New Polar CS600, can't seem to make it work

Hi,

I just bought a CS600 from eBay. Think it's brand new (lots of packaging), but box seems a bit marked, so not 100% sure. Anyway, computer/head unit works fine, speed sensor on front wheel works fine, but I'm having trouble with the power sensor. Basically, I'm not seeing any lights flashing when the crank magnet goes past, or any lights when the chain goes around. I've tried holding the magnet with my hand and waving it closely past the cadence "notch" on the power paddle, but don't seem to get any lights working. Batteries are OK (tested them in my light), and I'm going to find a multimeter soon and check the cables (I did force the battery holder in the wrong way at first ). Has anyone seen this, maybe know how I can test if the power paddle's dead or alive? Oh, the computer won't pair or learn the power paddle either, but the speed sensor's fine.

Thanks! (Hope I haven't bought a dud )

When you forced the battery cradle in the wrong way, maybe you bent the contacts and now it's not getteing any power. Just a thought, i seem to remember the cradle was a bit fragile in that way.

I have the CS600 with power on two bikes and speed on three. I did have a dud speed sensor when i first got it. It worked for a few runs and then died. Polar changed it no problem or questions asked, didn't even ask for a receipt or proof of purchase!

I bought the power unit for the 720i second-hand (and much used) and took weeks to get it working - in fact I had already decided to bin it when I just happened to trial a different magnet I had lying around and all of a sudden I had cadence and power reading!!
It is very, very sensitive to the type and location of the magnet. The paddle needs to cable-tied very firmly so that your heel doesn't knock it out of alignment. The magnet needs to pass within ~1mm of the centre of the cadence trigger. The trigger is very sensitive to small movements of the paddle along the chainstay, and in or out. Perhaps most importantly, you need the correct magnet. Mine didn't come with the original (in fact, I'm not even sure what the original looks like). I started out with a little disc magnet I had lying around. I couldn't make it trigger cadence either on the crank or in my hand. Then I bought some 3x2mm neodymium disc magnets. I could make them trigger by hand but not attached to the crank. I tried stacking all three discs together and taping them to the crank, and I still couldn't make them trigger. Then I grabbed my old Polar cadence sensor magnet (from the wireless cadence sensor kit) and tied that to the crank, and all of a sudden, after a little more mucking around, I was ecstatic to see the cadence and power figures appear as I turned the cranks by hand. I think that the alignment of the magnetic field is at least as important as its strength. A disc flat to the crank face simply must have the wrong field alignment - the Polar magnet is a rod sitting at right angles to the axis at which a disc sits.
It is hard to get the paddle and magnet trimmed such that the magnet does not get struck by the chain in your highest gears, and the paddle does not get struck by your heel (at least, it is for me with my size 47 feet).
Even after I had the power and cadence functions semi-operational, it took me months to find an alignment where they would keep functioning the entire ride.
On the older paddle unit, the speed sensor makes a red LED flash - are you seeing this, at least? Cadence is critical to the way the unit functions - you will not see power until the cadence is registering.
My guess is that you have the wrong magnet if you can't get it to trigger cadence by hand. Don't give up on the unit yet.

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"All that we see and seem is but a dream, within a dream..."

I finally tested the batteries, cradle, and cables and they all check out fine, so that's one down.

That makes me feel a lot better! I've got the old speed sensor magnet (I had a CS200cad on this bike before), it's also a sort of rod shape inside it's little plastic holder, so I tried waving it in all three axis in front of the cadence sensor (actually brushing the casing), but no luck so far. Anyone have any ideas where I could get some magnets for testing in Sydney? Plenty of places online, but I'd love to just drop in if I can.

I'll try! There's no mention of a speed sensor LED in the docs, only a cadence and chain one (as far as I can tell), green for the cadence, and red for the chain sensor. I've got the W.I.N.D. power sensor BTW.

I would contact Polar (Pursuit Performance in SA, I think) and order the correct magnet. They'll fleece you, of course, but at least you'll have the right one.
Forget the red speed sensor LED - it sounds like your system is a bit different.

__________________
"All that we see and seem is but a dream, within a dream..."