I did a BAD, BAD THING....

Delawhere Jack · August 11, 2014, 10:44:30 PM

Don't know why I'm even admitting this, maybe I'm a glutton for punishment.

After replacing a failed soleniod (20 years old) on my hydraulic pump, and goofing up the wiring for it... :-\ I blew the 225A fuse in the junction box. DanG-itty DanG DanG!!!

Drove around to 4-5 different places, marine supply and electrical shops, no one had one....

Hmmm... I need to get this job done.... I know why the fuse blew (my abject stupidity), and it's never blown before....

What if I just jumper across the fuse holder posts?

My client supplied helper today is a very bright 13-14 year old kid who's father is an electrician, so I bounce the idea off him. We make some jokes about setting the mill on fire, and how it will be HIS JOB to disconnect the battery if things go bad. :D

Got a spool of 16ga stranded wire and back to the job. Turns out, one single piece of said wire is no match for the current draw when lifting a 3,000lb plus oak log........Hmmmm? say_what

What about baring two pieces of wire, and twisting them together? Turns out that works. ;)

Ordered TWO fuses from WM, and asked for overnight shipping $$$.

Wouldn't you know it we finished the job today... :

POSTON WIDEHEAD · August 11, 2014, 10:52:05 PM

Could have been worse.

yukon cornelius · August 11, 2014, 10:53:32 PM

the things we do out of desperation :

ive been there as well and knew better but took the risk anyway. if you know the culprit and know you resolved it i would have done it too if the need was great enough.

risk/benefit anaylisis....

JustinW_NZ · August 11, 2014, 10:59:25 PM

Oh, so there NOT meant to have a bit of wire in there?

Hmm someone should have told my mills previous owner...

Speaking of dumb things, I was fixing a wire in the hydraulic box the other day and put my spanner between the neg and pos - wow I never new 12v could be so nasty?!

(yes the head was on the wire strip feeding power... :

Cheers
Justin

Dave Shepard · August 11, 2014, 11:02:33 PM

There are usually a couple of spares in that little box hiding around the side where you can't see them. A friend bought a mill from a guy that burned one up, a 100 amp, I think. He jumped it with a piece of 14ga wire. He never told us, and it burned up the drive motor. >:( We got new fuses, and when we went to put them in, we found the spares hiding in there. :

Delawhere Jack · August 11, 2014, 11:17:48 PM

Quote from: JustinW_NZ on August 11, 2014, 10:59:25 PM
Oh, so there NOT meant to have a bit of wire in there?

Hmm someone should have told my mills previous owner...

Speaking of dumb things, I was fixing a wire in the hydraulic box the other day and put my spanner between the neg and - wow I never new 12v could be so nasty?!
(yes the head was on the wire strip feeding power... :

Cheers
Justin

And just WHY didn't they use a plastic battery box? :

Disconnecting the + terminal and telling the kid how "you've got to be careful doing this", I touch the wrench to the metal box...

Dave, got the spare for the 100, but none for the larger fuse, until tomorrow anyway.

Ianab · August 12, 2014, 12:49:26 AM

You can use a Crescent wrench as a 1,000A Slo-blo fuse... :D

highleadtimber16 · August 12, 2014, 01:08:11 AM

Hahaha, I've had to do this as well. It puts a dampening on my day.

petefrom bearswamp · August 12, 2014, 06:35:00 AM

Lost a $600 plus H bridge this past spring, (only 500 hrs on mill) due to a faulty (loose) connection in the fuse box.
this was with the old style metal fuses. The top one had partially melted and ran down contacting the lower one.
Be sure the things are tight.
The new style fuses which I have now should correct this type of problem.
Blew the tops off of a couple of batteries once using Ianabs crescent method. Lucky I didnt get hit with any acid, just scared the bejabbers out of me.

jwilly3879 · August 12, 2014, 07:15:17 AM

Always disconnect the negative first.

slider · August 12, 2014, 07:17:03 AM

What do these new style fuses look like.

Joe Hillmann · August 12, 2014, 10:46:56 AM

Quote from: jwilly3879 on August 12, 2014, 07:15:17 AM
Always disconnect the negative first.

For the most part that is right but it should actually be, "always disconnect the ground first."

Dave Shepard · August 12, 2014, 11:22:48 AM

Quote from: Joe Hillmann on August 12, 2014, 10:46:56 AM
Quote from: jwilly3879 on August 12, 2014, 07:15:17 AM
Always disconnect the negative first.

For the most part that is right but it should actually be, "always disconnect the ground first."

Yes, there are still a couple of old positive ground machines around here. A lot of 6 volt+ ground, and my WWII genset is 12volt + ground.

glassman_48 · August 12, 2014, 04:57:22 PM

Delaware Jack,
Bet your not feeling "all alone" so much now

I think I could over load this forum sometimes with my goof ups. This forum is like having an encyclopedia for me. Learning every day in here,,,,,,,,,,,thanks for your post delaware jack.

36 coupe · August 12, 2014, 06:24:09 PM

I love jokers who over fuse things.Ive made a lot of money fixing their messes over the years.Had to take the fire truck to some.

dgdrls · August 12, 2014, 07:34:36 PM

Yikes, You're braver than I with the AC/DC.
If it takes a fuse it gets the correct fuse...

DGDrls

StimW · August 12, 2014, 08:55:27 PM

No big deal! You learn about electric and welding at the same time!

A friend took his old boat battery to a parts house to get another one. Parts guy is measuring old and new. That's when parts guy put metal rule from post to post to check measurement! Some sparks, some welding, a lot of cussing!

Delawhere Jack · August 12, 2014, 10:26:50 PM

There are foolish irrational actions, and then there are thought out -- reasoned workarounds (with a fire extinguisher handy ;D).

Then there was the guy two houses down from me growing up. Pothead, living in the parents basement type. He wasn't happy with the 78' Firebird that dad gave him, so he jumped across the fuse of a known shorted circuit in the car. He then proceeded to go into the house and make himself lunch. When he looked out and saw that the fire had sufficiently engulfed the car, he called the fire dept. He then sat down to finish his lunch.....

Two week later he was cruising around in a freshly repainted 76' Corvette....... :

Delawhere Jack · August 12, 2014, 10:32:16 PM

Quote from: StimW on August 12, 2014, 08:55:27 PM
No big deal! You learn about electric and welding at the same time!

A friend took his old boat battery to a parts house to get another one. Parts guy is measuring old and new. That's when parts guy put metal rule from post to post to check measurement! Some sparks, some welding, a lot of cussing!

My brother Jim neglected to take off his watch when removing a battery once. Metal watchband touched the + terminal. He said if felt like someone put a blowtorch to his wrist. He flipped the clasp open and whipped his arm to sling it off his wrist. A couple of the links had been spot welded together.

backwoods sawyer · August 12, 2014, 10:42:06 PM

The 100 just stack up to make the 200 should be three in the box, gone thru my fair share of them, mainly over working the hydraulics when handling over sized odd shaped logs. Had a fire in that box out in a dry hay feild, all new componets and rewired by the book and a lot cheeper then a fire in the next box in line. Also had fire in hydraulic box, not cheep and down time in the work season is costly. But come on WM realy hands are suposed to fit in there how? 12" needle nose plyers are real handy for this task. last time I ordered some it was 6ea. Keep the spares in a toolbox folded in cardboard rolled in a ziplock layed flat ;)

78NHTFY · August 13, 2014, 05:40:56 PM

....this is a HOT topic. Speaking of which, was sawing away on my LT40 the other day, used my hydraulic log lifter and noticed white smoke coming from the fuse box...uh oh :-[. Everything shut off, except for the white smoke. On my knees, I prayed, and managed to get those two nuts off with a pair of pliers I just happened to have in my tool box and when I pulled off the cover there was a tinder dry mouse nest, set on fire by the shorted wire the mouse had chewed by first getting into the box by eating the rubber seal around the wire/hole. Fingers got a bit singed pulling out the burning nest but I counted my blessings. Slapped in a new U-fuse and was up and running within 30 minutes. Oh yes, sealed up the gap between the wire and hose with good old Ducktape, until I figure out a more permanent solution.
By the way, all you folks on this Forum are hot tickets. Have been reading here for years and should have intro'd myself long before this. A large amount of what I have managed to do on my Tree Farm is through the wise counsel and excellent advice found here. So a big thanks to you all!!!!! From cutting down trees, hauling them from the woods, sawing them up, placement of stickers, planing lumber, making furniture, selling lumber, pricing, well the list goes on and on... there has always been a better way, more efficient system, that I used based on what you all have discussed. I'm not a big sit at the computer guy, but this is a must have for me. Better stop before I choke myself up. All the best, Rob.