Magma master pot heating element

[Brad]

Seems the heating element on my master pot has died. Was heating fine then it tripped the breaker. Rest the breaker, turned it back on. The PID shows the temp slowly dropping.

Anyone know how this thing comes apart so I can replace the element?

 

[Brad]

Just pondering, and showing my complete lack of knowledge, but could it be the relay on the PID?
How would I test it?

 

[popper]

it tripped the breaker - usually a short someplace. Chassis could be HOT electrically so be careful. Unplug everything and check with ohm-meter. Could also be in the PID relay. https://manualzz.com/doc/53273942/magma-master-pot-instructions Uses a band heater - who knows who makes it. A div. of TI used to make them but looks very project specific.

 

[358156 hp]

Unplug the pot from the PID and plug it directly into the wall socket and see if it trips the breaker again.

All of the heating elements I've had fail simply failed to heat.

 

[JonB]

So, one of the reasons Magma closed it doors was allegedly they couldn't get parts.

Did Magma Engineering go out of business?

I went to their website. Says: "So Long, Farewell..." I called them several months earlier about the Master Pot. Owner said there were issue acquiring heating elements. Also problem with getting workers, since most now are CNC operators.

castboolits.gunloads.com

An other thread about Master Pot Heater elements.

Aftermarket heater band for Master Caster?

UPDATE 01-21-2019 CUSTOM BAND IS INSTALLED AND WORKING: CUSTOM HEATER BANDS FOR THE MASTER CASTER ARE DONE. IF YOU WANT ONE READ BELOW. After several months of work, waiting for the order to be produced and then testing it a couple of times before commenting, I have now installed and...

castboolits.gunloads.com

 

[Jeff H]

I worked in process heating for the eight years just previous to going into teaching.

Heating elements aren't complicated and don't require stuff from afar, like chips and such. They can be configured in a ridiculously wide range of physical products and many of the "band" heaters can be bent around things, like extrusion heads on plastic injection mould machines.

If someone told me they couldn't get heating elements for something, I'd be very leery of what was REALLY going on. Even if the company you're buying them from told you that you don't buy enough to keep supporting you, it would be easy to find another product, with or without minor adjustments to your own product.

Someone just got tired of the grind of running a small business. Nothing wrong with that. Finding a different element is not a big deal. If your design does not accommodate a common, cost-effective and readily available (from multiple vendors)element, it's too specialized to be competitive. All part of the "grind." Heating elements are available in a dizzying variety of configurations and whoever was making them MAY even still have stock or be able to support replacement.

 

[jsizemore]

Look under heater bands. Maybe you'll find what you need.

Plastic Process Equipment homepage

The World's Largest Variety of Accessories for the Plastics Industry

www.ppe.com

 

[popper]

Just make sure any replacement has high enough temp rating. I've used flex plastic ones for low temp stuff, neat but won't provide/take the heat.

 

[Jeff H]

There are several element manufacturers and there is likely a band that meets the original spec. SOME elements can be bent to some degree as well.

Very often, a part for something you buy as whole unit will contain parts with special part numbers which are specific to the manufacturer, but is a common part used in other things. By not listing the manufacturer's part number, it's assumed by the buyer of replacement parts that it's special and only available from the person selling parts for what they sell.

Inspect the original element for any markings which may lead you to a manufacturer. I personally believe it unwise to source any part that is too esoteric, because you limit your own sources. If I were making casting pots, I'd design around a common standard element configuration available form multiple element manufacturers. That's not always possible, but it's not necessarily IMpossible and then one supplier can't get you over a barrel.

 

[358156 hp]

The tubular heaters for Lyman pots came from a company called Tempco. My spare Lyman element is marked "THE04963, 800 W (Watt) 120V, A 09 14. That big honkin' pot of yours would need a much longer heater. I've heard Tempco is spendy, but I have never dealt with them myself. They would probably only offer heaters is straight lengths that you would need to bend with a tubing bender, but this may be doable.

Waage may be an option too, they do make pots that size but I don't know if they'd be willing to try to help out someone with a competitors pot. I believe that Buffalo Arms used to sell Magma pots, they may have some ideas as well.

A web search for "tubular heating elements suppliers" turned up many, many hits as well. These elements are very similar to the heating elements in electric ovens, but you'd need to be certain to get one that is 120V and not 240V of course.

 

[Jeff H]

Tempco is a reputable supplier and has a wide assortment of configurations. Get your mitts on one of their catalogs and there is a lot of very useful information in the back of them. I'm sure they were as nice to me as they were because I bought a lot of heating elements for very large ovens, but they were helpful and knowledgeable - a very good resource.

Tubular heating elements come in a very wide range of configurations, and as stated - very much like in your oven. This is so. They are not complicated and several suppliers vie for the business. If you are buying enough of them, you can specify the shape you want. Most of what I used were 2' to 4' long "hairpin" elements and some "double hairpin," but you can get a tubular element shaped just about any way something can be bent. I used them in multiples of three for three-phase power, but a circular element with a few "coils" to wrap around something, using single-phase is not at all uncommon.

Some of the band heaters though, are more flexible, both figuratively and literally for the application in question.