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Difalco voltmeter blows?

Started by Tampabay racer , Jul 13 2019 12:11 AM

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13 replies to this topic

#1 Tampabay racer

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 12:11 AM

Is anyone having trouble with their new Difalco 281 with traction control voltmeter burning out? I had Jim install mine the day I got my controller. He was actually at the track in Melbourne, FL. The meter burnt out while I was at the RetroPalooza in June. So I installed another one. It burned out again today in practice in Melbourne, FL.

Brian Ambrose

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#2 Racer36

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 08:32 AM

Mine only lasted a few months.

Dennis Dominey

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#3 Mike Patterson

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 10:16 AM

Have you run this question past Jim?

I am not a doctor, but I played one as a child with the girl next door.

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#4 Highnoon

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 02:03 PM

What is a gold traction control meter? I have the new model and it has a volt meter and traction control. But no gold meter.

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Gary Cooper

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#5 Rotorranch

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 02:20 PM

What is a gold traction control meter? I have the new model and it has a volt meter and traction control. But no gold meter.

I was wondering the same thing. I was thinking about a new controller, but wasn't sure which one I want. And now there's the new DD280 and DD281, and I know nothing about them.

Rotor

Jeff Chambers

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#6 MSwiss

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 02:29 PM

Jeff,

HERE's the discussion on it.

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Mike Swiss

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#7 Ramcatlarry

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Posted 13 July 2019 - 05:19 PM

Could the meter failures be due to a voltage or EMF spike to the meter? Would a resistor or diode in one of the meter lines help protect it?

Larry D. Kelley, MA
retired raceway owner... Raceworld/Ramcat Raceways
racing around Chicago-land

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#8 SoCal Bill

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Posted 14 July 2019 - 02:16 AM

Is the meter protected from reverse polarity when the motor is in brake mode? You would think the protection would be built in to the meter block, but you never know.

Bill Fagan

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#9 Pat Skeggs

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Posted 14 July 2019 - 06:54 AM

I think it's as simple as this. The volt meter is rated at 12v. Anything voltage passed above that it will blow.
Mine went also. I'm looking to replace it with a higher rated voltage meter, if it exists. I think JJ showed me one online, just can't pull up where he found it.

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#10 Tampabay racer

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Posted 14 July 2019 - 12:49 PM

Sorry, guys, I wish I had a gold meter. Auto-correct got me. It should have been voltmeter.

Yes, Jim, has been contacted. He said he has heard of this problem a couple times. Third new meter on the way.

Brian Ambrose

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#11 Jim Difalco

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Posted 15 July 2019 - 01:07 PM

The meters are rated from 0 to 30 volts.

This is the same meter that Les Wright has used successfully for a while now. Of course, I sell a lot more controllers so the number of meters with issues would be higher. Testing seemed to show that it was more reliable than the three-digit version I had tried. I will certainly look into the issue and see if it can be protected better. Unfortunately it may just come down to a relatively inexpensive electronic device and the various track conditions in which we use the controllers.

As far as Brian's experience blowing two meters, I think he was just unlucky.

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Jim Difalco
Difalco Design
3075 NE Loquat Lane
Jensen Beach, FL 34957
(772) 334-1987
askjim@difalcoonline.com

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#12 Tampabay racer

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Posted 15 July 2019 - 04:23 PM

There we go again... the gods changed my wording.

In no way am I complaining about this situation with the volt meter. I still fall off just has hard with it not working. It was just a simple question to see if anyone else had experienced this problem.

Brian Ambrose