Motor Upgrade

[Michael E. Thompson]

I have a Jet 1642VS 1.5HP lathe. I have been given the oppertunity to get my hands on a 2HP motor (exact motor that comes with the 2HP lathe) for next to nothing.:cool: My question is, can I simply bolt it up to my lathe or do I need to be concerned about the converter being compatable with this 2HP motor? Of course 220V is required, no worries there.

Thanks for your help.
Mike

[Dick Mahany]

My owners manual shows different Part Numbers for the inverters between the two models:
1.5HP.............JWL1642-EVS
2.0HP.............JWL1642-EVS-2

The Delta Electronics Inverter manual shows different OEM P/Ns as well.

[allen thunem]

i would contact walter meijer and ask them

[Jeff Nicol]

As far as I know all inverters are rated to what size motors they can handle, and I try to oversize mine a little just in case I want or need to upgrade to a larger motor. So that being said you should be able to look up the VFD and see what it is rated for in max HP, if it is only rated for 1.5hp then a larger inverter would be needed to get the full capacity out of the larger motor.

I found a place that has parts for the 1642 and it looks like the same inverter is used on both the 1.5 and the 2hp lathes, they also show one for the PM3520B. Here it is.
http://www.ereplacementparts.com/jet-jwl1642evs-708359-wood-lathe-parts-c-32652_32854_155051.html

Hope it helps,

Jeff

[Michael E. Thompson]

I've emailed walter meijer already I have not heard from them yet. Is my searches, I am getting counterdicting answers. I have found that one inverter is compatible with both motors. Then someplace else will say just the opposite. Confusing and frustrating.

Thanks
Mike

[Michael E. Thompson]

I found a place that has parts for the 1642 and it looks like the same inverter is used on both the 1.5 and the 2hp lathes, they also show one for the PM3520B. Here it is.
http://www.ereplacementparts.com/jet-jwl1642evs-708359-wood-lathe-parts-c-32652_32854_155051.html



Jeff, I found the same site in my searches. When I get home I will look at the inverter and see whats what. The inverter may need to be reprogrammed???

Thanks

[Mike Cruz]

Is the inverter on that lathe basically a VFD? If so, can't you simply overclock it to accomodate the extra .5 hp? Just a question, not saying it would/should work...

[Michael E. Thompson]

Is the inverter on that lathe basically a VFD? If so, can't you simply overclock it to accomodate the extra .5 hp? Just a question, not saying it would/should work...

Mike, I don't know enough about them to know how to overclock one. I think the problem is more along the line of the input voltage. I am affraid my inverter will only take 110V and not the 220V for the 2HP motor. Unless that is what you mean by overclock?

[Mike Cruz]

No, that's not what I mean. 110 is 110 and 220 is 220. If all you have is 110 and don't have 220, then you'd certainly need to get a 110 motor. However, any motor that works with a VFD is 3 phase. The VFD is a converter of single phase in (what your supply is) to 3 phase out (what your motor is) so that you can have variable speed, etc.

Overclocking it, as I understand, is a function of programing the VFD to increase the amp supply of the VFD over what it is rated for. But this will only work for short periods. Here's how I remember it being explained to me... A VFD will have a hp rating of say 1.5 hp. Actually, it isn't rated for ANY hp. It is rated for a certain number of amps that it can put out. So a 1.5 hp VFD is rated for, say 4.5 amps. Now, if you found a 1 hp motor that draws 6 amps, that would be "too much" for the VFD. Likewise, if you found a 2 hp motor that draws 4.5 amps, you'd be okay. But new motors are fairly standard, so if you have a 1 hp motor it would be around 3 amps, and a 2 hp motor would be around 6 amps. (These are 220 amp draw numbers I'm giving you, btw. Double it for single phase.) Overclocking a 1.5 hp VFD would mean that you could increase the amps out from 4.5 to maybe 6 for a burst of about up to 30 seconds to a minute. Which would, in theory, be just fine since on a lathe, you rarely use you max hp (on a 2+ hp lathe) for more than 5-10 seconds. A TS, Planer, Band Saw, or Dust Collector would be a different story.

Manufacturers will not recommend pairing a 1.5 hp VFD with a 2 hp motor because it "could", in theory, shorten the life of the VFD by potentially putting undue stress on the VFD. And, of course, they don't want to have to flip the bill for a piece that they don't have to...

Another way to look at it is that you could pair a 1.5 hp VFD with a 3 hp motor and not overclock the VFD...but you'll only get 1.5 hp out of your motor. ;)

NOTE: PLEASE, if I've said anything wrong, feel free to tell me so. This is how I remember it being explained to me...

[Michael E. Thompson]

I spoke to Walter Meijer, its definately not recommended, of course. He did tell me that it can be done, the problem is that it will overload the inverter and it will eventually blow it. "Fry the circuit board". I bought the lathe used, so there is no warrenty. A friend recommened buying an aftermarket inverter and move to the 2HP motor. I did find online the exact inverter on the 2HP lathe, but it is quite expensive at $400. Any thoughts as to where I can get a comprable inverter less expensive.

Thanks for all the input.

Mike

[Mike Cruz]

Factorymation.com has the FM50 2 hp unit for $175 I think. I've got three of these units (one 1.5 hp, one 2 hp, and one 3 hp). They all work great.

[Michael E. Thompson]

Factorymation.com has the FM50 2 hp unit for $175 I think. I've got three of these units (one 1.5 hp, one 2 hp, and one 3 hp). They all work great.

Thanks Mike, I will look into these. You've been a great help, I appreciate it.

Mike