Can you stop your lathe with a catch?

[Mike Minto]

Or a heavy cut in a bowl blank? It has happened to me with my new Jet 1642 (1.5 hp 110 volt) more than it used to with my old Nova 1624-44 (1.5 hp 110 volt). Could the long run of electric wire from house to lathe be robbing me of power? Tension on the drive belt insufficient? Not worried about the 'safety' it might offer, stopping in a heavy catch - am looking for observations based on user experience upon which to draw an opinion on the power of my machine.

[Scott Hackler]

Mike I think that something is very wrong. Expecially if a heavy cut or catch was stopping the Nova 1624, let alone the new Jet. I have the Nova and this thing has power to spare and I truely believe it would break my tool or arm before it would stop. Granted I dont get a lot of catches (proper tool use) anymore and know the limits of heavy stock removal. The only time I remember the Nova kinda stopping was when I forgot to tighten the belt after a speed change. (made a heck of a squealing noise)

I dont have a solution, but wonder if your outlet is short on voltage. Are you using a long extension cord? If so that could be the problem. Only solution is permanent wiring or an extra heavy duty extension cord.

[Reed Gray]

I did a demo on that lathe in November. I found it underpowered, but then I have a 3 hp Robust which I can stall in the slow speed range (lowest of 3 ranges/pulleys). Belt tension isn't the issue, but given a larger diameter bowl, and hogging off material, it isn't difficult to stall any lathe. The 2 hp 220 volt one would have more torque. I could do it with my old PM3520A model, and talked to Bill Grumbine who said he could stall a VB36. Do have your lathe on the lower speed range for turning bowls of any size. Smaller ones (6 to 8 inch diameter) can be turned on the higher speed range. I did turn a few times on one of the old Nova 16 inch lathes with a DC motor on it, and in the lower speed ranges, I could stall it as well. Now, if I had a 5 hp motor like Mike Mahoney has, maybe I would have a bit more trouble stalling it.

robo hippy

[Steve Schlumpf]

Mike - as you know - I have the 220 volt version of your lathe and I promise you I can stop it in a heartbeat when I get aggressive! I'm not a big guy - so it's not like the weight I'm putting into into it is causing it - but when I am taking 1" to 1 1/4" wide curls off a rough blank I have to make sure to keep them thin or it slows things down.

I don't think I actually stop the lathe most of the time but just cause the belt to slip some. And - I don't usually take that wide of shavings but when I got Doug's 3/4" V gouge I had to have a little fun with it!

[Matt Hutchinson]

My experiences uphold what the others have been saying. I have been able to bog down every lathe I have worked on, including a 1642 with the 2 hp motor. I found that after I put a little more tension on the 1642's belt that I got some improvement, but it could still be stopped easily when taking a 3/8" to 1/2" shaving.

Hutch

[alex carey]

how long is the wire from the lathe to the source?

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Heck yes, you can stop or slow down a lathe easily, just put a large piece on the lathe and you can stop a 1.5HP motor like nothing.

I have a 1.5 HP 220V heavy duty motor on my lathe, and it doesn't even take an aggressive cut if the piece is large enough, I'll show this piece here I was working on recently, I have to take it easy or the piece will actually stop turning, wouldn't happen with a 2" spindle turning, it's all in the leverage :D

[Sean Hughto]

Leo (or anyone else who knows), is there a limit on the weight of a blank that on can put on a lathe as far as risking damaging the shaft, belts, motor, etc.? I have a 1.5 HP Jet 1642. I hope to do some large utility bowls that might start with blanks in the 16 x 8 range and likely weigh a lot. Would that that be a mistake? Thanks for any insights.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Yup there's a limit, depends a lot on the shaft size and weight and length of the blank, also balance of the wood and a few other things, I have a 3½" thick shaft so that end is taken care of ;-))

[Allen Neighbors]

If you're running your lathe on an extension cord, it needs to be a big cord, of course that depends on the length of the cord. If you're running from a regular outlet in your house, to your lathe out back, it would pay to know what size wiring the outlet has. If it's 14 gauge wire, the outlet is too small.
I wouldn't try to run a lathe on any cord smaller than 12 - 3. And then I wouldn't use a cord more than about 24 feet long. There are charts suggesting the length and size of extension cords for different applications.
I can slow down my Oneway 1640 with 2hp motor, when I'm getting agressive with it. It depends on the size of turning, and the tightness of the belt. I'd rather hear an occasional squeal of the belt than to see smoke coming from the electronics cabinet.

[David Walser]

Mike,

As others have said, it can be surprisingly easy to stop a lathe. Upon reflection, however, it shouldn't be surprising. Most of us know from experience it's not too difficult to stop the blade on a table saw if you're taking too heavy a cut. What's "too heavy a cut", of course, depends on the saw. In my cabinet mill days, when I was using a unisaw that had a 5hp 220v motor, I could stall the saw if I tried to rip 8/4 oak with too fast a feed rate. With my hobby grade table saw (1.5hp, 110v), I can stop the blade with too fast a feed rate on 4/4 material -- and that's with a thin-kerf blade.

The typical table saw blade has a width of about 1/8". Compare the amount of wood removed in a saw cut with the amount of wood removed when you're roughing out a bowl, and it becomes surprising that we don't stop the lathe more often! In a few hours on a lathe, you can create enough chips to fill a garbage can or two. It might take weeks of constant work at a table saw to remove the same amount of waste material.

[Mike Minto]

guys, i appreciate what you all have said. sounds like my situation is about 'normal' - usually only stopping/stalling for a second or two when taking a heavy cut and not al that often. i'll just have to take it easier :o.

[Ryan Baker]

Leo (or anyone else who knows), is there a limit on the weight of a blank that on can put on a lathe as far as risking damaging the shaft, belts, motor, etc.? I have a 1.5 HP Jet 1642. I hope to do some large utility bowls that might start with blanks in the 16 x 8 range and likely weigh a lot. Would that that be a mistake? Thanks for any insights.

I have turned lots of blanks that size on my Jet1642 and it's no problem at all. It can handle heavier blanks than that.

Pretty much the only thing that ever stalls out my lathe is coring. If I am coring, or if I am turning a really heavy 16" blank, I will put it in low range. Otherwise it is always in high range (which would be easier to stall). Granted, I don't hog off 1-1/4" cuts at a time. (Keep eyeing that Thompson 3/4" though...)

[Richard Madison]

Have caused momentary belt slip (squeal) a couple or three times when roughing a log on 2hp 1642, low speed range. This can flat spot your belt, which can then cause a vibration. Too much belt tension puts excessive load on motor and spindle bearings, and too little tension makes it too easy to slip. I let the motor weight tension the belt and add maybe a pound or two manually.

[David Peebles]

Hi Mike,

I have a 2436 with the 3 hp motor. I have to say I have never slowed it down or stopped it... even when coring. It is a beast... but If I screw up it can hurt you. I just try to never screw up. :)

Dave

[Doug Thompson]

A 1/2 diameter bowl gouge is enough to slow or stop any lathe on the market today. Gosh I even stopped a 3520 from 800 rpm to 0 in .005 nano seconds with a termite tool... heck of a catch.

[Don Orr]

I can easily slow or stop my Jet 1642/1.5HP when I get real agressive. If you can't then you may have too much power and could get beat up by the machine instead of the machine stopping. Many higher end lathes have a built in shut-down in their electronics that won't allow you to restart until you have cycled the power off and on. This is for severe catches usually. Oneway is an example.

[Mike Minto]

A 1/2 diameter bowl gouge is enough to slow or stop any lathe on the market today. Gosh I even stopped a 3520 from 800 rpm to 0 in .005 nano seconds with a termite tool... heck of a catch.


Doug, how did you measure that 0 to .005 nano's? Digital stopwatch? :p

[Harvey Schneider]

I have two comments:
First do you have the drive belt on the low speed setting? There is more available torque at the spindle on that setting.

Second If the motor is actually stalling the drive will cut out and the drive will need to be "disabled-enabled" in order to resume work. This is a safety feature so that you don't overload the drive. The only time I have had this happen on my 1642 was a catch that also split the handle on my 1/2" bowl gouge.
Harvey

[Scott Hackler]

Wow, I cant believe everyone who has stopped thier lathe. I must either never "super hogged" a cut or my 1.5 HP Nova 1624 is a lot stronger than advertised. Seriously though, I have done some pretty aggressive stock removal on large blanks and dont remember ever slowing or stopping my lathe (granted I use sharp tools and 90% of the time, green wood).

[Mike Minto]

I have two comments:
First do you have the drive belt on the low speed setting? There is more available torque at the spindle on that setting.

Second If the motor is actually stalling the drive will cut out and the drive will need to be "disabled-enabled" in order to resume work. This is a safety feature so that you don't overload the drive. The only time I have had this happen on my 1642 was a catch that also split the handle on my 1/2" bowl gouge.
Harvey

Yep, low setting. The motor has never 'stalled', only 'stopped' rotating temporarily; I've always pulled my tool away quick as I can, and the motor has resumed turning. Just in case, how does one 'disable-enable' the 1642? :confused:

[Steve Schlumpf]

Mike - on the VFD drive on the back of the lathe headstock - there is a reset button. I have stalled my motor before and it does trip the VFD.

[Jeremy Williams]

Great question and I'm glad you asked it in the forum. I've learned something for sure. I have the PM3520B and have stopped the spin momentarily when taking a rough bowl to round and being a bit aggressive, or when running in a very "hard" part of the wood. It's had me concerned as to if that was right. I suppose it's normal.