SOURCE: Coleman Powermate 6250
My answer:
This a fairly common problem & easy fix with the Powermates, and
other Gensets in the same class - made in you know where - China.
I seriously doubt if the Ignition Coil had anything to do with the
failure of the KILL switch, as by how it's wired in the Genset circuit
unless maybe you failed to fully set it to the ON position, and then in
that case you may have had some "arc over" internally at that switch
contact point to Gnd - prematurely causing a bit of engine surging -
as that like which happens just before an engine runs out of gas.
If your Genset has a 3-wire connector harness coming off that ON/OFF
switch then most likely there are only 3 wires connected to the back of
that switch. One single wire (most likely GRN in color) goes to an/the
Engine Block GROUND bolt somewhere - easy to follow.
The other 2 wires will be the same color (every Genset is a bit
different so my schematic only says they are #18 with no color stated -
possibly WHT though ??), and one of those 2 wires goes to the #1 pin of
that 3-wire harness connector, which in turn is WHT in color on the
other side of that 3-wire harness connector pin #1, and goes back to
the Control Board inside the Front Panel Box. The other #18 switch wire
goes to the Ignition Coil Primary side. Lets hope it's just a bad
switch and not a bad Control Board.
Most likely the switch contacts inside just burned out from heat
breakdown, as when you go to shut off the Genset - by turning it to OFF
- the switch has to take the Ignition Coil Primary voltage/current and
basically SHORTS it to Ground thus collapsing the Ignition Coil by
robbing the Primary excitation voltage. It's bound to fail if it's a
"cheap switch design" to begin with. AND - we all know about cheap Made
in China stuff now don't we?
Just so you know - you are not the only one in this same Genset boat -
as there are tons of people out there with far worse Powermate problems
then just a simple switch problem like you have there. Count your
blessings!
You are right about Powermate being out of business though, but not all
hope is lost there either when you read everything farther below - as
to factory service and parts for your Genset.
I know it's a little long, but the info farther below may be of future
help to you later down the road - so copy and print it out for later
reference just in case you have other Powermate Genset issues or this
site goes down as well....hahahaha.....just kidding.
If you choose to contact the PRAMAC people about getting a new switch,
and repairing the Genset yourself here are a couple options for you. If
their factory replacement part is outrageously high in price - then you
have another option.
If you are handy with a good soldering iron and some good 60/40 Kester
solder and acid flux all you have to get is a good ON-OFF single-pole
single-throw (only 2 wire connection points for the wires) toggle
switch rated at 120 VAC or 12-24 VDC, and at least 10-15 amps rated,
and just do it yourself. $5 part worst case!!
DO NOT use a Momentary switch type - as then someone could start the
Genset inadvertently - esp if you have smaller kids around!!
Just make sure you get a good solder connection on the wires and the
switch tabs, and make sure you tin both the wires and the switch tabs
first to get good results. If the switch doesn't fit the old hole
perfectly you may have to do a bit of modification work there.
Sorry - I can't help you out there. Make sure you mark the switch as to
ON & OFF - unless you find one with a metal ON-OFF backplate like
some come with - as there is no right or wrong way here. It's either
one way or the other depending on how you mount the switch to personal
preference. Right - Left or Up - Down.
Test the switch first before final mounting by firing the Gennie in
whichever is the ON position so you know which is which, and make sure
it kills the Gennie when you flip the switch in the opposite direction.
That's is all there is to it. You're done!!
Hopefully like I said before the Ignition Coil is OK and so to is the
Control Board otherwise I know I'll be hearing back from you soon.
Please post me a reply as to finding this solution being the best
resolve to your Genset problem there by following my recommendations
above. Also please rate my troubleshooting fix as well.
Keep me posted and I'll follow up as well.
Best regards,
Frank
SOURCE: coleman powermate 6250 mod# PM0525303
I had the same problem on my Powermate 525500 (5500 watt) and finally manage to get in contact w/Powermate (PRAMAC) tech support. He told me that if the gen is setup for a while, the exciter loses it's magnatism. To reenergize ( jumpstart) as he called it, follow the prcedure below. Probably not for amatures.
1. start up the generator.
2. Pull off the brush cover on the end of the gen.
3. Get a 6-12 volt battery and setup w/color coated cables.
4. place the negative lead on the left side brush terminal and tap the right side brush terminal w/ the positive lead.
5. Wala....you sould have power.
One would think that this important info would be on the manual or a blog somewhere.
Good luck and have a wonderful day.
The Texajun
SOURCE: powermate 6250 no spark
Hi Mark,
The engines used on the Powermates have a low oil shutdown system that can be troublesome. Try this:
1 - Make sure there is enough oil in the crankcase. The oli level needs to be all the way up to the bottom of the threads in the oil fill hole.
2 - Still no spark? Replace the spark plug with a new one (properly gapped), then spray something like brake cleaner into the carb. Pull the rope and see if you hear any detonations from the engine. If the engine tries to start but won't you need to look at the fuel system, then the ignition.
3 - If you proved there isn't any spark happening, look under the plastic cover where the kill switch is located. You'll find a small metal box with wires coming out of it. Find the wire that goes from the box to the kill switch and disconnect it at the switch. Mark things as needed so that you'll remember where to put them back. Give the rope a gentle pull and see if we have a working ignition, if it does have spark there is something wrong in the low oil shutdown mechanism.
4 - If you've convinced yourself that the low oil shutdown is misbehaving try changing this oil and flushing out the crankcase. Look for any evidence of debris that would have made the oil level float bind. As a final test reconnect the wire we took off the switch and disconnect the one that goes from the module to the oil sensor on the side of the engine, if you don't get a spark with the sonsor disconnected you probably have a bad module.
5 - If we didn't get ignition with the low oil shutdown disconnected from the kill switch, reconnect the wire we took off and then disconnect the (usually black) wire that leads down inside the engine. This is the kill wire for the ignition module. If you get the engine to start with this wore disconnected you may have a shorted kill switch, test it with an ohm meter.
6 - if there still isn't a spark with the kill wire disconnected you may have a bad ignition module. You have to take off the carb, then the blower housing to get to it. Check that the kill wire isn't shorted to the block anywhere, and that the module has the proper gap and orientation before replacing it, The modules say "cyl side" on the side that should face into the engine. A regular business card or a playing card ought to just fit between the magnet on the flywheel and the module, too loose would cause a loss of ignition. You get extra points if you use a feeler guage to set the gap to 0.010 inches.
7 - Ignition modules are available from a bunch of different places, your local Briggs supplier will want to know the model, type, and code numbers located on the side of the valve cover in order to be sure which parts you need,
Rate me if you liked the answer,
Carl
SOURCE: owners manual
Try this link. The model number will be on your endbell.
http://www.powermate.com/productmanuals.php?cat_id=3
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