Cooking my Rotex

[smartcarpie]

So a week or two ago I had some issues with the speed fluctuating on my ro125. Just a few seconds at a time, two or three times. I was plugged into a pretty worn receptacle via the Midi, and figured maybe the plug was loose in the old receptacle.

Used it several times since then, didn't notice any issues. Today I sanded 14' of poplar, nothing strenuous, just a quick pass with fine grit to prepare for painting. Same thing again, couple slowdowns.

Thought maybe a temp issue, Sanders just came in from the truck after below zero overnight, and Thought that might have been the original issue.

Then as I was finishing up noticed the burning smell, fried electric. Pulled the plug and found the following. Ideas? Sander, vac, cord issue?  I don't believe the plug it cord was very worn. Maybe I'll swap it and give that a shot. Otherwise sander has to go in I guess. Hope I'm still under warranty, gotta check date of purchase.
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[Administrator_JSVN]

Do not use another cord. You will ruin the cord.

This is caused when the Plug-It is not fully attached to the machine.

I would suggest contacting the Service team on Monday for assistance. Their number is below.

Shane

 

[smartcarpie]

Thanks Shane.

Appreciate the heads up on the cord.  Its a bummer that one is toast, all wrapped up in the sleeving like that.  Too bad I am down to only two of those setups now...

I'm not sure why the Plug it wouldn't have been fully engaged, always push all the way in and give it a twist until it's firmly locked, or at least feels that way.  Do they wear out easily?  I mean I keep extra cords but the ones in the sleeve with the hose take 90% of the hits.

 

[smartcarpie]

And I just notices you are one post away from 8000.  A nice round number.

 

[r cash]

I have gone through this with both of my Rotex sanders 125+150.
The easy and cheapest is to buy a hardwire kit it takes 15 min to install.Then the problem is gone. On my Rotex 150 I melted 3 cords sanding overhead on a job 3 plug-its @$44 or one hardwire kit @ $6.
I to was told I did not set the plug-it right as well . I have 10 festool sanders for more than 10 yrs
setting plug-its not the issue its heat and movement with sanding with the larger sanders and the 18gauge cords they come with.
I hardwired the 16 gauge cord to both 125 an 150 rotex now the sanders hardly get warm even sanding for hours.

 

[rst]

The heat comes as a result of the pins and socket not making good contact.  I Carefully apply electrically conductive grease to my contacts on all my tools, it especially works well on batteries.

 

[AlexThePalex]

They really should redesign the plug-it cords to make them more robust.

The problem described here in this thread comes up so often, everybody here on the FOG has his standard answer ready because we're familiar reading about it.

And you'd think something like this is a fire hazard, with your cord and tool melting and all. I'm surprised the CMS can't pass UL approval but this can.   

I like how the plug-it cord gives you detachability. Very useful. But I don't like how flimsy it is implemented. These cords break constantly, one way or the other.

 

[Scott B.]

I wonder if condensation during the tool warm up could be a contributing factor in a case like this.

 

[NH-Engineering]

I have a bit "stupid" question..
I have 3 Festools with cords: EHL65, Vecturo and Ro150.
All these came with a cord included. However I use 1 cord for all and keep the two others as spare. So far this has worked well, but I am not sure which Festool the cord I am using originates from.

Could this be an issue (Cord is overheating and melting) if the cord that originates from the least power consuming tool is used with the most power consuming tool?
Or are the cords fully interchangeable?

 

[wow]

You can't connect a light-weight (18 ga) cord to a tool that requires a heavy (16 ga) cord. There is an indexing 'bump' in the cord connector that prevents it.

The HD cord can be used with either class of tool, and so is the one that is usually used with the CT when wrapped with the hose...

Edit: I didn't notice that you are in Norway. The information I provided is only valid for US tools, as that's all I am familiar with. Alex (the next post) is a better source as to what the situation is in Europe...

 

[AlexThePalex]

Or are the cords fully interchangeable?

In Europe 220v countries the cords are fully interchangeable, we don't have the multiple cord problem they have in 120v countries.

 

[NH-Engineering]

Or are the cords fully interchangeable?

In Europe 220v countries the cords are fully interchangeable, we don't have the multiple cord problem they have in 120v countries.

Ok, Thanks

 

[jamanjeval]

I wonder if condensation during the tool warm up could be a contributing factor in a case like this.

That isn't likely. Most often, this kind of problem is caused by the connectors not being fully engaged. In other words, pushed in but not locked. The cord backs out and the contact area between the cord and the tool becomes smaller and smaller. The smaller contact area doesn't conduct as well and produces more heat. The heat burns the metal and causes even more resistance.

I see this a lot in household receptacles. They become so loose that a cord is barely held in. When taken out, I often find they are completely burned out from the inside just like this one. People would freak out if they knew they had something like this burning in their walls. As an aside, this is a good reason to never use inexpensive residential receptacles and to replace them immediately if the cord isn't held in securely.

I'm not laying blame on anyone. It could also have been a bad connector with the same results even if it was fully engaged.

Dirt, moisture and light corrosion is not typically an issue because most terminals are plated and have a cleaning wiping action as they are plugged and unplugged.