VFD & lathe tool base questions.

Bart Leetch

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3,206
Location
Clinton, Washington on Whidbey Island
As some of you may know I have an older Delta 1930's Delta double duty lathe & I don't see a newer lathe in my shop any time soon in the foreseeable future.

So my plan of attack is to build two hollow end panels with a sealed hole through the left end panel for the motor to pass through & be mounted so that the pulley on the motor lines up with the lathe pulley. These panels & the shelf panel will be filled with sand as ballast & will have adjustable feet & kick down casters or lockable casters & adjustable feet which ever works best.

I have 2 motors a 1 HP & a 3 HP 3 phase motor the 3 HP is out of a Unisaw so I would have to fabricate a bracket this is not a problem I can weld. I need to get these motors checked out to see if they run.

I do need advise on a VFD & controller & where to buy it so that I get a quality unit at a fair price.

I have designed some lathe tool drawers in my mind the will basically be plywood on edge vertically with a drawer glide top & bottom so the tools will mount like in the picture this should allow room for several tools.
 

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I converted a delta reeves drive to vfd drive. I got my VFD from Automatrix.com. All 3 phase motors are not rated for "Inverter" duty so make sure you check that out. Motor windings will not take the heat buildup from low speeds etc., especially for continious duty at the slower speeds.
 
I have bought Hitachi VFDs from Driveswarehouse, good service and good product. If your motor is not inverter duty rated, you may burn it up with a VFD but it will likely last for years before that happens.
 
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