# Ascor QC 1000....



## Wizard1500 (Jul 1, 2014)

I have an Ascor QC1000 with 2 QC8 heads, that has been stored for a little over 20 years.  I've decided to start doing some table top work, so I hooked the system up and tried it.....modeling lights still work, head fans still work, and the power supply still charges up.....Now, the problem.....when I press the test button, the strobes flash, but, they still stay lit at a reduced power.  After about 3 seconds, it trips the breaker.  I tried them out in my woodworking shop, and thought the power to my shop may be fluctuating, so I brought the setup into the house, and got the same results......

I know the parent company is no longer in business, so, who would I take something like this to for repair?  Would I just be better off to buy a new light kit....nothing expensive, because this is just a hobby to keep my mind working  (at least that's what I told my wife.  I've really missed photography)....


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## tirediron (Jul 1, 2014)

To be honest, when you can get a 300 w/s Flashpoint monolight from Adorama for <$200, I wouldn't bother.  Chances are the capacitors are breaking down and the cost to repair this unit would make it impractical.


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## Wizard1500 (Jul 1, 2014)

Thanks for the response.....that's kind of what I thought.  I've been looking at a couple of different units....now, to just pick one......


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## Derrel (Jul 1, 2014)

Have you looked into the way people "re-form" or "recondition" capacitors on the web? Might be worth trying, depending on how many firings you tried...old-time tube radio guys have a routine they use to bring back to life old capacitors...


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## compur (Jul 1, 2014)

Beware. Handling flash capacitors, if you don't know what you're doing, can kill you. Especially the ones in studio flash units. Even the caps in those little disposable 35mm cameras are dangerous.


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## Wizard1500 (Jul 1, 2014)

compur said:


> Beware. Handling flash capacitors, if you don't know what you're doing, can kill you. Especially the ones in studio flash units. Even the caps in those little disposable 35mm cameras are dangerous.



No problem there.....many years ago (18 yrs old), I was in electronics A school in the Navy....by accident, I discharged a capacitor in a transceiver with the little finger on my right hand....it was bad enough that I spent the night in the base hospital.....I am now 62 yrs old, and still have the scar.....I will not even remove the cover from the unit.....took me years before I would even wire a new electrical circuit for the shop.....I've decided to just buy a set of monolights..... Thanks for the advice....I totally agree with you.....


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## tirediron (Jul 1, 2014)

Derrel said:


> Have you looked into the way people "re-form" or "recondition" capacitors on the web? Might be worth trying, depending on how many firings you tried...old-time tube radio guys have a routine they use to bring back to life old capacitors...


Yeahbut...  most of those OLD radio condensers weren't electrolytics; the ones in this power supply almost certainly are and when they start breaking down, they're nastttyyyyyyyyyy!


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## vintagesnaps (Jul 1, 2014)

This thread has been enlightening... I've gotten vintage cameras that came with a flash and I've mostly just displayed them - because they look cool. Otherwise I've only given a passing thought to whether or not I've acquired any that would be worth getting into working condition (having looked up enough to at least know that most likely the capacitor wouldn't still be working). 

The only one I've used has been a not all that vintage electronic Braun and the built in flash on my late-model black rainbow Polaroid. I like flashcubes and flashbars - don't tell me those could be dangerous! they work...

Anyway I thought a capacitor was what could send you traveling thru time in a Delorean.


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## tirediron (Jul 1, 2014)

Capacitors/condensers (same thing) - are only dangerous if they're mishandled.  There are two dangers; electrical shock which ranges from annoying, but minor in small ones to fairly nasty in the big ones (but is only a concern if you grab both contacts simultaneously), and the electrolyte in electrolytic capacitors, which, in units from the 80s and early can be toxic, but is usually only present in very small quantities.


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## compur (Jul 2, 2014)

vintagesnaps said:


> I like flashcubes and flashbars - don't tell me those could be dangerous! they work...



There is no shock hazard with flash bulbs, bars, cubes, etc. These old things are flashed by simply passing a few volts through them such as from one or two common batteries. Most of these only require about 1.5 to 6 volts from AA or similar batteries. No shock danger there.

It is the newer electronic flash units that require a pulse of hundreds of volts to set them off and so can be dangerous. Circuitry inside them boosts voltage up to hundreds of volts which is then stored in a capacitor and released to pass through the flash unit's flash tube when it is fired. But, those capacitors can hold a charge for a long time if not discharged and when an unsuspecting tinkerer touches them in the wrong spot he/she will get zapped.



> Anyway I thought a capacitor was what could send you traveling thru time in a Delorean.



That's a _flux_ capacitor (which makes time travel possible). They require a massive 1.21 gigawatts of power but, fortunately, they are not found in any photo flash units. In fact, they aren't found in _any _device that you are likely to come across.


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## vintagesnaps (Jul 2, 2014)

Well damn that's no fun! You mean what happened in the movie was just make-believe?? lol Darn I thought I could string a bunch of these old flash capacitors together and go over to the car cruise-in and see what I could do to cruise back in time. Pick up an old Speed Graphic while I was there.


Thanks I'll stay away from big funky nasty ones then. And I figured flash cubes were too little and cheesy to do much but pop and sizzle.




(Sorry OP for hijacking your thread...)


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## Derrel (Jul 2, 2014)

tirediron said:


> Derrel said:
> 
> 
> > Have you looked into the way people "re-form" or "recondition" capacitors on the web? Might be worth trying, depending on how many firings you tried...old-time tube radio guys have a routine they use to bring back to life old capacitors...
> ...



I am talking about plugging the unit in powered ON for like 3 seconds, then unplugging it from the wall and waiting 5 second; then waiting 10 minutes and repeating that, but leaving it on for 5 second; then waiting 10 minutes then leaving it on for 10 seconds; then unplugging and repeating until the READY light just comes on, the repeating this process over about a 2 hour period, not taking off the cover of anything. And yes, I expect that these caps do have electrolyte in them.

I brought a "DEAD" $49 e-bay Speedotron D402 back from "Dead" this way...I suspect it was about 30 years old, give or take. My buddy Mike has used it since off and on for a number of gigs...


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## minicoop1985 (Jul 3, 2014)

For the record, I converted my Kodak Easyshare POS P&S to full spectrum. I found the flash capacitor. Trust me, I found the damn flash capacitor. It freaking hurt. You guys ain't kidding when you say those little bastards pack a punch.


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