Can I Twist A Segmented Belt?

[crokett]

Some months ago I got a 40s era Craftsman/Parks planer for free - it had a blown motor. I got a TEFC 220V motor at a really good price, the problem is it turns the wrong way to mount it where the old motor was. The old motor was off one side of the stand. The new one for clearance reasons can't be turned and mounted inside the stand. Also, the new motor has a lower profile than the old so it needed a longer belt. I got a segmented belt from Woodcraft for another unrelated project but thought I would use it for this. At this point I can either turn the planer so the pulley is on the other side of the stand, twist the belt or mount the motor up-side down. If I twist the belt, can I use the segmented belt or do I need a solid belt? I still have the old belt. It is in decent shape and is solid.

 

[junquecol]

Is your motor reversable? Most are, unless off an air compressor. If you motor needs to be 3450 RPM, look at RDU craigslist for "Powerful Table Saw Motor." It's a TEFC, 3450 RPM, REVERSABLE, GE motor for $30.

 

[crokett]

I will check the motor again, but I don't think it is. It is a TEFC explosion-proof motor and there are no switches or anything else on the casing. I know the old one was - it had a switch of sorts on it to change direction. I looked into getting it rewound but all the shops I talked to said it wasn't worth it.

 

[DIYGUY]

Many motors are not "reviersible" but can be made to spin CW or CCW by swapping the leads. Often the schematic for how to wire the motor for the voltage and/or the direction you want is printed on a label that is located on a removable plate on the motor housing. This is almost always where the mains are connected. If you know the model and mfr of the motor see if they have a website where you might be able to find more information on it.

I wish you good luck!

 

[CarvedTones]

Many motors are not "reviersible" but can be made to spin CW or CCW by swapping the leads.

OK, I am confused. I thought that reversable meant being able to spin in either direction by swapping leads, either semi-permanently when wiring or by using a 2 line 3 way switch (one way is open).

 

[Sully]

I would not twist the belt. Flat belts and round belts are ideal for this, but segmented belts and most v-belts are not particularly good for this.

I'd mount the motor upside down. An advantage of this is that the weight of the motor can be used to tension the belt, which is so much easier than an adjustable fixed motor mount.

$0.02
J

 

[CarvedTones]

I would not twist the belt. Flat belts and round belts are ideal for this, but segmented belts and most v-belts are not particularly good for this.

I'd mount the motor upside down. An advantage of this is that the weight of the motor can be used to tension the belt, which is so much easier than an adjustable fixed motor mount.

$0.02
J

Uhm, with all due respect, the motor will still spin in the same direction right side up or upside down. :wsmile:

 

[Sully]

Uhm, with all due respect, the motor will still spin in the same direction right side up or upside down. :wsmile:

True. But my assumption was that, if mounted upside down, he could orient the motor so that the pulley would have the appropriate rotation. It sounded from his post that he did not have the clearance to mount the motor in that orientation with the motor mount base down.

J

 

[DIYGUY]

OK, I am confused. I thought that reversable meant being able to spin in either direction by swapping leads, either semi-permanently when wiring or by using a 2 line 3 way switch (one way is open).

You are not at all confused - you have it exactly right. My tip was to search for more mfr info by looking in an unexpected place. Most motors will spin in either direction depending on which way the leads are wired, as you have stated. A reversing drum switch can make the motor spin either way by switching the leads externally. The other way to check the motor is simply to reverse the leads momentarily and observe.

BTW - the fact it is a TEFC motor only indicates that there is a fan and it is enshrouded. It has no bearing on whether or not it can spin in both directions.

 

[CarvedTones]

Mark,

One nit - by "swapping leads" I did not necessarily mean reversing. My reversible motors (I have a couple) have different leads for different directions. On an AC induction motor, reversing the leads will usually not have any effect at all. The wiring diagram for one of my motors doesn't even differentiate between the hot leads from the wall (they go different places, of course, but you just pick one of the two to go one place and the other goes the other place).

 

[Gofor]

Twisting the belt will result in the belt rubbing against itself and wearing out VERY quickly unless you can angle the motor. It also will cause the belt to try and climb off the pulley. Okay to do with a flat belt given enough distance, but bad news for a v-belt. IMHO, it won't work with a segmented belt.

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