Powermatic #90 restoration

[Tal Siegmann]

Hi all,
I am excited to join the group.
I need a lot of help :) I purchased an old PM 90 which came in pieces and a lot of rust. I have searched the forum for directions on how to put together the Headstock and motor.
The motor I was given is a 1 HP single phase motor. Is this the original motor?
I am looking for directions/ videos on how to put this beautiful machine together- any suggestions would be helpful. What is the best way to remove all the rust and seal the metal?
Should I keep this single phase motor or change it to a 3 ph with a VFD?
As always- I have a limited budget and am excited to bring back to life this beast.
Thanks in advance!

[Kevin Jenness]

You may find more info on restoration at the OWWM site.

As to the motor, it is fine for spindle andmoderate face turning. For larger bowls or unbalanced green blanks more power and lower speeds are nice. I would suggest getting the lathe running with the existing motor and see how it works for what you are doing. You can do a vfd conversion later if desired.

[Thomas Wilson80]

If you plan on doing bowls, I think you can put a riser under the headstock up on that lathe so that it has an 16 or 18" swing. I've never owned that lathe, but seem to recall seeing one for sale around here that had a riser.

Tom

[Larry T Cook]

A member of our club has a PM90 with a riser and a 3ph VFD motor. Very solid machine that we can turn anything on, including hollowing some pretty large pieces.

[Tal Siegmann]

Kevin,
You make a good point. As I dived into this restoration I discovered that the lathe came with an original single phase 1 HP motor. I hope this motor works. I am taking your advice and will get the machine up and running before making any modifications.
Thanks!

[Kevin Jenness]

That is a solid lathe and should serve you well. For reference, Richard Raffan turned many bowls on a lathe with a 1 hp motor and a low speed of about 400 rpm. In my limited experience, lower speeds are better for large diameter work, but you can do a lot with what you have.

I should add, make sure that the motor you have will give you the correct low speed range- it may need a 1725 rpm motor depending on the pulleys.