I have lurked here for years but this is my first post.

I have an opportunity to get a Rockwell 8" jointer model 37-315. The
information I have is from an internet posting & a phone call to the owner.
It has been in use in a furniture shop but was decommissioned recently for
an upgrade. It has a 66" bed "in good condition", a 2 HP motor, weighs about
750 lbs. and "was used in production until the shop was moved and it was
replaced by a larger unit".

I plan to look for flat tables with a straight edge and flash light.
Checking for play in the knife head probably is not going to tell me much
about bearings and the shaft unless they are completely shot.

I would like any recommendations on how to check it out.Also how available
are parts for a 37-315.

Now about the motor. It is a 240 volt 3 phase/single phase 2 hp. I was told
"It has the wiring diagrams to do this and has been wired and in use as a
single phase 240 volt since I got it". I am aware of motor generators to
produce 3 phase and electronic converters that fool the 3rd winding to get
it started and then run the motor on two windings but not a dual phase
motor. Please commitment on this and if it exists what would be the loss in
HP and increase in amperage. Like I said I am along time lurker here, and I
look forward to input from both Lew and Doug, but play nice guys.

I'm trying to build a shop for my retirement and a jointer was not the next
tool I had in mind, but the price is $325. From what I have seen online this
could either be a gloat or an expensive project. A gloat would be nice right
now but I've got enough projects to last past retirement.

John

John Packett wrote:
I have lurked here for years but this is my first post.

I have an opportunity to get a Rockwell 8" jointer model 37-315. The
information I have is from an internet posting & a phone call to the owner.
It has been in use in a furniture shop but was decommissioned recently for
an upgrade. It has a 66" bed "in good condition", a 2 HP motor, weighs about
750 lbs. and "was used in production until the shop was moved and it was
replaced by a larger unit".

I plan to look for flat tables with a straight edge and flash light.
Checking for play in the knife head probably is not going to tell me much
about bearings and the shaft unless they are completely shot.

I would like any recommendations on how to check it out.Also how available
are parts for a 37-315.

Now about the motor. It is a 240 volt 3 phase/single phase 2 hp. I was told
"It has the wiring diagrams to do this and has been wired and in use as a
single phase 240 volt since I got it". I am aware of motor generators to
produce 3 phase and electronic converters that fool the 3rd winding to get
it started and then run the motor on two windings but not a dual phase
motor. Please commitment on this and if it exists what would be the loss in
HP and increase in amperage. Like I said I am along time lurker here, and I
look forward to input from both Lew and Doug, but play nice guys.

I'm trying to build a shop for my retirement and a jointer was not the next
tool I had in mind, but the price is $325. From what I have seen online this
could either be a gloat or an expensive project. A gloat would be nice right
now but I've got enough projects to last past retirement.

I don't know about parts availability specifically as I don't recall how
old the specific model is from the model number. I wouldn't worry about
it though, as it either will be in good shape and you won't need parts
or it won't and you won't take it home...

As for checking it for flat tables, simply run two boards across it of
4-5' length and check that they match w/o gap -- if it joints a straight
edge, it's kewl. Only if not do you then need to worry about it.

As for bearings, listen to it -- that'll tell you. Even if they are dry
and a little noisy, they're nothing to fret over if it is otherwise in
good shape.

I've never seen a 3/1 _phase_ motor by swapping leads -- I suspect
either the guy misspoke or you misunderstood what he meant that it is
just a single-phase 120/240V motor. If it's on 240V that's good, that's
where you'll want to leave it.

Sounds like a good deal to me...

--

After posting I had a thought, I wonder if this is single phase and he is
running it thru a 3 phase contactor and is confused.

John

"John Packett" wrote in message
...
I have lurked here for years but this is my first post.

I have an opportunity to get a Rockwell 8" jointer model 37-315. The
information I have is from an internet posting & a phone call to the
owner. It has been in use in a furniture shop but was decommissioned
recently for an upgrade. It has a 66" bed "in good condition", a 2 HP
motor, weighs about 750 lbs. and "was used in production until the shop
was moved and it was replaced by a larger unit".

I plan to look for flat tables with a straight edge and flash light.
Checking for play in the knife head probably is not going to tell me much
about bearings and the shaft unless they are completely shot.

I would like any recommendations on how to check it out.Also how available
are parts for a 37-315.

Now about the motor. It is a 240 volt 3 phase/single phase 2 hp. I was
told "It has the wiring diagrams to do this and has been wired and in use
as a single phase 240 volt since I got it". I am aware of motor generators
to produce 3 phase and electronic converters that fool the 3rd winding to
get it started and then run the motor on two windings but not a dual phase
motor. Please commitment on this and if it exists what would be the loss
in HP and increase in amperage. Like I said I am along time lurker here,
and I look forward to input from both Lew and Doug, but play nice guys.

I'm trying to build a shop for my retirement and a jointer was not the
next tool I had in mind, but the price is $325. From what I have seen
online this could either be a gloat or an expensive project. A gloat would
be nice right now but I've got enough projects to last past retirement.

John

"John Packett" wrote in
:

I have lurked here for years but this is my first post.

I have an opportunity to get a Rockwell 8" jointer model 37-315.

snip

So, John, the real question is whether you want a jointer. If you want
one, this may be the one you want. Replacing the motor, should it come to
that, won't cost an arm or a leg. And parts are available. The jointer I
bought is at least a decade older, and works fine. Parts are readily
available.

If you have projects to do that need a jointer, then go ahead. It's
unlikely that you'll wear this one completely out. But, unless you have
something to use it for, I'd hang on to the cash.

Woodworking isn't always about having enough machinery.

Patriarch

In article , "John Packett" wrote:
I have lurked here for years but this is my first post.

I have an opportunity to get a Rockwell 8" jointer model 37-315. The
information I have is from an internet posting & a phone call to the owner.
It has been in use in a furniture shop but was decommissioned recently for
an upgrade. It has a 66" bed "in good condition", a 2 HP motor, weighs about
750 lbs. and "was used in production until the shop was moved and it was
replaced by a larger unit".

As a general rule, I'd be concerned that equipment decommissioned by a
production shop might not have a lot of useful life remaining, or they woulda
kept it. Upgrading to a larger unit is a different story, though. Just the
same, I think I'd want to check this out very carefully.

I plan to look for flat tables with a straight edge and flash light.

Check for play in the gibs, too -- they may be worn. Make sure the tables
don't wobble up and down, and that the infeed adjusts smoothly in both
directions.

Checking for play in the knife head probably is not going to tell me much
about bearings and the shaft unless they are completely shot.

I would like any recommendations on how to check it out.Also how available
are parts for a 37-315.

Now about the motor. It is a 240 volt 3 phase/single phase 2 hp.

Hmm. I'll be the first to admit that what I know about three-phase power
probably wouldn't fill a thimble -- but I've never heard of that before. I'm
familiar with dual-voltage 120V/240V single-phase motors, but not anything
that will operate on either single- or three-phase, and I didn't know such a
thing was possible.

I was told
"It has the wiring diagrams to do this and has been wired and in use as a
single phase 240 volt since I got it".

If that's the case (and I'd suggest checking the power plug to verify it) you
should be good to go, power-wise.

I am aware of motor generators to
produce 3 phase and electronic converters that fool the 3rd winding to get
it started and then run the motor on two windings but not a dual phase
motor. Please commitment on this and if it exists what would be the loss in
HP and increase in amperage. Like I said I am along time lurker here, and I
look forward to input from both Lew and Doug, but play nice guys.

I believe you'd lose 33% of your power; seems the motor would want to run hot,
too. I don't think I'd do that.

I'm trying to build a shop for my retirement and a jointer was not the next
tool I had in mind, but the price is $325. From what I have seen online this
could either be a gloat or an expensive project. A gloat would be nice right
now but I've got enough projects to last past retirement.

If it's mechanically sound, I'd be thinking long and hard about buying it and
replacing the motor with a normal 240V motor.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

dpb wrote:


As for checking it for flat tables, simply run two boards across it of
4-5' length and check that they match w/o gap -- if it joints a straight
edge, it's kewl. Only if not do you then need to worry about it.

If you are gong to use this method, I'd suggest doing it twice--once
with the fence near the back of its range of travel, and once near the
front. That will give you a rough check that the tables are coplanar
(more accurately, parallel planes).
--
Alex -- Replace "nospam" with "mail" to reply by email. Checked infrequently.