Winch Contactor (in Lieu Of Solenoid)

So when I rebuilt my 8274 I bought a contactor instead of replacing with solenoids. I bought the Superwinch brand from Summit Racing...



I've barely used the thing...maybe 1 hard pull, the rest have been very minor spooling...and the thing went out on me today. I tested the motor separately and it still spools in and out, but when I try to go through the contactor I get zero.

Has anyone else had luck with a contactor, and if so, which one did you purchase? I've heard the Albright DC88 is good?

 

hmmm... That is not good. I'm part way through an install on one now for my 8274.

 

A contactor is a relay. It's just scaled up to handle more current.

The precise difference is that a relay is intended as a control element in a circuit, while a contactor is only there to boost current or voltage. Really, it's a distinction without a difference. In practice, contactors are large, and relays are small, but they function the same.

Is the activator winding open? What's the resistance between blue-to-black and yellow-to-black? If the activator winding is open, Superwinch should cover it if it's fairly new. That would be the right thing to do ...

Can you take the contactor apart? It would be interesting to look at what failed - it may even be fixable.

I would measure it first and then test it on the bench. You should be able to hear the contacts move when you energize the activator coil. The closed contacts should have minimal resistance in the closed path.

 

I will have to take some resistor measurements. It's old enough to be out of warranty. One of those things where you buy/build something to put on your Jeep and then actually install it two years after the fact. Kind of defeats the short term warranty. I can probably take it apart if I was that curious, I just don't know if its worth it.

Any advice on the Albright that I am inquiring about? I've heard that its the same as what Warn uses for about a 1/3rd the price.

 

Did you buy the same one?

 

yes

 

Well, I haven't head anything else bad on them so maybe its just my unit. Once I troubleshoot I'll post more here.

 

Good news. It's not the contactor. After some additional testing and finally using a jumper wire I was able to get the winch to work through the contactor. There is a fault in my switch that was causing the issue. I just had to keep isolating parts of the circuit to narrow it down.

 

do you have a 3 or 5 wire switch?

 

I use a 3 wire remote switch.

 

Me too. How did you wire it up, the whole contactor, not just the switch? I though I had mine ready to go, but it wasn't working when I finished.

 

I did my wiring like this (your wire colors will probably differ, my controller lookes like it was re-wired by the PO.

 

I still use solenoids in mine.. IMO you probly bought a contactor that isn't rated high enough for the load. In other words your winch uses X amount of amps and the contactor is rated for a lesser amount.. There is no reason a contactor would not work if it is sized properly to the amp load.

edit: sorry missed the above post stating you found the problem..

 

thanks, I'll have to check it against my installation.