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Champion No. 50 Blower: Determining Amps?


youngvulcan

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Hello! I'm a working with an elderly neighbor who has an old Champion Blower and Forge Co. No. 50 Blower attached to his coal forge. We need to purchase a new speed control, but we are unsure of how many AMPs the blower motor uses. The only information on the outside of the motor is "NO. 8220" and "110 Volts."

Does anyone know how many AMPs this motor uses? Anyone know how we can find out?

I'm sorry if my terminology is incorrect. I'm pretty young and very new to smithing and electrical work.

Thank you your help!

Best,

J. Schlesinger
Illinois

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All,
Thanks for the replies (thus far). The current speed control is missing parts and is non-functional.

I've read a little bit about using an air gate, but with the motor already wired-up for a speed control. Is there an advantage to running an air gate?

Here's one option: http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/fan-speed-control/hvacr-and-appliance-controls/hvacr/ecatalog/N-guh?op=search&sst=subset

I'm just not sure which speed control I should choose: 3 AMPs or 6 AMPs?

Thanks for all of the help thus far. I'm off to the guy's house to examine the motor more closely.

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They were mostly brush type fractional motors - the common ones on forges were no more than 1/3 hp; probably less. It doesn't take much to turn a fan.

Edit: IMHO, a good air gate is more important than trying to slow the fan. Given the choice of one or the other, I would choose a blower running at full speed with a damper over a fan with infinite control from zero to max. The logic is that full speed dumps constant CFM and static pressure against the gate. That doesn't mean you can't get a good fire without a gate but I think the results are more consistent.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I’ve tried two of these blowers and had trouble with shorts tripping my breakers on both. Thought I was going to use a newer electric blower but hooked up my hand crank champion as an interim and it works so well I may stick with it. It’s amazing how quickly one can heat a 1 1/4 square inch bar and no risk of burning work when distracted. I start my coal fire with a small ball of paper and a small scoop of hardwood charcoal and it’s up and running before my arm has time to tire.

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  • 2 years later...

It's 10.5 amps at 110 volts. That tiny 1/5 HP blower motor draws no more than 2.5 amps at full load. Also they were 110 volts DC or AC at 25 to 60 hertz. Back in the day windmills charged a bank of twenty 6 volt DC batteries. Crude AC systems were powered by waterwheels or various engines. However you got 110 volts you could run a Champion or Buffalo blower. Both (and others) were designed for rheostatic speed controllers. The advantages over an air gate: 1) Cool optics to customers in 1932.  2) Easy to set minimum fan speed to keep fire. 3) Longer motor life since speed and load are controlled. 4) The old folks knew what they doing at the time.

 

Air gates are good for one speed motors. It's the cheapest way to blow a big forge. 1) Few know of 1932. 2) Drill a small hole to keep fire. 3) A closed gate wears the motor. 4) It's not hard to rig one today. A multi-speed hair dryer can blow a small forge.

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