Still Dead Microwave

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normadesmond

normadesmond

Active member
Platinum Member
Joined
Dec 23, 2019
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35
Location
Minnesota
Hell-o again! Yes, I still have my beautiful late 1970s Quasar InstaMatic microwave oven sitting downstairs, sad & forlorn and still non-operative. I'm in the Twin Cities & every so often google, trying to find someone that might try & fix my oven.

Any suggestions will be most appreciated!
 
It's likely that the Magnatron might have failed, or the control panel electronics have an issue.
Also the rectifier or main capacitor could have shorted, and blew the fuse.
These are all common problems we've dealt with in my repair shop.
 
Faulty door switch(es), fuse, capacitor are all easily repairable. Locating a magnetron could be a task.

Is the timer mechanical or does it use a touch pad controls?
 
It may only have "cold" solder joints on the PC board (generally not applicable to manual control units). These often occur over time and use, usually with components that generate heat, or carry large currents. The relay that controls the magnetron transformer may be failed as well. Does "non operative" mean stone dead, or does the clock light up but you can't cook? If you have a mechanical control unit, the above suggestions apply, bad door switch can either cut power to the magnetron, or the "shunt" switch could blow the main fuse... The light and fan may still work. These parts exist in all microwave ovens, so in either case (digital or mechanical timer), could be your trouble.
 
What are the symptoms? Does it turn on? My Panasonic worked normally, except no heating. So I checked the magnetron, there are videos that show you how, it was bad.

5 minute repair.
 
Thank you EVERYONE for your replies! Most appreciated!

When it's plugged in, clock time can be set & I could enter time for Delay Start, but pushing on most of the choices, do nothing. I have no electronic skills regarding repair, so my explanations will probably be wanting. I replaced the fuse a few years ago & it worked fine after that.
 
normadesmond said:
Thank you EVERYONE for your replies! Most appreciated!

When it's plugged in, clock time can be set & I could enter time for Delay Start, but pushing on most of the choices, do nothing. I have no electronic skills regarding repair, so my explanations will probably be wanting. I replaced the fuse a few years ago & it worked fine after that.
Click to expand...
If this machine uses a smooth "touch pad" style keyboard, it could likely have gone bad due to aging. - tarnishing and corrosion interferes with some or all selections.
And there's no way to service the pads, nor are any still available for something that old.
In that case, I'm quite sure that the oven is history now.
 
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phillymatt53 said:
Sharp was known to produce quality microwaves.

I purchased my Sharp Carousel 800W in 2003 at Sam's Club for $47.
It gets used every day since then, no problems. ;)
Click to expand...


And that microwave isn't just a consumer grade Sharp microwave, it is a genuine commercial sharp microwave. It is one the best and one of the most even heating microwaves ever produced. The R21LCFS series is one of the most popular, most produced microwaves in the food service world running over a 30 year span. They are the direct drive of microwave ovens.
 
phillymatt53 said:
Sharp was known to produce quality microwaves.

I purchased my Sharp Carousel 800W in 2003 at Sam's Club for $47.
It gets used every day since then, no problems. ;)
Click to expand...
I'm very curious to see pictures of your Sharp. My grandfather's from 2000 is still going on strong, even survived from some explosion according to him when he put something in there.
 

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Hi Minnesota microwave owner, I’m sorry I haven’t found anybody in Minneapolis that can repair that microwave, my youngest brother Phil could do it but it’s hard to motivate him. He lives in Burnsville.

From your description, it’s probably just a door switch or wiring connection. It doesn’t sound serious.

Most parts that are necessary are still available for these magnetron are easy to find as our capacitors, rectifiers fuses, etc. end door switches, have you been reaching out to Appliance and television repair places to see if anybody will work on this in Minnesota

I know it’s impractical but if you got it to us here in Maryland, we could fix it easily

John L
 
combo52 said:
Hi Minnesota microwave owner, I’m sorry I haven’t found anybody in Minneapolis that can repair that microwave, my youngest brother Phil could do it but it’s hard to motivate him. He lives in Burnsville.

From your description, it’s probably just a door switch or wiring connection. It doesn’t sound serious.

Most parts that are necessary are still available for these magnetron are easy to find as our capacitors, rectifiers fuses, etc. end door switches, have you been reaching out to Appliance and television repair places to see if anybody will work on this in Minnesota

I know it’s impractical but if you got it to us here in Maryland, we could fix it easily

John L
Click to expand...
Thanks John! Maryland is a bit far, but Burnsville is NOT. If Phil ever feels the desire, I will pay him well.
 
Chetlaham said:
Have you considered a new microwave? This model is the best, most even heating unit you can buy with power levels and step cooking.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00345V43...c624e69ab7&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWw
Chetlaham said:
Have you considered a new microwave? This model is the best, most even heating unit you can buy with power levels and step cooking.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00345V43...c624e69ab7&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWw
Click to expand...
My beloved microwave's understudy is an Montgomery Ward oven that was here in the house when we bought it. It is old, but I have no idea how old. When we moved in, I moved it downstairs & placed the Quasar in its place. On the plus side, it is a micro/convection combo, so that is nice.
Click to expand...
 

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phillymatt53 said:
I have an online photo of it, but sorry no personal pics of it.
This is the unit, it's an R203 series.

View attachment 318290
Click to expand...
That's a very nice one! I've always liked Sharp Carousels, even better than Panasonic microwaves since I'm a huge fan of Panasonic myself in general. My folks had one like this R-508HS from up at our last cabin we've owned before, I'll admit I'm not much of a microwave user but I really did liked that one. I wished we brought it back home when we sold the place. Unfortunately it's no longer there today, it got replaced by a GE JES2251SJ according to the rental photos I've seen.
 

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I bought my mom a JC Penney branded microwave in 1984, offered to replace it with something nicer at least 3 times over the years, "nope, not gonna touch my microwave". It worked for more than 30 years, every single day use, without a single issue until it finally gave up the ghost.
 
hi,
It sounds like you are not interested in doing the repair yourself?

If are going to repair yourself (you have some mechanical and electrical/electronic experience)

I suggest you be clear about that and say so.



For those that are getting into microwaves, there is typically a high voltage capacitor, - safety issue !

These are usually with a slow self discharge resistor, which you should never trust.

Treat it with respect! It typically can have approx 2,500 volts on it when charged.



If it has touch pad it could be the board that interfaces with the touch pad.

Small low voltage capacitors can be an issue with age.

Are you getting into this yourself?
 
I wrote earlier that I have no electronic repair skills and yes, I became aware of the resistor long ago & realize one could kill oneself. I did replace a fuse years back which went well. I do believe this problem is the touch pad since I can set the clock but little else. I've been hoping that there was a talented person, in my vicinity, who tackled repair on vintage appliances.
 
Sorry, I got distracted and missed that.
Able to set clock tells us something, if you tried to actually use the microwave (with a cup of water inside) what will it do? Would it go through the motions but not actually heat the water? more detailed info perhaps could help steer you in the right direction.
 
panasonicvac said:
That's a very nice one! I've always liked Sharp Carousels, even better than Panasonic microwaves since I'm a huge fan of Panasonic myself in general.
Click to expand...
Nice to know!
So am I!
I've got a couple of nice portable Panasonic radios from the 60's and 70s'

For a tease, here's my immaculate 1980 Panasonic "Platinum Series" boombox.
Originally sold for about $450 in 1980, and they're now selling for $1000.00
The thing weighs a ton for a "portable"
It's no wonder that people carried them on their shoulders!
By the way, that shelf its on is 2 feet wide.

Pana-RX-5600.jpg
 
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That's a very nice one, an oldie but goodie! I grew up with a ton of Panasonic products. TVs', cameras, phones, microwaves, a video game console, and my personal favorite are their vacuum cleaners. I have a big collection of not just Panasonic vacuums but also I have Kenmore vacuums that were made by Panasonic as well. Such a shame they exited the market, at least because of them there are alot of vacuums that basically either copied or took inspiration of their designs. Even Sharp thought that Panasonic was a genius so they once made their own vacuums like Panasonic, I own a few of them myself.
 
spin-cycle said:
Sorry, I got distracted and missed that.
Able to set clock tells us something, if you tried to actually use the microwave (with a cup of water inside) what will it do? Would it go through the motions but not actually heat the water? more detailed info perhaps could help steer you in the right direction.
Click to expand...
I can set the clock, but that's all. I can enter time, but pressing POWER SELECT or START does nothing.
 
normadesmond said:
I can set the clock, but that's all. I can enter time, but pressing POWER SELECT or START does nothing.
Click to expand...
I'm tellin' you that it is a problem with the electronics and/or the keypad.
And the keypad membrane itself is not replaceable or stocked for something that old.
I've had those old microwaves in the shop years ago, to know what I'm talking about.

This thread can continue into next year with if's and's, or what-if's. - the speculations are endless.
 
phillymatt53 said:
I'm tellin' you that it is a problem with the electronics and/or the keypad.
And the keypad membrane itself is not replaceable or stocked for something that old.
I've had those old microwaves in the shop years ago, to know what I'm talking about.

This thread can continue into next year with if's and's, or what-if's. - the speculations are endless.
Click to expand...
Thank you. I know it's hopeless, but it never hurts to ask.
 
It’s not likely the control panel or membrane. It’s most likely a door switch or door switch wiring.

I have worked on more microwaves than any of you guys have seen probably well over 1000. I started in 1978 working for a company that did microwave oven service. We ran all over the city servicing Toshiba Litton, and Amana microwaves and then whirlpool And GE microwave ovens after whirlpool and GE came out with microwaves.

This is where I developed a Love for the micro thermal ovens that GE came out with first and Lyton and Thermidor started building a lot of of them as well.

In any event, I seriously doubt this is a difficult fix this of yours.

John L
 
normadesmond said:
I can set the clock, but that's all. I can enter time, but pressing POWER SELECT or START does nothing.
Click to expand...
Yeah, then it's almost certainly an issue with the control board. I guess there might be some models out there that require the interlock switches to be in the correct state before you can enter a command, but most likely it's the board. Probably fairly expensive if you can get it at all.
 

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