Hello group, I have a 6 year old G-5500 rotor on my portable SAT setup and upon setting it up tonight, I found that the EL rotor has ceased to work. AZ works fine. Checked the screw-on connector, checked the controller, etc. The rotor makes a clicking sound when the control is engaged, and a humming noise until released. At least the rotor is mounted only 6 feet off the ground, hi,hi. Any ideas before major surgery would be appreciated. TIA Shawn - N1HOQ #33948
Shawn,
You can swap the connectors at the motors. They are electrically identical, though of course the meters will not read correctly. If the problem follows the connectors, then it is something in the control box, cables, or connectors. If not, the motors.
One thing you can check at the shack end is the 3 wires to the motors. Lines 4, 5, and 6 should all have continuity, with a few ohms showing. "Few" being something like 5 ohms. I can't find my notes with the exact numbers, and they will depend on the length and type of the lines.
If everything checks, then it is _probably_ the 100 uF phase shift capacitor you can see between the windings in the schematic. You can get a replacement from Yaesu for $10-15 including shipping. Replacing it is not hard, but it is very tedious and messy. Unlike other versions, the G-5500 has the capacitor in the motor housing rather than the control box.
I had exactly the same symptoms you describe, and it was the capacitor in my case.
Good luck,
Alan WA4SCA
Hi Alan and Shawn, FYI about a month ago I attempted to get that cap from Yaesu and they said they no longer sell it by itself, you either buy it with the motor or find a 3rd party replacement. 73 wa6fwf
If everything checks, then it is _probably_ the 100 uF phase shift capacitor you can see between the windings in the schematic. You can get a replacement from Yaesu for $10-15 including shipping. Replacing it is not hard, but it is very tedious and messy. Unlike other versions, the G-5500 has the capacitor in the motor housing rather than the control box.
I had exactly the same symptoms you describe, and it was the capacitor in my case.
Good luck,
Alan WA4SCA
Disappointing, but not unexpected of Yaesu. If they are selling just the motor, considering the time and tools necessary to crack open the case, it might really be cost effective for most people.
From this and other references, it seems there have been a lot of failures
of those capacitors lately. There are good electrical reasons to put the capacitor in the motor, but environmentally, especially with hot summers, they take a beating.
Alan WA4SCA
From "Auntie" (or the BBC for anyone not from England!)
At 02:00 AM 5/4/2009, David - KG4ZLB wrote:
From "Auntie" (or the BBC for anyone not from England!)
Hehe, that could get confusing for us, as we call our ABC (Aussie equivalent of the BBC) "Auntie". :)
73 de VK3JED / VK3IRL http://vkradio.com
Alan & Shawn - my elevation rotor went bad as well a few months ago. However it wasn't the capacitor; I sent Shawn off list the email of the person who repaired the motor for me.
Now as far as the cap, if the 5500 is similar to my 5400, the cap is easily removed without having to crack open the housing. There's an aluminum plate on the side with 4 small screws. Remove those screws and the plate, and you will see the cap inside. If you are careful, and take your time, you can remove it and replace it.
73 de W4AS Sebastian
On May 3, 2009, at 7:42 AM, Alan P. Biddle wrote:
If everything checks, then it is _probably_ the 100 uF phase shift capacitor you can see between the windings in the schematic. You can get a replacement from Yaesu for $10-15 including shipping. Replacing it is not hard, but it is very tedious and messy. Unlike other versions, the G-5500 has the capacitor in the motor housing rather than the control box.
I had exactly the same symptoms you describe, and it was the capacitor in my case.
Good luck,
Alan WA4SCA
I have my own set of G5500 rotator woes. Mine was purchased few months ago, and just now getting around to testing on the ground. I made up 2 cables with the connectors supplied.
First attempt: UP, LEFT, RIGHT worked, but DOWN switch did nothing. After reading the schematic diagram I concluded that DOWN and LEFT voltage is on pins 4-to-6 and UP and RIGHT voltage is on pins 5-to-6. All 4 rotor control switches generate voltage between those screws on the back of the controller.
So I swapped the 2 connectors at the G5500. Problem moved from DOWN to LEFT. So I concluded there is something wrong with my connector to the Elevation rotator. I've checked voltages at the connector end with connector disconnected, checked continuity: all appear ok.
I have unscrewed and replaced the 2 connectors so many times that now both cables are displaying the identical problem: UP and RIGHT switches work; DOWN and LEFT do not.
Sometimes I can hear the inoperative motor humming, mostly no noise at all. I suspect high resistance or bad connection in the connectors pin 4, the center pin that carries the DOWN singnal to the Elevation rotator and the LEFT signal to the Azimuth rotator.
What should I try next? Re-solder the whole thing? Get new cable end connectors? Are there any connectors for this rotator of better quality than the ones delivered with it?
73, Larry W7IN, DN27
participants (7)
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Alan P. Biddle -
David - KG4ZLB -
Kevin Schuchmann -
Larry Gerhardstein -
N1HOQ -
Sebastian -
Tony Langdon