Double Twist not twisting!

Well, maybe the title doesn't say enough.

How about an equivalent fixture to the Double Twist. Would the Mini-Gressor II be pretty much the same thing? I mean, I need either a working fixture, directions to repair, or a replacement. Its not a critical fixture, but I would like some direction to try before giving up.

I'll try more testing. Not sure what I can figure out. I'm just a sound guy!

Well, I had one heck of a fun evening. It's always fun to have a bunch of tools and too much spare time on one's hands.

Well, I took the Double Twist apart. That sure was fun. I discovered that there are two lights on the PCB, which told me that the sound sensor was working. Further tweaking around and further dis-assembly showed me that the motor is in fact all wonky and getting it OUT was no easy task. I had to really dismantle the motor as well. Thank goodness it screws together. Once all the gears were removed from the main gear, I could get the motor to work. Add the next layer of gears, and would still work. Add that final gear that is attached to the drive shaft, and something there is making stuff sieze up. Remove it, twist a bit and it works again. I think a bend drive shaft or something makes the motor sieze up.

Regardless, thanks for nothing, support! Best I can tell, this is a re-branded Mini-Gressor II, so I am assuming an Z-160 motor will do the job and will purchase one on Monday. Fortunately, this is not an essential fixture and I won't be using my "dancing" lights for my event next weekend(if I get it) since it's a live band event.

But, all kidding aside, I'm not knocking ADJ or anyone else for not answering.

I will say this: servicing this fixture is NOT field-friendly. That cotter-pin in there is gonna be a real pain to replace, but I do like the logic behind it and I am up for the challenge.

Right now, the fixture is back together with no extra parts laying around and the bulbs removed and stored in a paper towel .

Looking at prices, a $25 part vs. a replacement fixture, the part is more cost effective. Plus, I gotta order some other parts. So, your repair department will be taking an order from me on Monday.

I'll keep myself busy programming my DMX Operator. That's going to save me SO much time!

well have fun. if u need any help with the op. im ur guy. peace! jingles.

Yeah, this programming the DMX Operator is great. I spent the first few days getting myself really angry fighting everything, then finally did the total blow out properly. That was a life-saver. Then I started to build my scenes, and that was fun, but then I was having problems copying banks. Well, it wasn't so much copying banks, but rather making sure I copied the right thing to the right location! I lost so many scenes, but thanks to documentation, nothing was truly lost.

Now, I'm using 12 banks and I'm sure I can easily fill up the next 18 quickly. I actually need to thinkg FAR ahead now to ensure I don't scew myself over by running out of scanese and banks.

And now, I realize that I'm going to outgrow this one pretty darn quick. I need something wiht more scenese, more chases, more banks and off-loadable storage. But, that's not even the best part about it. I can purchase a second controller, run 2 DMX lines and use one controller just to handle my movers, while the other handles my par cans, color changers and high-tech effects. I've basically put myself into a situation where, no matter how I slice it, I didn't waste money and I can't lose! I'll just end up needing to purchase a pop-up mixer case for the lighting controllers now just to take that around, but that's no big deal.

I'm sure that after a couple of shows, I'll be wondering how I was able to survive wihtout programming.

Here's my concept right now:
Bank 1: Just cans, 8 colors
Bank 2: Just the color changers, same 8 colors Plus Par cans
Bank 3: Color Fusions Same 8 Colors plus ParCans
Bank 4: Add them all together.

Banks 5-8 are same as 1-4 but with matching color on the spotlights, 9-12 are the same as 5-8 but white spots only.

I want to save a bank or two for dancing lights with other lighting combinations. The rest will be for the movers and stage lighting combinations.

Just a follow-up since I seem to have a habit of talking to myself.

So, on Sunday I ordered some parts from ADJ online. I got everything I ordered, even the stuff that was listed as "out of stock".

Issue 1: Things need to be more accurate. For example, looking at the LTS-1 system, and then checking out the page:
LTS-1 Page

I see the "small knob for LTS-2" showing a quantity of 13. This means "there are 13 of these in the pcakge, not you get 13 of these for $3.75". Quantity in unity should also be followed by "price per item" next to it. I thought I was getting a good deal. I wasn't. But I called up, and they explained it. Moving on.


I also ordered some T-bars. Gonna save myself a TON of time soon. Putting 16 Par38's on there, which by the way, fit nicely into the Arriba bag.

The main reason is that if you have a Double Twist, the Z-160 motor is what you need. I ordered that, and sure enough, that fixture is working like a champ again. I did have to remove the leads from the new clip onto the the existing clip. Why? The existing clip was a 4-wire that contained the leads for the microphone on it too. A tiny flathead screwdriver and some massaging were all it took to get things out. Re-assembly was a tad tricky, but then so was taking it apart. Clearly, the unit is designed a little bit with maintenance in mind, but not a focal point for sure. No soldering was required, all that was needed were 4 Philips head screw drivers of various sizes for me(lengths mainly) and a tiny flathead to get this done. I'd say if I took less than 20 minutes taking it apart and putting it back together.

Repairs don't have to be scary! Come on, look inside. if it's already broken, getting it MORE broken is the least of your problems. Be patient, pay attention to details and you can get a lot done.