Electronic Repair

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Swagopenturner

Swagopenturner

Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2013
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777
Location
Childress, Texas
I am looking for someone to repair my lathe IC Board. I have a Rikon 70-050VS that burns up the Speed Control/Switch board every few years. I just ordered one from Rikon, but the Service Tech warned me they are no longer made and will run out soon. The resistors seem to overheat and melt, sometimes damaging other components on the board.
I can send an old board to someone who thinks they can replace the damaged components, pay cash, trade 2P-10 CA Glue, or Mesquite, Pecan, or Maple turning blocks.
Any interest?
 
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Good luck. Anyone know who made the lathe? Another brand from the factory might have the part.
Example- had a plastic part on a '66 Olds break. Olds dealer didn't have it. Chevy dealer had a bin full as it was a common GM part for years!
 
For resistors to do that the current through them must be too much, could be a power regulator going depending on the use of the device. Is there a way you could pm a picture of a new board and all the components so the part could be identified would tell me of it could be repaired. I was a bench tech in casinos in Vegas and Reno for a long time and have the skills needed to replace and troubleshoot component issues.
Jerry
 
The resistors can be replaced by larger wattage resistors. The Fan idea is a good one. Small fans from computers are mostly 12V Direct Current. Is there a reversing switch on the lathe? How is it wired? Do many wires go to the switch?
Do the resistors have wires coming out of the ends? Surface mount components (no Wires) are more difficult to repair / replace.

A closeup photo of the damage can be helpful.


Swagopenturner said:
The resistors seem to overheat and melt, sometimes damaging other components on the board.
Click to expand...
 
I will get a photo of the old and new boards side by side as soon as Rikon sends me one. There is no vent holes or fan on the black box housing the PC board. It only has a 110v power cord in and a power cord to the motor out. It is not a reversing lathe, just VS. There is a fuse mounted on the box, but has never blown on either the original or the current ones. I may buy some extras as soon as I gather up the $. As far as the manufacturer, Rikon says they are it. Granted the lathe is from Taiwan, I have not seen any that look similar. How about one of those Router speed control units? Any idea if they would work as well? (https://www.rockler.com/router-spee..._term=rockler&utm_content=Entire Site#reviews)
 
Mark; There is a site that can repair these DC drive controllers. He mostly does the controllers for 7x metale lathes. These have a DC motor and drive controller similar to the one you have. You might want to send him an email. DC Controller repair
 
Latest update: After talking to a junior tech at Rikon, they sent me a new control box. Not the same one as before, but "The same just a different color box". First it was sent to an address I lived at two years ago, not my current one. Got that straightened out. The box arrived with the screw terminals where the AC in is supposed to be attached, missing from the board! Called the Senior Tech and spoke to him. He is sending out a replacement box. The replacement will be from one of their new 1hp lathes. Not only does it have bigger resistors, but reversing and digital RPM readout as well. The box is also a direct plug and play replacement - no rewireing or soldering! The tech thinks it has been the use of large Forstner bits and my 12" sanding disc that may have led to the boards melting. The 70-050VS only has a 1/2 hp motor and it may have been overloaded! Imagine that! So my next step after getting the new box installed and the lathe running is to look for a bigger motor.
POINT 1: Always talk to the senior tech, especially when the questions are about a discontinued machine.
POINT 2: Never overwork your machines.
POINT 3: Always try to keep working with the service tech or customer support. They do not want to lose you as a customer and will bend over backwards to fix your problem.
POINT 4: If you see your machine is being phased out, consider purchasing some backup replacement parts before they are all gone.

BOTTOM LINE: I will continue buying Rikon tools just because of their great customer service and tech support.
 
I think its not uncommon for manufacturers to put under-rated VS controls on equipment to save a few dollars. I worked on a pocket folder gluing machine years back that kept overheating the drive. Come to find out they had installed half horsepower boards to run one horsepower motors. Of course with such genius designers that wasnt the only issue with that machine and I eventually refused to run anything else on it because of quality control problems.
 
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