thesergeant Report post Posted June 21, 2013 Hey Guys, I recently picked up an old 1940s Singer 111WSV71, which to my understanding was a machine that was custom made for the military during WW2 and used on Naval bases (?). From photos it looks basically identical to the Singer 111W150, with is a needle feed only machine. I purchased it from a gentleman an Craigslist how had been storing it in his shed for the last 15 years after his father passed away. Apparently his father had an upholstery business and used this 111W as his primary machine. Anyway, I give it a thorough servicing and it sews wonderfully, BUT I realized what inspecting the wiring that the clutch motor is a 3 phase 220v model. I have no idea what he did with the wiring to get it to run but it sews with power and speed or at least enough for my needs. My question is, is this safe to run? The motor doesn't get any warmer than any other motor I've felt and doesn't have a problem starting up. I don't see a phase converter or anything anywhere on the table so I'm not sure what's going on here. Let me know what you guys think. I was a mouse click away from buying an Enduro Pro SM600-1 servo motor but didn't end up doing it because with a little practice I was able to get quite a bit of control from the clutch motor, so I'm happy for the time being. But I'm still open to the idea of the enduro if you guys think it's worth it. Thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gottaknow Report post Posted June 21, 2013 If there are 3 hot leads and a ground, it's a 3 phase motor. If there's only a hot, neutral, and ground, it's a single phase motor, 120v. It's possible the motor was rewound to 120v single phase. This was common back a few decades ago. I doubt it's a 3 phase motor as it would be single-phasing and not running. Regards, Eric Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thesergeant Report post Posted June 21, 2013 Awesome, thanks Eric! You are correct, just a hot, neutral and ground. The wiring is definitely not original so it sounds like it might have been rewound at some point. Thanks! You just saved me $200 on a servo motor that I probably don't need Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
