VFD for Older 3 phase Rockwell Lathe

[Fred Perreault]

I am interested in knowing more about VFD for my older 3 phase Rockwell lathe I just aquired. Could you lead me in the right direction?
thank you for your time,
Fred P.

[Barry Richardson]

I wouldn't get it unless your looking for a "project" lathe and enjoy tinkering. If your simply looking to get into woodturning, I would get a more modern lathe.

[Bob Hallowell]

I am interested in knowing more about VFD for my older 3 phase Rockwell lathe I just aquired. Could you lead me in the right direction?
thank you for your time,
Fred P.

Fred First welcome to the "creek",

as for a vfd they are easy to install and work well, but you have and older motor that was not designed to work with a vfd. That being said I think it would still work as along as you still use your belts in conjuntion and don't take your vfd down to low frequencies, as you slow down the motor speed the cooling fan in the back of your motor will slow down. I bought mine at www.factorymation.com (http://www.factorymation.com) the are less then $200 and the have great tech support. They also sell motors that would work. If you call them they can prolly tell you more then the info you can get from use on using it with your existing motor.

Bob

[Jason Christenson]

Doesn't look like a project lathe to me. If everything lines up, go for it. I turn on one that is very similar and have had no problems.

Jason

[Bill Mitchel]

Jeff

I bought the same lathe a couple months ago. Its a great running lathe. The only thing I had to do was change the switch and I also added about 150 lbs of sand to it. PM me if you have questions.

Bill

[Steve Schlumpf]

Fred - Welcome to the Creek! Hope you find what you are looking for on your lathe!

[Bernie Weishapl]

Fred welcome. I would agree with Bob. Call them and ask them about the motor you have. I think if every thing aligns well it would work fine.

[Dave Schell]

Fred, see my recent thread on "Vicmarc barebones build." I didn't convert a Rockwell lathe, but I did go through the learning process on VFDs, picking the right one, building a remote control for it, and programming it. All other things being equal, I found the user manual for the Hitachi drives to be the best written. It really sold the drive for them as I was clearly able to determine what I need to do to wire and program this drive. Let me know if you have any questions - would be happy to help.

[Dennis Ford]

I am also a fan of Hitachi drives but there are other brands that would work also. The older motors were not designed to run on a VFD but will work fine (just watch for overheating at very low speeds). A inverter duty motor would pay for itself with lower electric bills IF IT RAN 24/7 all year long. Once you install the VFD, you will be very happy with your lathe.