I'm looking to upgrade a motor on an older lathe and some other tools. I'm afraid I don't understand what the frame-types, numbers, compressor-rated, and other intricacies of electric motors are. And, what is a good brand, and where to buy? I don't want to spend a lot of money (who does), but I don't want to buy crap either. I'm looking for stuff in the 1-3 HP area, with standard belt drive and horizontal mounts.
tt
WW.Grainger
Harbor Fright sells 1-3hp motors that are cheap and of "reasonable" quality.
Check their website.
Look at
Frame size is an industry standard for mounting bolt and shaft size. A 48 frame has 1/2" shaft, 56 frame has a 5/8" shaft. C frame is a front mount. You can find much of this information on their web page.
Check with a local motor re-builder also. Some can get good prices or have used motors around that may suite your needs. Ed
Thanks alot. This solves the mystery of the frame numbers.
tt
If it's going in a woodworking shop, look for a TEFC (totally-enclosed fan-cooled) motor. Worth paying the extra.
Frame sizes are pretty standard. If it's mounted on a normal-looking foot or a flange, then chances are that it's standard. A catalogue from any toolshop should list the dimensions. Apart from some obscure machine-specific motors, mounting problems are unusual.
Ratings are generally as a percentage duty cycle. Most motors (that you want to use) are rated for 100% duty, but they will have a lower power at this rating than at 60% duty. Work this out for yourself, depending on what you're going to drive with it. 100% rating isn't a bad idea on woodworking machines, but then you rarely need to run the machine under full load. OTOH, a compressor always runs "flat out", but most don't need to run continuously.
While you're working on the motor, look at the switchgear too. European practice is a NVR (no-volt release) switch as a minimum (a contactor and two pushbuttons) and E-stops, overload relays and lockable isolators may all be appropriate in some environments.
Don't forget S/H, especially if you have 3 phase to hand. Big 3-phase motors are often bargains.
Thanks for the great info.
tt
That's what we do at work.
At one time we used a commercial rewind shop, but that proved to be slower and considerably more expensive than simply getting a new motor from any of a dozen or so vendors.
The only time we use the rewind shop these days is when we cannot get a new motor anywhere.
As for WWG, we found them to be a good bit more expensive than some of the other commercial suppliers.
Maybe try Johnstone Supply; they're national now, albeit wholesale only. Cheers, Fred McClellan the dash plumber at mindspring dot com
The problem with buying from Grainger is they have a secret price list for big customers and make it up on the walk in's
Grainger has published catalog prices. They do have discount schedules that apply to their larger volume customers also. Buy enough and you'll be able to negotiate a discount. Otherwise just order at catalog price...it's not a mystery and I've never seen any "make it up" pricing.
Phil
Gfretwell wrote:
I just put a replacement motor on an old Craftsman 10" table saw. I got the motor from Harbor Freight, and it's working just fine so far... Things to consider when buying a motor are:
To see this item, go to
I have no connections to Harbor Freight other than as a satisfied customer, hope this info helps!
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