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Hey guys,

Just wanted to introduce myself.  I have a USS-8-64 and am in the process of making it work correctly again.  Thought I just had a bad thermostat, but after the replacement one came in and then proceeded to explode in my face, I was informed by Steve and Sharon at Soda Jerk Works that I most likely had a short in the wiring harness.  Actually, there was no most likely to it.  I do have a bad harness. 
Anyway, I've been checking out this forum ever since I got my machine and am so intrigued by some of the amazing things you guys do to yours.  Once I get this wiring harness installed (hopefully tonight), I intend to do some of the things I've seen others do on this forum (install lights and a silk screen sign above the door, instead of the steel one that is there now).  I also want to say that I think Steve and Sharon are great.  They knew exactly what I had and were able to walk me through many tests to figure out how everything was running.  Look forward to talking to you guys soon.  Thanks!

Welcome to the board!!
Several of us here have USS-8-64's. Should be able to sort most issues.
Get a chance post a picture or two.
Thanks,
Creighton
 

Welcome!

In my opinion, the USS is the best square top machine out there, compact but can vend almost anything you can put in it.  I use one everyday and have had about 6-8 over the years.  There's a good thread out there with pics of everyone's machines, I'll see if I can dig that up.

Thanks guys.  I will definitely get the pictures up as soon as this thing is running right.  Got some good news.  The new wiring harness is in and the machine is running again.  Bad news, it's back to its old bag of tricks.  The compressor won't turn off.  This will be the third thermostat I've put in and the only time I can get the compressor to turn off is if I turn the thermostat all the way to the off position.  I probed the inside and it's currently at 35 degrees and I have the thermostat in the hottest position.  I would think it would shut off by now, but as soon as I turn the thermostat back to any number it just starts running the compressor. 
I'm really at a loss on this thing.  I had the Foreman from a BMW dealership come over last night to help me.  He's wired entire cars, so he really does understand what's going on when it comes to things like this.  When he took my old harness out of the machine, he said he couldn't find any shorts at all, but he was glad we were replacing it anyway.  He wired the new harness in perfectly and everything is running great, except that the original problem I've had since I got it is still there.  I have the thermostat that is coiled and is supposed to measure air temp.  I was told not to unravel it, but I'm thinking maybe I should just a little bit.  Any suggestions would be wonderful.  I love this thing, but I have a threshold and am quickly getting to it.  I remember this machine in my mom's office building from over 35 years ago and there is so much nostalgia that comes with it for me.  But I just have so much more on my plate right now I may have to just unplug it and wait another few years until I have time to take the whole thing apart and dissect what's really going on with it.  I really appreciate you guy's help.  Thanks!

-Chris

The thermostat coil should mount to the side of the evaporator, there is a small clip for that coil to go into.  Do you have it on there?  You can also try testing out the thermostat by placing the coils in a cup of ice water.

Thank you very much for the reply. I think the type of thermostat I have is not meant to be attached to anything, but I could be wrong. I was told that it is just meant to measure air, not actually measure temperature by mounting it to something. Again I could be wrong. I am going to take a picture of the coil and how I have it mounted, maybe you can tell me if I've done something wrong. If you want I will be happy to put the coils in ice water, but I am a little hesitant to put anything electrical in water. Lol. I really do appreciate your response and hope that I can get this thing running the way it should. Thank you.

Here's a picture. Sorry it's so small, but it will only allow me to put 100 kb photo so I had to make the picture very small. Sorry about that. Thanks again for all of the help.

  The coil itself has no electricity going through it, it's hollow and has some sort of gas in it that expands or contracts according to temperature. This is how the switch turns off and on.
       You could dip the coil in ice to test, but 3 new thermostats won't all be bad. Instead, insert the coiled probe directly into the coil of the evaporator and let it run. It should shut off sooner than desired but now you can move the contact point to an optimal position but fastened snugly to the metal of the evaporator.
       The Cavaliers I have owned use a contact style thermostat rather than airflow.

Alright, so the plot thickens.  I did the ice water test (I just want you guys to know I was scared out of my mind) and at first it didn't work either.  That is, until I turned the thermostat off and waited about one minute.  I then turned it back on and the compressor did not turn on.  The temp of the water was 35 degrees.  I pulled the entire coil out of the water and within 10 seconds the compressor kicked on.  So I'm wondering why did I have to turn the thermostat off and then back on for it to work.  I'm also thrilled to see that it is working.  I understand these are old machines and they are going to have their own set of quirks.  I am turning the machine off and am planning on doing what you said about running the probe through some of the coils and then zip tying them.  If it keeps running I'll manually turn off the thermostat and reset it again.  Hopefully all of this works.  I really appreciate both of you helping.  I really felt defeated this morning when I couldn't get it to turn off.  Thanks and I'll let you know if it starts working correctly.

Just wanted to give an upate.  The machine is now cycling on and off.  Actually it's cycling quite a bit, but it does seem to be working.  I checked the temp this morning and it was at 37 degrees.  I adjusted the thermostat a little bit and am going to leave it alone for the day so the machine will equalize the temperature and hopefully keep everything right above freezing.  Hopefully this will be the last of my problems with it.  I will say there was no way I was going to fix it without the two of you chiming in to help.  I really appreciate it and will post some pics as soon as I get a chance.  Thanks again!

-Chris

Make sure you fill the machine completely with beverages. 

This will help keep it a more even temperature, and will cycle on/off less often when the machine is full.