EV parts collecting has officially begun

[jakobnev]

How are the air hoses on them tho, can you put two in series like i suggested? It might be the cheapest solution since you already have one.

[mechman600]

It would be doable. It's just that I am quite disappointed in this vacuum pump for what I paid for it. $65 for a pump that barely does anything. I am asking it to do something that it wasn't designed for, though. If I spent another $65, I'm in it for $130 for something that might work. I think I would rather cut my losses and look for something better, like a proper used EV vacuum pump.

EDIT: I went to the hardware store today and picked up a 12V air compressor on sale. I got home and took it apart. Aaaaaaannnnddd....it won't work. The pump does not have a an intake port - the crankcase is open and the inlet valve is built into the piston. I was able to reverse the position of the inlet valve, but not the outlet valve. I reassembled it and made sure it still works and I will return it one of these days.

Scratch that idea. I am now searching eBay for real vacuum pumps.$$$

[adamj12b]

Originally Posted by mechman600

It would be doable. It's just that I am quite disappointed in this vacuum pump for what I paid for it. $65 for a pump that barely does anything. I am asking it to do something that it wasn't designed for, though. If I spent another $65, I'm in it for $130 for something that might work. I think I would rather cut my losses and look for something better, like a proper used EV vacuum pump.

EDIT: I went to the hardware store today and picked up a 12V air compressor on sale. I got home and took it apart. Aaaaaaannnnddd....it won't work. The pump does not have a an intake port - the crankcase is open and the inlet valve is built into the piston. I was able to reverse the position of the inlet valve, but not the outlet valve. I reassembled it and made sure it still works and I will return it one of these days.

Scratch that idea. I am now searching eBay for real vacuum pumps.$$$

This is what I would use if I needed a pump.

Amazon.com: Dorman 904-214 Mechanical Vacuum Pump for Ford Truck: Automotive

Its a replacement for the diesel ford trucks.

My Corvette has manual brakes already, so I didn't have to worry about vacuum issues.

-Adam

[mechman600]

I wouldn't, because that's the exact one I have that doesn't work worth a crap!

[adamj12b]

Originally Posted by mechman600

I wouldn't, because that's the exact one I have that doesn't work worth a crap!

WOW really?

Thinking about it now, the pump is designed to augment the little amount of vacuum that a diesle engine produces. Maybe its just enough extra to have good brakes?

-Adam

[mort]

Originally Posted by mechman600

I wouldn't, because that's the exact one I have that doesn't work worth a crap!

Hi Mechman,
I see this at a local (to me) store. If I got one how could I test it to tell if it would work for you?
-mort

[mechman600]

Originally Posted by adamj12b

Thinking about it now, the pump is designed to augment the little amount of vacuum that a diesle engine produces. Maybe its just enough extra to have good brakes?

No, diesels don't produce any vacuum - they produce pressure. The brakes on these trucks are hydro-boost, using the power steering pump for power. This pump you link to (and unfortunately paid money for) is to provide vacuum for the HVAC system, AKA the heater controls. Too bad I didn't do my research before I bought mine!

Originally Posted by mort

Hi Mechman,
I see this at a local (to me) store. If I got one how could I test it to tell if it would work for you?
-mort

Wow, that's cheap. All you would have to do to test it is dead head the pump with a vacuum gauge and give 'er 12 volts. The gauge should quickly jump to 20"HG or more. A gauge doesn't have much volume to vacuum down, so it should happen almost instantly. My junky pump slowly pulls a gauge to 13.5"HG in 5-7 seconds.

However, going by the dimensions listed for your pump, mort, it is about the same size as mine, so I do not have much hope. I am watching a pump on eBay that is sold specifically as a brake booster pump for Hot Rods, like this one: Hella 009428087 - Hella Street Vacuum Pumps - Overview - SummitRacing.com

[mechman600]

I received my "field control module" from EPC corp today. The quotation marks are definitely necessary. It looks home made. Not shoddily home made, but still home made.

It has 5 wires: battery pos, battery neg, motor pos, motor neg and ignition. I did what anyone would do and removed the cover to see what's inside.

A relay and a blue thing. I don't know what the blue thing is, but it's wired like this:

I did test it with a 12V battery and my motor. Yup - no spark when I disconnect the green "ignition" wire. But is this device actually doing anything besides transferring the inductive spark from inside the on-off switch to inside of the relay? Who knows. And the way everything is glued together, it's not like I can easily replace the relay if it lays an egg.

What is the blue thing?

[zsnemeth]

Hi,

Sorry, it's too late now and i can't post links yet, but please do a forum search on diyelectriccar dot com for "EBC corp". I'd high light two threads: EPC Controllers..... and Zigouras engineering gate driver ****

Good luck

[adamj12b]

Originally Posted by mechman600

I received my "field control module" from EPC corp today. The quotation marks are definitely necessary. It looks home made. Not shoddily home made, but still home made.

It has 5 wires: battery pos, battery neg, motor pos, motor neg and ignition. I did what anyone would do and removed the cover to see what's inside.

A relay and a blue thing. I don't know what the blue thing is, but it's wired like this:

I did test it with a 12V battery and my motor. Yup - no spark when I disconnect the green "ignition" wire. But is this device actually doing anything besides transferring the inductive spark from inside the on-off switch to inside of the relay? Who knows. And the way everything is glued together, it's not like I can easily replace the relay if it lays an egg.

What is the blue thing?

The "blue thing" appears to be some kind of snubber capacitor designed to absorb surge voltage spikes in a DC bus.

It would be nice to know the actual part number on it, but its most likely on the top that's glued down or the side touching the side of the enclosure.

-Adam