I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 €“ Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, €¦). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. Im thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR.. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term €œintermittent€� apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt

On Sun, 22 Jul 2018 09:48:19 -0700 (PDT), Bill Leonhardt
wrote:

I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 – Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, …). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. I’m thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term “intermittent” apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt

Use the 1/2 HP capacitor motor. Neither motor can be used as variable
speed with either the Variac or SCR voltage regulator. You would need
a variable frequency drive to effectively control the speed of an AC
induction motor - and even then, you would really want a 3 phase motor
to get decent starting torque. (the Variable Frequency Drive would
create 3 phase power from single phase)

The 500/5000 RPM motor is variable speed, not just 2 speed? with a
speed control KNOB? Is it like this one?
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/...d.php?t=211274

If so it is a "universal" motor or a DC motor running with a built
in silicon rectifier, and the duty cycle would vary with the speed
output - continuous at full speed, down to about a60% at half speed.
You would want to have the pulleys set up so it runs at full speed for
normal use - I would not use it without the stepped pulleys, depending
on the speed control for total speed control because GENERALLY your
lower speed jobs will require MORE torque than your high speed. In
other words you will need full horsepower, and since horsepower is the
product of torque and speed, running the motor at lower speed without
higher torque output produces less power - even if the motor continues
to produce the same torque (which they seldom do - and if they do they
run HOT - which is why the duty cycle is reduced.

On Sunday, July 22, 2018 at 3:02:35 PM UTC-4, Clare Snyder wrote:
On Sun, 22 Jul 2018 09:48:19 -0700 (PDT), Bill Leonhardt
wrote:

I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 €“ Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, €¦). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. Im thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term €œintermittent€� apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt

Use the 1/2 HP capacitor motor. Neither motor can be used as variable
speed with either the Variac or SCR voltage regulator. You would need
a variable frequency drive to effectively control the speed of an AC
induction motor - and even then, you would really want a 3 phase motor
to get decent starting torque. (the Variable Frequency Drive would
create 3 phase power from single phase)

The 500/5000 RPM motor is variable speed, not just 2 speed? with a
speed control KNOB? Is it like this one?
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/...d.php?t=211274

If so it is a "universal" motor or a DC motor running with a built
in silicon rectifier, and the duty cycle would vary with the speed
output - continuous at full speed, down to about a60% at half speed.
You would want to have the pulleys set up so it runs at full speed for
normal use - I would not use it without the stepped pulleys, depending
on the speed control for total speed control because GENERALLY your
lower speed jobs will require MORE torque than your high speed. In
other words you will need full horsepower, and since horsepower is the
product of torque and speed, running the motor at lower speed without
higher torque output produces less power - even if the motor continues
to produce the same torque (which they seldom do - and if they do they
run HOT - which is why the duty cycle is reduced.

Claire,

Thanks for your reply. The variable motor I have is similar to the picture in the link you sent without the green remote plug. It does have the rotating knob to set the speed. In any case, it sounds like I should give up wanting to control the speed electronically and just use the stepped pulleys alone.

On Sun, 22 Jul 2018 09:48:19 -0700 (PDT), Bill Leonhardt
wrote:

I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 – Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, …). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. I’m thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term “intermittent” apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt


How much do you plan on selling this lathe for?

On Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 10:23:06 AM UTC-4, swalker wrote:
On Sun, 22 Jul 2018 09:48:19 -0700 (PDT), Bill Leonhardt
wrote:

I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 €“ Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, €¦). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. Im thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term €œintermittent€� apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt


How much do you plan on selling this lathe for?

Please forgive my choice of words. By "putting on-line", I meant I was getting it ready for my use as a lathe, not selling it.

I've had this lathe for many years when I got a chance to buy it at a reasonable price, but I had never gotten a chance to set it up. I am now retired and got as far as replacing the bearings and mounting it on a stand. Setting up a motor is all that is left to be operational.

Bill Leonhardt writes:
On Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at 10:23:06 AM UTC-4, swalker wrote:
On Sun, 22 Jul 2018 09:48:19 -0700 (PDT), Bill Leonhardt
wrote:
=20
I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor c=
hoice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over th=
e years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my sh=
op. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) a=
nd need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman =C2=BD HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2=
A. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 =E2=80=93 Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, =C2=BD=
HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed contro=
l know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite=
for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I=
tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, li=
ne 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start,=
universal, =E2=80=A6). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a=
good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, =
if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. I=E2=80=
=99m thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or =
SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to rev=
erse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the te=
rm =E2=80=9Cintermittent=E2=80=9D apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt

=20
How much do you plan on selling this lathe for?

Please forgive my choice of words. By "putting on-line", I meant I was get=
ting it ready for my use as a lathe, not selling it.

I've had this lathe for many years when I got a chance to buy it at a reaso=
nable price, but I had never gotten a chance to set it up. I am now retire=
d and got as far as replacing the bearings and mounting it on a stand. Set=
ting up a motor is all that is left to be operational.

I suspect your best option is to go with motor 1 and select the shaft
pully such that you get a 5:1 or 4:1 reduction on the largest of the stepped
pullys. The idea is for the slowest speed to be around 500
RPM.

In the old wide-belt days on the farm, we'd figure-8 the belt to
reverse the direction of rotation. Not sure that would work well
with a V-belt.

On Sunday, July 22, 2018 at 11:48:22 AM UTC-5, Bill Leonhardt wrote:
I am putting a lathe online and I wish to get comments about the motor choice and control.

I am recently retired and have been collecting various AC motors over the years with the thought that I would employ them for various jobs in my shop. I am setting up a wood lathe (Rockwell/Delta 14-11x48, model 46-111) and need a motor to power it. My two best candidates are as follows:

Motor 1- Craftsman ½ HP capacitor motor, 1750 rpm, 115V, 60 cy, 8.2A.. It has a shaft out each end so rotation direction is not a problem.

Motor 2 €“ Craftsman 500/5000 rpm, 60 cy, 1 ph, 115V, 15A, ½ HP max. Duty cycle: Hi speed cont./ Lo speed intermittent. Speed control know on opposite end of motor from shaft. Rotation direction is opposite for use on the lathe (without the motor sticking out and in the way) and I tried to switch wires to see if I could change direction, but NG.

I also have the following devices:

Variac Autotransformer W5MT, one side common line and load, 50-60 cy, line 120V, load 0-140V, 5A.

2000W AC50-220V SCR High Power Voltage Regulator Module, 25A max.

Questions:

1. I know that there are various flavors of AC motors (capacitor start, universal, €¦). Can anyone explain the difference or point me to a good web reference to understanding the differences of AC motors and how, if possible, to cjange their rotation direction?

2. The speeds on the lathe are controlled by stepped pulleys. Im thinking I might be able to also control speed by using the Variac or SCR. Would that damage the motor or even work in this case?

3. For the variable speed Craftsman motor, would there be a way to reverse the rotation? If so, and I ran it at say half speed, how would the term €œintermittent€� apply?

Looking forward to your wisdom, thanks,

Bill Leonhardt

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely need is a TEFC motor, otherwise the dust will ruin the motor.

On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word. Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have been
running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the starter
switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over the cooling
vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine with nary a
glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors back
then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com

On Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 10:30:20 AM UTC-4, Jack wrote:
On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word. Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have been
running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the starter
switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over the cooling
vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine with nary a
glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors back
then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com

Jack,

Thanks for your words about TEFC. I also have experienced a motor that wouldn't work due to saw dust buildup. My Walker Turner contractor-like saw (easily 60-80 years old) had a vented motor. Compressed air works wonders, especially when you know the symptoms/cure.

Even though I have stepped pulleys, and a 1725 RPM motor, I thought the low speed was a little fast for some of my operations. Of course, that may be because I am a very inexperience turner and I'll probably get braver with more experience. I also now realize that my hoped for solutions resulted in an unacceptable loss of torque at the low RPM setting.

I shall mount my motor and work out some convenient lever/cam design to easily take the tension off the belt. I also will use the motor weight to give the belt tension.

Thanks to all who responded.

Bill

On 7/28/2018 9:30 AM, Jack wrote:
On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely
need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word.Â* Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have been
running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the starter
switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over the cooling
vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine with nary a
glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors back
then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners.Â* Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary.Â* Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.


I guess the question to answer here is do you actually use your
equipment enough to warrant having a TEFC motor.
Length of owner ship means nothing for a non TEFC motor if you do not
use the tool every day or at least several days a week. It is highly
likely that if dust is getting into a motor over a 60 year period of
high use there are going to be issues.

Any time dust or wood chips fall directly onto a motor a TEFC motor is
going to be the better choice if you expect it to hold up over time.

On 7/28/2018 3:27 PM, Leon wrote:
On 7/28/2018 9:30 AM, Jack wrote:
On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely
need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word. Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have
been running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the
starter switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over
the cooling vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine
with nary a glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors
back then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since
forever, as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be
nice, but not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose
enough to make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under
a jam.


I guess the question to answer here is do you actually use your
equipment enough to warrant having a TEFC motor.

The point I made is that "absolutely" need is a strong word. I doubt
Bill is going to earn his living on his lathe, turning 40+ hours a week.
The second point I made is if your motor is enclosed in a cabinet, like
mine is, dust is a non-issue for the hobbyist turner, and probably the
professional turner. The first 20 years my motors were fully exposed on
a standard open tool stands, not a cabinet. Same with the TS, BS, Jig
saw, and jointer. Jig saw, Drill Press and TS motors are still exposed.
Shaper, Dust collector and sander are TEFC. Never had any problems with
any of them other than the TS, cured with nylon stocking.

Length of owner ship means nothing for a non TEFC motor if you do not
use the tool every day or at least several days a week. It is highly
likely that if dust is getting into a motor over a 60 year period of
high use there are going to be issues.

Can't speak for the guy that owned my tools the first 20 years, but up
until recently, my tools saw regular use. Not commercial use where
tools run constantly 8-24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That's a totally
different animal. None of my tools, motors (or user) are designed for
that. I doubt the OP plans on using his lathe in a commercial
environment either. Even single user commercial use your tools most
likely run very little over the course of a day, or even a project.

Any time dust or wood chips fall directly onto a motor a TEFC motor is
going to be the better choice if you expect it to hold up over time.

Better choice for sure, *absolutely* needed, not so much. Ergo the nylon
stocking over the vents on my contractors saw motor, which does get lots
of fine sawdust spewed directly over the vents. Before the nylon thing,
the TS motor would get packed with saw dust to the point the motor
switch would not engage and I'd have to rip it down and clean it up. My
other motors have never had an any issues.
--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com

On 7/28/2018 1:22 PM, Bill Leonhardt wrote:
On Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 10:30:20 AM UTC-4, Jack wrote:

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.
Compressed air works wonders, especially when you know the symptoms/cure.

Even though I have stepped pulleys, and a 1725 RPM motor, I thought the low speed was a little fast
for some of my operations. Of course, that may be because I am a very
inexperience turner and I'll
probably get braver with more experience. I also now realize that my hoped for solutions resulted in
an unacceptable loss of torque at the low RPM setting.

My experience is you're correct. With a bit of experience, you'll be
turning at higher speeds, even when roughing out spindles. Slow speeds
are used for roughing out off balance bowls, off center spindles for the
most part. Extreme slow speeds you can get with variable speed motors
are probably most often used with really large off balance turnings. I
always wanted a variable speed motor, but never really needed one. I
believe 99% of my turning time uses just two speeds, the second and
third steps on the pulley's. Often I only change the step on one pulley
which really puts slack on the belt, but it still turns w/o a problem.

I once threw away a treadmill and later thought, damn, I bet the
variable speed motor would have worked great on my lathe...

I shall mount my motor and work out some convenient lever/cam design to easily take the tension off
the belt. I also will use the motor weight to give the belt tension.

Yes, good idea. I saw a motor mounted on a wood plate that was hinged
to the table so it got all it's tension from the weight of the motor.
Seemed perfect for a lathe using stepped pulley's.

My lathe motor is just bolted to a little two legged "table" bolted to
the cabinet. You could adjust the table height with shims if needed to
get the tension just right.

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com

On Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 9:30:20 AM UTC-5, Jack wrote:
On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word. Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have been
running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the starter
switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over the cooling
vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine with nary a
glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors back
then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com

But, whether or not a TFEC motor is required depends on where its located. Put an unenclosed motor right in the path of dust coming off a lathe and you will have problems. The motors you are talking about are enclosed, with the exception of the table saw, which did have problems.

Can you run an unenclosed motor? Sure. But an enclosed motor is just less prone to problems.

On 7/30/2018 8:31 AM, Dr. Deb wrote:
On Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 9:30:20 AM UTC-5, Jack wrote:
On 7/24/2018 12:13 PM, Dr. Deb wrote:

Bill, I have not looked at your motors, but one thing you absolutely need is a TEFC motor, otherwise
the dust will ruin the motor.

Absolutely is a strong word. Most of my stationary tools are circa
1954, including my Rockwell lathe, do not have TEFC motors and have been
running for that many years. The motors now are inclosed in there
respective cabinets except for the contractors saw.

The contractors saw is the only one that ever had a problem. It got
packed with saw dust and needed pulled apart and cleaned or the starter
switch gets stuck. 30 years ago I put a nylon stocking over the cooling
vents to keep out large chunks and it's been running fine with nary a
glitch.

I might add that I'm pretty sure Rockwell sold these tools with the
motors, which always seemed odd to me. Didn't they have TEFC motors back
then?

Not saying you shouldn't use TEFC motors, but I "absolutely" know my
motors have been running for over 60 years w/o them, and no fires, no
nothing other than the TS issue 30 years ago.

To the OP, I've been running stepped pulley's on my lathe since forever,
as have millions of turners. Variable speed motor would be nice, but
not even close to necessary. Make sure your belt is loose enough to
make moving it around easy. As a bonus, the belt slips under a jam.

But, whether or not a TFEC motor is required depends on where its located. Put an unenclosed motor right in the path of dust coming off a lathe and you will have problems. The motors you are talking about are enclosed, with the exception of the table saw, which did have problems.

Well none of my stationary tools were enclosed in a cabinet for the
first 20 years of their life. I built cabinet stands for them and now
the motors are enclosed. My jig saw, drill press and TS are still not
enclosed. Only the table saw had a problem and so far, that was
eliminated simply with a nylon stocking over the vents. I've not needed
the nylon stocking solution with any tool other than the TS. If Bills
motor gives him a problem with dust he can grab a nylon stocking rather
than run out and buy a new, TEFC motor. When that fails, he can run out
and buy a new motor, which in my experience won't be for around 60+
years from now...

Can you run an unenclosed motor? Sure. But an enclosed motor is just less prone to problems.

Just pointing out my experience with non-TEFC motors in my shop. It
stands to reason if buying a motor for a dusty environment, you would go
for TEFC motors. On the other hand, telling Bill he *absolutely must*
use a TEFC motor on his lathe is counter to my 40 years experience with
these tools, and 60 years experience for the tools themselves.

No, my tools are not used constantly as they might in an industrial
setting, but over 60 years, they have seen plenty of use, certainly far
more than enough to contradict the 'absolutely must use TEFC motor'
statement.

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com