10-07-2013, 11:07 AM
Looks a good option Peter.
Some links to the ABB ACS150 controller and Marelli 0.5HP motor:
http://www.inverterdrive.com/group/AC-In...fault.aspx
http://www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/3ph-inverter
http://www.inverterdrive.com/group/Motor...fault.aspx
My Nova woodturning lathe is eight-speed belt change and uses a 1.5HP motor. It's no big deal for me to change speed by moving the belt from one pulley to another - it only a minute's job and if ever the 1.5HP motor fails, I'll change it to 3-phase and an invertor, though that would cost upwards of £350.
Nova (A company that originated in NZ and still has its head office there), also do a variable speed lathe with the motor built into the headstock and the inverter underneath it. I obtained lottery funding to buy one for our woodturning club along with other equipment about 5 years ago, but wouldn't entertain one myself. The invertor and motor are enclosed and get quite hot, not helped by dust that gets into headstock via ventilation slots and settles on the heat sink. With the motor being integral to the headstock, if it fails, the lathe is virtually a write off. The equipment is now made in Nova's factory in China - not in NZ.
I've attached a pic of Nova chuck jaws that I mentioned some while ago which shows that despite Nova's assurance of tight quality control at its own factory in China, from my experience, this is not borne out in practice. The jaws are made is sets of four and marked 1,2,3,4 to match up with the chuck. If you look at the pic of the jaws carefully you'll see that they look like they've been made on different days in different factories and even at a causal glance are not well matched. So, if that's what a simple thing like chuck jaws are like, imagine what a 3-phase motor and invertor built into a headstock is like.
Although the jaws are offensive to the eye, it's not such a big deal on a woodturning lathe. I've also attached a pic of the lathe bed, which is two sections bolted together. Though when ground, the beds match up, it will be evident that the two castings are offset. I've little doubt that these casting also came from the orient rather than from 'down under'.
Lathe speed controllers seem often to not be up to the task and I think Colin ('Retired') will endorse that from his own experiences. He abandoned the one that had failed on his small Clarke lathe and fitted an industrial sewing machine and controller which I've seen in action - it works a treat.
I think more and more companies are coming to realise that if they cheapen their production costs by shifting production to the far east, they cheapen their name, lose their reputation for quality, and lose out to the competition. Basically, they forget what made them successful in the first place - quality products. I feel safer in a plane with Rolls Royce engines made in Derby than if they were outsourced to China, India or wherever.
Ooops - drifting again!
Some links to the ABB ACS150 controller and Marelli 0.5HP motor:
http://www.inverterdrive.com/group/AC-In...fault.aspx
http://www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/3ph-inverter
http://www.inverterdrive.com/group/Motor...fault.aspx
My Nova woodturning lathe is eight-speed belt change and uses a 1.5HP motor. It's no big deal for me to change speed by moving the belt from one pulley to another - it only a minute's job and if ever the 1.5HP motor fails, I'll change it to 3-phase and an invertor, though that would cost upwards of £350.
Nova (A company that originated in NZ and still has its head office there), also do a variable speed lathe with the motor built into the headstock and the inverter underneath it. I obtained lottery funding to buy one for our woodturning club along with other equipment about 5 years ago, but wouldn't entertain one myself. The invertor and motor are enclosed and get quite hot, not helped by dust that gets into headstock via ventilation slots and settles on the heat sink. With the motor being integral to the headstock, if it fails, the lathe is virtually a write off. The equipment is now made in Nova's factory in China - not in NZ.
I've attached a pic of Nova chuck jaws that I mentioned some while ago which shows that despite Nova's assurance of tight quality control at its own factory in China, from my experience, this is not borne out in practice. The jaws are made is sets of four and marked 1,2,3,4 to match up with the chuck. If you look at the pic of the jaws carefully you'll see that they look like they've been made on different days in different factories and even at a causal glance are not well matched. So, if that's what a simple thing like chuck jaws are like, imagine what a 3-phase motor and invertor built into a headstock is like.
Although the jaws are offensive to the eye, it's not such a big deal on a woodturning lathe. I've also attached a pic of the lathe bed, which is two sections bolted together. Though when ground, the beds match up, it will be evident that the two castings are offset. I've little doubt that these casting also came from the orient rather than from 'down under'.
Lathe speed controllers seem often to not be up to the task and I think Colin ('Retired') will endorse that from his own experiences. He abandoned the one that had failed on his small Clarke lathe and fitted an industrial sewing machine and controller which I've seen in action - it works a treat.
I think more and more companies are coming to realise that if they cheapen their production costs by shifting production to the far east, they cheapen their name, lose their reputation for quality, and lose out to the competition. Basically, they forget what made them successful in the first place - quality products. I feel safer in a plane with Rolls Royce engines made in Derby than if they were outsourced to China, India or wherever.
Ooops - drifting again!
Regards, David.
BVWS Member.
G-QRP Club Member 1339.
'I'm in my own little world, but I'm happy, and they know me here'
BVWS Member.
G-QRP Club Member 1339.
'I'm in my own little world, but I'm happy, and they know me here'
