frank horton
V twins are great but 4"s rule.........
- Messages
- 4,071
- Location
- Crete, Greece
Tom,
it all sounds very simple by the experienced memembers but I think it's a black art.....
I'm in the same boat as u and am really considering VFD for my 3 phase gear.....
BUT everytime u read something u find out something else either good or bad.....
above, someone says a static converter is not so good on high loads on motor start up....i.e 2 post car lift.......mines 3hp x 3 phase.....
I'd thought about a rotary unit but it all seems so complicated esp as I have nobody to help build such a thing...even happy to pay good money to get the job done.........
so a bought unit from Transwave /plug n play seemed good until reading the above....so again, now undecided...and I cant afford to pay £1500 for something that may not do the job.....all other machines are lathes, mills or wood saws etc.....again all about 3HP x 3 phase....
so far it very important to know how much power u have comming out of the fuse board / supply......I think mine is 40amp x 240v.....not at home to find out for u....
this will determin what u can ex[ect from ur VFD / rotary supply....others here will tell u more....again this is a black art.....
In my prev workshop I had 3 phase....read until the end....
BUT my 2 poster Hoffman car lift struggled lifting the heavy 4x4's and small tractors MF 135's etc.....my prob was not the power supply but the lift speed of the ramp.....
will inc photo of my mod.....with the gearing = 3 narrow belts the drive pulley on the motor was basically doing all the work on 1/3 of it's diameter.....
it used to eat belts.....asked Hoffman, now gone bump if they could supply a bigger pulley for the lifting screwed shaft.....that was a laugh....
so made my own as an experiment.....it worked just fine and is now 12 years old with no probs.....
the shaft pulley is around 25-30% bigger dia than the orig, slowing the lift speed down, hence less strain on the motor/electrics.....it's made from aheavily glued up plywood sandwich....thinking that if it works I'll make a new pulley from Nylon....not gonna bother now.....also u'll notice that the belts, NOW Kevlar are arranged so they rotate about an aditional pulley .....well a stack of bearings on a heavy bolt.....
this now makes the belt run nearly 50% of the drive pulley surface......the Kevlar belts * notched* will take this reverse bending easily .....
going from a set of replacement orig belts every 3-4 months, now 3-4 years....
So even if ur slightly underpowered changing the gearing will help a lot....
ps, now have a new belt guard and a better job of the bolt/ studding....it looks a bit Heath Robinson but it works.....
those are not Kevlar belts but originals....didnt want to spend any money until I was sure it all worked....
it all sounds very simple by the experienced memembers but I think it's a black art.....
I'm in the same boat as u and am really considering VFD for my 3 phase gear.....
BUT everytime u read something u find out something else either good or bad.....
above, someone says a static converter is not so good on high loads on motor start up....i.e 2 post car lift.......mines 3hp x 3 phase.....
I'd thought about a rotary unit but it all seems so complicated esp as I have nobody to help build such a thing...even happy to pay good money to get the job done.........
so a bought unit from Transwave /plug n play seemed good until reading the above....so again, now undecided...and I cant afford to pay £1500 for something that may not do the job.....all other machines are lathes, mills or wood saws etc.....again all about 3HP x 3 phase....
so far it very important to know how much power u have comming out of the fuse board / supply......I think mine is 40amp x 240v.....not at home to find out for u....
this will determin what u can ex[ect from ur VFD / rotary supply....others here will tell u more....again this is a black art.....
In my prev workshop I had 3 phase....read until the end....
BUT my 2 poster Hoffman car lift struggled lifting the heavy 4x4's and small tractors MF 135's etc.....my prob was not the power supply but the lift speed of the ramp.....
will inc photo of my mod.....with the gearing = 3 narrow belts the drive pulley on the motor was basically doing all the work on 1/3 of it's diameter.....
it used to eat belts.....asked Hoffman, now gone bump if they could supply a bigger pulley for the lifting screwed shaft.....that was a laugh....
so made my own as an experiment.....it worked just fine and is now 12 years old with no probs.....
the shaft pulley is around 25-30% bigger dia than the orig, slowing the lift speed down, hence less strain on the motor/electrics.....it's made from aheavily glued up plywood sandwich....thinking that if it works I'll make a new pulley from Nylon....not gonna bother now.....also u'll notice that the belts, NOW Kevlar are arranged so they rotate about an aditional pulley .....well a stack of bearings on a heavy bolt.....
this now makes the belt run nearly 50% of the drive pulley surface......the Kevlar belts * notched* will take this reverse bending easily .....
going from a set of replacement orig belts every 3-4 months, now 3-4 years....
So even if ur slightly underpowered changing the gearing will help a lot....
ps, now have a new belt guard and a better job of the bolt/ studding....it looks a bit Heath Robinson but it works.....
those are not Kevlar belts but originals....didnt want to spend any money until I was sure it all worked....