DIYShopTools
Plastic
- Joined
- Dec 22, 2018
So I've been basically putting together a beginner's machine shop in my garage. After many years of dreaming about owning one, I've finally been able to buy a lathe not long ago. I'm very happy with what it set me back (especially considering what was included with it. It's a Hardinge HC (I've also heard it referred to as a "Chucker"). It has the majority of the 5C collets that came with it as well as a 5" Hardinge brand 3-jaw chuck (which is currently on the machine). It also had a little machinist vise, a quite large and VERY heavy rotary positioner table, and finally, totally unrelated to the lathe, a matched pair of smaller (0.70KVA) variacs. But now I need to provide it with 240V 3-phase power - which I obviously don't have. I have a couple other 3-phase motors as well. One is a 10HP Baldor connected to a hydraulic pump. The other is a 5HP Dayton with a pulley that has 2 grooves for v-belts. I would like to use the pump for a hydraulic controller to be able to add hydraulic tools to my shop as well. But I don't have any use in mind for the second motor, so I wouldn't mind using it for a phase converter if that's my best course of action.
Aside from the motor, I've got an assortment of other components that could be of use in this adventure. I have something like 6 VFDs that were in a lot that I purchased as "pallet shelving, including contents" (which ironically is the lot that I paid the least amount for but has the highest monetary value of all lots that I've purchased. Likely by a large margin) along with some locking 3-phase receptacles capable of 500V and 50A and corresponding plugs. The VFDs vary widely. 3 are 2HP, 1 is 20HP, and 2 are 60HP. But there's a catch - they're 480V. But they seem to be in very good condition and are well regarded make/models that have good value. So even if I can't use them for my lathe and/or other motors, I still want to test them to verify that they work before selling them. To that end, I picked up a large (75KVA) GE Guard 2 3-phase transformer for a song with the hopes of using it to step up 240V to 480V (it's original use was the opposite - stepping down 480V to 240V. Ideally, I hope to be able to power the VFDs this way, using one to power my 3-phase components in my shop, and testing the others in order to sell them. But I don't know if this isn't the method that I should be trying to power my lathe. And I know that the amount of knowledge here amounts to all of the beaches in California in comparison to my grain of sand worth. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.
(I will get some pics up of what I'm working with too)
Aside from the motor, I've got an assortment of other components that could be of use in this adventure. I have something like 6 VFDs that were in a lot that I purchased as "pallet shelving, including contents" (which ironically is the lot that I paid the least amount for but has the highest monetary value of all lots that I've purchased. Likely by a large margin) along with some locking 3-phase receptacles capable of 500V and 50A and corresponding plugs. The VFDs vary widely. 3 are 2HP, 1 is 20HP, and 2 are 60HP. But there's a catch - they're 480V. But they seem to be in very good condition and are well regarded make/models that have good value. So even if I can't use them for my lathe and/or other motors, I still want to test them to verify that they work before selling them. To that end, I picked up a large (75KVA) GE Guard 2 3-phase transformer for a song with the hopes of using it to step up 240V to 480V (it's original use was the opposite - stepping down 480V to 240V. Ideally, I hope to be able to power the VFDs this way, using one to power my 3-phase components in my shop, and testing the others in order to sell them. But I don't know if this isn't the method that I should be trying to power my lathe. And I know that the amount of knowledge here amounts to all of the beaches in California in comparison to my grain of sand worth. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.
(I will get some pics up of what I'm working with too)