Max, as to my suggestion of using fine emery to clean the comm. On a large comm it is not unusual to to hold a stone to the rotating com, a fine stone. I was not advocating "sanding" the comm, merely cleaning it and checking the brushes. Before automobiles had alternators the early generator comm was often turned on a lathe. That kept the comm even. Anyway, I was not suggesting sanding the comm and yes, sanding the comm and leaving it rough or uneven will indeed eat the brushes.

Ron

Although you did say "I would take some fine emery paper and clean up that commutator."
I just had issue with giving this advice to those that are uninitiated in the art of motor overhaul, more damage can often be caused, especially where the com is nice and smooth and does not show sign of wear.
And not everyone's idea of 'fine' is the same.
I have turned quite a few com's in my time and had to do the tiring task of undercutting the mica.
Modern one time thermal motor fuses are rectifier like in appearance and care has to be taken soldering in, other wise you can fuse it prematurely.
Max.

 

Although you did say "I would take some fine emery paper and clean up that commutator."
I just had issue with giving this advice to those that are uninitiated in the art of motor overhaul, more damage can often be caused, especially where the com is nice and smooth and does not show sign of wear.
And not everyone's idea of 'fine' is the same.
I have turned quite a few com's in my time and had to do the tiring task of undercutting the mica.
Modern one time thermal motor fuses are rectifier like in appearance and care has to be taken soldering in, other wise you can fuse it prematurely.
Max.

Can't disagree with that Max. What I failed to consider was:

giving this advice to those that are uninitiated in the art of motor overhaul

Pretty big detail for me not to consider.

Your comments are much appreciated.
Ron

 

It's incredibly satisfying to save something from the dump, especially with a relatively simple fix. I was raised by 2 depression-era farm kids and have never embraced the throw-it-away mentality. I have to force myself to turn away from lost causes since you could spend all your days fixing stuff.

As to your situation with the boss, only you know the expectations. If there's any doubt, I'd simply bring the thing back (once you're sure it's safe for commercial duty) and make certain the boss knows you took the time to do a fix. While you risk getting nothing for your efforts, you should get at least an 'atta boy and some good will. If the boss really doesn't come through, you will have learned a lot about who you're working for, and that has some value also.

I think if you asked anyone with a successful career, they'd confirm that you do great work first, above and beyond expectations, and hope (and trust) that management notices and rewards you after the fact. If not, you move on.

One more thing - be realistic about your added value. The broken machine might sell for $60. A running but used one - like the one you now have - might sell for $150. So you added $90 to the value, not $400. I don't know if these numbers are right, but I hope you see my point.

 

But also keep in mind that if the safety contact WAS the non-re settable type, (although you can re-fuse them with a min torch) and you have physically made contact but the protection is not there now, if the blender was left unattended and started on fire, you may loose all popularity!
Max.

 

Be aware that if you return it to service in the restaurant, you run the risk of being held liable for damages if it overheats, catches fire, electrocutes, or otherwise injures someone etc..

The restaurant owners are ultimately responsible for ensuring the safety of their equipment which is probably why it makes more sense for them to replace it. The cost of employing the services of a "qualified" person to repair, test and certify the device as safe is probably more than it's worth.

 

Why does being a moderator mean that I know what every part in every appliance is. All I'm saying is that you may have inadvertently bypassed a symptom of a more important problem and, yes, may be making matters worse. That part is there for a reason. Perhaps you fixed it, or perhaps you just put a penny behind the fuse by bending it upward to force it to make contact all the time. After all, the person that is pulling 30A from a 15A circuit and puts a physical penny behind the Edison fuse (or a screw across a Buss fuse or whatever) could say the exact same thing, couldn't they: "The unit works now when it didn't do jack before."

As others have said, it is probably a thermal breaker of some kind and you have just defeated it. If it was open because it broke the circuit doing what it was intended to do, then you have not fixed a damn thing, but only masked the symptom so that the real problem can continue without that breaker being able to protect it in the future.

Well, perhaps I assume too much and hold people who merely suggest that I may have done something wrong to an unrealistically high standard when they happen to be a moderator in an electronics forum. I suppose the way I responded to you also has something to do with other areas of my life apart from electronics that some people apply the term 'baggage' to which is based on unrelated and yet seemingly related input because it reminds you of something else in the past even if there is no logical relation other than perceived similarity. Something in some synoptic gap shorted out or sent the input I read into the wrong area of the circuit board in my head perhaps when I posted a certain reply. Therefore, after thinking it over and reading HP's input as well as Reloadron's and your own response I now offer up a public apology to you because what I said was due to other straws in my life designed to break this camel's back thinking you were like the others adding the last one that would. This was not the case as I understand it now. You were trying to help and I've come to appreciate that. No matter what you may think of me one thing I can say is that I'm honest, often to a fault as evidenced by what I wrote and what you responded to. Nobody ever gave me a schematic of my life and even if they did I'd have to come here and ask you all to help me figure the thing out! I guess that's all I have to say.

 

Don't sweat it. We all tend to wear our feelings on our shirtsleeves from time to time and just find ourselves in a mood to take offense at anything -- I know I do. Being able to step back and evaluate our own actions dispassionately once we are in a better place is a sign of maturity (all too often lacking).