Dumpster_diving
Cast Iron
- Joined
- May 18, 2017
- Location
- Massachusetts
As mentioned in a post a few weeks ago, I recently picked-up a used Hobart 250ci 110v plasma cutter for a great price.
Installed new consumables and lit it up cutting some 3/16" angle iron. Not very powerful but it initially worked just great...for about 30 minutes. Then mid-cut the unit just stopped working. No more green power light. No yellow consumable issues light. No yellow over-temp duty-cycle light. No fan. No compressor. Nothing.
Just dead as a doornail.
Checked the breaker and ground-fault reset. No issues there. Tried another outlet. Inspected the consumables and swapped in another set. No obvious issues I could see with them. Opened up the unit and confirmed it's getting 110v through the switch and all the way to what looks like the bus bar providing power to a heavy-gauge winding at the rear. No visibly blown components on the board. Gently giggled the harnesses and plugs where the torch spade connectors and harness plug into to the pc board. Nothing.
Possible I bought a pig-in-a-poke. But the chances it failed catastrophically only after it worked fine seems unlikely (to me).
Google search suggests replacement boards for this discontinued unit cost 2x what I paid (and more than a newer more powerful unit would cost).
Have yet to tear more deeply into it for fear of damaging it further.
Anyone have any experience with an issue like this? Anything obvious I can check?
Installed new consumables and lit it up cutting some 3/16" angle iron. Not very powerful but it initially worked just great...for about 30 minutes. Then mid-cut the unit just stopped working. No more green power light. No yellow consumable issues light. No yellow over-temp duty-cycle light. No fan. No compressor. Nothing.
Just dead as a doornail.
Checked the breaker and ground-fault reset. No issues there. Tried another outlet. Inspected the consumables and swapped in another set. No obvious issues I could see with them. Opened up the unit and confirmed it's getting 110v through the switch and all the way to what looks like the bus bar providing power to a heavy-gauge winding at the rear. No visibly blown components on the board. Gently giggled the harnesses and plugs where the torch spade connectors and harness plug into to the pc board. Nothing.
Possible I bought a pig-in-a-poke. But the chances it failed catastrophically only after it worked fine seems unlikely (to me).
Google search suggests replacement boards for this discontinued unit cost 2x what I paid (and more than a newer more powerful unit would cost).
Have yet to tear more deeply into it for fear of damaging it further.
Anyone have any experience with an issue like this? Anything obvious I can check?