There is the possibility that the previous owner of the compressor cut the lead off because the comp is kaput, a fact made more likely by the fact that it blew a fuse when connected.
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That genuinely hadn't occurred to me; thanks for the thought. Well, we'll see when the fuses arrive...
Bert
And in order to protect your stock of fuses wire a brake light bulb in series to limit the current to about 2 A. Should still be enough umph avialable for the motor to at least try and turn giving an indication as to the require polarity.
But having it take out a fuse instantly on connecting up I'd have it apart looking for a short or other fault first. The theory of the plug being cut off because it's fupped is a valid one.
I would not be surprised if it needs more than 5A to start up
yes, but you can still run part-shorted compressors in series with a light bulb etc, at least I have done anyway. You really want a headlight rather than brake light.
NT
That would be my view too, based on a limited sample of "a few".
A traditional type battery charger would be a better bet for a "transient" trial as they are pretty robust.
Why not just strip the wires back a bit and try it both ways across the terminals of your car battery?
In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
A lot of older toy train transformers/controllers will happily supply 5+ amps, and tend to be cheap although not so easy to find now, only because there are not many shops still selling second hand trains. Postage is the killer if looking at eBay, because they're heavy.
Re-settable fuses are very convenient, this is how I protect my stables lighting circuit ("caravan" CFLs run off leisure batteries).
Blade type
or you can get switch-like ones (but I forget where I got mine, evidently not CPC).
And there is that.
Could be a clamp RF suppression diode across the motor. Its not that uncommon to have a Schottky there to get rid of some of the brush 'crackle'.
Belated thanks for all the new replies and advice. I was hoping that the replacement fuses might have arrived today for a bit more experimentation but they didn't, so a progress report will be delayed. But the more I think about it, the more plausible it seems that the previous owner removed the plug because the unit was faulty.
I'm happy to report that with a new fuse fitted the compressor works beautifully. There's just one exception: the light option has two settings, constant and flashing, and the second doesn't function. Hardly a serious drawback. Thanks again for all the thoughts and advice.
Maybe he cut the cigar plug off so he could wire it with croc clips directly to the battery.
Robert
/Maybe he cut the cigar plug off so he could wire it with croc clips directly to the battery. /q
Or to extend it to reach trailer/caravan tyres....
Jim K
Maplin & Halfords stock those 'long' glass auto fuses. I soldered in some fuse wire when one went recently ...
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