Motor for Woodfast Lathe

[Mr Santa]

Hi All,

Is this motor currently on eBay suitable for an old Woodfast wood lathe (ex NSW Schools) with a 4 step pulley in the headstock?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/BRAND-NEW-2HP-240v-Electric-Single-Phase-Motor_W0QQitemZ190306248299QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_Power_Tools?hash=item2c4f22e66b&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262&_trkparms=%7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A30

Cheers
Mr Santa

[RETIRED]

Yes it would be. Make sure that it will fit in the opening.

[Calm]

I agree with but have you thought about enhancing the the lathe at the same time by adding "Electronic Variable Speed". (http://www.cws.au.com/cgi/index.cgi/shopfront/view_by_category?category_id=1107144886)these motors still only require single phase power but with the original 4 step pulley setup as well it will give you great options on your lathe.

I know it is more money but if you need a motor and at the same you can turn a good lathe into a great lathe why not.

Hope that helps

Cheers

[NeilS]

I agree with but have you thought about enhancing the the lathe at the same time by adding "Electronic Variable Speed". (http://www.cws.au.com/cgi/index.cgi/shopfront/view_by_category?category_id=1107144886)these motors still only require single phase power but with the original 4 step pulley setup as well it will give you great options on your lathe.

I know it is more money but if you need a motor and at the same you can turn a good lathe into a great lathe why not.

Hope that helps

Cheers

Ditto 's comment: the motors in the Woodfast cabinets are a tight fit. Don't only measure length of motor (keeping in mind length and position of step pulley to be added) but also the width of motor.... that condenser/terminal enclosure looks a lot wider than the motor itself. You could always make up a new set of fittings or adjust the current arrangement to accommodate an oversized motor, but that would be a pain.

Ditto also on Calm's suggestion: Having retrofitted an older Woodfast with EVS, I can recommend this as a good option. If you can't afford/justify the EVS at this stage, at least keep it in mind for later.

Neil

[Mr Santa]

Hi All,

Thanks for the advice. The fit of the motor is not a problem as I have the lathe only and no cabinet (which I am building at the moment). My biggest problem is finding a 4 step pulley to match the one in the headstock - unsuccessful so far but am still trying.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Is that ebay item a 1440 rpm motor or a 2830? What does the Woodfast originally come out with?

If they don't match, it'll affect what size pulleys you'll want...

[Mr Santa]

The eBay add says it is 1420 rpm and all the advice I have been given so far is that 2830 rpm is too fast. I do not know what the rpm of the original Woodfast motor was.

[joe greiner]

It doesn't matter what the original speed was. Your target speeds are the only objectives.

V-belt drives typically have the pitch diameter near the outside of the pulley (at the same location as the fiber reinforcement of the belt). And precise numbers are important only for clock drives.

If your search for a 4-step pulley finds something only marginally unsuitable, V-belt drives can tolerate a "fleet angle" of about 5 degrees, before the belt tries to escape. If the numbers are still unsuitable, consider turning a timber pulley of more appropriate dimensions. A built-up blank can contain T-nuts for grub screws.

All this is subject to correction by a real machinist (such as Gil Jones), or a real mechanical engineer (such as Ad deCrom), of course.

Cheers,
Joe

[Calm]

Hi All,

Thanks for the advice. The fit of the motor is not a problem as I have the lathe only and no cabinet (which I am building at the moment). My biggest problem is finding a 4 step pulley to match the one in the headstock - unsuccessful so far but am still trying.

When i did my lathe upgrade (http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/showthread.php?t=66283&page=3) i had the pulleys made out of billet aliminium. (post 32)

I was lucky a mate did them but i'm sure you could get someone to make them for you, that way you work out the sizes you require and it is exactly right.

What you need to do is calculate the speeds you want the lathe to run at - my suggestion for 4 speeds would be (depends if you are doing bowls or spindles) i would suggest something like 400 rpm, 650 or 700, 1200 and 2000. This will be open to debate depending on what you are going to turn. That is also another reason to go for the Variable speed motor to give you the options you just wont have with fixed pulleys.

I used this link (http://www.calculatoredge.com/mech/vbelt%20length.htm)to calculate the diameters so the belt length was the same for all different positions. just fill in the info the same for centres between pulleys and when you put in one pulley diameter you keep changing the other until you get the same size belt. (thats only if you want the motor adjustor to be in the same position after each speed chance.

Hope that helps.

[Paul39]

Look for a step V belt pulley here:

http://www.lewispulleys.com.au/products.aspx

http://au.ask.com/web?q=v+belt+pulleys&qsrc=19&l=dis&o=7004&b=110001&ifr=1

http://www.onlysydney.com.au/sydney-nsw.php?id=15754

As said above, speed of motor needed is determined by what you are going to turn.

Unless you are going to turn only spindles the slower speed is better.

For bowls and large diameter things, almost all lathes have the slowest speed too fast. The motor on ebay you referenced would be perfect.

If you can find the identical size pulley to the one on the spindle to put on the motor, the speed changes will leave the motor to spindle distance the same place with the belt in any of the positions.

A variable speed drive is nice, but lots of great work has been done without it.

I favor a three phase motor with a constant torque, variable frequency drive.

The VFD changes your single phase power to direct currant, then to three phase with a variable frequency controlled by a dial. It also offers variable ramp up speed, coast to stop, variable ramp down speed, or brake to stop.

See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variable-frequency_drive

http://www.woodworkforums.com/showthread.php?t=93331&highlight=variable+frequency+drive