Tool Talk
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: Twilight Fenrir on February 12, 2015, 04:29:40 PM
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Hello,
I've got a giant (30") Frank & Co Bandsaw, circa 1890, that I am starting to piece together a drive train for. As ridiculously overkill as it is, I intend to use it almost exclusively to cut metal stock for my Blacksmithing. So I need to get the speed down to about 80-120 SFPM. Which translates to only 10-15 RPM on the 30" wheels.
I just found myself a 1 1/2 HP motor to use to drive it, which spins at 1750 RPM. So I need to do some reducing!
I'd like to have just one unit between the motor, and the saw drive wheel. The saw has already been converted to 1/2" V-belts, with a 13" pulley. So I've got room to play there up to about 7:1 max. So something on the order of 20:1 would be ideal. A little less or more can be played with on the motor and reducer pulley diameters to get it just right...
I looked into purpose built reducers, and new they run in excess of $200, if not significantly more... But, I'd like to scrape by for significantly less, and I don't mind being creative to do so! But I'm coming up a bit short on ideas, so I figured I'd ask around a bit!
What sorts of common junk can be found with fairly heavy duty gear reducers, fairly cheaply?
The most suitable thing I can think of, is a riding tractor manual transmission... then it'd even be variable speed if I ever decided to actually cut wood with it! :P But, no idea where I'd go about finding such a thing.
I've heard that hay elevators have reducers in them, but there aren't a lot of those around here... Considered the final drive in a car, but the reduction is much too low, the most extreme I've seen is 4.:/1.
So, what else can anyone think of that might work?
(http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q226/Midnight_Fenrir/Tool%20Pron/IMG_20140804_184145_zps8ed4bea3.jpg) (http://s137.photobucket.com/user/Midnight_Fenrir/media/Tool%20Pron/IMG_20140804_184145_zps8ed4bea3.jpg.html)
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Wow... nevermind... I just found a great deal on eBay XD Been looking on and off for a month or two... and just after I ask I randomly stumble onto a 40:1 1" diameter input 3/4" output 90* gear reduction drive off a commercial conveyor belt for about $50 shipped.
40:1 may be a bit high, but I can make the motor to the input 2:1, and double the output. Or there-abouts... plenty of room to play with pulleys to get it just right.
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neat saw!!!
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neat saw!!!
Yeah, it's COMPLETELY ridiculous for what I'm actually going to do with it... but it was too amazing a find for me to pass up!
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I had one like it until I moved away from my beloved barn into the city. I was going to use an old 4speed from a 2 ton truck. It is heavy and cheap. My kind of stuff.
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Why not just make a stand with a small arbor shaft, on bearings, and run big and little pulleys on it to drop the final RPM? Run the smallest pulley on the motor that you can find will help too. I can't help but think putting a transmission in between there would be a serious load on the motor. Even replacing the 80-140 lube with 20 wt. it would still be a heavy piece of iron to step around.