Repair of Hensel Integra (contra) 500

[will_wenzel]

I've had some problems with several Integra 500s and I'm wondering

if anyone knows how to repair them when they refuse to flash. They

power up, the modeling light works, but they do not trigger, either

by sync cord, slave, or switch. The first light this happened to

samy's camera swapped out. Now, it's happening to a different

unit. If you know of a schematic with a triggering capacitor that

might be bad, I'd love to see it. Has this happened to anyone

else?? I swapped out fuses, lamps, cords, etc. I've opened it the

unit, and can't see any obvious problems. Nothing smoking or burned

out.

 

 

One of the problems I had with a different unit was that it refused

to power up at all. No fan, no model, nothing. If this happens to

you, there is a fuse inside the unit, on the underside of the power

supply, that you can only access by opening it. It's not the same

as the modeling lamp fuse, but you can replace it for under $2.

Wish they made that fuse accessable from the outside.

 

Good units, but if I can repair them myself when they stop firing,

great units. Any help appreciated.

[garry edwards]

We have someone who reads these posts who is an expert on Hensel/Bowens flash units and maybe he'll see this and help.

 

Meanwhile, I'd just like to point out that poking around inside flash units is very much a job for experts - it is VERY dangerous!

[hans_p._strobl]

Hello Will, I certainly confirm what Garry wrote about the safety aspect in opening a flash unit. When a flash unit doesn't fire the power storage capacitors may still be charged to high voltage. Unless you are a trained technician it is not advisable to do repairs yourself.

 

Hensel has placed the fuse for control and charging circuitry inside the unit because they believe when conditions exist that make the fuse blow, it will be a case for the service technician. This way they keep users from replacing the fuse with one of the wrong value, which really would create hazards e.g. parts overheating or capacitors exploding. A good service technician would first search for the cause which made the fuse blow and would never solve the problem by merely replacing the fuse.

By having a separate user-replaceable fuse for the modeling light, Hensel is able to give this fuse the optimum value needed to operate a halogen lamp safely. When a halogen "burns out" it can draw a heavy current for a short time, because when the filament opens, an arc may form that may bring the red hot quarz glass envelope to burst and scatter its parts, setting fabrics on fire or even hurting persons. That's the reason why flash units/heads have a glass dome when utilizing halogen lamps.

In order to avoid the problem mentioned it is necessary that the fuse blows when the current draw becomes excessive. The value of the fuse should be chosen so that when the halogen goes, the fuse must blow, always. If it doesn't, check the value of the fuse. Make sure it is of the correct value and response characteristic ('F' for fast, 'FF' for super fast).

The trigger capacitor is the least problem factor in a flash unit. I assume it is not the reason for failure of your Integra 500. To be sure, power-up your unit, push the test button and listen for a ping. If you hear it, the triggering circuit is OK, but the flash tube needs to be replaced.

 

The Integra comes with an automatic cut-out function that turns off the unit when conditions of overheating persist. This may be the case when the wattage of the lamp used is higher than the maximum rating of 300 W, or when a type reflector, softbox,etc. with impaired ventilation of air is being used. After cooling down it should resume operation.

[hans_p._strobl]

I forgot to ask you about the condition of the flash tube. Is it heavily worn, dark in color or possibly looking somewhat milky? Do you have a possibility to exchange it with one of another unit to test it?

[henry_czuprinski]

I just sent 2 Integra's (500) in for warantee fix. Both died within

same week- Almost 2 yr old. Tech said Integra's capac may die

after heavy (fast) shooting- They worked absolutely faultlessly till

then.

I'm considering Profoto as upgrade path.

Rented Profoto acute kit as temp repl- for shoot- love the

quality& light.