titanicbull
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Hi, I have checked about everything else on unit, Saturable reactor seems faulty, could this cause no output? Gen head good when 12volts applied to system. Thanks/ Ed
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MEP 002a /no output/ saturable reactor?
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Triple Jim
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Maybe something in my recent post would help: http://www.steelsoldiers.com/showthread.php?148199-MEP-002A-generator-exciter-issue
titanicbull
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Triple Jim, thank you for your help, I got her going, use it to power my surfshop every day. Only problem, I have a large grinder 15amp., when I turn it on it throws the main breaker instantly with no other load present. Could the breaker be weak (30 yrs. old)? Happy New Year/ Ed
Triple Jim
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Ed, what did you have to do to get it working?
Yes, from what I've read here, the breaker could be bad. They are an unusual design, described in one or more threads on this board, none of which I can quickly point you to. Some searching should turn up the information.
The other possibility is that the breaker is good and the grinder just draws too much current on starting. It's very common for a motor to draw more than three times its running current when starting. I've measured some fairly large 3-phase motors and found them to draw ten times their running current when starting! A "soft-start" might allow you to start the grinder, as could a VFD (variable frequency drive) programmed for a motor speed ramping rate that keeps the starting current within the capability of the generator. These would make the grinder start slower and draw less current while doing so.
You might try using a clamp-on ammeter with a peak-hold function to measure the maximum starting current to get an idea of what you're dealing with.
Yes, from what I've read here, the breaker could be bad. They are an unusual design, described in one or more threads on this board, none of which I can quickly point you to. Some searching should turn up the information.
The other possibility is that the breaker is good and the grinder just draws too much current on starting. It's very common for a motor to draw more than three times its running current when starting. I've measured some fairly large 3-phase motors and found them to draw ten times their running current when starting! A "soft-start" might allow you to start the grinder, as could a VFD (variable frequency drive) programmed for a motor speed ramping rate that keeps the starting current within the capability of the generator. These would make the grinder start slower and draw less current while doing so.
You might try using a clamp-on ammeter with a peak-hold function to measure the maximum starting current to get an idea of what you're dealing with.
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The breaker could be bad. Common problem with the 002 and 003. Is CT-1 Wired right? Several times I found that to be the trouble.
titanicbull
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Thank you very much for all your good advice Jim. We by-passed the old circuit breaker in favor of a newer style one & everything is working properly now. My previous dilemma had to do with an miswired A4 connection, took 3 hours to figure that out ! Only thing bugging me is none of my gauges work, any ideas ?
Triple Jim
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No special advice, just attack them one at a time and find the problems. JimC on this board sells kits to replace the gauges with new digital ones that fit the cutouts, so that is an option if the ones you have are bad.
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What means "none of my gauges work" means? Do you really mean all of them, or just some of them. If all of them don't work, look at your ground, in the control box.