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I didn't see any places where the two wires were touching but as soon as I moved the wire it started falling apart. Could this be the reason the compressor supposedly doesn't work....? Or maybe the relay is bad....?  I really hope to get the unit to cool again without spending much money. I will put a new power cord back on it tonight and see if it will cool.

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-euIjuF2Z5hQ/UDTRxMdPzNI/AAAAAAAACgs/YX4SCo_PXoU/s1600/DSC05165-bad-wire.JPG)

Brian

Not to overstate the obvious, but if that is the case I would be rewiring the WHOLE cooling unit if I wanted it to cool so it didn't burn my house down. You leave it running 24/7, when you are there or not.  It's not a place to cut corners unless you have REALLY GOOD INSURANCE!!! And I haven't found an insurance that is worth using yet.

After you rewire it, you will know if the components are any good.

Does the condenser fan run at all when the cooler is calling for cooling? If not, first check to see if there is power at the receptacle where the compressor is plugged in, if there isn't any then there is a problem else where. (temp control possibly)

Yea....If I can get it to run I plan on re-wiring anything that even looks close to bad before I actually start to use it.  Most of the wiring looks pretty good and not brittle at all.  I had taken the (pointed to plug) off before I ever pluged the main power cord in....So I don't think the bottom fan would have had any power anyway....?  The top fan did run, the sold out lever and light worked and the coin mechanism had a hum to it when I turned it on but too many pieces are missing to see if it would vend. I plan on putting a free play button in it tonight to see if I can get it to vend.

Brian

I suppose it is the amount of current going through the compressor wire, but that wire that plugs the compressor into the harness is often much more brittle than any of the other wires.
If the other wires are still pliable and in decent shape, you might only need to replace that compressor plug wire in order to test the cooling.

But if you are going to be using the machine 24/7, then by all means replace both fans and all of the wiring!

Iwould also replace the start cap on the compressor and overload protector with a thee in one  start cap. if the wiring is that brittle then imagine how brittle the start cap and overload are.

There is no start cap on this model,and it's missing it's compressors relay cover...but you are correct, rewire it before it knocks you on your butt, or sends you to the hospital ( or "to hospital" for our EU folks.. :smile:) or simply catches fire, now that's entertainment! (not)   :oops:

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I took the cover off when I removed the cord from the relay....I just stuck it back up there in place for the pic.

I did get it to vend today with the free play setup...It ran nice, smooth and quite as a mouse.

What is the best source for a new harness or is this something that has to be done from scratch....?

Can I take the whole cooling unit out without having to disconnect the top and bottom unit....?  I know I have seen the racks that hold them after they are removed but I'm not sure if this one can come out as a whole unit....?

Brian

     You will find 2 retainers level with the door latch near the rear of the bottle stack. Loosten the screws and flip the retainers to the side and the dispensing unit will slide forward. (No need to mess with the 2 bolts at the top, they are for height adjustment only)
     The wiring harness can be purchased from the suppliers on this site.

When I bought this machine the guy told me the compressor didn't work....It was cheap so I didn't really care or ask too many questions about it.....Well tonight I put a new temporary wire on it in place of the brittle one that went to the compressor and fired it up....Started with the thermostat in the off position and it didn't kick the breaker.....So far so good....Turned it to cool and the bottom fan started right away and ran quite....I could hear a hum....I did all this with the door open.

In less than 5 minutes the top lines started to frost up so I closed the door....About 5 min later I opened the door and it was getting cool....So I unpluged it and it made the kind of boiling noise I have heard others on this site talk about.

By the way the end of the power cord looked this machine hasn't been pluged in for year and years....I hope all that was wrong was the brittle cord going to the compressor....At this point I plan on pulling the cooling unit out and replacing the fans and wiring and doing some cleaning.

I'm guessing that since it started to get cold that the compressor is not shot....?  It may be low on freon and over the years of sitting have moisture in the lines which I would need to have fixed but I think overall I will be able to get the unit in working order.....Can a HVAC guy install a fitting and check the freon or will I need to take it to a guy that works on vending machines.....?

Thank ya'll for the help
Brian

Any qualified refrigeration tech can sort your machine out.

Probably less than 5% of all the machines I have owned have had a bad compressor!
I would have let it run for a bit and see what happened. You're there to monitor it.
Sealed system - either it is still sealed or not! Usually they cool down into the 30's within 45 minutes.
I bet that after you clean, rewire & replace that it will be good to go!

I hope you are right about the cooling system being OK....I'm not sure who's idea it was but I saw it on this site where the fan blades were painted Coca-Cola red....Nice touch...Can I get that color at Lowes or Homedepot.....?

Brian

Either should be able to scan a color sample and mix some red up for you

I now have both the bottle rack and the cooling unit out of the machine....Pretty easy job but getting the cooling unit out is a two person job.

How does the cardboard fan shroud come off....?  I didn't mess with it too much and I can see some clips just not sure of the best way to get them off.

Just did some test cleaning and I think the compressor is going to clean up nice. I'm going to just make my own wiring harness, I'll solder the connections and use some heat shrink for a nice clean look.

I didn't take any pics tonight after cleaning on it alittle....The ones below were taken yesterday.

(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yCXf2_ZDzKc/UD7VOdEa33I/AAAAAAAAAPo/z8GvzVxFft0/s1600/DSC05198.JPG)

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0bT62ACHHT4/UD7Wa2LaYWI/AAAAAAAAAQY/llCJWiUw_dE/s1600/DSC05201.JPG)

(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I7HY0dYaMI4/UD7VO7DNeuI/AAAAAAAAAP0/uoACER8Dp7Y/s1600/DSC05199.JPG)

(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IeYZUr6hdt8/UEAROAnn5iI/AAAAAAAAASo/SMbfIyZoYsE/s1600/DSC05206.JPG)

I imagine the guy didnt think it would work it wouldnt cool worth a flip with that dirty of condensor :jawdrop:

So that's were my cat went when it crawled off to die...Yuuk!    :Oo:

That explains the crispy wires poor compressor  was hot as haties lol

After taking all the wiring and fans off I got it cleaned up today....It's ready for a fresh coat of paint..

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uYA3XumBTPI/UEULVz9C_oI/AAAAAAAAAVQ/zS9TgPb4bTg/s1600/DSC05256.JPG)

(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DBR1_2RwPQM/UEULd4oZhtI/AAAAAAAAAVc/aTUMjnWyN8E/s1600/DSC05253.JPG)

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uME7dtOFbFs/UEULxWbpe6I/AAAAAAAAAVk/_0eGZGz0VJU/s1600/DSC05255.JPG)

The fan shroud cleaned up nice and I now know how to take it off without tearing it up.....
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v0i91YTYrRM/UEUMBA8xz2I/AAAAAAAAAV0/NSSmNfiVQHA/s1600/DSC05248.JPG)

Brian

That cleaned up nice, great job, I wish more of my customers would listen when I tell them about cleaning the coils. I get a lot of locked up compressors and get the( I don't know why the compressor went bad), as I'm peeling 2" of shag carpet off the condensing coil. But if everyone took care of them I wouldn't have any work.

Ditto for me too!  :tounge:  Even restaurant owners with thousands of dollars worth of perishable food in there cooler can only be bothered when suddenly the poor thing drops dead from heat exhaustion & then boy do they wish the had taken a preventive maintenance contract agreement with me for a few hundred extra for an semi-annual cleaning & system check-up,  but no, ouch! "what do you mean it will cost >$1000.00 !!!!"  ...Ka-ching!

Same goes for used restaurant equipment too... "ye-old Pig in a Polk"

dido!

About done with the painting....Man the fins in some areas are just about impossible to get to....But overall I'm pleased with how it turned out.  I also got the main power block put back together yesterday.

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S2ToyEn4js8/UElEel05mHI/AAAAAAAAAZA/argNKwPVaFc/s1600/DSC05288.JPG)

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dU-GX7wZkGg/UEgSwgsXBQI/AAAAAAAAAYI/_1oJuHgcEf8/s1600/DSC05275.JPG)

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Brian

Have not been able to take the power block apart wihtout damaging it.  Are those available anywhere as a repop?  Haven't seen them on any of the sponser sites as a stand alone component, but it looks like they incorporate a similar piece as part of their wiring harness assembly.

I'm not sure about a reproduction unit....?  It wasn't all that hard to get it apart....Now putting it back together with the new style connections and the additional heat shrink wrap was tuff.....I also had to enlarge the slot for the powercord because the new cord was larger in dia. than the old cord.

I do a how-to write and post more pics on my blog sometime over the weekend.

Brian

Question for Eric or JohnieG.  I picked up the same cooling deck Brian has been working on but don't know if it cools.  His first photo shows the compressor relay and I think that I need to replace that relay on my unit.  The whole deck is in fairly rough shape, but if the compressor fires up, it can be reclaimed.  The relay actually rattles like something has broken loose, but it is a sealed unit, so I can't see what is going on inside.  Its a Ranco Type H relay if that is of any use.  Could not find any info on a potential source for a replacement unit, any suggestions or is there a means to test the compressor without the relay in place?  I checked the pins for continuity to ground and ohmed them out as well.  No glaring red flags there so I am hopeful.  Sorry to hijack the thread, but his photo shows exactly what I am looking at so I thought it would be the easiest way to ask.

Brian, by the time I get em' they're trash and in for
complete rebuilding.

Jonnie's the guy, with the experience on using original
compressors. I would think the answer would be, a 3 in 1
but I don't know. The relays and overloads we use, are
Klixon brand.