Things were going along swimmingly with the reincarnation of the C4 Intertype. Jeffo had supplied the pot pump stop we needed. The machine was turning over to our satisfaction. Then Wayne turned on the pot. The pot was slow coming down, two hours to reach 550deg F. The mouthpiece would not go above 430 deg F. Not enough to melt a 6pt slug. We decided that the element was faulty. We found another element that had obviously been used, but decide that we would give it a go. The best this element would give us 380deg F.
The pot control is a Funditor. The principle of the control for heating mouthpiece is something I have not run across before. It relies on a bimetal element, wired in series with the mouthpiece element, heating up and tipping a mercury switch to break the circuit. As the strip cools down the mercury switch is tipped back by the bimetal element and the mercury runs back and completes the circuit and the cycle starts again.
Now if there any Intertype enthusiasts out there who know this control we would be glad to hear from you. We are trying to hunt down a new element. We are even investigating the option of having one made.
Below is the circuit in red
Click for a larger view
