Fallinggator Report post Posted May 17, 2016 Anyone have any experience with the Zero-Max E1 Adjustable Speed Drive or anything like it? It says it uses a series of 4 clutches to reduce the input from anywhere between 0 - 1/4 of its original speed. It's rated for an input of up to 2000 rpm, and it seems to be fairly well made. That's just a general observation though...it seems fairly beefy. I'm not sure what it does to the power/torque of the output though. I don't know if using the clutches as opposed to gears or pulleys means that the speed reduction is achieved by pulling power out of the system as opposed to just simply trading decreased speed for increased torque. I'm not super knowledgeable of how clutches work, but I'm wondering if it basically transfers X % of the power to achieve the decreased speed. If not then it looks really awesome, and like something I'd like to pick up if I can find a good deal on one somewhere. I've found a couple for around $225, the same price I've been finding on the nice reducer pulley setups, but I also found a used one for $150. Who knows how good the clutches are still though. It might be worth the extra $75 to get one that hasn't been used. I'm assuming the clutches on these would eventually wear out just like the clutch on a motor or in a car. I've done just enough transmission work to know I don't like doing it, and I've only worked on the valve bodies...never made it into the clutch packs. Although, that could partly be due to having to do it stuck under a 2-ton vehicle with about 24" of space between the ground and the bottom of the car. Man I wish the concrete in my garage was thick enough to support a 2-post vehicle lift. Enough rambling...any thoughts people? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CowboyBob Report post Posted May 17, 2016 The zero-max is made for lighter torque applications like pullers & will slip when using them for a speed reducer.For $135.00 + shipping you can buy a 3 pulley speed reducer that will work a lot better.You also need to get rid of the clutchmotor & get a servo motor. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gottaknow Report post Posted May 17, 2016 Factories use a lot of ZeroMax pullers to provide secondary pulling and metering. They are extremely versatile and sturdy. They aren't any good for powering a machine as Bob stated. They use a series of compressed levers (no gears) that are sandwiched together and use a ratcheting like motion with friction being the drivers, again, no gears. They are filled with oil for lubrication and cooling, but they do tend to overheat. I used them for pulling 6" flag strips 100 yards at a time through chainstitch machines. I had to put a small fan on each one to keep them cool, so I imagine it was at the upper end of it's abilities. The rods attached to the puller units were 5' long however. They can be belt powered of a secondary pulley on the motor shaft of on the handwheel. The standard drive belts today are 5/16" polyurethane round belting. Years ago we used leather. Regards, Eric Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
