Lois Ruben Aronow on fri 6 apr 01
About 2 1/2 years ago, I purchased a Brent C. I bought it brand
spanking new.
Since then, I have had to have the foot pedal replaced twice, and am
about to go for a third time. What happens is this: when operating
at a slow speed, I get this jumping that feels like a strong power
surge. Not just once, but over and over, like hiccups. It's been
under warranty, so cost is not the issue (although my warranty is now
expired and I will pay dearly for both the technician to fix it, as
well as the part). Not to mention how annoying it is to have my wheel
out of commission, and wait for the technician to find time for me.
I purchased the Brent, as it has the reputation of being a real
workhorse, rarely giving any problems for years and years. I use my
wheel about 4 hours a day, a few days a week. I make tableware. So
it's not like I'm really giving it a workout. =20
Did I get the lemon of Brent wheels? Why does this keep happening
over and over again? I can't imagine it's my foot technique, as these
wheels are used by beginners everywhere. I'm frustrated and angry.
Any help anyone can give will be greatly appreciated.
Paul Gerhold on fri 6 apr 01
I don"t have a Brent prefering antique Shimpos myself but I would suspect
that after several pedals that the problem may not be in the pedal. One
fundamental question would be is there any frequency to the problem that
might lead one to suspect a bad bearing or a problem with the mechanical
drive. Most of these mechanical problems primarily show up at low speed.
The other important issue is do the problems disappear for a time when you
get the new foot pedal and the gradually reappear or show up all at once?
Paul
don hanson on fri 6 apr 01
lois; My experience with Brent wheels isn't an Acadamy Award experience. =
I had 2 of them through the years and got rid of both of them. Some =
people swear by them. I don't! I went to Soldner wheels in the mid 70's =
and don't regret doing so. For one thing, unless things have changed, =
the attitude at Brent was everyone is dumb are we're smart. We make and =
sell more wheels than anyone in the world. We don't need service cause =
we make the best practically maintainance free. I told that arrogant =
factory rep, [ whoever he was], why don't you take that attitude to =
Detroit. I'd like to drive a Brent! Potters wheels have increased,[ cost =
wise], 3 to 4 fold in the last 35-40 years and frankly, in my =
opinion,not the quality. Your problem, and it sounds like it's in the =
controller, might be minor but to the potter trying to get work done =
it's major.
Try this; Take the controller off and take it to a good electric motor =
repair shop. I'll bet they can help you out. When they fix it, ask them =
if you want to pay the bill with money or in pottery. 9 times out of 10 =
they will take the pottery. Good luck!!!! Don
-----Lois Ruben Aronow on Fri, Apr 6, 2001 5:31am wrote: -----
About 2 1/2 years ago, I purchased a Brent C. I bought it brand
spanking new.
Since then, I have had to have the foot pedal replaced twice, and am
about to go for a third time. What happens is this: when operating
at a slow speed, I get this jumping that feels like a strong power
surge. Not just once, but over and over, like hiccups. It's been
under warranty, so cost is not the issue (although my warranty is now
expired and I will pay dearly for both the technician to fix it, as
well as the part). Not to mention how annoying it is to have my wheel
out of commission, and wait for the technician to find time for me.
I purchased the Brent, as it has the reputation of being a real
workhorse, rarely giving any problems for years and years. I use my
wheel about 4 hours a day, a few days a week. I make tableware. So
it's not like I'm really giving it a workout. =20
Did I get the lemon of Brent wheels? Why does this keep happening
over and over again? I can't imagine it's my foot technique, as these
wheels are used by beginners everywhere. I'm frustrated and angry.
Any help anyone can give will be greatly appreciated.
_________________________________________________________________________=
_____
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at =
melpots@pclink.com.
Kenneth D. Westfall on fri 6 apr 01
Are you sure its your wheel and not the power source? A bad neutral on the
AC electric can cause weird stuff. When your wheel is haven a fit do you
see any of the lights flickering? Do you have a task light plugged into
the same circuit as the wheel? If you don't plug one in and see if it
flickers with the same frequency as the wheels hesitation. If so you need
to get a electrician that has the equipment to record the problem. Then
determine if it bad wiring or bad incoming power, because the electric
company will always say its your wiring that's the problem not our
equipment.
Kenneth D. Westfall
Pine Hill Pottery
R.D. #2 Box 6AA
Harrisville, WV 26362
pinehill@ruralnet.org
http://www.pinehillpottery.com
kilnboy on fri 6 apr 01
Lois,
Try the power adjustment in the foot pedal, accessed through the bottom of
the apparatus. A slight turn to the right (clockwise), may solve your
problem.
CJ
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lois Ruben Aronow"
To:
Sent: Friday, April 06, 2001 7:31 AM
Subject: Nagging foot pedal problem with Brent wheel. Any solutions?
About 2 1/2 years ago, I purchased a Brent C. I bought it brand
spanking new.
Since then, I have had to have the foot pedal replaced twice, and am
about to go for a third time.
Craig Martell on fri 6 apr 01
Hi Lois:
I have two Brents, one is 26 yrs in service and the other is about 15 and
I've had to do a few things to them. Generally, they've been pretty reliable.
Your problem sounds like something that happened to my "old brent" some
years back. It was jerking at low rpms. The problem was in the rectifier,
which is basically the electronics contained in the box with the
switch. If replacing the pedal hasn't totally fixed things I would take a
close look at the rectifier and see if that's the problem. It cost $40
bucks to replace mine but that was some time ago. Probably spendier now.
I don't think you have a lemon. There are 3 things that drive these
wheels: motor, speed control(pedal), and rectifier. Everything else is
just mechanical. Belts and bearings. If you want to know, a rectifier
changes your a/c current to d/c current. The variable speed motor on your
wheel runs on d/c but maybe you already knew that?
hope this is of some help, Craig Martell in Oregon
Cindy Gatto on fri 6 apr 01
Dear Lois:
If your warranty is up anyway you should check into seeing
if you could put a Pacifica footpedal on your Brent as for the Pacifica
footpedal is supposed to be superior it should not be very hard especially if
you have a technician coming anyway. We use pacificas in our studio we have
ten of them not a problem at all with any of them. And as I state the
footpedal is supposed to be superior.
Sincerely:
Mark Petrin
The Mudpit
228 Manhattan Ave.
Brooklyn NY 11206
718-218-9424
Mudpitnyc@aol.com
www.mudpitnyc.com
kruzewski on fri 6 apr 01
Dear Lois,
I don't know if this will help but here goes.
I got my Brent B 2nd hand from another North Wales potter. He used to burn out the
control boxes on his Brent wheels every few years - everything else was OK but the
cost of repair was high so he just used to scrap the wheel (salvaging a few bits)
and buy new again. He only produced tableware etc. I don't know why the control
boxes burnt out.
I got one of these - before he pulled it apart. My husband, Tony, is an
electrician, he replaced most of the components in the control box and got it
working. The thing is, after a few months or so the speed goes haywire. It starts
off OK then goes faster and faster till it goes top speed - all by itself! It
doesn't keep a constant speed either, I get a power-surge effect too, but not as
pronouced as yours.
When this happens Tony takes all the components out of the control box, tests them,
puts them back, without doing anything more. then it's fine again for a few months!
He's tried replacing with new but the same thing happens. A new controller is so
expensive, especially with carriage from USA.Local supplies won't sell spares -
they prefer me to buy a new wheel and I don't have the money!
Another local potter (originally from USA) had her Brent controller blow up too.
Tony managed to mend hers more successfully than mine.
Could your problem be a controller problem and not a footpedal problem? From what I
can gather the footpedal is so simple there's not much to go wrong - and it seems
odd that you've got through 3.I know you've had a technician look at your wheel -
and what do I know? but it may be worth checking out.
Apart from that, it seems people with Brents love them and keep persevering with
them, I do!
Hope this helps - I'd like to know how you get on, or if anyone else has any bright
ideas - it may help me with my Brent too!
Jacqui Kruzewski
Jonathan Kaplan on fri 6 apr 01
on 4/6/01 6:31 AM, Lois Ruben Aronow at gilois@BELLATLANTIC.NET wrote:
>
>
> Did I get the lemon of Brent wheels? Why does this keep happening
> over and over again? I can't imagine it's my foot technique, as these
> wheels are used by beginners everywhere. I'm frustrated and angry.
>
> Any help anyone can give will be greatly appreciated.
No need to be angry, maybe just frustrated.
There are 3 areas that could be defective.
1. The control box. Just replace it. Don't swap out parts, just replace the
whole unit.
2. The linear potentiometer and speed disks in the foot pedal Also, replace
them with new parts. Make sure to tighten the steel shaft set screw that
connects the pivot of the pedal to the liner potentiometer.
3. The motor could be defective or you could have bad brushes or bad motor
windings.
We have 12 Brents in our facility. My old CX with a gear drive is on its 3rd
motor, 4th control box, and only 3 foot pedal rebuilds. Works fine.
We have 10 C wheels in the class room. The speed control disks in the foot
pedal need to be trimmed occasionally. No problem with these either.
My new CXC had some dusty brushes and was emitting a high pitched squeak.
Took out the brushes, blew out the dusk with compressed air, added a few
shots of WD 40, and voila, like new.
These wheels are quite service free and built to last. Brent service has
been incredibly helpful and very accommodating to me and have been quite
cooperative in working with me over many years.
Best
Jonathan
--
Jonathan Kaplan
Ceramic Design Group
PO Box 775112
Steamboat Springs CO 80477
infor@ceramicdesigngroup.net www.ceramicdesigngroup.net
(use PO BOX for all USPS correspondence)
Plant Location
1280 13th Street
Steamboat Springs CO 80487
(use PLANT LOCATION for all UPS, Common Carrier, and Courier deliveries)
Lois Ruben Aronow on fri 6 apr 01
Thanks to everyone who replied. This has been enlightening!
=46or the record: Brent has been extremely helpful. They are sending
me a new circuit board and a new foot pedal - free of charge. They
also said my technician should send them the bill. (Thanks Don) Also
for the record: my technician is not only very good and very
experienced, he is authorized by Brent for repair. So those are 2
things in the plus column.
To answer some of the queries: Yes, it works for a while after the
repair. This go was about 9 months. No, i don't think it's the
electrical supply. I moved studios in February. Problems happened
first 2 times in the old studio (which had crappy electric) and now in
the new (which we just had completely new electric installed, and
passed our electrical inspection). =20
So now I wait for the parts, which will be installed next week.
Regardless, I'd still love to solve the mystery of why this keeps
happening.
Thanks all, for your advice. it is greatly appreciated.
vince pitelka on fri 6 apr 01
> Since then, I have had to have the foot pedal replaced twice, and am
> about to go for a third time. What happens is this: when operating
> at a slow speed, I get this jumping that feels like a strong power
> surge. Not just once, but over and over, like hiccups
Lois -
I have encountered this several times, and have traced it to poorly crimped
electrical terminals. Get someone who is familiar with crimp-on electrical
terminals to check all the terminals in the controller housing. Make sure
that all the wires are tightly crimped to the terminals, and if any are
faulty check to see if the wire ends are at all discolored or corroded. If
so, it means that they have been arcing within the terminal, which is what
causes the jumping in your while. If you find any discolored or corroded
wire-ends, cut them back about 1/2", strip off a 1/4" of insulation, and
install a new crimp-on terminal. The terminals are all female spade
terminals, made to fit 12- to 14-gauge wire, available from any auto parts
or electronics store. You can do this repair yourself, if you are
unfamiliar with crimping tools and crimp-on terminals, go to an electronics
repair store or an auto-repair place that does electrical work, and have
them give you a good lesson in how to properly use the crimping tool (also
available from any auto parts or electronics store).
Good luck -
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Crafts
Tennessee Technological University
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
Home - vpitelka@dtccom.net
615/597-5376
Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
Tommy Humphries on fri 6 apr 01
I had a control box blow on a Brent CXC one time, had it replaced and it
blew again...turned out to be a bad pedal rheostat. Brent took the serial #
from the original box and ran it through the computer and found that it was
in a series that had known problems with the pedals. Replaced both boxes and
the pedal free + reimbursed for the cost of the electrician.
Tommy
JACQUI WROTE...
> Dear Lois,
>
> I don't know if this will help but here goes.
>
> I got my Brent B 2nd hand from another North Wales potter. He used to burn
out the
> control boxes on his Brent wheels every few years - everything else was OK
but the
> cost of repair was high so he just used to scrap the wheel (salvaging a
few bits)
> and buy new again. He only produced tableware etc. I don't know why the
control
> boxes burnt out.
>
> >
> Another local potter (originally from USA) had her Brent controller blow
up too.
> Tony managed to mend hers more successfully than mine.
>
> > Jacqui Kruzewski
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
Craig Martell on sat 7 apr 01
Vince P. sezed
>Craig -
>You are a technician, so you already know this, but the functioning of a
>perfectly good motor, speed control, and/or rectifier is only as good as the
>electrical connections between each of them. When I worked as a mechanic
>for the City of Arcata this was the most common cause of electrical failure.
>The first thing I always checked was the integrity of wire terminal
>connections.
Hi Vince:
Absolutely right on except the part about me being a tech. I prefer to be
known as a "backyard mechanic", or "sidewalk superintendant".
You are dead on though and the first thing we should check with any
electrical problem is the integrity of the connections. I'm glad you
pointed that out it could save people time and dough.
regards, Craig Martell in Oregon
kruzewski on tue 10 apr 01
Dear Tommy - and anyone who answered Lois's original question,
I've printed out all the postings on this and am saving them up for Tony, once he
gets back from Scotland mid-week. I'm using my spare wheel at the moment, and have
been for some time, because he hasn't gotten round to looking at the Brent.
I'm really hoping that, with all this information, he can come up with a permanent
fix - otherwise he gets to build a new control box from scratch or I send for one
from Brent. This would be an expensive option - shipping charges from US can nearly
double the original price.
So THANK YOU ALL for the generous advice - Clayart is a revelation!
Thanks
Jacqui Kruzewski
North Wales
Tommy Humphries wrote:
> I had a control box blow on a Brent CXC one time, had it replaced and it
> blew again...turned out to be a bad pedal rheostat. Brent took the serial #
> from the original box and ran it through the computer and found that it was
> in a series that had known problems with the pedals. Replaced both boxes and
> the pedal free + reimbursed for the cost of the electrician.
>
> Tommy
>
> JACQUI WROTE...
>
> > Dear Lois,
> >
> > I don't know if this will help but here goes.
> >
> > I got my Brent B 2nd hand from another North Wales potter. He used to burn
> out the
> > control boxes on his Brent wheels every few years - everything else was OK
> but the
> > cost of repair was high so he just used to scrap the wheel (salvaging a
> few bits)
> > and buy new again. He only produced tableware etc. I don't know why the
> control
> > boxes burnt out.
> >
> > >
> > Another local potter (originally from USA) had her Brent controller blow
> up too.
> > Tony managed to mend hers more successfully than mine.
> >
> > > Jacqui Kruzewski
> >
> >
> ____________________________________________________________________________
> __
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
| |
|
