Machinery General Discussions

Can any body share Manuel ?

So I've been gifted $500 for Christmas and I was wondering what bit of kit I should get myself? I was thinking a band saw perhaps, but I'm not sure if a $500 band saw is going to be good enough for metal work. A table saw would be a good edition to the shop but not so much for metal. Any suggestions (already have a pedestal drill and belt grinder) ?

I picked this up at the salvage yard, but I'm not sure what it's from. None of the numbers on it seem to connect with anything when I search for them. It must weigh 150lbs or so (I'm afraid I'll break my wife's nice scale if I use it). The steel takes a dent from a hammer, so it's not exactly anvil material as it is. There seems to be a copper ferrule through the center of the hole at the top. I'v e attached pictures. Can anyone recognize this thing?

My wife threw me for a loop yesterday. I've got a truck for sale & she's insistent that I spend the money once it sells on a power hammer or a hydraulic press. I'm completely out of my knowledge base on either option, heck I've never even seen either in person. Let alone used one. I've tried researching through the sight, but there's so much info that I'm at a loss of where to start. Most of my work has been leaning towards blades over blacksmithing lately, but I'm still doing the odd hinge or poker or whatnot for folks. Which kind of machine would be better for both bladesmithing & blacksmithing? What do I look for when looking at a potential purchase? Que…

Hey all, I was looking for a book here in the forums but I can't find it anymore. I remember reading a old and long thread about Michael Dillon installing his 800 pound steam hammer and in the thread there was a link to a book about machinery foundations. It was about 100 years old, and there were chapters about power hammer foundations. I'm looking into installing my 165 lb hammer sometime in the summer so that's one reason to read through it. Also, it seemed like a gold mine of information. Does anyone have that book as a pdf? In it they even showed how to install a power hammer on the third floor! Greetings, Jakob Staffans Vasa, Finland

Hello Again, So as some of you know, I recently built a tumbler which works pretty well, unfortunately it’s very loud. I’m considering ways to dampen the noise, but until then, I’m considering picking up a sandblaster since suburban NJ isn’t craving the current setup! I am finishing mostly 24” Fire pokers, with matching hooks to go with them. I understand that sandblasting often gives a duller finish with the standard aluminum oxide media, and I would like something a little more polished then that. Anyone use that black diamond coal slag or steel shot? I’m curious how well they can clean mill scale, and the finish they leave behind. I spray with a krylon clear coa…

This does not happen very often but when it does it is very bad. This is also why I am not keen on getting a used compressor from Craigslist.

Anyone know?! Solid steel with a little brass. None of the local old timers or farmers we've asked seem to know what this is and one said it was not part of the original shop and was brought in stored there later.

The tool pictured below came in a box of random tooling I just bought recently (for its excellent selection of Starrett dividers and calipers). I’m planning to sell it to help offset the cost, but I need to know what it is first! The tool is about 7-1/2” long when completely stretched out, and the round pieces on the end are 1/2” in diameter. It was suggested elsewhere that it might be part of the base for a dial indicator, but I’m open to other suggestions. Click on photos to enlarge.

Hey all, I couldn't find a good place for this in the general Internet, so I thought I'd share it with you folks first. Craftsman and B&D sold a 20v power tool system with interchangeable attachments (drill, saws, etc.) called BoltOn and Matrix respectively. I've used this ever since I got it, and just used it to help build my forge, but yesterday it broke and I was heartbroken. Instead of running out and buying a whole new tool system, I happened upon a great solution! The problem was the switch in the handle. Since this model is very much discontinued, I couldn't find replacements easily. Ended up taking a chance and bought the current B&D…

Can anyone help identify the brand of this cylinder. I can find no placard on it, only some stamps (see pics). Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Hey Guys, My father-in-law was recently offered a FREE, broken industrial pallet wrapper. He has yet to properly tinker with it, but he believes the only thing at is broken is the motor which operates the spinning steel disc on the base. He has offered it to me, either in pieces or as is. Now, neither he or I know much about electric motors, pallet wrappers, or the mechanics therein. It clearly has plenty of steel that could be repurposed, especially that spinning plate. But I am wondering, does this thing have any potential of being converted into a power hammer or press? My FIL did not provide a good standing picture of it, so I have provided an inter…

I really aren't sure which heading this should be under so opted to put it here. I have no experience of electrics apart from putting on a plug and paying the bill so hopefully someone can guide me with this. I need to wire up my single phase, 2hp motor with a 240v plug but have no clue at all. There are 6 terminals and a capacitor to consider and I've been told it's a relatively simple task. I've added a drawing of how the wires are connected on it in order so you can see it clearly and help explain it to me. I've tried looking this up online but could only find an explanation with 2 capacitor's attached to the motor so thought it best to seek out exactly…

I have a motor that has an Fla (full load amps?) of 6 amps at 220v. Can I safely run it with a 16ga extension cord of 50' on a 15 amp 2 pole breaker? The cord should be rated for 10 amps, am I understanding this correctly?

I've recently acquired a large chop saw (discussed HERE) to which I will be mounting a motor I've got kicking around. The problem is that the existing pulley wheel on the arbor takes two 3VX-series belts (of which three came with the machine), but the only wheel I can find to go on the new motor is going to be pretty expensive. I can get a more reasonably priced double pulley that will fit the motor's 7/8" arbor, but it's designed for A-series belts. I've been looking at some online resources about belt standards, but I haven't been able to get a good answer to my basic question: would a 3VX-series belt run okay in an A-series pulley?

Hi folks, I'm wondering if on this wiring diagram the wires 4-5-6 in series on the low voltage size can all be connected together using a twist on wire connector or if they need to be connected in a series (4 is not directly connected to 6, but through 5)? Thanks,

I've got a horse and a half motor that has been sitting in the corner of one of my dusty buildings for the past 20 years. It's on an old electric power washer. Pulled it out today to see if it worked. It runs for about 10 seconds and then kicks the breaker. (20amp) I've blown the dust out of the motor to see if that helped and it didn't. I'm not using an extension cord, just the original cord on the power washer. I disconnected the shaft from the pressure pump portion to see if that might be causing the problem and it wasn't. I've greased the pump and it turns by hand. Motor turns easily. Starts just fine so it's not the started capacitor. Any thoughts from …

Forgive if this has been asked already, I tried searching but struck out. There is a reasonable complete 12 ton hydraulic set up for sale I am interested in. (Motor, ram, pump). I am thinking it would be a good start on a forge press, but I dont know enough about converting ac to dc. Would this be as simple as buying a good transformer? If so, does anyone have any suggestions?

Hi my husband has a Thomas Smith 2/10 excavator and I have a small dish from same firm I can’t seem to find why these where made and what for has any one seen one of these before?

I have a Harbor Freight parts washer. It works fine, for what it is intended, but I am wondering about the cleaning fluid. I used 10 gal. of HET, 1501 (it really needs 15 gal. to reach the pump (but, not necessary). Here's the trouble. The fluid evaporates RAPIDLY. The fluid costs about $50 per 5 gal can. What would you propose - kero?

so i,m having a hard time deciding between a belt sander or a air hammer to flatten out the steel. some opinions on which one i should get would be very helpful

I have wire brushed my work for years, and I do absolutely HATE wire wheeling viney twisty stuff ( and that is the bulk of my forge work) I briefly tried pickling, but dont like the chemicals involved and had rust issues when things weren't neutralized properly. I would love to have a shot blast machine, but the cost and space arent really practical, so I am looking at a tumbler. I have this old condemned 100 pound propane cylinder, that looks like a good start, and the remains of my old crane, a whole lot of pillow block bearings, but all my motors seem a tad large. I have a 1.5 hp that would be ok I guess, the other candidate is a 1/2 hp that is a 3600 rpm. I dont reall…

I have a single phase single volt (UK 220-240) 1Hp electric motor with two capacitors, start and run. As photographed. This is to run my Milling machine. I need to connect the motor, via appropriate switch gear, to mains AC. I appreciate the earth wire connects to the "seventh" terminal at the side. But I have no idea where the Live and Neutral wires need to connect. I appreciate that the metal strips (as photographed, shown between U1/W2 and V1/U2) manage the rotation, and presently are connected for forward/clockwise rotation, and can be changed to U1/V1 and W2/U2 for reverse/counter-clockwise rotation (which I will probably use). But for either scenario (CW …

First time installing this. No idea where the neutral connection is. Anyone know? I just have it hooked up to a single zone relay that will turn on the fan. It has a U1 V1 and W1 connection.

As noted in the "What did you do in the shop today?" thread, I've mounted a bigger motor on my horizontal bandsaw, the last one being terribly underpowered. Unfortunately, it goes the wrong way around, and I need to figure out how to reverse it, if possible. Here are some specs: the motor is a Marathon Electric model LQF 56C17G2007A W, 1HP, single phase, 115/230V. There is no "motor not reversible" warning or wiring diagram, nor is there the usual terminal cover ("peckerhead"). Instead, there is a box sticking off the side with a switch on its side and an ammeter and an hour counter on the top. Here's what's going on underneath the cover of that box: Th…