New Comeup 9.5rs contactor noise

[mosdefjeff]

Just mounted up a new Comeup 9.5rs. Remote is paired but will only spool in or out momentarily and the "sync" alarm sounds. With the wired remote, I get this when spooling in or out. When the drum stops I get a constant alarm sound that isn't mentioned in troubleshooting and then changes to the staggered beeps asking me to sync again. All the while the remote light shows green.

The speed seems to be there, but the chatter has me worried:



Start battery is a 700 cca that's never given me problems (including with my old Smittybilt 12k lb winch) and is at full charge with the engine off (12.5-6). That's 50 cca more than required by Comeup. I also have an Odyssey AGM model 34R-790 and this video was filmed with my Bluesea solenoid closed. 14.4 v at start battery terminals.

I have a call into Comeup engineering regarding the contactor chatter. Initially thought to be a voltage issue, myself and customer service are left scratching our heads. I'll wait to hear from them next week but thought I'd get some input here.

 

[ccslider]

Sounds like a loose connection to me. The solenoid is firing intermittently.

I would verify all of those connections. If that's good, maybe the remote connections where it's not getting a good signal to trigger the solenoid.

Can you bypass the solenoid for testing and just hot the hot wire?

 

[mosdefjeff]

No loose wires anywhere. Checked all that with Comeup. Wouldn't be the first time I saw a bad electrical component, but also not the first time I overlooked something either.

I'm not going to hot wire a brand new winch unless Comeup tells me to, but I'll check everything again tomorrow.

 

[Uncle Ben]

You sure its spooling the right direction? When spooling in the rope needs to be winding on the bottom of the drum. ___>___>___v(O)^ I ask as it sounds typical of working against the brake. Common mistake!

 

[jps8460]

You sure its spooling the right direction? When spooling in the rope needs to be winding on the bottom of the drum. ___>___>___v(O)^ I ask as it sounds typical of working against the brake. Common mistake!

I’ve also seen this.

I’ve also seen several comeup’s that need to be worked in and out several times to get the contactor functioning properly and consistently. They are very nice winches, but can be a bit temperamental when brand new.

 

[mosdefjeff]

You sure its spooling the right direction? When spooling in the rope needs to be winding on the bottom of the drum. ___>___>___v(O)^ I ask as it sounds typical of working against the brake. Common mistake!

I’ve also seen this.

I’ve also seen several comeup’s that need to be worked in and out several times to get the contactor functioning properly and consistently. They are very nice winches, but can be a bit temperamental when brand new.

Spooling in the correct direction, yes. It's mounted in a shortbus and was not re-positioned. Wiring is good, all connections secure. Purchased from Slee this week. Packaging was great with no signs of the box being dropped, etc.

I will try working the winch a little bit today and see if that helps. I'll report back here with a video of my findings.

In regard to using the wireless remote and not getting more than an inch of spool at a time and the unit essentially 'erroring' thinking there isn't enough voltage, it would make sense to me that if the contactor jumps, the control box may misinterpret this as a voltage issue and stop operating normally.

Hopefully there's a change in operation!

 

[DaveInDenver]

If it was me I'd worry about a contactor chattering out of the box and needed to be cycled several times to start working correctly. But too many variables to determine anything there. To my ears that sounds mechanical like UB suggests and not the contactor, but hard to tell on the video.

Hopefully it's simply a wiring issue starving the coil of current or causing it to under voltage. Check that you have a *good* return/ground to both the motor and the controller. For example if a return path is through the bumper, which being powder coated isn't going to be ideal.

 

[mosdefjeff]

I feel the same way, Dave. A little concerning, but I'm not worried about getting it replaced of defective. These things happen.

Winch is connected with the supplied 2 ga. cable directly to battery POS/NEG and the control box is grounded to the motor. Everything is clean and tight.

Haven't had a chance to cycle the winch today. Hopefully I can get to that this evening.

 

[jps8460]

I feel the same way, Dave. A little concerning, but I'm not worried about getting it replaced of defective. These things happen.

Winch is connected with the supplied 2 ga. cable directly to battery POS/NEG and the control box is grounded to the motor. Everything is clean and tight.

Haven't had a chance to cycle the winch today. Hopefully I can get to that this evening.

We’ve seen about 25 that have needed to be cycled to start functioning properly. I think there is grease or a coating on the contactor that needs to be worn off. If you call comeup they will tell you to cycle in 20-25 times. Once they start cycling, it generally doesn’t revert. Out of the 100-120 or so that we’ve sold I think we’ve only had 1 out of the box contactor failure.

 

[mosdefjeff]

That's good to hear!

I remember years ago working on 36v systems for ride-on floor scrubbers, etc. that some of the solenoids would stick sometimes. I'm no stranger to these systems and have seen it all before.

I can certainly tell this is a quality piece. Sleep has made a great case for spending the money on Comeup and I'm happy to break it in of that's all it needs.

I'll have time.for that today and will post up later.

 

[DaveInDenver]

That sounds like nonsense. Saying you have to "burn off" grease or some other coating from the contacts does not inspire confidence for latent failure in a sealed contactor. Where's the burnt off substance going to go other than to settle back inside?

 

[mosdefjeff]

It does sound a little strange. I definitely think Comeup could use some more continuity in the provided instructions. If there's a chance that cycling the winch 2500' will have to be something you do to get normal operation, it should be mentioned in paperwork or in troubleshooting.

So I cycled the winch in and out approx 15 times today. No noticable change in noise from the contactor. Spooling consistently and at normal speed from my experience. I will cycle it a few more times tomorrow and see what's what.

If nothing changes I'll take it up with Slee.

 

[jps8460]

It does sound a little strange. I definitely think Comeup could use some more continuity in the provided instructions. If there's a chance that cycling the winch 2500' will have to be something you do to get normal operation, it should be mentioned in paperwork or in troubleshooting.

So I cycled the winch in and out approx 15 times today. No noticable change in noise from the contactor. Spooling consistently and at normal speed from my experience. I will cycle it a few more times tomorrow and see what's what.

If nothing changes I'll take it up with Slee.

I should have been more clear, when I say cycle I mean hitting the winch in and winch out button. If it’s still not cleared up, you should definitely bring it in or call Comeup.

I had to cycle the one on my 200 30-40 times to get it functioning properly. Haven’t had any issues since (maybe 25 solid pulls on it).

If it does require a warranty, don’t loose faith. They are (in my opinion) a much better value than the other brand lol.

 

[mosdefjeff]

You were clear enough. I cycled it in and out, but only the length of the wired remote, as the wireless function still isn't working properly.

Did you have issues using your wireless remote during this time when you were having to cycle the winch?

I am still waiting for Comeup to call back. Hopefully later today. In the meantime I will spool all the line out a few more times. If the wireless functionality doesn't improve at the least, I'll come see you guys.

Thanks for clarifying.

 

[jps8460]

You were clear enough. I cycled it in and out, but only the length of the wired remote, as the wireless function still isn't working properly.

Did you have issues using your wireless remote during this time when you were having to cycle the winch?

I am still waiting for Comeup to call back. Hopefully later today. In the meantime I will spool all the line out a few more times. If the wireless functionality doesn't improve at the least, I'll come see you guys.

Thanks for clarifying.

This may sound old school, but I’ve never tried the wireless feature on my winch. Trust issues I suppose lol.

 

[DaveInDenver]

This may sound old school, but I’ve never tried the wireless feature on my winch. Trust issues I suppose lol.

Why does my winch reverse every time I get a text?

 

[Uncle Ben]

Why does my winch reverse every time I get a text?

🤪😂

 

[mosdefjeff]

Hahaha

I would prefer to use the wired function too. However, every time I cycle the winch the alarm goes off to resync the remote. The alarm stays on for 5 minutes. That's a little annoying...

 

[mosdefjeff]

Talked with Comeup today after cycling the winch in and out about 15 times. There was little to no change in contactor noise and the wired remote LEDs were lighting up red, indicating 'abnormal winch conditions'. Also started getting audible errors from the winch after another 5 minute rest. Still no reliable wireless function.

After explaining further to Rod with Comeup (talk about great customer service, btw) about the errors I'd been getting, he and his engineers want to replace the winch entirely.

I will say that positive customer service experiences can really brighten up an otherwise bummer of a situation. I deal with this sort of thing on a daily basis at work. Speaks volumes for both Comeup and Slee, who have been nothing but gracious, honest, accommodating and helpful.

I'll follow up when the new unit is installed.

 

[sleeoffroad]

Just one more thing, where did you ground the little ground wire to? Is that grounded to a clean piece of metal?