After the group of posts on this switch and other types used to arm
electronics, I wanted to run a simple test. Maybe to provide some reassurance
to people that already have this switch installed for their project. On the
other hand, there’s no way I can guarantee a favorable result.
There were a couple of concerns voiced during the last thread for the 110-220
selector switch. One was the lifetime specified in the manufacturer’s
documentation: 300 operating cycles (without load). The other was reports of
failures including high resistance, unreliable connection, and switches
actually cracking during use.
I believe that at least some failures could be attributed to installing what is
intended to be a flat panel mounted switch on curved airframe tube. I’m
thinking that some switches are being over-tightened creating stress on the
rotatory selector.
Please see the attached photos.
Installation:
The hole for these switches is not ½”, but it is close. The manufacturer’s
dimensions for installation are metric. If you just drill a ½” hole, the hole
will probably be too large to use the small protrusion that should be used to
prevent the switch from rotating. Please see the arrow on the first photo.
The switch doesn’t have to be tightened much at all on the mounting panel.
Unfortunately, I’ve never seen any documentation on installation when you buy
them. Anyway, you should drill a smaller hole, and gradually increase the size
until the treads just clear. Also, the notch needs to be filed for the small
projection to prevent rotation.
Durability:
To test the lifetime, I installed a new switch that powers a small light bulb
(9 volt battery for power) and also has posts to check the voltage. I’m
keeping track of how many times I cycle this switch on-off. I’m occasionally
operating the switch 10 times when I go out into the garage. I observe the
light for intermittent connection, occasionally tap the test box, and jog the
selector. So far, I’m at 80 cycles. Again, looking for any problems. I’m
keeping the box on my clothes dryer because it vibrates when operating, and
even the temperature varies. This morning it was 45 F in my garage, and after
operating the dryer for a couple loads of laundry, the test box was 80 F.
So, we’ll see how many cycles I get from this switch. Please keep in mind that
this simple test is not designed to check mean time between failure (MTBF)
because those tests are a lot more involved.
Questions and comments are appreciated.
Richard Dierking
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