[Kender]

I have a vintage craftsman 100 series that I am restoring. I recently turned it on and the motor (without the belt installed on it) makes a rusty metal on rusty metal rubbing sound as it spins. I tried some WD-40 at the shaft but that didn't help at all. It sounds like the insides may be wearing down. The motor that is on it is a 1.5 hp 3450rpm sears motor. Should I stick with a sears replacement or go to a different brand with the same specs? Does anyone know where to get the compatible motor from?

Thanks for the help.

 

[Handyman]

When my vintage Craftsman motor when out I replaced it with a 1.5hp sealed motor. I actualy bought mine in an auction at a lumber yard I was working. It was new. I have never understood why they put a open motor on a tool that produces so much dust. Now as to where to buy your replacement, well Grangers sells just about every motor ever made. Harbor freight sells them, but not as good.

 

[GeorgeC]

WD-40 IS NOT a good lubricant. Did you try putting oil in the little recepticles that are for oiling the motor?

An older motor like that is most likely not a sealed motor. That is, it is not designed to be permanently lubricatedl. There will be little "wells" with caps at each end of the shaft where you are supposed to put in a good quality oil.

G

 

[knotscott]

No harm in going with another brand as long as the basic size and ratings are compatible. You might find a good used Sears motor for it on Ebay or Craigslist, but you could also go with several others....WEG, Emerson, GE, Marathon, Baldor, Leeson, Dayton, etc.

Grainger, McMaster-Carr, Grizzly, or one of several surplus sellers should be able to sell you a suitable motor.

 

[Kender]

Thanks for the inputs.

To answer/respond to comments......... I am not sure if it is a sealed motor or not but it does say that the ball bearings are permenantly lubricated. I do not believe it is the original motor although it must have been replaced when craftsman was using the same color paint as the TS. The WD-40 was not being used for lubrication, I was using it to penetrate, had the sound lessened with the WD-40 then it would have identified the location of the issue and that it was likely a rust/corrosion issue. That wasn't the case so I think it's more internal to the motor. While I use Harbor freight for a lot of oddball items there are certain things that I won't use them for......This motor is one of them. No offense to harbor freight all of my clamps have come from there and so has my dust collector but this TS actually belonged to my grandfather and was used in his cabinetry shop for over 15 years.

I did some more searching after posting last night and check out grizzly, you'd think I would have looked already since I just bought there 14" bandsaw and tennoning jig. I will continue to look at the other brands as well but now I have another question to find the right motor.......should I go 220v with a 2HP or stay 110v at 1.5hp. I think the answer is obvious "GO BIGGER DUMB***" butt sometimes there is a valid reason for using less. This is used in my garage so getting a 220v outlet is a matter of tapping the breaker panel and 4ft of wire to the outlet.

Again thanks for the input.

 

[woodnthings]

Kender I had the exact same saw

Until it died after 50 yrs, but it came with an open frame 1 HP motor that accumulated dust and had to be blown out regularly. If memory serves me there was a centifugal starter disc, in the internals that may be your issue, I donno? If you want to keep the original motor for "sentimental or historic" reasons then have it checked out at a motor repair facility. I also had a 2 HP Baldor motor on it from a while, a real powerhouse!, running on 220V and would definitely recommend that for your tools. The only real advantage of running on 220v is that the wire gauge you run can be smaller, like no. 12 since it carries only 1/2 the amperage. Power consumption is the same. Sometimes the 220 v motors need a magnetic safety starter, an added expense. But that size shouldn't. All my shop motors 3HP and one 5 Hp are on separate 220 v circuits, 30 amps, one is 50 amps. :smile: bill

 

[Julian the woodnut]

You can put whatever size motor in it that you want, as long as its a 3450 rpm motor. Sure, bigger is better, but not nessecary for that saw. 1 1/2-2 hp is ideal.

 

[Kender]

Thanks guys. It's only a few bucks more for the 2hp and a 220v breaker isn't that much, the wire and conduit I have, will need a outlet and cord though. I will check about the magnetic switch so I get the right thing, I wouldn't have known to check. I am going to pop open the motor to see if I can identify the issue. My major in college was electronics and we touched on AC/DC motors so I know at the very least it won't be worse off than when I start......may not be fixed but will at least be re-assembled right. The main reason for going bigger is for the occasion that I cut some hard exotics, for the most part I am sure the 1.5 will be fine but if the 2hp can cut through oak/cherry/cedar with ease then that's less stress on the motor and hopefully it will last longer.

 

[Clouseau]

Go to OWWM.org

I would go the the OWWM.org and OWWM.com web sites and do a little research on your saw. The grease in the bearings has probably gotten hard. You may also have mud dobber nests in the motor. Motor bearings are cheap. The motors are simple to take apart and repair if the windings are good. The OWWM.com has a wiki with good tutorials with pictures and step-by-step instructions. The first thing those guys do is change out bearings in everything they rebuild. I wouldn't give up on the one you have. Those saws were very popular and are continuously being parted out by the OWWM.org guys. One is available in St. Louis from "onthelevel" today. Good luck.