Indicator light bulb 30V

RJ, you are correct on losing brightness. Since it is a witness light, it may be okay. However, I'm wondering why 30 volts? This is why I'd like to see a wiring diagram then we could get a much better idea on how to solve this problem. It could be a dropping resistor which could have change in value. In that case, replacing the resistor would solve the problem.
 
I do not have a wiring diagram for my lathe. However the Grizzly G4003 wiring is very similar to mine as far as I can tell. But there are no specs for the indicator lamp in Grizzly literature.

What has been your experience with the power indicator light on your lathe? What voltage is used and how long does it last?

Since the 30 volt OEM bulb burnt out maybe I will try a higher voltage bulb just out of curiosity before moving on to one of your suggestions.

Stay tuned, I will need someone to hold my hand if I start messing with wiring and resistors.
 
My lathe does not have an indicator lamp. My mill has a LED that is a bit on the wimpy side for brightness. Both of my machines run on 110v. On each machine I wired a separate box with a switch that the machine plugs into. Lights (in this case LED) are wired into the box. When I turn on the switch, power is sent to the machine and the lights turn on illuminating the machine. You still have to turn on the machine separately by the switch on the machine itself. If I want to work on the machine where the power should be unplugged, I still have lights shining on the machine. The other advantage is if I have shut the machine quickly, there is a off switch on both sides of the machine. Looking up the Grizzly, I assume that your machine runs on 220. It can be done but you may have to get a friend whose knows electricity to help you. Else you can soldier in a LED with a resistor in the old bulb stem as shown by Markba, which is the easiest and a lot less messing around.
 
The transformer in the control box of my lathe has 244 volts ac input and 27.2 volts ac output. Kinda makes me wonder why the 28 volt lamp burnt so quickly. Next I will remove the front cover to see how much space I have to work with.
I am going to look at changing the whole socket for an LED lamp that is commonly available.
 
Is that all the transformer do, just run the indicator light? Then you can just bypass the transformer and wire the wire the lamp to the 220 as RJ just came up with or do one leg of 220 which would give you 110 and use a 110 volt indicator. I think that you will like the LED much better. The ones now are so much brighter.
 
Start with the obvious. grab a volt meter and see what voltage you actually have at the socket. also check and see if it is actually AC or DC, then we will know what we are working with. As mentioned above, the burnt bulbs may be a symptom of a different issue.
 
Thanks RJ, thats great, looks like it will run direct on 240v.
s.d., I don't know if the transformer only supplies the indicator light.....it would surprise me if it was not also used for the switches and relays.
flyin, have already checked, its 27.2vac.
 
Flyinfool said:
the burnt bulbs may be a symptom of a different issue.
Click to expand...
Something has dawned on me this morning, the transformer seems to have different input possibilities if I interpret the label correctly.
IMG_0804.JPG

My line voltage is 244 vac. but it is connected to the 220 vac terminals (20,21) of the transformer. Seems to me that this would explain why the output is 27.2 vac.instead of 24 vac. If the line is changed to the 240 volt input terminals (20,22) would that not drop the output to the specified level and hopefully be easier on indicator bulb life.

Please let me know if this makes sense before I go ahead and f$$$ something up. This is a view of the box before I turn it into a black charred mess.

IMG_0802.JPG
 
Tozguy said:
My line voltage is 244 vac. but it is connected to the 220 vac terminals (20,21) of the transformer. Seems to me that this would explain why the output is 27.2 vac.instead of 24 vac. If the line is changed to the 240 volt input terminals (20,22) would that not drop the output to the specified level and hopefully be easier on indicator bulb life.

Please let me know if this makes sense before I go ahead and f$$$ something up. This is a view of the box before I turn it into a black charred mess.
Click to expand...

Yes, it appears that your transformer isn't properly set up. Change the inputs to the 240V position and your output voltage should return to normal and your burned out bulbs should be a thing of the past.
 
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