Jeff Wisnia wrote:
Doug wrote:

mm wrote:

On 2 Jun 2006 08:19:22 -0700, "Doug" wrote:


I have an electric chain saw (120 VAC) and was using it for awhile
until it suddenly gave up the ghost. I tried different cords,
different outlets etc. and the problem seems to be the motor.
I suspect that the motor has burned out - and here's the question -
when an electric motor burns out, what typically breaks on the motor
and can it be fixed by someone who is pretty handy?
I disassembled the chainsaw and checked to make sure that the switch in
the handle is working OK and it is - but the motor is definitely not
working.
Any suggestions certainly would be helpful. Thanks in advance.
Doug

What's it smell like? Ozone just means arcing, but if it's not the
swtich and its brushless, there'll be no arcing.

Burnt smell means something is burnt. Probably not repairable at a
reasonable price.


There doesn't seem to be any burnt smell at all - the motor turns
freely by hand but just won't work when I plug it in. I tried
jumpering the wires to bypass the switch - same problem - nothing
happened.
Doug

If you're sure you've exonerated the cord and switch, as well as any
anti kickback switch (If there's one of those on your saw.), I'd cast my
vote for worn out or "stuck" motor brush(es).

I personally have never seen an electric chain saw without a "universal"
motor, with brushes.

Pull the brushes and see if they've worn too short or if there's sticky
gunk keeping them from sliding in and being spring loaded against the
motor's commutator.

Failing that, eyeball and push-pull all connections of lead wires
wherever they end up to make sure there isn't a broken wire concealed by
unbroken insulation.

HTH,

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia

Thanks for the suggestion - I haven't checked the brushes yet so I'll
remove the motor and check them out. I hope it's something as simple
as that and that I can find a replacement set of brushes fairly easily.
Thanks again.

Doug