calling in or emailing customer service but then you can get just the speed control. It was part "note to self" in case I decide to get one in case or need one if a real problem occurs and partly so if someone else who has an Excelsior is searching for it and finds this thread. It was discontinued within a few months of introduction, but Rockler sold hundreds of them and only a few at the low price I got mine; I still have a hard time believing they would just quit supporting them completely. But they did. I got the impression it was not entirely their idea to stop selling. I had/have a minor cosmetic defect and they were going to swap out with me but they were sold out and on back order for a long time before they cancelled them (and gave me a credit toward accessories for accepting the minor cosmetic issue).