Wadkin RS lathe for VFD

[English Dave]

Hi all I'm new to this forum.
I really need a little help. I brought Wadkin RS lathe. Im planning to use at home. So I don't have 3 phase electric at home. I would like to use variable frequency drive. I have no electric and motor experience what so ever. If someone could help me that would be appreciated.

 

[tomasg]

Hello
Looks like your motor is fixed wound in star for 440 volts and cannot be used
in conjunction with a single phase supply .
Maybe it could be rewound ? But it would probably cost more than buying a dual voltage motor .
I would be looking for a dual voltage 220/240 V three phase motor for that thing
I bought a Huanyang VFD 2.2KW and it stopped working after performing a test cut on my bandsaw
I turned it off and tried to switch it on again only to read an LV error on the screen .
I took it apart and couldn't see any problems, so I assembled it again only to see this mysterious light
lit inside the box ...Dodgy things
I would like to try a second hand unit but am afraid of the ones on ebay
as I believe these devices Do have a lifespan ,
I would like to know if parts of these drives can be replaced on the good ones ?
Good Luck with your machine
Tomas

 

[CHJ]

Most, if not everything you need to know is contained in Bob Minchin's PDF on the subject (Myfordman)

PM him and he will guide you through your options.

There are ways of running your 400volt motor from 1 ph but tend to be the more expensive of the options.
Some motors are reasonably easy to reconfigure to 240 volt (delta), depends upon how easy the access is to the winding ends.

 

[wallace]

You can run your motor from a domestic supply. It all depends if you can find a decent motor guy. I restored a Rs lathe a little while ago and I wanted the lathe to have variable speed. wadkin-rs-lathe-restoration-t86920.html
My motor was not dual voltage and I'm not sure what the motor guy did but he altered the wires coming out of the windings. I wired it up to the VFD in the resto thread and it worked brilliantly.
Your other options are buy one of the digital VFD's which can change 240 single to 415v 3 phase, they are expensive.
Use a static or rotary converter. The RS motor is only 1.5hp so a static for this would be reasonably cheap second hand.
HTH

 

[Myfordman]

This motor is a dual speed 6pole/4pole switchable and so there are two star points to find and and extra six wires to route out safely to convert to 240v x 3 phase.

I can advise on solutions if you PM me or email [email protected]

 

[MusicMan]

English Dave, I have three tools that use 440V 3 phase, (a metal lathe, a miller and a Wadkin saw) and each is fitted with a Drives Direct VFD. They do cost, about £350 for 1.5 HP and £420 odd for 2 HP, but they have worked very reliably, one of them for about four years now. The tech support man Dave ([email protected]) is very helpful and knowledgeable. Send him the pics of the motor plate and he'll tell you what to do.

Not the cheapest solution but the variable speed control that it gives is very much worthwhile on a lathe. They also have soft start to prevent surges, and fast stop (bringing the motor to rest in less than ten seconds).

Keith