Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Michael]

I hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful spring weather.  Getting a bit hot here in AZ, but it is to chill a bit next week.

My question:  I was trimming a piece of Condor Agate, yesterday ( I got it in "Q").  Everything lined up, no evident saw marks, when I evened up the piece a bit.  Yet, when I began to saw some 3/8" thick slabs I noted some hesitation.  Always go very slow when cutting agate. I was about 2/3 through my first one when the motor starting making "conking and quitting" sounds.  It finally just quit.  It is the original motor from the mfg. ie- A GE 3/4 HP, 1725 rpm's.

It could be the capacitor or something else.  My question is would any of you recommended bumping up the HP to 1.0?  Same rpm's -1725.  If the motor is jammed and junked, why just not get a little more push?  Thanks.

[Ryaly2dogs]

For your consideration...I run my 10-inch HP saw saw off a 1/3-HP Delta motor and it works fine; I just go fairly slow on the hard rocks and use good quality MK301 blades.  Point being not sure if simply using more power is what you need, although it may work just fine.  The 10-inch saws in our club shop are fed my 1/3 and 1/2-HP motors; and they are routinely harassed.  In my experience, trim saws are rife for users feeding the rock too aggressively into the saw, which makes the motor work harder (I am guilty here as well). Some of the older ones in our shop also have noisy (i.e. worn) bearings and dull blades, and you can literally feel the heat buildup after a cut.  Sure signs that we are making our motors work harder than they need to.  So, while larger hp motor will work, you can also consider checking into these other sources of motor wear as a longer term solution.

Cheers

[Slabbercabber]

3/4 hp should be plenty but used one hp are easy to find.  If the magic smoke was not released I would check the connections including inside the motor.  Loss of a start capacitor will not cause a motor to quit.

[Michael]

Thank you everyone.  This really helps. 

[peruano]

I'm sure you are clear on your situation, but its worth pointing out that when machines start making noises, slowing down, and stopping, its most often a loose pulley, or something out of alignment rather than the motor failure. I agree 3/4 or 1 hp are way more power than that saw needs.  Were you feeding the saw to avoid binding it.  Too fast or crooked can overwork motors, but sudden failure is strange. 

[Michael]

Thank you ever so much.  Your ideas led me to review everything you said.  Came to find out that the set screw on the saw arbor had sheared, and that was causing everything to "start and stop."  I changed the belt, and added spacers between the motor and the oil reservoir, which tightened it up with only a slight flex.  I appreciate everyone's post here.  Thanks to all.

[peruano]

If it happens again, try using some thread lock (it used to be called Loctite until they started using that as a brand name for all kinds of glues) on the set screw. It pays to check that the pulley is tight on the shaft - sometimes they are worn so much that they insist on wobbling and thus loosening over time.