I've owned my WH20 for 25 years and Bigfoot has always worked properly, until now. Now, Bigfoot's head no longer turns.

The status report says to check Bigfoot optos 1 and 2.
When I run the bigfoot motor test, the motor does not run at all (in either direction).
When I run the bigfoot opto test, it shows opto 1 is off and opto 2 is on, but the head does not move.
When I run the head position test, it says position "unknown" and then "error". Once that happens, there seems to be no way out of the test and I have to reboot the machine.

I suspect that the motor is still okay, because sometimes (maybe 1 out of 20), the head will spin for a moment on bootup - and I find it hard to believe that the motor and optos will have both died simultaneously.

My guess is that something has gone wrong with the bigfoot opto/controller board, but I don't know the best way to isolate/analyze the situation. Any advice would be appreciated.

If it was just an opto problem, wouldn't the motor still run in the bigfoot motor test?

Thanks.

Both optos seem to register fine in the switch test.

Well, I did the battery test, and the motor moved about a half turn and then stopped. Now it doesn't move at all. I assume that with the battery connected it should just continuously spin, correct? This makes me think that the motor is the problem.

According to my manual the controller board is part A-15680 (top picture), but the board in my machine looks like A-15782 (bottom picture).
Marco shows both as being used. Is one board a newer version of the other? Which is better?
It may be irrelevant if my problem is the motor, but if it is the board, I want to get the "good/correct" one.

A-15680 (resized).jpgA-15782 (resized).jpg

Nope, even when taken out of the gearbox, the motor won't run. It makes a little grindy / hum noise for a moment but that's it.
Guess that I am buying a new motor...

Thanks for the help y'all.

So I bought a new Bigfoot mechanism from Marcos, and now I see that it is a bit different than the one I have on my machine.

On my machine, the motor is a separate piece from the gearbox. But on the new part, it's all a single piece.

I don't know if that's really an issue or anything, it just was unexpected.

Anybody have any advice/tips on replacing this mechanism? I've never had to take Bigfoot apart before.

I fixed this by replacing my big foot motor.

The real question is does he move his log to re-direct the shot into the Whirlpool?

If he doesn't move his log, then the problem is likely one of the switches - meaning that the software never sees that it is time for bigfoot to act.

If he does move the log (and laugh), but does not move his head, then the problem is likely either the bigfoot motor controller board, or the motor itself.

You can diagnose the motor itself, by disconnnecting it from the controller board and connecting a 9V battery to the motor terminals. If the motor is good, it will run.

Have you tried running the Bigfoot Motor test in the system menu? This may tell you a lot.