I agree with JDB, all of the lighting contactors I have dealt with have coil clearing contacts to prevent just the situation described. Most of my contactor exposure has been Square D, but ASCO, GE & others pretty much use the same scheme of things. Because of the mass of the armature it takes a lot of current to hold in the steel, so as an economy measure(cheaper coils, less energy consumption) they are designed to take the power off the coils as soon as the contactors change state. I would look at the mfg. wiring diagram very closely and not try to rewire them - the ones that I have worked on in dozens of contactor panels, some with 25 or 30 contactors, have the neutral switched as a part of the manufactured assembly. A well meaning electrician in Atoka, OK, rewired a mess of these contactors 'cause the factory wiring was against his principles, and upon energization, smoked several thousand dollars worth of contactors before the store opened, had to replace all the coils...
