Lovegasoline
Plastic
- Joined
- Apr 9, 2014
- Location
- NYC
Hey Folks,
I'm going over my machinery ... adjusting, aligning, cleaning, lubing, and checking the setup ... inspired by a lifetime first: the replacement of jointer knives on my 6" Grizzly woodworking jointer model G1182 (purchased new in the 1990s).
The belt alignment is giving me grief because the cutterhead pulley and the motor pulley are not in plane ... as measured with a plumb bob as per the manual. Ok, so I'll adjust it no big deal, right? Here however the manual is vague and instructs one to "adjust motor for alignment" accompanied by a generic but optimistic illustration of a motor with a double ended arrow underneath it showing the motor can be moved axially to align the pulley. It's not bad advice, and it would probably work if the machine's design actually included an adjustable mount for the motor to move axially ... which it lacks. This critical detail is enough to designate the manual as a work of fiction, a fantasy document describing a half formed dream.
There're slots in the (cheaply made and even more cheaply painted) sheet metal stand where the motor mount bolts attach which permit the motor to be adjusted radially, with a corresponding increase or decrease in the belt's tension. But other than a little slop in the sizing of those slots, there's no provision for adjusting the motor axially and aligning the pulleys. It appears that the only quick and dirty option to align the pulleys is to adjust their positioning on their axles (i.e., loosening set screw(s), sliding pulley(s), tightening set screw(s), praying sheave doesn't come flying off the motor axle, although if it does it will make an entertaining noise inside the sheet metal cabinet).
The cutterhead's pulley is already hanging off the end of the axle (as it came from the manufacturer) by 5/16"; key and setscrew are secure and that's the way it is. In my eyes there's just not enough axle protruding from the cutterhead (nor is the cutterhead's axle standing proud on the other side).
OK.
Process of elimination, that only leaves the motor's pulley as a point of adjustment. Unfortunately, aligning the motor's pulley would entail having it protrude 7/16" past the end of the motor's axle. It ALREADY overhangs a little, but not by THAT much. [where's the post formatting stuff ... how do I italicize text?]. The axle's length exiting the motor housing is 1-3/16"; the motor pulley is also 1-3/16" wide. It's 20 some years too late to return the tool, and there's no way to hunt the designer and engineer down and beat them over the head with a ball peen hammer, and it be too much trouble anyway. On the other hand I wouldn't loose any sleep if Stalin gave them a tenner in Siberia.
I'm not a machinery specialist, but is seems to me that who ever spec'd the design for the motor/axle/pulley was not suited to the task. Whoever wrote the instruction manual couldn't be bothered by the design of the actual machine being sold. While I'm at it, let me just state that I never loved this machine, never really connected with it, always thought it was cheaply made (although it was touted in its day by several sources as being the best - accurate & reliable - of the budget 6" jointers), and therefor never lavished much attention over it. I did recently purchase a 3' aluminum straight edge (Veritas, Lee Valley) and will do what I never was able to do previously and check everything on this jointer and try to get it optimally set up. I've always eyed the fence with suspicion of having a slight twist. But first things first.
OK.
Enough ranting on the inferiority of this example of inferior Taiwanese machinery and back to business. Short of jerry rigging some sort of new mounting bracket for the motor which permits axially adjustment - which I just don't have time to do now as my plate is over full as it is - what's your opinion on having the pulley overhang the motor axle by the amount in question? I've included some pics to help visualize it better.
This machine hasn't been used in several years but the belt is in good condition. I have a vague recollection of coming against this issue in the past and just leaving it alone, but something always sounded just a little off on this machine and I'd like to get the pulleys in alignment.
Thanks a bunch for any advice on this pulley overhang issue.
The first 4 pics show the motor pulley; there's a pic of a caliper being used to measure the depth of the pulley's overhang on the axle, and also the width of the pulley.
I'm going over my machinery ... adjusting, aligning, cleaning, lubing, and checking the setup ... inspired by a lifetime first: the replacement of jointer knives on my 6" Grizzly woodworking jointer model G1182 (purchased new in the 1990s).
The belt alignment is giving me grief because the cutterhead pulley and the motor pulley are not in plane ... as measured with a plumb bob as per the manual. Ok, so I'll adjust it no big deal, right? Here however the manual is vague and instructs one to "adjust motor for alignment" accompanied by a generic but optimistic illustration of a motor with a double ended arrow underneath it showing the motor can be moved axially to align the pulley. It's not bad advice, and it would probably work if the machine's design actually included an adjustable mount for the motor to move axially ... which it lacks. This critical detail is enough to designate the manual as a work of fiction, a fantasy document describing a half formed dream.
There're slots in the (cheaply made and even more cheaply painted) sheet metal stand where the motor mount bolts attach which permit the motor to be adjusted radially, with a corresponding increase or decrease in the belt's tension. But other than a little slop in the sizing of those slots, there's no provision for adjusting the motor axially and aligning the pulleys. It appears that the only quick and dirty option to align the pulleys is to adjust their positioning on their axles (i.e., loosening set screw(s), sliding pulley(s), tightening set screw(s), praying sheave doesn't come flying off the motor axle, although if it does it will make an entertaining noise inside the sheet metal cabinet).
The cutterhead's pulley is already hanging off the end of the axle (as it came from the manufacturer) by 5/16"; key and setscrew are secure and that's the way it is. In my eyes there's just not enough axle protruding from the cutterhead (nor is the cutterhead's axle standing proud on the other side).
OK.
Process of elimination, that only leaves the motor's pulley as a point of adjustment. Unfortunately, aligning the motor's pulley would entail having it protrude 7/16" past the end of the motor's axle. It ALREADY overhangs a little, but not by THAT much. [where's the post formatting stuff ... how do I italicize text?]. The axle's length exiting the motor housing is 1-3/16"; the motor pulley is also 1-3/16" wide. It's 20 some years too late to return the tool, and there's no way to hunt the designer and engineer down and beat them over the head with a ball peen hammer, and it be too much trouble anyway. On the other hand I wouldn't loose any sleep if Stalin gave them a tenner in Siberia.
I'm not a machinery specialist, but is seems to me that who ever spec'd the design for the motor/axle/pulley was not suited to the task. Whoever wrote the instruction manual couldn't be bothered by the design of the actual machine being sold. While I'm at it, let me just state that I never loved this machine, never really connected with it, always thought it was cheaply made (although it was touted in its day by several sources as being the best - accurate & reliable - of the budget 6" jointers), and therefor never lavished much attention over it. I did recently purchase a 3' aluminum straight edge (Veritas, Lee Valley) and will do what I never was able to do previously and check everything on this jointer and try to get it optimally set up. I've always eyed the fence with suspicion of having a slight twist. But first things first.
OK.
Enough ranting on the inferiority of this example of inferior Taiwanese machinery and back to business. Short of jerry rigging some sort of new mounting bracket for the motor which permits axially adjustment - which I just don't have time to do now as my plate is over full as it is - what's your opinion on having the pulley overhang the motor axle by the amount in question? I've included some pics to help visualize it better.
This machine hasn't been used in several years but the belt is in good condition. I have a vague recollection of coming against this issue in the past and just leaving it alone, but something always sounded just a little off on this machine and I'd like to get the pulleys in alignment.
Thanks a bunch for any advice on this pulley overhang issue.
The first 4 pics show the motor pulley; there's a pic of a caliper being used to measure the depth of the pulley's overhang on the axle, and also the width of the pulley.
