Most of the woodshop tools rely on the main Dust Collector to stay clean, operate well, and keep dust out of our lungs. While it is down, we cannot operate the tools connected to it.
If you come to the woodshop while it is down, these tools are not affected and can be used regularly:
Everything else is not to be operated until the DC is fixed.
Does not stay on, while forcing the contactor down I hear a hum like the motor wants to turn on, but nothing is happening.
I believe the switch has finally gone bad.
Going to look nearby for something that works:
22mm 2-position maintained selector switch with two NO contact blocks. Not momentary — maintained
Here’s all the things checked.
Symptom: Unit does not power on. Flipping the switch does nothing — contactor does not engage.
Test 1 — Manually pressed the contactor in. Motor hums but does not spin immediately. After holding it for about 5 seconds, the motor slowly whirs up. Shuts off when released. This confirms power reaches the motor but startup is severely delayed (should be under 1 second), pointing to a weak start capacitor. Also confirms the contactor coil is not energizing on its own from the switch.
Test 2 — Checked the thermal overload relay. Found and pressed the blue reset button on top of the NHD overload block. It beeped on release, indicating it had tripped — likely from the motor pulling locked-rotor amps too long due to the weak cap. Reset it. No change — contactor still won’t engage from the switch.
Test 3 — Checked the inline 10A fuse (10x38mm Zhengrong RT18/RT14). Tested continuity with a multimeter — reads 0.7–0.8 ohms. Fuse is good.
Test 4 — Checked the AUTO/OFF selector switch. Tested continuity across both NO contact blocks. Readings were inconsistent and well over 1 ohm. Switch contacts are bad. This is the confirmed reason the unit won’t power on.
Diagnosis: Two problems. The selector switch has failed (won’t energize the contactor coil), and the motor start capacitor is degraded (motor takes ~5 seconds to spin up instead of under 1 second). The slow startup is likely what tripped the overload and may have contributed to killing the switch contacts over time.
Parts needed:
22mm 2-position maintained selector switch with 2 NO contact blocks
Motor start capacitor (get specs off existing cap before purchasing)
After further troubleshooting I believe the capacitor may be bad as well as the switch is definitely bad.
The woodshop must remain red tagged until this is resolved. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience for folks due to the timing of this weekend. That said this couldn’t be timed better for swapping out for a larger machine that can handle things better.
We’re still looking for a new capacitor that we can install today. If we can’t locate one, I’ve got an order in already that we can have one tomorrow and possibly installed by noon. That should get it back up and running enough for the rest of tomorrow. Friday we’ll have a replacement switch in that will complete the repair, just in time to put it on a truck and back to Felder (who is expecting a working machine as a trade-in for credit off the new DC).
If you come to the woodshop while it is down, these tools are not affected and can be used regularly:
Miter Station
Downdraft Sanding Table
Small Bandsaws
Lathes
CNCs
Everything else is not to be operated until the DC is fixed.
The main dust collector is still offline this morning. That means most of the tools are also offline this morning. I apologize again for the inconvenience. I will be picking up a new capacitor later this morning as soon as it is available.
If it’s not online it might be a good idea to block off a spot on Skedda that says there is no DC tools available. There are bookings today that mention milling tools and the table saw.
Dust collector is back online for the day. Power must be turned on and off at the breaker.
A bad capacitor was preventing it from staying on. That was replaced today.
The switch is still bad and won’t be here until late tomorrow or Saturday.