DBS4 puck advance messing up. missing my smoker!

[Tiffin]

So recently my puck advance has started malfunctioning. Happened once, you can hear it click but doesnt advance the puck (same effect as a car starter clicking but not turning over) First time it happened i gave the side of the SG a little swat and it was fine for that smoke. Went to make my canadian bacon the other day, set everything up, setup smoke for 2 hours, went inside to do other things. Went to check on it after 2 hours only to learn only 1 puck burnt and no more would advance, so turned the smoker back on, gave it a swat and it continued to advance. Im dying to make some more pulled pork as ive been out for so long but definitely dont feel comfortable doing a pick cut of meat when its likely just going to crap out on me.
So this is where all your guys excellent advice and personal experience comes into play. Im sure this has happened to some of you. Im handy so if theres something i can do my self to fix it if its just something simple let me know. However im less than half done my year warranty so if its better to just get them to send me a new SG then let me know!
Thanks guy, Tiffin

[KyNola]

My guess is one of two things is occurring.  Either the micro switch has gone bad or the arm that swings around to engage the micro switch is not doing so.  Hopefully the switch is ok and just needs a minor positioning adjustment so that the arm will engage it.

Others much more qualified to answer your question will come along and give you a definitive answer.  Take their advice.

[Habanero Smoker]

There also could be something interfering with the motion of the arm, or a loose wire connection. Open your generator and check all the wiring, make sure the wiring in not in the way of the arm movement, and all wires are connected securely. Even if the wires seem connected make sure they are fully seated.

Opening the generator will not void your warranty. The below link includes how to open your generator.
Cleaning Your Generator

If none of the suggestions work; the below link may help you troubleshoot better.
Bradley FAQ's

If all else fails, give Bradley's customer service a call.

[beefmann]

also check to see if there are any burrs along  the movement  rail the  the pusher or anything  could catch on

[pokermeister]

I have had a buildup of residue at the end of the feeder tray(before the burner plate) that kept pucks from advancing. A wire brush took the crud off and mine was fine after that. Hope this helps.

[tskeeter]

I have had a buildup of residue at the end of the feeder tray(before the burner plate) that kept pucks from advancing. A wire brush took the crud off and mine was fine after that. Hope this helps.

I have the same issue.  I keep a metal putty knife close to the smoker and before each smoke I carefully scrape the residue off the end of the in-feed tray to the puck burner.

[Saber 4]

I have had a buildup of residue at the end of the feeder tray(before the burner plate) that kept pucks from advancing. A wire brush took the crud off and mine was fine after that. Hope this helps.

I have the same issue.  I keep a metal putty knife close to the smoker and before each smoke I carefully scrape the residue off the end of the in-feed tray to the puck burner.

I do the same with a putty knife but do mine after the smoke during clean up and then blow the SG out with canned air.

[Tiffin]

well tonight i got the time to pull apart the SG. Unfortunately i saw nothing obviously out of place, its always nice to find something obvious like a wire partially unplugged, but oh well. It was however pretty dirty inside with lots of wood particles in the feeding path etc so its all cleaned up now. Guess ill have to walk on eggshells with the next couple of smokes and keep a close eye on it to make sure all is going well, if not i suppose its likely getting sent off.
Tomorrow i will be smoking a beef roast, and if all goes well with that on sunday i will smoke some back ribs along with some pork loins i had laying around for sauced pulled pork.
Ill let ya all know how it goes!
Thanks a bunch for the help thus far. Thanks for the info Hab, my next question was about voiding the warranty.

[JZ]

I had the same issue with mine. Here is a link to my fix, which could be the issue you're having.
http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=27684.0

[Tiffin]

well i did my beef roast yesterday and all the pucks were spent as they should have. Though im not certain its fixed yet, as i said its intermittent. Didnt get to do my ribs today so hopefully tomorrow.
Thanks for the info JZ, if it happens again i will take the SG apart again and check for those things.