Zinsco breaker changeout question

[Fulthrotl]

ok... every zinsco panel i've ran across has a lower lip to hook the breaker
under, and a red locking bar on the top of the panel that slides up and down
in slots on either end of the panel.... pry it up with an insulated screwdriver,
tip the breaker out, put the new breaker in, snuggle the sliding bar on top
back down, done.

today was different... there is a red locking bar across the top, same as always,
but it doesn't have slots to slide up and down to release the captive breakers.

how do you get this silly thing up to change breakers? there's these two really
thin plates with nubs on them that catch on another piece of stamped material,
and my first thought was that you release them and then it swivels or pivots....
but that doesn't seem to work....

help...... never seen this one before.....

 

[Ponchik]

i have seen several of those. some times i use my dremel tool to remove the head of the oneway screws and sometimes i use my diagonal cutters locking pliers to grab the end of the screw and try to turn it.
Dont even try to use oneway screw driver they are worthless.

 

[Fulthrotl]

i have seen several of those. some times i use my dremel tool to remove the head of the oneway screws and sometimes i use my diagonal cutters locking pliers to grab the end of the screw and try to turn it.
Dont even try to use oneway screw driver they are worthless.

well, i was half looking at it thinking.... cut the damn thing in half and rip it out of there....
with dykes... seemed a bit unprofessional. decided to call it a day and figure it out in the
morning.

there has to be a way to release the capture bar to remove breakers or put them in...
it was so simple... slide up red crossbar, remove, replace... what on earth were they
thinking?

 

[rt66electric]

sell them anew upgrade

sell them anew upgrade

Can you undo the top and bottom screw that hold the whole backplane in? pull the entire backplate out, then, commence to distruction on the saftey screw.

 

[Fulthrotl]

Can you undo the top and bottom screw that hold the whole backplane in? pull the entire backplate out, then, commence to distruction on the saftey screw.

it looks like the red bar can be snoodled... it's just jamned, and i was bone tired and fluey last night...
i'll go take a look at it after all the cabinetmakers leave.... they will cry if i shut the power off and
take the panel apart for a while today.... i'm crawling back in bed with lemonade and aspirin at the
moment... i got done what i had to to not two block the cabinet maker.

i looked at the cutsheets for kitchenaid's oven. kitchenaid sucks.
they specify 40 amps 240 volts, no neutral on the cutsheet.

the unit has a neutral. i could'a pulled a neutral, but i read it twice. no neutral.

kitchenaid sucks.

thanks for taking the time to write back....

 

[sd4524]

well, i was half looking at it thinking.... cut the damn thing in half and rip it out of there....
with dykes... seemed a bit unprofessional. decided to call it a day and figure it out in the
morning.

I have done this exact same thing once with a Zinsco breaker after determining that it wasn't functioning properly. You are more patient than me.

 

[Fulthrotl]

it looks like the red bar can be snoodled... it's just jamned, and i was bone tired and fluey last night...

screw it. frontal charge on the Z panel tomorrow afternoon. that bar will not move.
off comes the meter, off comes the socket face, etc. i'll get in there and elevate it
enough to snoodle in the breaker, and that will be that.

 

[Fulthrotl]

screw it. frontal charge on the Z panel tomorrow afternoon. that bar will not move.
off comes the meter, off comes the socket face, etc. i'll get in there and elevate it
enough to snoodle in the breaker, and that will be that.

well, finally got around to it this morning.
call the poco. tell them the smart meter is going to have a stupid attack.
pull meter, boot hot clips on top.
pull two screws, pull off meter socket base...
pop the cheap tin straps off the side insulated buss bar holders, so they can tip forward.
back tamper screws off as far as they will go without coming out.
tip POS forward, stuff in new breakers, put it all back together.

have customer ask if this thing is on the last legs as all the other ones in
the neighborhood you've changed out. say, yes, and suggest they budget
for replacement in the next year.

they will, i will, we shall change it out next year.

problem is, all new panels are side fed, and the big Z is center fed.
going forward on Z changeouts, i'm thinking of having a 12 gauge
sheet metal replacement barrier made for the center divider in a
panel, so i can leave the existing riser in place if i am not upgrading
to a 200 amp service, just leaving it at a 125 amp. it would have an
offset at the top, so the service entrance conductors can still enter
the center of the panel, and be in the poco section.

anyone ever done anything like that?