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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Posts
    2

    Replaced Tube after water froze, new tube won't fire?

    I have an older model (2013) rebadged Bodor Mini 5030. The machine was sold to me as a 50W. CO2.

    A few weeks ago the UK was hit by extreme weather conditions - 'The Beast From the East' that plummeted the country to well below 0 degrees very quickly. The water in my tube and in the chiller froze solid overnight. The tube was destroyed, I did not think the machine had been damaged in any other way.

    The dimensions of the installed tube (1200 x 55mm) lead me to believe it was a 60w tube. I've obtained a new 60w tube, but on installation, and running the coolant through, it will not fire, and shows no signs of life at all.

    I'm now looking at the possibility that the PSU has crapped out too. I intend to test the output at the anode and diode with a multimeter but am not entirely what voltage it is meant to be outputting.

    I read a suggestion of holding a polystyrene peanut on a cotton thread by the live end to see if it is drawn toward it! Is this really a thing??

    So it looks like I'm looking at a faulty tube or a bad PSU. I was hoping someone else might have some insight into the possible problem or useful diagnostics, I really need to isolate the problem so I can take the necessary actions.

    Thanks for reading!

    Simon

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2018
    Posts
    20

    Re: Replaced Tube after water froze, new tube won't fire?

    From my experience it most have problem on laser tube

  3. #3

    Re: Replaced Tube after water froze, new tube won't fire?

    Hi there,

    To confirm if it's your tube or PSU not working, detach the positive and negative wires that connects to the tube and attach them to sides of a small metal rod.

    Start your machine and see if the connection you just made arcs or not (I mean look out for an extremely bright spark from the metal rod when you fire.)

    If you get the white spark, the problem is with the tube, if not, it's from the PSU.

    I hope this helps your diagnosis. I look forward to hearing your feedback.

    PS: make sure you're careful in carrying this out.

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