Bought a use PM 66, looking for advice

[Alex Zeller]

I picked up a used Powermatic 66 for real cheap at an auction ($150). It could use a little work (the motor cover and dust door are missing). It has a 3hp 3 phase motor and I'm thinking of putting on a VFD since this might live in my basement (wanted a saw there for some time vs going to the shop each time I need a table saw or use my portable DeWalt) but it would be nice if I sell it that anyone with single phase power could still buy it. It's a gold one with the American flag stickers all over it. Hopefully next week I'll go pick it up.

I've read plenty about VFDs with some saying the cheaper brands are just fine while others seam to disagree. Is it worth spending the extra money on something like the Teco FM50-203-C (or another name brand)? I assume the American flag means assembled in the US? I haven't seen it in person, actually I placed the bid on a whim not expecting to get it. I figure it's cheap enough so I should be able to repair anything that's worn or just part it out without loosing my shirt. The saw has a blade guard on it that looks to be mounted to the rear of the blade. Did any of these 66 come with a riving knife or have the ability to add one?

Probably the VFD is the first issue so I can test it out.

[Robert Hazelwood]

The gold color means its from the 80s or newer. There were two different colors of gold, the 80s saws had a darker metallic gold, usually with a decal that is a stylized american flag with the slogan "Keeping America Going and Growing". In the early 90s they went to a more mustard yellow and from what I've seen they have a more simplified American flag decal with no slogan. All PM66 saws were made in McMinnville, TN, though I have heard that in the last years there may have been some parts made overseas.

The 66 was never offered with a riving knife, but it does have a mount for a splitter. I don't think it is feasible to add a true riving knife to this design, and I don't know of any available. Splitters will do the same job with slightly more hassle. If you don't have the factory splitter, you can order some from Sharkguard. They have various heights and thicknesses available. Another alternative is to make a custom throat plate and add a small splitter fin.

I can't speak much to VFDs since my saw turned out to be single phase. It seems like for 3hp most of the available offerings would work, the biggest challenge being understanding how to program it.

[Alex Zeller]

I finally had a chance to look at the pictures again. I was using my phone before and this time my laptop. I was a little off on my price. Thought it said $150 but it was $180 but it comes with a homemade table extension that doubles the size and makes it almost as long as the fence. It also has a medium size Bosch router installed in the extension. The flag looks to be the latter version. I thought I read something about the 3hp 3 phase motors being discontinued and only the 5hp in 3 phase was an option so I thought it might have been an earlier one.

[Robert Hazelwood]

Did you get a picture of the motor nameplate?

The seller of mine thought the saw was three phase. His other 5 hp saw in his small commercial shop was a 3 phase so he assumed the 3 hp one was too. It wasn't until he ran the saw for me and I heard the distinctive click of the centrifugal switch on wind down that we realized it was actually single phase. So maybe it's something like that, or somebody making the auction listing confusing 3 hp with 3 ph. I did find a 1989 Powermatic price list on vintagemachinery.org and they list a 3hp 3ph motor so it was offered up to that point at least.

Either way that's a hell of a deal. I'd slightly prefer a 3 phase motor since they tend to run smoother and are more robust.

[Alex Zeller]

The pictures leave a lot to be desired. The motor doesn't appear to have the usual bumps for the caps. Just what looks like the usual electrical box. These guys sell lots of woodworking equipment so I'm sure they got it right. I don't mind the 3 phase motor and 3hp is going to be more than enough to cut block for a segmented bowl.
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[David Utterback]

Looks similar to mine. The first 2 digits of the S/N indicate the year it was manufactured. Is it coming with the router table and router? Quite a deal!

[Bill Dufour]

I believe the motor is a standard C-face motor so easy to find a replacement. I would price a used C-face motor vs a VFD before I decided which way to go. Used C-face motors tend to be cheaper since they are harder to mount to most stuff unless it was designed for that kind of motor.
Bill D.

[Don Jarvie]

If you haven’t joined OWWM join. There’s a ton of restoration information there. You can get the dust cover and motor cover on EBay. I got a 74 at an auction with a 3 phase motor and swapped it out for 1 phase. The motor doesn’t have reset button so I needed to swap out the starter to support the 3 hp single phase motor. Cost me 300.00 total.

[David Kreuzberg]

You say that the motor cover is missing. The black plastic box in your second photo sure looks like the motor cover on my 1995 5 hp Powermatic 66.

[Alex Zeller]

I got the saw home tonight and had some time to get a good look at it. I was thinking the motor cover was dust collection for the router. The cover has some minor damage but otherwise I think it's usable. The Bosch router is a 220v 2.25hp. The aluminum on it needs some cleaning up but it works great. The biggest surprise happened when I removed the magnetic starter for the motor to get it through the door. The middle phase had no wires going to it. I then looked at the plug and it's a single phase 220v plug. Turns out someone replaced the motor with a brand new Baldore 1ph 3hp motor. So no VFD or motor replacement is needed. The data plate on the motor is on the bottom and when I got it the blade was tilted about 20 degrees so it was impossible to read. Had the auction company looked and listed it correctly I'm betting it would have sold for at least twice what I paid. There's no rust on the table or on the cabinet. There's plenty of scratches on the cabinet and the things need cleaning up and adjusting. For example the wings are not lined up with the table.

I think I'm going to check the run out tomorrow and then pull the table off and give it a good cleaning. The bearings sounded fine but I'm tempted to replace them and the belts if they look worn. I'm seriously thinking of stripping the cabinet down and repainting it and replacing all the decals. That just leaves replacing the fence faces. I guess if you wait and look long enough a great deal will come your way.

[Mark e Kessler]

Interesting you ask about inexpensive VFD’s I just asked this question to one of our electrical engineers at the company I work for and basically the only thing that could happen with a inexpensive VFD is that it stops working/prematurely fails, the only way the motor it is controlling can get damage is if you program it wrong and even then you would have warning because it wouldn’t sound right. Also most of all the defaults will be good enough with the exception of 3-4 settings that are important. He said he would be more inclined to check those on a cheep one compared to a more expensive/name brand model.