Coffeemaster cord and pin problem

[weed30]

I have a coffeemaster (several actually) and this is the second one where I've had a problem with one pin. The cord is a replacement, but the other coffeemaster did the same thing with the original cord. Can someone tell me why this is happening? I know it's a fire hazard. I don't remove the cord very often at all, because I heard that will loosen the connection and can cause a short. But for whatever reason, the one pin gets extra hot (I assume) and causes this damage.

I *love* the coffee these coffeemasters make, so when I buy yet another one, I want to prevent this. I've attached two photos.

 

[turquoisedude]

It looks as if the pin in the base of the Coffeemaster on the right in your 2nd picture has come loose.  This more than likely caused a poor contact with the connector on the cords - they overheated and charred the plug body.  

 

I ran into a problem like this with a GE P410 perk - I was able to find a similar pot that was in poor condition but that had a good base and I swapped them.  It may take a while, but you should be able to find a donor that you can use to repair yours.  It looks like a C30 - check out your local thrift stores, garage sales, church basement sales, etc. for the lower pot to use as a parts donor.  The donor need not be in good cosmetic shape, as long as the connector is solid.  

 

[ea56]

It looks like the right pin is loose in the picture you’ve posted. I that would cause the cord to overheat and the cord connection to fry. I’ve owned 4 different Coffemasters myself over the past 8 years and I never encountered this problem myself. And I removed the cord from mine everytime I used them so I could wash the pot and upper bowl.

The problems I had with my Coffemasters was the thermostats would eventually act up and the coffee would boil over if I left the pot pluggend in to keep the coffee hot. So I just stopped using them, because I could never get any adjustment I made to the thermostat to hold. You really need a special wrench to prpoerly tighten the nut after adjustment.

But I know that someone here will probably be able to explain why you are having problems with the receptacle pin loosening.
Good luck.
Eddie

 

[weed30]

Actually there are three of them!

Just found another one in my basement - same issue. The right pin in the base is loose and the housing around it deteriorated like the photo above. So weird.

 

[ea56]

Have you been using the same cord on all three of them? If so, then I think you’ve discovered the source of your loosening pins. Maybe the copper contacts on this cord are worn or too loose to make a positive contact. But at any rate I think Paul’s suggestion to find a donor pot is a great idea. But if this has happened to every Coffemaster you own and you haven’t been using the same cord on all of them, then I can’t think of why the right pin would loosen on all of them.
Eddie

 

[weed30]

Not the same cord

I've not used the same cord. If the cord fits snugly on the pins, does it matter if you use a cord from a different vintage appliance? Or a new replacement cord that fits? I've used both.

 

[ea56]

weed30

that shouldn’t make a difference, as long as the cord fits and is in good condition. I’ve frequently used the cord from one coffee pot on another. But I’ve owned and used easily 50 different electric coffee pots, both vac and perc’s and I’ve never seen a loose pin before. Maybe I’ve just been lucky. Hope you can get to the bottom of why this is happening. I wouldn’t want otherwise good coffeepots to keep becoming unusable because of loose pins.
Good Luck.
Eddie[this post was last edited: 3/26/2018-23:32]

 

[weed30]

Bought a new one...

So I found a pretty good deal on a complete C30-B that I'm going to try. This will be my last Coffeemaster though, because I'm *really* concerned about a fire. I can't figure out what is causing my plugs/pins to deteriorate. Maybe it's the presumably old wiring in my 1951 house? I've had my Coffeemasters plugged into to a GFI outlet, and for awhile have been using a non-GFI that's under my sink. It's one of those big metal looking ones, like the pic below except it has two outlets and one switch. The dishwasher is plugged into one outlet. The switch is for the garbage disposal, which is broken and I don't use it anyway.

Today I brewed a pot, unplugged the Coffeemaster, and poured the coffee into a vintage Aladdin Beverage Butler

I am now on the hunt for a Nicro vacuum pot, after reading a little about them here. (thanks Eddie!). They seem way safer since they use the cooktop. Until I find one I have a Chemex that I can press into service.

 

[panthera]

I've fixed lots of vintage coffee pots through the years

This problem is almost always caused by a loose connection to the pin inside of the pot's base. It causes the pin to overheat, the expansion/contraction loosens the connection to the thermosetting plastic, the heat loosens the connector within the thermoplastic cord...and soon you have this disaster. If you were to open one, I suspect you'd find the left pin has a solid connection and the right is loose.

 

[ea56]

Yes Keven,

but the qusetion is, why does this keep happening over, and over again to Weed30 no matter what pot or cord he uses? I’ve owned well over 50 different vintage coffee pot, both vac and percs and never had this happen to any of them. I’m not an expert on electricity like you are, but seems that something in the equation for how these pots and cords are being used is the cause of the pins loosening on all of them. But what that cause could be is a mystery to me.

That being said though, I think that the OP would be wise to go the Nicro route, as he mentions he intends to do. They are sturdy, make a good cup of vac coffee and he sure won’t have anymore problems with loosening pins. To me the Coffeemasters are beautiful vintage appliances and fun to play around with, but I found too many problems for use as a daily driver.
Eddie

 

[weed30]

Yes, but this happened to three!

If it was just one unit, I wouldn't be concerned, but this happened to *three* Coffeemasters. All are C30-A, and one was NIB. I did use that one for probably 4 years before it failed. The next two were fine when I first got them. Or at least they seemed fine...I didn't inspect the pins because I had no reason to think to do that. When the first one failed, I chalked it up to a bad cord.

I am becoming convinced it's something to do with my outlets

The good thing is that I work for a company that has many engineers who would be happy to take a look at the failed units as well as check the new one I'm getting. If they come up with an explanation, I'll post back.

 

[panthera]

I am certain, when you take the base off of these

You will find that there is a loose connection either right at or directly next to the right hand pin. Perhaps it is spot welded directly to the heating coil...but whatever is connected there has come loose.

It's the only way for that much heat to come into play - and that's the only way we'd see the damage you're showing.

Plus, of course, it's a common problem.

I'd be very surprised, indeed, if a competent manufacturer put the connections one way on one pot and another way on another. This is why the right pin is always causing the problem.

Anyway, it's fixable and those cords are not unique, thank goodness.