I believe Jeff is steering you in the right direction. Worn brushes and
weakened brush springs can lead to intermittent/no contact between the
brushes and the commutator bars.
With something softer than a hammer head (block of wood for example) tap on
the left side, then the right side of the drill motor housing near the top,
tryinng to power the drill after each side is tapped.
If this method results in the motor running, it's liely that the brushes and
springs may need replaced, but cleaning the brush holders may allow
sufficient brush contact.. but the parts may still be required for a proper
repair.

When removing brushes, it's a good practice to keep them apart so they can
be put back in the holder they came out of.. and also to scratch a small
mark on a long side of the brush to indicate the top or end of the motor so
they can be put back in the correct orientation.

Aside from loose connections or brush problems, it appears as though the
motor is turned on/off by a relay on the circuit board. A click noise mat be
noticeable when the start-stop buttons are pressed.
Checking for correct operation of the relay can be performed a couple of
different ways.. definitely check it with the power cord unplugged if you
aren't familiar with working on powered equipment.
If the relay doesn't appear to be reacting to the start-stop buttons, it may
be faulty. If you can desolder the relay to remove it from the board, it can
be checked out-of-circuit with an ohm meter and small power supply or
magnet.

For testing with power applied, only if one is experienced and familiar with
safe testing methods.. using a 120V light bulb instead of the motor,
connected to the circuit board motor leads would allow the relay check to be
performed without the additional concern regarding rotating parts during
testing.

--
Cheers,
WB
..............


wrote in message
...
I have a Hougen Magnetic Drill that is not working.
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/l...pse1f7add1.jpg

The Magnet itself seems to work, but the drill portion doesn't. Not counting
when it turned on a couple of times two days ago, making me think that there
was a possible intermittent break somewhere in the connections.

I opened it up and tinkered with the safety switch adjustment screw, but
that wasn't the problem.
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/l...psf865d83a.jpg

The safety switch is located on the bottom of the drill. The bottom of the
drill must be flat against the metal surface in order for the drill to power
on. (See the two buttons at the bottom):
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/l...ps3e32a032.jpg

The third button in the center is I believe also a safety switch that will
cut power to the motor if the drill's magnetic base drifts as much as 1/2".

I assumed that there is nothing wrong with the AC cord because the magnet
portion works, so using my Fluke 79III multimeter on the Ohm setting I
tested the start and the stop buttons. There was activity on the
Multimeter's display screen when I press either, so I assume that there is
no break, at least as far as where those leads connect to the circuit board.
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/l...ps3495c450.jpg

Would it be plausible to re-flow the solder on the circuit board in case
there is a cold solder joint somewhere?

I can't travel several hours round trip to spend $65 an hour at an
authorized repair location, so any advice on how to proceed would be
appreciated.

Thanks.

Darren Harris
Staten Island, New York.