Magnetic switch problem on G1023SL

[D. J. Dorn]

I've had a G1023SL tablesaw for about a year and have liked it a great deal. I discovered recently that when I hit the stop button on the TS, there was a delay before shutting off. Got the air out and blew it out well. Same thing happened so called Griz - they advised to do the same thing but to give it a good shot. Problem getting worse. Last night, I hit the button and nothing - I had to go to the breaker box to shut the power down. Knowing it was magnetic, I decided to test it so I turned the power back on from the box and it took off. Shut it down again and after about 30 seconds, I heard the relay kick out.

Called Griz and they were very good about it - they are sending a new switch (which is normally $62) and won't charge my card providing I send the old one back within 30 days. Very reasonable - but if this happens again, I need to figure out how to bypass the magnetic portion of the switch and just wire it as a direct switch. Anyone else have a switch problem on the G1023 series?

Don

[RonB]

Anyone else have a switch problem on the G1023

:No. I have about 2-1/2 years on my 1023S

[Duane Bozarth]

...

Oooh, that's nasty! :(

...

That is good...

It's a shortcut I'd prefer not to do for the restart issue...how large a motor?

Just out of curiousity, are the switches Grizzly's using branded? If so, whose are they using? If it were to happen again, my first preference would be to see if I could figure out why specifically and fix that or failing in that replace it w/ a different magnet starter...small sizes are not terribly expensive from Dayton or similar...

[Leon]

I would advise that if it does it a gain that you buy a another brand magnetic switch. I like the fact that if there is a power failure or interruption that you have to turn the saw back on rather than having to remember to turn the switch off when the power is lost.

[Mike G]

I have about 2 1/2 years on my 1023SL, with no problem

[James "Cubby" Culbertson]

I don't have said saw. I am planning on ordering it before year's end however :)

Of all the reviews I've read, it appears there are generally 3 things that tend to upset people with these saws/Grizzly. 1) Shipping container is a POS and many folks have reported scratches and dents in their units. 2) Motor dies after a short time and 3) the magnetic switches seem to fail often. These complaints are in the small minority of the reviews but it sounds like you've got one of their "Famous Magnetic Switches". I'd return it and get the new one and test the heck out of it.

Cheers, cc

[D. J. Dorn]

I don't see any specific brand or writing on the outside or inside of the box, but the saw draws 18 amps at 220v. I have a 20 amp plug and breaker. It must just be a relay and am wondering if weather is a factor. I'm in Iowa and the shop gets quite cold but I don't run it below freezing.

D>>

[D. J. Dorn]

I had not heard anything about the motors - I hope that won't be the case with mine. As to the packaging, I was very lucky - it arrived in perfect condition. If had arrived with a small dent or two, I still wouldn't have gotten excited unless it effected use. I figure that I bought a power tool, not a car. Funny how some things that are very important to some are not so much to others.

Don

[D. J. Dorn]

Both replies are encouraging - hopefully, there is some difference in the switches that they are aware of and will get me the one that holds up. I had to have the motor replaced almost immediately on a G0555 bandsaw and if Griz wasn't so easy to work with, I might have considered something else. I sure have been happy with the performance - and have now outfitted two different shops in green.

Don

[TWS]

A year and a half, G1023SL, no problems (other than not getting enough time on it).

TWS

[Ba r r y]

You have General stuff, too?

Barry

[Bill Waller]

Mine is just short of a year old without any problems. Magnetic switches can be a bear in the wood shop. I had an Allen-Bradley starter on my old Delta-Rockwell table saw for many years. It was prone to start failure from dampness, sawdust, and any other kind of foreign fuzz stuff that could find it's way inside the box. Although I liked the safety of the magnetic starter, I finally had to throw in the towel and swap it out for a toggle. Yeah, I still use the old saw for a lot of things. Grinding through steel stock on an enclosed cabinet saw scares to sparks out of me. :-)

Although this is an option on the Grizzly, I would do everything in my power to hold on to the Mag switch.

Bill Waller New Eagle, PA

[e-mail]

[Duane Bozarth]

Bill Waller wrote: ...

I've got original magnetic starters on saw, planer, jointer, ... all that are 20+ years old and have had a failure. It's been so long since I've had one open I forget but I believe Rockwell was using Square D at the time of these. The boxes are, however, sealed well which keeps virtually all dust, etc., out. If there's an issue, I think it may be the starter wasn't designed for the application...

Me, too, to the point of buying my own replacement if Grizzly can't come up w/ a suitable one...

[Frank Ketchum]

The relay is the problem. It is either sticking from something binding up the internal works or the contacts are sticking (welding) together. In either case, get the replacement from Grizzly.

Frank

[Jim Northey]

Try cleaning the contact points with a bit of sandpaper. Had that happen on my old Rockwell , cleaned them up and worked fine for a few years before I gave it away. AFAIK it's still going strong. If it's damp in your shop or humid in your area it may be an ongoing problem for you. Good luck with it. Jim

[Bill Waller]

The starters I had were salvaged from some plastics processing machinery. The enclosures were NEMA 1 and provided not barrier against dust and damp. It was the contacts on the holding relay that finally gave up. I was involved in a bit of motor control in the seventies and had amassed a small collection of starters, relays, control buttons & switches, and enclosures.

I did finally get rid of some of the stuff in a move, nine years ago, at least, I think I did. :-)

If the original poster cannot come to favorable terms with Grizzly, and can afford to follow this avenue, I agree, wholeheartedly. My personal preference was Allen-Bradley, but Square-D is just fine, and probably easier to pick up at any decent electrical supply house. I would recommend a well sealed enclosure in a wood shop environment. If one has the required drilling equipment, NEMA 12 would be a good choice.

For any of those interested in NEMA ratings for electrical enclosures, check

(zzzzt), don't touch (ZAP) that. :-) Bill Waller New Eagle, PA

[e-mail]

[Duane Bozarth]

...

My last retrofit on the small shaper was branded Dayton from Grainger...it was significantly less expensive at the time and has functioned flawlessly for some 10 years now...

[Larry Jaques]

On Wed, 22 Dec 2004 02:12:14 GMT, "Jim Northey" calmly ranted:

For Thor's sake, if you're going to burnish contacts, drop by the electrical outlet and get a proper burnishing tool. You'll need to purchase only one in your entire life.

Amazon pocket tool Single

Sand in the innards of anything mechanical (relays, switches, etc.) is always a bad idea.

-- Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. ---- --Unknown

[Rick]

Lar,

you scored 4 points on that one. Good for ya!

Rick

(two points for being VERY accurate and to the point.)

( the other two points? Being extremely nice about it ... though it IS hard sometimes not to clang a couple of heads together just to get them to stop bickering. Again ... good for ya! ).

[Larry Jaques]

On Wed, 22 Dec 2004 21:14:56 GMT, "Rick" calmly ranted:

I've been hammering that into people's heads since the late sixties, when people used to destroy their distributor bearings and lock up vacuum advances after sanding their points.

Danke.