Comments from Phase Perfect owners

[Ox]

I broke down and ordered a 10hp today for our one prima donna machine.
The thing faults out continuously if many other machines are running.
It will run great on third shift by itself, but I don't like to leave an oil slinger run unnattended too often.

I hope to double the output on that one in a few weeks!


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I am Ox and I approve this h'yah post!

 

[Captdave]

Got an email from Phase Perfect a couple of days ago saying that it had been shipped and according to the tracking it should be at the Atlanta terminal on Wednesday morning which works out great as I'll be coming from the airport that morning and can swing by and pick it up on my way.

Ordered it on the 10th (I think) and pick up on the 25th, pretty much what they had promised.

Ox, any word on when yours will arrive?

 

[Ox]

I think they said the end of the month?


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I am Ox and I approve this h'yah post!

 

[Captdave]

Pick up the PP yesterday but after a 26 hour commute from Bahrain to Atlanta, I was too tired to do any thing but unload it in the shop.

At 0500 this morning I'm unpacking it and find that ever corner on the thing is bent/dented and the door won't open . Thanks FedEx ground. Took the hinges off so I could get the door off and straightened all the sheet metal and reinstalled the door.

Mounted it on the wall then had to go get a 1-3/8" hole saw since there are no knock outs in the cabinet. Took longer to pick up a hole saw then it took to wire it up. Turned it on and after about 5-10 seconds it comes to life sounding like bacon frying but expected the noise.

Ran it all day and seems to be fine despite FedEx's best attempt to trash it out. First thing I noticed is that the florescent light inside the Mazak doesn't flicker during large speed changes as the voltage stays within a volt or two one the generated leg.

Going to Ohio to see my mom for a few days so we'll see how she does next week.

 

[SND]

The 2 I got had those little impact or "got flipped over" things on the box, thankfully they had both made it all the way with no damage at all.
Unfortunately since the new units are lighter than the older ones, its quite possible that it means that its ok for some in the shipping industry to throw and kick it around.

I was surprised there was no holes cut at the bottom on the new units, I put 4 or 5 on the 20hp unit while I was in there but it is asking for little chips and possible user screw up.
Shouldn't be hard for them to pre-punch knock out holes like electrical panels have in there.
My older 10hp one had come with 2 holes on the side which made for quick hook up.

I think you and your machines will like the performance and clean power it provides, but might wanna take a picture or 2 of that shipping damage in case there is anything in there who's life might have been shortened.

Its new toy day for many of us I think, picked up a little powermax 45 plasma cutter today

 

[matt_isserstedt]

Ran it all day and seems to be fine despite FedEx's best attempt to trash it out.

My experiences with Fedex ATL are along the same lines, they could tear up an anvil if you sent it thru their terminal. The one here in Jackson, MI was so clean and quiet I was shocked at how much care the guys took.

 

[Ox]

Mine came in the other day via Fed-Ex LTL.

Skid looks like it had just left the shipping dock 5 miles ago.

Have not unpacked yet.


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Think Snow Eh!
Ox

 

[Philabuster]

Ordered my Phase Perfect PT-380D (optional digital display) on 6/12 and it arrived on FedEx dock for me to pick up on 6/29. Unit was bolted to a pallet and wrapped in thin foam packing covered with clear box wrap. Unit looked perfect. Not even a single scratch or fingerprint on the white paint.

Got it mounted to the wall on inside of shop, wired it up and flipped the switch. PP unit went through a diagnostic check after a few seconds, then made the familiar buzzing noise. I thought all was well, then about 2 seconds later, the output contactor pulled in (HARD and LOUD) and scared the shit outta me. I calmed down when I realized this was normal sounds, but never heard about it before. I tend to get a bit jumpy when working on a new install that uses 240v fused at 200 amps.

I was showing the GF the unit, powered it up and she about jumped out of her skin just like I did when the contactor pulled in. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you about that part."

I was pleased to hear the high frequency noise on this new unit did not sound bad at all. Much quieter and nowhere near as ear piercing as old units. My cheapie floor fan is louder than the PP.

No loads hooked up to it yet, but at least I got it running without an unplanned 4th of July fireworks show.

 

[Ox]

Yeah - mine is all hooked up too, but have not fired up the machine.

The boy said the other day that he had "this" and "that" to doo to it yet, and then switch two wires around, and then it would be ready.
He hasn't said yet that he switched the wires yet. ???
Prolly go wrong direction I s'pose....

Per the shipping arrangement:
Ours looked perfect as yours, but when I unscrewed it from the skid and lifted it off, the brackets that were screwed dwon fell off.

???

I figgered that they must be hooked on the back or something that allowed them to fall off with no tension, only to realize that they should have had two 1/4" bolts in each one that wasn't there at all!

It's a bloody wonder that it made it at all - and it wouldn't have been Fed-Ex's fault!


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I am Ox and I approve this h'yah post!

 

[Ox]

OK - these must be magical little box's as the machine spun the ratt way when I tried it and I mentioned to the boy that he musta got those two warrs switched around. He said that he only got it hooked up and buttoned up. Not made it back to switch two warrs around yet ...

???

Goes right the first time?
Magical!


Had not ran production on that machine 'till this evening. And at first it didn't look too promissing. I was skeered that I had bought too small'a unit. I am sure that I am on the high end of the threshold, but I thought that it would pull the load from what I had read...

The machine crapped out a cpl times at first, and then seems OK. I have a V meter on that machine as (like I had said before) it is so picky on it's power... The V seemed to fall out at first maybe? I re-tapped the X a little higher. The spindle drive tripped out one more time, and then seems fine ever since.

Of course I didn't read the manual, but I wonder if it was just my machine acting up? Or is there something to getting the on board cap all charged up once?

Anyone else experience this?


Anyway - the compressor has farred up several times since put in cycle and has not tripped out the machine yet, so all seems great!


BTW - I don't hear anything from my unit so far (noise wise) other than the day we hooked it up and was standing ratt there. Have yet to figger out how you guys are able to make $ while able to hear the little buzz of the little box in the corner? My nerves would already be on overload if my shop was ever half that quiet - even when I walked in _ in the morning!

???


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Sweating to the Oldies!
Ox

 

[SND]

You got all the amps it needs going in? 70amp breaker I think for the 10hp unit.
If the PP itself senses a bad enough voltage drop like in a storm it can shut itself down too(trips the main switch inside from the sounds of it) in which case I just switch the disconnect off and back on again and back to work.

 

[Ox]

I am thinking that _ that first "trip" was the PP. I lost my V meter and all, and I never had to replace any fuses anywhere.... So the PP must have wigged out. Not done that since.

Feeding with a 100A fusible disconnect, about 2' away from a 600A box. I think it's got enough supply.

I was having all sorts of troubles this morning. No idea what changed from running fine for a few hours last night to not running long at all this morning? But the trouble appeared to be a re-gen issue.

The purchase price is 3x the cost of a rotary, but the PP will behave exactly like the utility power in that it will suck up regenerative braking from a CNC whereas a rotary will not. Also, being that the PP is much more efficient at supplying the 3Ø power, this helps when you are pushing the limit of your 200 amp service.

I have ran this machine for a few yrs now on a 60hp RPC and never had a regen issue. Now this morning I am tripping out at two points in the program - and both are M5's. It seems like I recall mention here that the older units DID have regen issues, and a quick call to PP revealed a little switch or whatnot that needed switched. But I was thinking that the newer units did not have that issue. But now I am thinkin' ????

I called PP and there was nothing that they could doo for me. And about then I gits to thinkin'....

When we got this machine a few yrs back - it had been offline for maybe 5 yrs and had lost all it's brains. We did have to edit the accell params in the spindle drive, but I don't recall ever having to adjust the deccel. So I sent my Teckie over yonder to check into the deccel param, and sho'nuff, the accell was set to 2sec and the deccel was set to .5 sec. He reset to 1.25sec and it has been running ever since!

I have no idea how that never alarmed out on decel before. I won't pretend to know anything of the science behiind it, but it seems obvious to me that the big RPC could absorb the regen a whole lot better'n that new PP.


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I am Ox and I approve this h'yah post!

 

[Chazsani]

... do I put it outside (with optional rain enclosure) and RISK pissing off my close neighbors with this 'strange noise' coming from my yard?

Put wind chimes up to cover the whine. i did that and the f'ing HOA shut up about the noise.
Chazsani

 

[SND]

The PP's seem to have protection/sensing for something out of wack on the line either going in or coming back. Sometimes my cyclematic lathe trips my 10hp PP when I hit the main start button that charges up the VFD and turns on the 3fans and so on in one shot, not sure if its the quick inrush or just the switch making it think something is wrong down the line, it will only do it once and quite rarely. So too fast a decel could well do that too.

Never had the 20hp unit trip yet.

 

[munruh]

Ordered my Phase Perfect PT-380D (optional digital display) on 6/12 and it arrived on FedEx dock for me to pick up on 6/29. Unit was bolted to a pallet and wrapped in thin foam packing covered with clear box wrap. Unit looked perfect. Not even a single scratch or fingerprint on the white paint.

Got it mounted to the wall on inside of shop, wired it up and flipped the switch. PP unit went through a diagnostic check after a few seconds, then made the familiar buzzing noise. I thought all was well, then about 2 seconds later, the output contactor pulled in (HARD and LOUD) and scared the shit outta me. I calmed down when I realized this was normal sounds, but never heard about it before. I tend to get a bit jumpy when working on a new install that uses 240v fused at 200 amps.

I was showing the GF the unit, powered it up and she about jumped out of her skin just like I did when the contactor pulled in. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you about that part."

I was pleased to hear the high frequency noise on this new unit did not sound bad at all. Much quieter and nowhere near as ear piercing as old units. My cheapie floor fan is louder than the PP.

No loads hooked up to it yet, but at least I got it running without an unplanned 4th of July fireworks show.

Philabuster, what amp service do you have running into your shop?