Improving control of clutch motor

[dikman]

Many have used treadmill motors to drive small lathes and they appear to work well but Don makes a good point about why it might be problematical on a sewing machine. Given that servos are relatively inexpensive and are a simple plug-and-play it seems like the logical way to go.

[Pintodeluxe]

On 11/25/2020 at 5:29 PM, RWL2 said:

 

Was there any downside to greasing the cork friction plate?  Did it slip when sewing through tough material after being greased?  How greasy did you make it?  Is it worth greasing the brake to make it easier to turn the handwheel?

About a teaspoon of grease on the friction plate.  It just makes it slip a little smoother, but didn't cause unwanted slipping.  I've never tried grease on the brake.  

[RWL2]

Thanks Pintodeluxe.  I haven't looked carefully yet at how the clutch is removed from the end of the motor.  I suspect it won't be hard to remove since they were intended to be used in production facilities where time is money, but I've never taken one apart before.

[Constabulary]

You most of the time have clutch motors with approx 1400 /1500 rpm or 2400 / 2800 rpm.

How many RPM has your motor if more than 1500 I would replace it no matter what.

Edited November 30, 2020 by Constabulary

[RWL2]

1750 RPM Singe phase. Speed reducer with 2" to 8" pulley and the drive pulley to handwheel pulley is about 2" to 3".  I didn't put my tachometer on it recently to see what the speed of the machine is, but It was somewhere around 400 RPM.  The maximum speed isn't a problem.  It's getting the slow speed when coming to the end of a seam when you want to place the needle just so.

  I may eventually get a servo motor, but it's not in the immediate future.

[Constabulary]

okay so a 2" to 8" pulley reduction can do the trick then. But I would  replace it with a servo.

[RWL2]

I greased the cork clutch pad today.  I wish they'd build these things with fasters with a hex head rather than a phillips head.  I got the three retaining screws out, but they were tight and I worried about stripping the heads.  Photos of the clutch for anyone who's never seen the insides.  The first shows two of the three screws that holds the clutch on.  The second shows a thin layer of rust on the steel clutch plate.  The third is a closeup of the cork clutch pad and the fourth photo shows the greased pad next to the SuperLube that I used.

 

[DonInReno]

That rust will give you fits - hopefully it sanded off easily.

[RWL2]

12 hours ago, DonInReno said:

That rust will give you fits - hopefully it sanded off easily.

It was just surface rust.  I hit it with a little steel wool and it came right off.  I think the previous owner had the table in her garage.  Now it's in my cellar which is relatively climate controlled and dry.

[sandmanred]

Did it work?