Jet 1642 Question

[Tom Keen]

I was wondering if I can adjust the electronic brake on my lathe. It seems to spin a bit to much and I think it would be safer to have a quicker stop. The CD and instructions that came with the lathe make absolutely no sense to me.. Im challenged when it comes to this sort of thing..

Is adjusting the braking action advisable? If so how do I do it?

TIA,
Tom

[Don Orr]

Tom,

I also have a Jet 1642 about 4 yrs old. The VFD controllers are programmable but the programs are locked out at the factory. You can unlock them with the right code in the right menu. The way I know this is I did it-with the help of a good friend who works on these controllers all the time. What I wanted was to lower the minimum possible RPM. I called Jet and spoke to a guy in the technical dept. who gave me the "secret" code and it was easy to reprogram once unlocked.

However-I would seriously caution against changing anything in the controller unless you know what you are doing. It may/will void the warranty, and possibly cause other problems. Mine is long out of warranty and anything we did could be changed back if needed. We only changed 1 single parameter and I have had no other trouble.

As for changing the braking time-be very careful there. If your workpiece comes to too much of an abrupt stop, you risk having the chuck/faceplate unscrew from the spindle (due to momentum), especially with a large, heavy piece of wood. Definitely NOT something you want to have happen. I don't mind the factory set braking rate myself. Our club Oneway 1224 has 2 different ranges-short start/short stop ramp, and long start/long stop ramp. We have had pieces unscrew with the short setting. A setscrew locking the chuck/faceplate to the spindle is necessary if you use too short a braking time. Maybe just try to get used to it for now. If after a while you really feel a need to change it, try and find someone to help who knows about VFD controllers.

Real nice lathe, though. I love mine.

[Richard Madison]

Don,
At what speed did you reset the minimum? Both mine were 50 rpm in low range as delivered. When spray finishing on-lathe (with lots of protective cardboard and plastic in place), I like to let it "slow roll" for a while until the finish sets up a bit. Motor gets a bit hot, but not excessive I think.

[Don Orr]

Richard, that is exactly why I reprogrammed mine-for spray finishing. Haven't done any yet-no time. But I wanted to be able to when I got set up. I can get my lathe down to a little under 30 RPM on the low range-that's pretty slow-over 2 seconds per revolution.

I'd rather not go into details because I don't want to be responsible for someone messing up their controller (classic disclaimer) but it is actually easy once you get the cover off and understand the manual. You do need to "unlock" the menus first for which you need the code but I got it easily from Jet. If you bring the frequency down too low it gets too close to DC operation and that is not good for the motor-so I'm told. I'm no electrician/tech, which is why I had a friend come and help who knows about these things. All it entails is resetting the minimum frequency limit in the appropriate menu.

[Richard Madison]

Thanks Don. So far 50 rpm (as delivered) seems slow enough, so I just won't mess with it.

[Richard Madison]

Tom,
To address your question, can't help with electronic braking adjustment. I just apply a gloved hand to the drive end cylinder, which I like better than a handwheel. Or to the workpiece if it has been at least partially sanded.

[Dave Wilson]

It's an old thread, but for those reading today the lock code for both the Jet and the PM's is 506.