Posted by john fletcher 1 on 19/07/2021 11:12:24:
I'm helping a friend to power his mill table and I'll be doing the wiring. he has a small window up/down motor, and bought a 12v-40v 10a pwm dc motor speed controller dimmer voltage from ebay. He would like a fast return push button as fitted to Bridgeport mills. Can any one inform me where I should fit/ solder wires for the fast return push button, or is it actually possible on these tiny controller boards where all the components are cramped up together. John
I take it you mean one of these John?

The speed control is on the centre pin of the pot marked 100k with the control knob. There are three connectors soldered to the board. One side will be ground, the other at supply (+5 or 12V), and the centre pin connects to a wiper varying between 0 and supply as the know turns.
This version of the PSU would be easier to work with because the pot is detached and can be 'got at'. The wiper is on the White wire.

In principle, fast can be achieved by wiring a switch between supply and the wiper. Unfortunately not as easy as that. For example, if the wiper is turned to 0V, connecting supply to it will cause magic smoke. When the button is pressed, it needs to disconnect the pot before applying volts. The other complication is the need for a reverse switch : the controller is unidirectional, so it's output has to be switched too.
Getting complicated: the control circuit has to flip the motor direction, then disconnect the pot, then apply the go fast voltage. And because it's bad for the electronics to from zero to hero in microseconds, it would pay to accelerate gently up to speed by charging a capacitor through a resistor.
Certainly can be done, but not by soldering a few wires. I'd be inclined to keep it simple with a reversing switch and manually turning the knob.
Dave