Band Saw Starter Problem


Dknapp34

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I picked up a Grizzley G1012 band saw on craigslist and I'm having trouble with the starter.  I tested the band saw before I bought it and it worked fine.  In order to remove the base to transport it, I disconnected the wires from the motor to the switch.  I wrote down which wires went where, and, after getting the saw back in my shop, I reconnected the wires in exactly the same place as they were before.  Now, when I push the 'on' button, nothing happens.  As show in the picture with the cover over the starter removed, the 'on' and 'off' buttons are in the lower left ('on' is on top, and 'off' is on the bottom).  There is also a button in the upper right (in the middle of the white label).  When I push that button, the saw starts.  When I release it, the saw stops.  Regardless of whether that button is pressed or not, however, neither the 'on' nor 'off' buttons do anything. 

 

I had an electrician come and wire a 220v outlet for the saw, and the motor works fine when the upper right button is pressed, so I assume that the problem is with the wiring of the starter switch.

 

Can anyone help me out?  As I'm sure you can tell from my post, I know next to nothing about electrical wiring, so if you have an answer, please dumb it down to a level that even a neanderthal woodworker could understand. . .

 

Thanks! 

 

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It won't be fun, but one look at this shows that Grizzly is still using the same type of equipment. This saw has a control panel yours does not. Their base saws do not use magnetic switches. Somewhere between the two, about 80 pages into the manual is going to be a sheet like this that will likely help you.

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Thanks for the advice guys!  I'm going to try to take a look at this again tonight after work.  I've got a meter, so I will check the coil terminals, as TripleH recommends.  I'll keep you posted with the results and try to post some better pictures.  Crossing my fingers I don't need a new switch, since the only reason I picked this saw up was because it was cheap.  Spending another $100 would be pretty frustrating.

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One other note… For reasons beyond scope, half the coil is supplied from the T-side of the controls (it’s a safety thing)… I’m taking it as gospel that you replaced the motor wiring exactly as it was… If you didn’t… Note: just because the saw runs with the override, doesn’t mean that the motor is wired correctly – it just means that the motor isn’t wired completely incorrectly…

 

 

A note for those who follow: If you’re going to do something as daft as remove wires without the knowledge to return them to their proper positions with just a wiring diagram, then here are some steps to avoid the ensuing f*up:  take a photo or three of the terminals pre-removal from several angles, use blue-tape on each lead and label it with the terminal it came from and cover the bundle with a baggie to prevent the blue-tape from coming unstuck… If two leads are on the same terminal, twist them together and label as such…

 

 

Back to the problem at hand… If the coil isn’t open (or say over 2K), then we’ll verify L->T (toothpicks usually required)…

 

 

After that, it’s probably a wiring error... Actually, considering the saw worked AOK before you touched the wiring and doesn't work AOK after, maybe we should start there... But the coil is so simply to test, we might as well eliminate it... Note: the coil and NO wires are separate from the line/load and thermal wiring, but they are connected inside the box (usually at the NO terminals). It's common to jog one (or more) of these small gauge wires loose when torquing the L and T lugs -- that's why you need multiple good photos prior to taking screwdriver to the controls... So you could have returned the motor wires correctly, but failed to notice the small coil and/or switch wiring that got disturbed...

 

 

If there's no wire diagram on the inside of the box (and you can't find one else ware), then it's time for the electrician... It’s very easy to diagnose (will take probably two minutes), but the power has to be on and we'd be jumping terminals -- not going there...

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I think its being way over complicated. If all you did was split the saw only three wires should have been disconnect L1 L2 and ground. The power cable going from wall to machine should still be wired as it was when you tested the saw. One goes to the thermal overload the other goes to T1 and  ground can go anywhere grounded. If you can power the saw by pushing the manual coil  button you have to have power on L1 through the thermal overload and power through the coil. This means you are locked out via the coil side. 9 times out of ten the on button is not triggering the coil. This usually is a sign that the on button is dead, coil is bad or stuck.

 

Looking at the photo the ON button appears to be broken. The motor capacitor can also lock you out on the coil side via thermal protection. The way to test this is to unplug the saw and hit the test button for the thermal overload, it should trip the breaker (grey button) disconnecting the motor capacitor that may have residual voltage stored. Last test is to disconnect power, trip the TO and rap the box with a mallet.  If this does not work and all you did was disconnect and reconnect the three motor wires you will need to buy a new switch and If I'm correct that the end of the on button is actually broken you will need a new switch anyways.

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TripleH - the only wires I disconnected were the red, black and ground wires at bottom of the picture.  I didn't touch any of the wires at the motor.  Although I am "daft" when it comes to some things, as I said in my initial post, I was careful to write down which wires went where, and I reconnected them in the exact same position as they were in before I disconnected them.   

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TripleH - the only wires I disconnected were the red, black and ground wires at bottom of the picture.  I didn't touch any of the wires at the motor.  Although I am "daft" when it comes to some things, as I said in my initial post, I was careful to write down which wires went where, and I reconnected them in the exact same position as they were in before I disconnected them.   

 

As I stated above those wires are only L1 and L2 even if you hook them up backwards from where they were it would still function properly.

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So if it's not the wiring, then it's probably the coil or switch -- which is what we all started with... :)

 

I've been playing with the new release of lightroom and lightened the shadows on the photo -- think PB could be on to something -- the plastic end of the push button looks odd, as if it's sheared-off -- but that would be odd if you transported the saw with the cover on the controls...

 

Can you plug-in the saw, leave the cover off the controls and hit the plastic start button... It that's it, then a little epoxy will get you there... If not, test the coil...

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Can you plug-in the saw, leave the cover off the controls and hit the plastic start button... It that's it, then a little epoxy will get you there... If not, test the coil...

 

I tried that initially when I was trying to figure out what the problem was, and the start button did nothing when I pressed it.  The only way to get the saw to turn on was to push the button in the middle of the white label.  I haven't had a chance to get down in the basement and test out anything else yet, but hopefully this weekend I will have some time (having a 1 year old really cuts into my shop time).  I'll keep you posted with what I find.  Thanks again for everyone's suggestions!

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Well, we should start with the switch anyway... PB’s right, after I lightened the photo, the top of the switch looks off – could just be years of use... Let’s verify continuity when the switch is pushed... From there, we’ll test the coil... We’re 90% going to end-up at the same place – a new switch, but it never hurts to save a couple hundred...

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Ok, so when I put a meter to the black wire above the 'on' button and the black wire below the 'off' button and pushed the manual override button, it read hot.  When I checked the middle black wire with either the top or the bottom black wires, nothing.

 

I've attached some additional pics, to the extent it helps.

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Oh how I hate combo switches... Nothing really wrong with them, it’s just when it comes to diagnosing a control set, it’s nice to have separate components – spreads things out a bit...

 

 

There isn’t a block diagram on the back of the cover, per chance? Or did you find one in a manual? I’d be comfortable if I’m on the end of the probe... But without a drawing, I’m leery of telling you to touch a long metal item at point ‘X’...

 

I notice our local pro electricians aren’t volunteering – they’re too smart... :) If any electrician in our studio audience has one of those big reference books on control diagrams, now would be the time...

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Unfortunately, there isn't a diagram on the cover or in the manual.  I searched online for one using the brand name of the switch, and no luck there either.

 

If I do have to go the route of replacing the switch entirely, any suggestions for what to buy?  Thanks.

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  • 3 years later...

I have this same saw, and the same problem. Although I never actually removed or replaced any wires on the motor or the switch and have never seen the saw run or even tested it. It was acquired from a friend who had it covered unused, outside his home for some time.

My son did replace the plug that was on the saw when acquired, to match the fixtures in my shop.  How did you resolve this?

Mahalo

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11 minutes ago, BigIslandBeds said:

I have this same saw, and the same problem. Although I never actually removed or replaced any wires on the motor or the switch and have never seen the saw run or even tested it. It was acquired from a friend who had it covered unused, outside his home for some time.

My son did replace the plug that was on the saw when acquired, to match the fixtures in my shop.  How did you resolve this?

Mahalo

Bought a new starter switch.

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