Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Get help and framing advice from the framing community
Post Reply
User avatar
KAYMOUNTING
Posts: 24
Joined: Fri 08 Jan, 2010 12:45 pm
Location: London
Organisation: Finsbury Park
Interests: Diasec

Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by KAYMOUNTING »

Hello all ... Quite a while since we last posted!

We're looking for some help urgently ...

Do you know / have you ever used an Electro mechanical engineer to repair workshop machinery before?
Anybody you can recommend?


Our hydraulic flat bed heat press is out of action, we believe there is a problem with the heating elements rather than
the controller / thermostat.

It's over 40 - 50 years old Schubert, so the manufacturer is long gone and like nearly everybody else who owns one, it
was never subject to a regular maintenance contract. :sweating:

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Not your average framer
Posts: 11013
Joined: Sat 25 Mar, 2006 8:40 pm
Location: Devon, U.K.
Organisation: The Dartmoor Gallery
Interests: Lost causes, saving and restoring old things, learning something every day
Location: Glorious Devon

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by Not your average framer »

It is extremely unlikely that a flat bed press of that size will have just a single heating element, so I'm assuming that it will have a number of elements wiring in parallel, if this is so then there is unlikely to a single mode of failure caused by the heating element.

Therefore I guessing that since a heated press of the size will consume a very substantial power consumption something very heavy duty is going to be switching all that amount of current. Like you I'm not immediately thinking about the controller, but perhaps a very heavy duty relay, or a contactor.

If it's not the controller, then it might be worth getting a competent electrical engineer to have a poke around with his test meter to see whatis working and what's not. It does not sound like anything that is all that hard to fix.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
kuduframes
Posts: 185
Joined: Thu 28 Apr, 2011 6:09 pm
Location: Ewshot, Hampshire
Organisation: Kudu Frames
Interests: Art, photography
Contact:

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by kuduframes »

I just want to endorse Mark's diagnosis, sounds perfectly logical to me.
Any competent electrician with a modicum of factory maintenance experience should be able to sort that out
User avatar
KAYMOUNTING
Posts: 24
Joined: Fri 08 Jan, 2010 12:45 pm
Location: London
Organisation: Finsbury Park
Interests: Diasec

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by KAYMOUNTING »

Many thanks for your advice Mark & Kuduframes.
Your input is much appreciated.

Finding somebody willing to take a look at the press though, is proving very difficult.
So far we've had nothing but two refusals on the phone, one guy who came in and
said he couldn't fix it - then another who gave us a long lecture about thermostats &
heating elements, then failed to turn up. :roll:

There MUST be somebody out there who is willing and competent to undertake the
task ... fingers crossed :call:
JFeig
Posts: 1285
Joined: Thu 23 Sep, 2004 8:31 pm
Location: Detroit, Michigan USA
Organisation: minoxy, LLC
Interests: non-fiction knowledge
Contact:

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by JFeig »

Have you looked for "industrial equipment maintenance" companies?
Jerome Feig CPF®
http://www.minoxy.com
User avatar
KAYMOUNTING
Posts: 24
Joined: Fri 08 Jan, 2010 12:45 pm
Location: London
Organisation: Finsbury Park
Interests: Diasec

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by KAYMOUNTING »

No we haven't JFeig but certainly worth a try ... thanks for the suggestion. :idea:
Not your average framer
Posts: 11013
Joined: Sat 25 Mar, 2006 8:40 pm
Location: Devon, U.K.
Organisation: The Dartmoor Gallery
Interests: Lost causes, saving and restoring old things, learning something every day
Location: Glorious Devon

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by Not your average framer »

I don't know if it has already occurred to you, but an engineer who repairs washing machines, or electric cookers is probably the idea person to contact. Both washing machines and cookers have heating elements and thermostats, so the fault finding and repair knowledge is much the same.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
User avatar
KAYMOUNTING
Posts: 24
Joined: Fri 08 Jan, 2010 12:45 pm
Location: London
Organisation: Finsbury Park
Interests: Diasec

Re: Hydraulic flat bed heat press 8Ft x 4 Ft

Post by KAYMOUNTING »

Ahhh ... good thought ! That brings somebody to mind.
Post Reply