Plug for new PM2000 3HP Single Phase Table Saw?

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi,

I'm new, although I have enjoyed lurking here the last two months and learning from the many informative posts. I bought a new (two years old, but still in the crate) PM2000 table saw (3HP/1-Phase) last Saturday off Craigslist and need to make an extension cord for it. The guy gave me 30 ft of waterproof AWG 10/3 cable, but I need to buy plugs for the cable and install a 240V/20A circuit for it.

I am thinking of NEMA L6-20 plugs for it. Is this the right choice? I'll install a 240V/20A breaker at my panel and a L6-20 receptacle if these are the right plugs.

Thanks in advance for any advice! Please forgive me if this sounds dumb or if it has been discussed ad infinitum in the forums - I'm a novice. I did a forum search and read a number of threads, but they mostly focused on wire gauge, circuit breaker amperage, etc. The manual doesn't give any advice about plugs. Also, don't ask me how much I paid - you might not take pity on this newbie and give me any advice!

Charles

[Erik Loza]

I like Twist-Loc plugs and receptacles. They are rated by amperage. Lowes/Home Depot sell them...

270777

Also, you won't want to use all 30' of that 10/3. Just long enough to reach the machine. Possibly you were ware of that already. Best of luck.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Rod Sheridan]

For a home shop, I never use locking devices, unless required by location.

Straight blade devices work just fine, and at work they outlast locking devices because half of the people can't seem to lock them properly resulting in melted devices.

A straight blade device is easy to verify if it's properly inserted.
Regards, Rod.

[Andrew Fleck]

Hi Charles,
10/3 is a little overkill for a 3hp saw unless that PM2000 has an unusually high amp draw. Better too thick of a wire than too thin though. If your going to install a 20A breaker then the L6-20 plug and receptacle will work fine. I use an L6-30 and it works great. Push in and twist lock. I'm pretty sure your saw draws under 20 amps but double check the motor plate to be sure. If it is indeed under 20 amps then you will be just fine with that setup.

Andrew

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Erik! I think that is the same plug I am looking at - the L6-20 plugs are locking.

Yes, I am going to measure and see about how much length I might need. I think I can get away with 20ft, unless I have an electrician install a plug nearer that part of my garage - I have no idea what they would charge. The walls are finished, otherwise I'd just do it myself and shorten the cord or place the saw closer to my panel.

Thanks again!
Charles


I like Twist-Loc plugs and receptacles. They are rated by amperage. Lowes/Home Depot sell them...

270777

Also, you won't want to use all 30' of that 10/3. Just long enough to reach the machine. Possibly you were ware of that already. Best of luck.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Rod. I have no experience with locking plugs. Are they that hard to lock right or is half the population just careless? So I guess that would be a NEMA 6-20 instead of the L6-20?

thanks for the advice!
Charles

[Erik Loza]

Charles, one suggestion: If you have the choice, I would actually run a 30A breaker and then (of course) 10GA wire in the wall. Yes, 20A would be fine for now but if you are like the rest of us, "upgrades" happen down the road and since lots of other machines are 30A, it would make sense to do it if you're pulling the wire now, anyway. Just my thoughts.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Erik Loza]

Thanks Rod. I have no experience with locking plugs. Are they that hard to lock right or is half the population just careless? So I guess that would be a NEMA 6-20 instead of the L6-20?

thanks for the advice!
Charles

Charles, I would not disagree with Rod except to say that Twist-Loc's are pretty much "standard" in the electrical industry here in the US any time a quick-disconnect is called for. For example, they are all you will see in industry trade shows where the electricians are hooking up industrial machines. The biggest shows, like AWFS and IWF. I've been using then for 10+ years and recommend them to all my owners. Never personally had a bad experience or heard of a bad experience during that time. It's just a metter of personal preference. There are other options, of course.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Andrew,

Thanks - I was thinking the same thing, but the guy who I bought the saw from gave it to me saying he bought it to make the extension cable so it was "free" (I didn't know it was included until we were ready to drive off with the saw and this fellow said he almost forgot to give me the cable). Also, the manual suggests AWG 10 for a 20-30ft extension cord so it seemed ok, although I don't know if there is some issue I am not aware of. I'll check the motor plate too. I'm was assuming overkill on the cable gauge is ok, like I think you're suggesting, especially since it will only cost me more to downsize.

Thanks for the help!
Charles


Hi Charles,
10/3 is a little overkill for a 3hp saw unless that PM2000 has an unusually high amp draw. Better too thick of a wire than too thin though. If your going to install a 20A breaker then the L6-20 plug and receptacle will work fine. I use an L6-30 and it works great. Push in and twist lock. I'm pretty sure your saw draws under 20 amps but double check the motor plate to be sure. If it is indeed under 20 amps then you will be just fine with that setup.

Andrew

[Phil Thien]

For a home shop, I never use locking devices, unless required by location.

Straight blade devices work just fine, and at work they outlast locking devices because half of the people can't seem to lock them properly resulting in melted devices.

A straight blade device is easy to verify if it's properly inserted.
Regards, Rod.

I had always thought they made full contact when inserted, the twist was only to lock them to prevent them from falling out.

I've never looked at them very closely, am I all wet?

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Erik. I'll go try out the two types of plugs at the store and see how they mate. I'm not sure if the regular home improvement stores have these. It might be nice to have it locked just to avoid the accidental pull and unplug scenario.

best regards,
Charles

[Charlie Barnes]

Just another suggestion since you have so much cable, is to cut it and make up 2 cords. Make one long enough to get close to your saw and the other one shorter that feeds into your saw. That places a plug near the saw and makes it easy to unplug it when you are changing blades, etc.

Charlie

[Charles Musgrave]

Good idea. I don't mind switching out plugs, but I'd rather not change the wiring in my wall later (I'm probably going to install the plug a 18in directly below my panel and run the short run behind the drywall).

I am hoping to buy good enough in the beginning so that I don't have to upgrade later, but who knows what I'll end up buying. A lot of it depends on what comes up on Craigslist! I already passed up a great deal on an almost new Grizzly jointer/planer combo for $600 I'm kicking myself over. I'll put together a wish list and check to see how they're rated. What are the most common machines that end up needing 30 amps? I thought the PM2000 was going to be king of the mountain!

Thanks again for all your help - I appreciate learning from those more experienced than me!
Charles


Charles, one suggestion: If you have the choice, I would actually run a 30A breaker and then (of course) 10GA wire in the wall. Yes, 20A would be fine for now but if you are like the rest of us, "upgrades" happen down the road and since lots of other machines are 30A, it would make sense to do it if you're pulling the wire now, anyway. Just my thoughts.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Dave Nanke]

I'd also go with a 30 amp breaker. I've got the same saw on a 20 amp. Works fine, but I have tripped the breaker on start up when using a full stack of 8" dado blades.

[Steve Peterson]

I use twist locks on my 5hp PM66. My saw sits next to a wall and I have to crawl under the extension table to remove it. So I cut the power cord about 1' away from the on/off switch and added another set of twist lock plugs. This leaves me with a really short cord on my saw and a 10' extension cord. It makes it really easy to disconnect power when I change blades, so I do it all the time now. The plug hangs down near the front of my saw, so twist locks are the only thing that works in this case.

Steve

[Rod Sheridan]

Charles, I'm going with careless.

I still wouldn't spend the money on a locking device unless I needed a locking feature, which you do for pendant cables.

For a cord laying on the floor, when was the last time you used a locking device for your home vacuum cleaner?

Regards, Rod.

[Charles Musgrave]

That's a good one! I want to cut the cable length down to the minimum I need anyway to minimize voltage drop, but hadn't thought about making two cords with the short one near the saw. I could also put a converter there in case I run other 220V machines that draw less than 20 amps and use different plugs.

Ok, when I decide what to get I now need to double the number of plugs in the order.

thanks for the suggestion,
Charles


Just another suggestion since you have so much cable, is to cut it and make up 2 cords. Make one long enough to get close to your saw and the other one shorter that feeds into your saw. That places a plug near the saw and makes it easy to unplug it when you are changing blades, etc.

Charlie

[Art Mann]

If you want to minimize the voltage drop between the wall outlet and the saw motor, adding an extra set of plugs is absolutely not the way to do it. There is probably more resistance across one male/female plug combination than 10 feet of 20AWG.

[Keith Hankins]

Well I'm late to this and all have provided good information. My only comment would be if you have 10AWG wire you should match the ends to match which should be 30A plugs and receptacles. This is code. Now a 3hp motor will only be pulling on avg 15A/leg so it won't tax it for sure, but if you ever upgrade and forget to change those plugs and receptacles, you could be in danger. I know in my shops (I've wired 4 now) I've stayed code because a friend in the insurance biz told me you can do things yourself, but if you do, and don't do to code, and by what ever reason there is a fire, you have just gave the insurance co an out on paying.

It's great the free wire was offered by the seller. That was worth some serious money saved. The 30A plugs won't cost that much more. Keep-em kosher so to speak. That's my 2c worth.

[Art Mann]

The NEC code says the rating of the outlet should not exceed the rating of the breaker value and the wire in the wall should be rated for at least as much current as the breaker is rated for. It doesn't say anything about the size of wire plugged into it. Just look at the average table lamp cord in your house. It will be a mere 16 or 18 AWG, whereas the wall outlet is rated for either 15 or 20 amps. If you draw 15A through an 18 gauge lamp cord for any length of time it will start to melt the insulation.

[johnny means]

In my shop, anyhing that I can't put in my truck gets hard wired. Just one more option.

[Charles Musgrave]

Good point - I was thinking about that, but wondered how big the drop is. I think you can drop less than 5V in 30ft with AWG 10/3 so maybe 1.5 V less of a drop by cutting the cable by 10 ft.? It would be good to drop less than 5V total so if the extra plugs take it over, I'd probably avoid it. A lot of variables to think about!

thanks for the help!
Charles


If you want to minimize the voltage drop between the wall outlet and the saw motor, adding an extra set of plugs is absolutely not the way to do it. There is probably more resistance across one male/female plug combination than 10 feet of 20AWG.

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Rod,

Yeah, no pendant cable for this set up. It could come down to what prices I can find. My cable is a "Carol 3/C 10 AWG water resistant SOOW CSA" if that matters. It seems quite heavy to me and just hanging off the wall outlet makes me think it might cause issues with it being "semi-pendant", if you get what I am thinking. Maybe I'll need to install the outlet lower to reduce the dangling weight. My other outlets are at about 4ft off the ground.

thanks again,
Charles


Charles, I'm going with careless.

I still wouldn't spend the money on a locking device unless I needed a locking feature, which you do for pendant cables.

For a cord laying on the floor, when was the last time you used a locking device for your home vacuum cleaner?

Regards, Rod.

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Johnny,

I was thinking about that too. I don't think I have open slots in my panel for more than one double 220V breaker so if I hardwire I would probably need to change out my panel. Then again, I'd have fewer plug to receptacle connections. That probably also means I need to stick pretty much to that shop configuration if I am thinking of this right. If I did go that route I would definitely want to hire an electrician to fish the cable through the wall. I wonder how much electricians charge for stringing 10/3 Romex through through a finished wall? It would be nice to have a nice clean connection!

thanks for pointing out the additional option - the list is getting long!
Charles


In my shop, anyhing that I can't put in my truck gets hard wired. Just one more option.

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Dave;

I was just reading about someone having issues with slow start and lower RPMs with a dado on their PM2000. Maybe it was their power source. I think they had narrowed it down to a capacitor in the switch or a bad motor, but no one mentioned that it might be the power source if I remember right. OK, looks like 30amp plugs then!

thanks again,
Charles

(
I'd also go with a 30 amp breaker. I've got the same saw on a 20 amp. Works fine, but I have tripped the breaker on start up when using a full stack of 8" dado blades.

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Keith! I didn't know that. I'll look at 30amp plugs. Erik mentioned other machines I could add that would draw 30amps too, although I wasn't sure what those might be.

I am a novice hobbiest... I think - I had mostly cheap things I sold when we moved 6 years ago, including a Shop Smith, Craftsman dinky table saw and a used 14" Delta band saw. I was hit by a truck while riding my bike 6 weeks ago and barely came out alive and decided while sitting around recovering that life was too short to not have what I wanted - some decent tools and a pile of sawdust. I was thinking a router table (looking at a Triton TRA001), a planer/jointer combo (I don't have a lot of room) and maybe a bandsaw (maybe the Grizzly 17" anniversary edition). I'll check them, but I don't think they'll be over 15 amps - maybe there is a common machine that people add that takes them to 30amps?

thanks again!
Charles




Well I'm late to this and all have provided good information. My only comment would be if you have 10AWG wire you should match the ends to match which should be 30A plugs and receptacles. This is code. Now a 3hp motor will only be pulling on avg 15A/leg so it won't tax it for sure, but if you ever upgrade and forget to change those plugs and receptacles, you could be in danger. I know in my shops (I've wired 4 now) I've stayed code because a friend in the insurance biz told me you can do things yourself, but if you do, and don't do to code, and by what ever reason there is a fire, you have just gave the insurance co an out on paying.

It's great the free wire was offered by the seller. That was worth some serious money saved. The 30A plugs won't cost that much more. Keep-em kosher so to speak. That's my 2c worth.

[Mike Wilkins]

I used the same plugs for my jointer/planer, table saw, band saw, dual-drum sander and lathe. May be overkill for a home shop, but I like doing things better than they have to be. Congrats on the saw purchase.

[Art Mann]

Good point - I was thinking about that, but wondered how big the drop is. I think you can drop less than 5V in 30ft with AWG 10/3 so maybe 1.5 V less of a drop by cutting the cable by 10 ft.? It would be good to drop less than 5V total so if the extra plugs take it over, I'd probably avoid it. A lot of variables to think about!

thanks for the help!
Charles

I don't want to mislead you about wire size. 10 gauge wire has a resistance of about 1 ohm per thousand feet. What that means is if you draw 20 amps through 20 feet of 10 gauge (40 feet there and back), the voltage drop will only be about 0.8 volts. 12 gauge would work fine at that distance but since you have the 10 gauge for free, by all means use it. I just wanted to point out that the resistance through a set of connectors is not negligible compared to the resistance of the wire.

[Erik Loza]

Charles, I wouldn't overthink this. Keep the whips for each machine as short as possible and just run 10GA wire in the walls. Actually, I would install some extra outlets. I know that I often wish I had more in my garage. 99% of the single-phase machines you would ever own will run just fine on 30A of service and unless you are running more than a single machine and dust collector or compressor all simultaneously, it will probably never be an issue.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Peter Quinn]

Charles, I'm going with careless.

I still wouldn't spend the money on a locking device unless I needed a locking feature, which you do for pendant cables.

For a cord laying on the floor, when was the last time you used a locking device for your home vacuum cleaner?

Regards, Rod.


Every 30A 220V vacuum cleaner in my house has a twist lock. For the 10A 110V models I don't bother. I've actually had somebody trip over a power cord in the shop, twist locks with strain reliefs don't come out, they take the clumsy down. Large heavy cables like 10/3 have a way of working their way out of the receptacle over time, sort of hanging off the wall a bit, thats pretty much a worst case scenario, plug half out but energized. Another bad scenario is you are in the middle of a cut when clumsy neighbor stops by to say hello hearing your table saw, trips over cord, unplugs saw in middle of a cut. I'm the sort of guy that is wiling to pay a few bucks extra to eliminate that potentiality. And in a man cave, the twist locks resinate even with the uninitiated, they say "This is industrial, this guy is not playing...." Who wouldn't pay a bit more to look cool? And once you put a 3hp cabinet saw in a garage to do hobby work the concept of killing it is pretty much out the window.

Oh, in my shop anybody not coordinated enough to plug the saw in is definitely not allowed to use it. It's a level one litmus test.

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Art,

I complete got what you were saying and it made sense: Why worry about the resistance of 10 extra feet of 10 gauge cord if I am going to put in an extra plug to receptacle connection? Also, that if I were looking to buy cable, that 12 gauge would probably suffice, although since I have the AWG 10/3, all the better. I hope my earlier reply didn't confuse the issue. I appreciated the point you were making. Thanks for pointing it out.

If I was building a shop from the foundation up this would probably be a lot easier to figure out.

Thanks again,
Charles

[Peter Quinn]

Charles, I wouldn't overthink this. Keep the whips for each machine as short as possible and just run 10GA wire in the walls. Actually, I would install some extra outlets. I know that I often wish I had more in my garage. 99% of the single-phase machines you would ever own will run just fine on 30A of service and unless you are running more than a single machine and dust collector or compressor all simultaneously, it will probably never be an issue.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

Ditto....I'm not big on the 40' extension cord concept. I keep them under 15', and if a mobile machine can't reach a receptacle, I add a line run in AWG. The big machines have manual fused disconnects in line close enough to reach. A magnetic starter is not a disconnect I trust. I work in an OSHA regulated facility where lock out/tag out is required, at home kids are the issue. "Hey Daddy what does that big green button do?" They usually ask after pushing buttons, not before. Nothing after I flip a few knife switches at the door. I don't require twist locks or manual disconnects knife switches on my bar blender, but that might be a good idea some days.

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Erik,

I was thinking that too, but I have this psychological problem with spending money on adding outlets instead of shiny new machines! This isn't the first time that's been a problem with me or that I've over thought a problem. I forgot about also running a dust collector simultaneously to a saw or planer or jointer. Those together would take me too close or over a 20 amp limit.

I ordered 30 amp plugs. I'll get a 30 amp breaker locally. Now I need figure out how to get the Romex through the walls - looks like I'll be hiring an electrician.

Thanks again for the education - I read a lot of posts on here over the last month and it was already a great help and all the suggestions today were no different!

best regards,
Charles


Charles, I wouldn't overthink this. Keep the whips for each machine as short as possible and just run 10GA wire in the walls. Actually, I would install some extra outlets. I know that I often wish I had more in my garage. 99% of the single-phase machines you would ever own will run just fine on 30A of service and unless you are running more than a single machine and dust collector or compressor all simultaneously, it will probably never be an issue.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Keith Hankins]

I have a great article on 110 .vs. 220 that puts everything in very simplistic terms and great information that explains it all. If you would like it, pm me and I'll send it to you. Generally look at it this way if your saw (look at the amp rating on the motor) will tell you what you need. If it says (for example) 30 amps at 220 then in reality you are looking at 15 amps being pulled per leg and in your buss box the breaker will straddle the two main buss bars and pull that amount from each buss bar. So if you only are taking 15 amps per leg technically (i would not do it that way), you could use 14awg and function. Thats in theory and assuming you don't have a long run from the saw to the breaker. Generally I keep a 20 percent reserve for those spikes in power. So at a min 12/2.

In a 110 environment that same motor would be pulling all power from that one line and would require at a minimum a 10awg wire. You can see why (there are other reasons) 220 can be an improvement. All I wanted to stress in my original response was match it all the way back to the box with matching hardware if its just an extension cord and 10/3 is a nice one. Don't sweat it. I will tell you 10/3 plugs are more expensive. I run 3 phase power for some old american iron I have and they were not cheap. I remember placing the machine as close to my panel as possible just to save on the price to get the copper run to the planer. BTW used my shopsmith for years loved it.

[Rod Sheridan]

Keith, that's not correct.

If the motor draws 30 amperes at 240 volts, there is 30 amperes flowing in both lines, not 15 in each.

You cannot use #14AWG flexible cord for a 30 ampere motor...................Regards, Rod.

[Rod Sheridan]

Charles, I have a 4HP Hammer saw/shaper and a 4HP jointer/planer, they require a 20 ampere feeder.................I'm not sure how much larger you would go in a home shop, that's plenty big enough for my use..........Rod.

[Erik Loza]

Charles, I have.. 4HP... they require a 20 ampere.... I'm not sure how much larger you would go in a home shop...

Rod, almost all our single-phase motors are 4.8hp and call for 30A of service. Also, pretty much any "heavy duty" bandsaw from any mfr. will want 30A of service. In fact, I would say that just going by what customers have said, I hear, "Well, looks like I need to run some more wire", about 5:1 to, "No problem: I've got plenty of power", among small shop/garage customers. That's why I alway tell folks to run 10GA wire and install 30A outlets. I mean, the cost difference between 12GA and 10GA is very little and since you're paying to have it pulled anyway, right?

Just my opinion, of course.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Rod Sheridan]

Thanks Erik, nice to hear from you.

Interestingly my Hammer machines cannot be used with a 30 ampere feeder in Ontario, they are restricted to 20 amperes maximum...............Rod.

[Wayne Jolly]

I have a PM66 3HP and it currently has l6-20p. But, we had an OSH hardware store that closed, and when I went to their going out of business sale I found l6-30ps and l630Rs that I bought for about $2 each so I am going to be changing all of my l6-20 to l6-30 (on a 40A breaker with 10ga wire in the wall). As for the twist-lock, I'm thinking I might change a couple of my 110V stuff to twist lock. Things like my extension cords that I use for hand-held power tools. :-)

X

[Charles Musgrave]

Thanks Mike. I am thinking of going the same way so I can use the same extension cords, avoid adaptors, plug into the same outlets, etc. It will definitely be overkill on some machines, but I like that. The next step is to get more tools than just a table saw (and my mitre saw I kept).

I'm enjoying putting the saw together. I'm waiting for measuring tools to come so I can finish set up/alignment and for the electrical items to arrive so I can power it up eventually. It came crated so I couldn't see if it ran, but then again, it sat in a box for 2 years. I'll enjoy it even more when I can use it!

thanks again,
Charles

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Rod,
I don't know. Chances I'll ever need 30amps is low, but it doesn't seem to hurt to have it just in case. I am not planning on 30amp tools, but I'll add one if I can't pass up a good deal on one. I am going the route of getting whatever great deal shows up on Craigslist (or a great sale on something new) that fits my needs. The PM2000 wasn't in my plans, but it was new in box, came with $75 worth of cable and cost me $1975 so I couldn't say "no", and instead said "I guess I just decided what saw I'm going to have in my shop".

Thanks again for the help; I really learned a lot from your comments,
Charles

[Charles Musgrave]

Wow, those are some powerful machines! I haven't seen anything in my price range (and that is in good enough shape) that seems to need 30 amps. I'm thinking of adding a 10 or 12 in jointer/planer combo or 8" jointer and 15" planer and a 17 in bandsaw, but in my price range (either used or new) 20 amps seems to be enough unless the machine is old, rusty and huge. If a machine that needs 30 amps comes along that is a great deal that I can afford, I'll need the 30 amp service - so I did buy L6-30 plugs and receptacles and will run 30 amp wire just in case.

Thanks again for the suggestion!

best,
Charles

[Charles Musgrave]

Hi Rod,

How does that work? I can see how a machine can detect voltage and not run if the voltage is too high or low, but current capacity would seem hard to detect. For example, it is just a bigger wire, or more contact area in the connectors, etc. Is it a regulation thing or Hammer voiding a warranty if you do it?

best,
Charles

[Art Mann]

I noticed Rod is from Toronto and the rules may differ from what you find in the US. Still, I find that hard to believe. I think they have 60W table lamps in Canada and I am fairly certain they are not restricted to use 1/2 amp breakers on the circuit. I don't see how the same principle wouldn't apply to shop machinery. I must be missing something.

[Keith Hankins]

Keith, that's not correct.

If the motor draws 30 amperes at 240 volts, there is 30 amperes flowing in both lines, not 15 in each.

You cannot use #14AWG flexible cord for a 30 ampere motor...................Regards, Rod.

TypO I meant to say 30 A at 110 is 15 each leg. My apologies thanks for the catch. 30A at 240 would be 60A at 110. My bad.

[Rick Christopherson]

I have a great article on 110 .vs. 220 that puts everything in very simplistic terms and great information that explains it all. If you would like it, pm me and I'll send it to you. Generally look at it this way if your saw (look at the amp rating on the motor) will tell you what you need. If it says (for example) 30 amps at 220 then in reality you are looking at 15 amps being pulled per leg and in your buss box the breaker will straddle the two main buss bars and pull that amount from each buss bar. So if you only are taking 15 amps per leg technically (i would not do it that way), you could use 14awg and function. Thats in theory and assuming you don't have a long run from the saw to the breaker. Generally I keep a 20 percent reserve for those spikes in power. So at a min 12/2.

In a 110 environment that same motor would be pulling all power from that one line and would require at a minimum a 10awg wire. You can see why (there are other reasons) 220 can be an improvement. All I wanted to stress in my original response was match it all the way back to the box with matching hardware if its just an extension cord and 10/3 is a nice one. Don't sweat it. I will tell you 10/3 plugs are more expensive. I run 3 phase power for some old american iron I have and they were not cheap. I remember placing the machine as close to my panel as possible just to save on the price to get the copper run to the planer. BTW used my shopsmith for years loved it.


TypO I meant to say 30 A at 110 is 15 each leg. My apologies thanks for the catch. 30A at 240 would be 60A at 110. My bad.No, that isn't a typo. It is just incorrect in either case. Whatever current is flowing through a circuit flows through the entire circuit. There is no such thing as getting half from one side and half from the other.

If this is what you are publishing and sending to people, send me a copy and I'll try to give it a read. In the mean time, I don't recommend sending any more copies out to people.

[Mike Delyster]

Thanks Erik, nice to hear from you.

Interestingly my Hammer machines cannot be used with a 30 ampere feeder in Ontario, they are restricted to 20 amperes maximum...............Rod.

Hi Rod,

Do the Hammer machines not have overload protection? Wouldn't a 4hp motor wired 220v single phase draw around 20 FLA?