Harman PC 45 Used/ Should I buy this?

[rona]

Rona, here are two examples of PC-45 auger tube erosion since you were asking what it looks like.

I never seen a 45 that looked like that. The first thought is were they all burning corn? Second is I live in corn country here and never seen anything like that. But all corn is not the same as there is different minerals etc in the ground and the residue could cause more damage to the metal. I remember a factory rep from Harman came though the area with a trailer with different models of their stoves and we could ask them questions about their product. At the time I was more concerned about the rapid buildup of hard material on the stirrer and what could be done about that. His answer was to have a extra stirrer and when one got round pull it out and put the extra one in. Then put the first one in a pail of water as the hard stuff will dissolve. Or you could burn a mix of corn and pellets. I wonder if the stirrer got so worn out it warped from the heat and started rubbing ? How old were these stoves? The one picture looks shiny as something has been rubbing which made me think the stirrer rod got bent from the heat and was rubbing.

Rona, here are two examples of PC-45 auger tube erosion since you were asking what it looks like.

Rona, here are two examples of PC-45 auger tube erosion since you were asking what it looks like.

 

[jzm2cc]

The shiny spot was due to me sanding area to see wide spread the erosion was. I usually see this on the 45's, maybe it's a Michigan thing, but I doubt ut.

I was working on Pastor's Accentra this summer for a quick refresh as he complained about chain noise issues on feeder. It definitely had auger tip wear and the beginning of erosion on auger tube but not through metal. He's never burned corn though. I replaced auger which should help keep fire away from tube area.

Definitely good idea to watch for auger tip wear, keep feed rate up high enough to keep fire away from auger tip and tube, make sure hopper gasket is good, etc.

 

[rona]

The shiny spot was due to me sanding area to see wide spread the erosion was. I usually see this on the 45's, maybe it's a Michigan thing, but I doubt ut.

I was working on Pastor's Accentra this summer for a quick refresh as he complained about chain noise issues on feeder. It definitely had auger tip wear and the beginning of erosion on auger tube but not through metal. He's never burned corn though. I replaced auger which should help keep fire away from tube area.

Definitely good idea to watch for auger tip wear, keep feed rate up high enough to keep fire away from auger tip and tube, make sure hopper gasket is good, etc.

Looks like feed rate could be the cause of the problem? to lean and the fire stays to close to the auger? Sometimes I listen to a stove companies rep and realize who is paying their salary. The first year I had one I was changing the agitator every day and he said he never seen that happen before. Blamed it on wet corn etc. I brought samples of corn which was 12.5 moisture so nope that couldn't be the cause. Then it was minerals in the ground. Finally we tried mixing pellets with the corn and that worked. I think later manuals specified 12.5 13% moisture would work the best.

 

[Watcher1]

Rona, here are two examples of PC-45 auger tube erosion since you were asking what it looks like.

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UP DATE? Well so I didn't work on the PC45 this summer. Tore into it last Sunday. Dirty- Dirty stove. So found out that the auger tube is wore thru as pictured. I pulled the entire assembly and took it to my locale machine shop. Guess I'll wait and see if he can fix it. One thing I am concerned about is the size of the room air fan, my magnums are twice that size. I sure hope that it has some push without more noise.

 

[jp99]

After reading this I checked my 45 and I have this as well. My dealer says some 45s get it and some don't, so it's hit or miss without knowing the exact cause. My wear area looked like a grinder had cut the tube but the auger doesn't touch it there. Perhaps corn between the auger and tube produces the wear.

For now, I used some JB Weld underneath the opening to seal it up and squeezed some through the crack area. It's held up, and the dealer says it should hold for a few years until it needs it again. I'll gladly do the temporary repair and avoid tearing the entire stove apart to replace the feeder weldment.

 

[Watcher1]

After reading this I checked my 45 and I have this as well. My dealer says some 45s get it and some don't, so it's hit or miss without knowing the exact cause. My wear area looked like a grinder had cut the tube but the auger doesn't touch it there. Perhaps corn between the auger and tube produces the wear.

For now, I used some JB Weld underneath the opening to seal it up and squeezed some through the crack area. It's held up, and the dealer says it should hold for a few years until it needs it again. I'll gladly do the temporary repair and avoid tearing the entire stove apart to replace the feeder weldment.

Well I pulled mine all apart and got it all welded back. $20.00 found some cool old fashioned insulation at a plumbing shop /not the nasty stuff/ made my own gaskets. Everything cleaned and stove tested out great. I need to work on the burn bots and stirrers, other than that it's ready to start when I decide where to put it.

 

[Mt Bob]

I do not know if you are going to burn corn,but,I bet you never regret rebuilding that stove.

 

[bags]

Looks like that 45 was not maintained well (cleaned) over the years. Mine was shiny and new outside but filthy internally but not all caked with dust bunny crud like yours. Go thru everything and get things right and you will have a very dependable stove.

Being in WI I imagine it has seen it's fair share of corn but you never know.