Before I begin, let me say: I do not need a motor and do not anticipate that I will need one anytime soon (or hope that I don’t).
I am posting in hopes of inspiring some knowledgeable comments about replacement motors.
In recent weeks, Katie Harper successfully replaced Sp15 motor. There was another post by someone else who replaced a motor on another Vandercook model. I thought that both solutions were expensive and more complicated than necessary, but . . . I am not an expert at any of this.
I have searched the web looking for 110-120v AC gear reduction motors. This avoids having to convert a DC motor to AC power or buy an AC motor and separately buy a gear reduction box. Both are expensive routes
I found several possibilities, altho none are perfect match.
The baldor 24316 is 1/8th HP with 148 RPM; the 24318 is a 1/8th HP with a 71 RPM. I also found Bodine Electric AC models 0623 and 0624 with RPMs of 170 and 85. (Some Challenge MP15’s use Bodine motors turning at 170 RPMs).
None of these cost more than $400, and some were less.
The difference is RPMs might be handled with a change in the size of the pulley. Alternatively, the slower PM would seem to be ok. It means a little more time to spread the ink, but also means that the ink won’t dry out as fast.
The installation will likely require drilling holes to mount the motor, but that’s likely with any solution.
I am sure I am missing something. But, I hope this will get others thinking. In time we will all need motors. Its just a matter of time.
Lad
PS – Fritz/Paul : thoughts?
I guess I should explain more about our recent motor replacement in the SP-15. One big issue for us (according to the motor guys who worked on this problem) is that in the SP-15 the motor is mounted with a gear box going off to the left; there are many more solutions for a right-side gear box, apparently. When we first started investigating solutions, my thought was to find a motor that did not require a gear box, but could go directly to the pulley if mounted cross-wise. We puzzled over why the SP-15 has all that space left over in the chamber, when the motor is mounted way off to the non-operator side. Could it not be turned 90 degrees and go directly to the pulley? The problem seemed to be RPM requirements. I never did understand this fully (don’t know enough about motors), and I think the motor guys at Evans and Baldor didn’t fully understand our application, either. They were trying to stick as close as possible to the original specs on the original motor.
The motor and controller we ended up with were the closest that Baldor could get to the specs on the original motor, according to them. The two parts actually did not cost that much, around $500. Our biggest cost was the labor to install it. We could have installed it ourselves (it was not very difficult), but I wanted them to take responsibility so the warranty would be valid in case something did not work down the line.
Another inducement to go this route was that the new motor is MUCH quieter than the old one, but I suspect most new motors are. We have been very happy with the solution.
Paul
to slow it down, you would put a smaller pulley on the shaft coming out of the gear box. That wouldn’t be a space problem. you might need a slightly bigger belt, but you might be able to take that into account when drilling new mounting holes. I do not think that the pulley on the drum would be affected at all.
If you bought a slower motor that you wanted to speed up, then the new pulley would need to be bigger, but i think there is space to do that if you are changing the pulley on the motor shaft
I am pleased to see some discussion going on this. Of course, John Henry is correct: if the motor can be rebuilt – rebuild it.
Lad, I’m not sure there’s enough room in the SP15 to use a larger pulley. Certainly no room on the drum, but if swapped out on the gearbox shaft the motor would need to be raised.
John, I do have a page with a table in progress, I will share it soon. I suspect that it will take more effort to maintain the info as product availability changes.
When I took my Universal III out of storage last year, the ink drive motor was locked up due to moisture in the gear reduction gearbox. A local motor shop was able to pull it apart and clean it and replace the bearings for about $75.00.
When I took the motor in, I asked about replacement motors, and the shop manager indicated that they would be able to spec a motor for replacement for about $4-500, and, as Lad has indicated, it might take some new mounting configuration, but that they would check out the old motor first as that might be an easier fix, and it was.
Here’s my word of advice: Don’t always assume that the motor needs to be replaced if it doesn’t run.
It might be af value to start a page on the site, Paul, in which a list can be maintained of replacement motor specs which have worked for various models and owners, with an explanation of what modification needed to be done to get them mounted. The same might be true of the electronic parts and controls, with specs for new relays and pots which will operate as the old ones, but using modern alternatives. Just a thought for a time when you don’t have anything else to do, Paul.
John Henry