# Predator 3500 no power output



## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

Greetings, helping a friend with his HF Predator 3500 inv/gen
Motor runs fine, econ switch seems to have no affect
No power output,control panel seems to work showing 0 output, etc.
Hour function shows a little over 500.
Checked resistance at AC outlet plug = 200K Ohms
Any suggestions as to what to check and or test?


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

Update on testing:
Battery connection producing 13.8 V
DC Output = 0 Along with 0 AC as measured with meter
ESC on vs off has no effect on engine rpm


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## iowagold (Jan 22, 2020)

disconnect the inverter
with the engine off and key off
measure the windings


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

iowagold said:


> disconnect the inverter
> with the engine off and key off
> measure the windings


Thanks in advance for any assistance. I'm a noob when it comes to inverter gen., Been having to read/watch what ever I can find online on how they work, etc. So I'm assuming at this point it's a matter of determining if the problem is with the inverter board or generation side.Checking the stator windings was on the list. Was trying to check what I could while engine was able to run safely. I had to remove front panel to get to inverter board. I'm not sure which wires are coming from the windings. There were three heavy gauge brown wires (one was tagged 120V) None of these had continuity with the others. There were some other connectors to inverter board. At this point not sure which wires are coming from the windings. Have tried finding wiring schematics/diagrams with no luck. Gonna try some more. Any suggestions on the wires to look for. The entire inverter board is pretty much potted so hard to tell what is what.


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## iowagold (Jan 22, 2020)

have you looked in the owners manual?


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

iowagold said:


> have you looked in the owners manual?


FYI
Predator manual does not have it, however after doing more research I now have a repair manual from similar unit. While doing the research I discovered this Predator 3500 appeared to be the same as Northern Tool Powerhorse LC3500i (now discontinued) while searching for manuals for LC3500i I found repair manual for Loncin LC3500i which appears to be the OEM for this unit out of china. Thus far these units appear basically identical with minor differences. The manual I now have has circuit diagrams for the different versions (100V, 120V, 50Hz 230v) along with spec charts for different components .

I'll see how this unit compares to this manual. Unless I find something simple like a broken wire or something it looks like it will not be practical to replace any major components. I saw in another thread on this forum the inverter board runs around $400. If the windings are bad I don't think I would have the patience, right tools, expertise, etc. to tear into this thing more than I already have.


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

Update: 
All the values looked good for all the windings according to manual. I put it all back together while adding a pigtail to each of the windings connections at inverter board to check voltage safely after getting it back running. Still no AC output from inverter however DC.output is 13.8V. Using my "pigtails" generator side is outputting approx 168 VAC. Not sure what an acceptable value should be. If someone knows and could comment. So it appears the inverter board has gone south. I might spend a tad more time just double checking all connections, wires, etc. Working on this thing has been a learning experience. The guy that owns it bought off an acquaintance. Not long after that it would randomly go dead and engine would sputter. He would shut off and restart, finally one day it died for good.

I'm including the following information in case someone comes across this thread.. The manual I downloaded from manualslib.com is a repair manual for the LOCHIN LC3500I, Northern Tool discontinued their LC3500I which seems almost identical, the Predator 3500 is also basically the same inv/gen with a few minor differences. The wiring diagrams & components matched up almost exactly to this HF Predator.


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## pipe (Jun 27, 2021)

Looks like there are 17 or more, same item, different name


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

LOL Doesn't surprise me. However this Predator's control panel is different from most of the ones in the video, this one is the same as the predator in the video, AC & DC recept. location different


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## iowagold (Jan 22, 2020)

meach said:


> Update:
> All the values looked good for all the windings according to manual. I put it all back together while adding a pigtail to each of the windings connections at inverter board to check voltage safely after getting it back running. Still no AC output from inverter however DC.output is 13.8V. Using my "pigtails" generator side is outputting approx 168 VAC. Not sure what an acceptable value should be. If someone knows and could comment. So it appears the inverter board has gone south. I might spend a tad more time just double checking all connections, wires, etc. Working on this thing has been a learning experience. The guy that owns it bought off an acquaintance. Not long after that it would randomly go dead and engine would sputter. He would shut off and restart, finally one day it died for good.
> 
> I'm including the following information in case someone comes across this thread.. The manual I downloaded from manualslib.com is a repair manual for the LOCHIN LC3500I, Northern Tool discontinued their LC3500I which seems almost identical, the Predator 3500 is also basically the same inv/gen with a few minor differences. The wiring diagrams & components matched up almost exactly to this HF Predator.


so is this a 120 vac only gen set?
or a 120/240 gen set?

if it is just a 120 vac genset the 168 volts off the stator should be on spec.
replace the inverter.

and yes it maybe cheaper to replace the whole generator!


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## meach (Jul 20, 2021)

Thanks for reply, yes it's only 120


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