Craftsman Lathe 351.217150 Not Running Properly

[Charles Lent]

On page 22 of the manual under the heading "Trouble Shooting" the first box talks about the motor "not running" and is list a capacitor as a possible cause.
Well, if the capacitor is a motor starting or motor run capacitor and it isn't completely bad, it could be causing the motor to make a strange sound and not have full power. Your mission is to find out where this capacitor is located, and try to find a replacement. They usually aren't very expensive, so it's usually easier to just replace it if you think it might be bad or weak. Be careful to buy a new capacitor with the same electrical values as noted on the side of the capacitor, or possibly somewhere in the manual. The physical size of it is very important for obvious reasons too. Get only the correct ufd or mfd value. If you can't find the correct voltage value, a higher voltage value will work, but then it may be physically larger and may not fit the space where the original is located. Don't buy one that won't fit there. Motor repair shops, Grainger, other Industrial Suppliers like Grainger, etc. would be where you would have the best luck finding one.

Charley

 

[Dean Suminski]

Thanks Charley! I am assuming these are the capacitors you are talking about. Since it starts okay I would assume if one is weak it would be the bigger one that doesn't say "startup". Is there any danger when disconnecting them of electrical schock? Is there any way to see if it is weak? The other two pictures are of the big and small belts. To the best of my observations of the Reeves drive, the pulleys, and yoke seam to work just fine.

 

[Bart Leetch]

Read the warnings

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor

Quote from wikipedia

Hazards and safety

The hazards posed by a capacitor are usually determined, foremost, by the amount of energy stored, which is the cause of things like electrical burns or heart fibrillation. Factors such as voltage and chassis material are of secondary consideration, which are more related to how easily a shock can be initiated rather than how much damage can occur.[33]

Capacitors may retain a charge long after power is removed from a circuit; this charge can cause dangerous or even potentially fatal shocks or damage connected equipment. For example, even a seemingly innocuous device such as a disposable-camera flash unit, powered by a 1.5 volt AA battery, has a capacitor which may contain over 15 joules of energy and be charged to over 300 volts. This is easily capable of delivering a shock. Service procedures for electronic devices usually include instructions to discharge large or high-voltage capacitors, for instance using a Brinkley stick. Capacitors may also have built-in discharge resistors to dissipate stored energy to a safe level within a few seconds after power is removed. High-voltage capacitors are stored with the terminals shorted, as protection from potentially dangerous voltages due to dielectric absorption or from transient voltages the capacitor may pick up from static charges or passing weather events.[33]

Some old, large oil-filled paper or plastic film capacitors contain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). It is known that waste PCBs can leak into groundwater under landfills. Capacitors containing PCB were labelled as containing "Askarel" and several other trade names. PCB-filled paper capacitors are found in very old (pre-1975) fluorescent lamp ballasts, and other applications.

Capacitors may catastrophically fail when subjected to voltages or currents beyond their rating, or as they reach their normal end of life. Dielectric or metal interconnection failures may create arcing that vaporizes the dielectric fluid, resulting in case bulging, rupture, or even an explosion. Capacitors used in RF or sustained high-current applications can overheat, especially in the center of the capacitor rolls. Capacitors used within high-energy capacitor banks can violently explode when a short in one capacitor causes sudden dumping of energy stored in the rest of the bank into the failing unit. High voltage vacuum capacitors can generate soft X-rays even during normal operation. Proper containment, fusing, and preventive maintenance can help to minimize these hazards.

High-voltage capacitors can benefit from a pre-charge to limit in-rush currents at power-up of high voltage direct current (HVDC) circuits. This will extend the life of the component and may mitigate high-voltage hazards.

 

[Carol Reed]

Capacitors are relatively inexpensive. Replace both of them. Then you know exactly where you stand. And be careful. You will be humming along nicely before long.

 

[Jonathan Shively]

Dean, I have the same lathe Vaughn posted a picture of. I just tore it down yesterday. A student was turning on it, it would spin, but very slight pressure with the carbide cutter would slow and stop it. Like yours, would start, sometimes spin, especially if you gave it a bump, then turning the speed dial would stop it eventually. Finally found the culprit. I have all of the plastic off of the lathe. Standing on the side with the switch look at the back of the motor (to your left). You will see a small wide grooved/toothed belt. With the lathe off and unplugged, turning it by hand all things seemed to be turning that were supposed to be turning. But if I put a flat screwdriver in there and held pressure against that top grooved pulley the motor shaft would turn and that pulley would stay still, thus that pulley was spinning on the motor's shaft, not with it. Now, here is where I messed up, I tried to "flip" that wide belt off thinking there would be set screws to tighten it to the shaft. All I did was cut the belt in two!! If you look closely to the left of that motor's shaft, there is a hole in the casting of the lathe. So yep, take the bottom pulley (drive pulley now on the outside of the frame work) off and you can access that hole and there is a hex head that will tighten that pulley to the motor's shaft. When I get a new belt I will be able to tell you if it is fixed or not. But it sounds very much like what you are experiencing. Good luck and if I haven't answered it clearly enough, feel free to ask questions.

 

[Dean Suminski]

Okay Bart. You have scared me. And Carol you have given me good advice. But the question of if there is any danger of removing them has not been answered.

Thanks Johnathan! I will check that out also.

 

[Dean Suminski]

Hi Johnathan,

Your instructions were very clear! Unfortunately that gear was as tight as a tic on a dogs butt!

 

[Jonathan Shively]

Hi Johnathan,

Your instructions were very clear! Unfortunately that gear was as tight as a tic on a dogs butt!

I will assume that is pretty tight!!!! What about the bottom gear on that same belt? What about a sheared key on the main pulley on the top of the big grooved belt? I am of the opinion it has to be a pulley spinning freely on a shaft if the motor is running and you can slow or stop the turning. Although, what happens to the motor when the turning stops? I did plug in and stand to the side and plug the two switch connectors together and start the lathe and then stop the turning to see what was going on behind the covers. If you haven't done this, might be informative.

 

[Dean Suminski]

I cannot actually stop the turning. Just slow it down. I took all the pulleys off the Reeves drive and checked the gears on the shafts. All was secure. As I turn the speed up the motor doesn't seem to change rpm. The little belt on the motor shaft doesn't seem to change either. Maybe I just need a new belt. The one I have looks good but cold be worn enough to affect things. After reassembling it again, it seems to run better but I don't think I am getting close to 2000 rpm's at high speed. The noise seems to be less also.

 

[Dean Suminski]

I put the lathe on Craig's list and it is gone! Thanks for all the help though. I will just putz along with the Rockwell Delta lathe and work on my next electric guitar.

 

[Ryan Mooney]

Nothing wrong with a good old Rockwell Delta

 

[Dean Suminski]

How do I get rid of the little green arrow?

 

[Ryan Mooney]

How do I get rid of the little green arrow?

That just indicates you've commented on the thread so its just there

 

[Vaughn McMillan]

I put the lathe on Craig's list and it is gone!...

That's how I solved the problems I was having with my Sears lathe. The Delta Rockwell might not have as many bells and whistles, but it's a good machine.

...As I turn the speed up the motor doesn't seem to change rpm. The little belt on the motor shaft doesn't seem to change either...

I know this is a moot point in Dean's situation, but for anyone reading this in the future, the motor speed never changes with a Reeves drive machine.

 

[steve morris]

you'll find the rockwell a much more reliable heavy duty machine
there's a reason why craftsman is renamed crapsman in some circles

 

[Braden Stauts]

Hello Dean, I have the same Craftsman lathe and experienced a screeching type of sound that was due to a loose screw holding the plastic fan to its drive mechanism. The fan is driven by the small v-belt on the front of the lathe head. The fan is a bear to get out, but once the screw was tightened the noise went away. I have had issues with the Reeves drive and found the correct drive belt on amazon (530VA22-22). The new belt may solve your drive problem.
Unfortunately the pulleys on my Reeves drive were frozen and would not slide on the shafts. In trying to remove the upper inside pulley without the proper puller, the pulley casting fractured. If you know of anyone who would like to part out their 351.217150 lathe, I would love to buy a used replacement for my inside drive pulley. The drive pulleys are no longer available on any of the online sources for Craftsman parts.
Braden Stauts

 

[Vaughn McMillan]

Hi Braden - Welcome to the forum.

I'm not sure if Dean will see your post, since he's not posted anything here in a couple of years. Still, your suggestion to check the screw on the fan may help someone else who searches for info on that lathe model.

The broken upper pulley is not uncommon with that model, so at least you're in good company. Sorry to see the part's no longer available. I don't know of anyone parting out one of those lathes, but hopefully someone here will have some potential leads for you. You might also look for folks with the Palmgren equivalent of that lathe, as I believe that's the company that built that model for Sears.