"Existential Angst" fired this volley in
:

Oh, $50 for a static converter?? Try $10.50, for one or two caps, and
a
fukn 59c toggle switch.
Graingers has close-outs on things like caps, can get'em for half
price.

I saw you 'agree' in one breath, and attack my skills in the second --
and you know nothing of what I do or how well I do it.

I apologize. When I said "$50" for a static converter, I forgot that
your time is worth nothing, and you just nail loose components to your
walls, rather than buying or building proper enclosures, providing non-
abrading cable entries, strain reliefs, plugs, etc. Since you don't use
them, you wouldn't know this; those 'little things' add up quickly,
unless, like Gunner, you've got seven acres of junk to pick through when
you need a part.

Heh... when Grainger sells something "half price", then it's only TWICE
what the normal retail price would be. They also list 'surplus' stuff
that's on their books, but for which they have no stock (anywhere in
network).

I agree: You don't need large idler motors. As you say, ganged smaller
motors can work, too. But large or small, they all take up more space
than a decent VFD.

For 3HP, who'd want all that noise and rotating hardware taking up space
and wasting power when a small solid-state device will do the work BETTER
(better symmetry in the phases without load-specific tuning), AND is
programmable for ramp times. And with most equipment like that tire
balancer, there's enough empty space in the stand/cabinet to enclose the
VFD, so the whole device 'becomes' a single-phase unit.

Lloyd