On Sun, 23 Dec 2007 17:06:45 -0800 (PST), wrote:
On Dec 23, 7:17*am, "Karl Townsend" wrote:

My January landlord uses a commercial Hobart (#33 I think) meat grinder as a
fish chum grinder. The gear motor part has died. I told him I could redo it
for him. So, I'm looking for a 220 gear motor (I may get 3 phase and VFD) My
question, anybody know what RPM a commercial meat grinder runs at? My
landlord ran his finger round and round at maybe 60 to 120 rpm.

Didn't someone's kid here work for Hobart Factory Service? They
might be able to get you a used replacement gearbox and motor, or even
a whole used unit for less than a new unit. People trade up all the
time and have the old units hauled away for scrap - if something else
besides the motor or gearbox broke...

The one the family uses for the annual deer grind is a horse and a
half, geared down to about 60 RPM. It would be very hard to replace
the motor by itself, it's a purpose-made unit with integral worm gear
drive built in. Don't know about Hobarts, this is a old commercial-
grade unit but not a Hobart. Another option is to get a large hand
grinder, add a pulley and a standard frame motor. Old hand grinders
tend to be pretty cheap around here, nobody wants the exercise.

If you were going to couple up an old manual unit like that, I'd use
a Lovejoy coupler and a planetary or worm-gear speed reducer to keep
the thrust in line with the grinder mainshaft - a hand-crank grinder
doesn't have the bearings needed for the overhung load of a fan belt,
and your output will be very high in iron and zinc right up till it
self-destructs...

-- Bruce --