Viceroy on 240v three phase?

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alister21
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon 07 Apr , 2008 7:38 am

Viceroy on 240v three phase?

Post by alister21 » Mon 17 Aug , 2009 14:39 pm

Hi,
I am new to the forum and I am not yet a Denford owner. I am going to view a Viceroy 280VS and of course one of my considerations will be how I go about powering it in the absence of 415v 3 phase in my garage. The seller tells me that the motor is a dual voltage 220v - 440v three phase unit. This sounds like an American motor or at least one made for that market.
My question is this: Does anyone have any experience of configuring the motor to run on 240v on a three phase inverter? This would be my prefered (cheapest) option as I can get access to a 220v 3ph inverter and would hope to avoid the expense of having to fork out for a 415 3ph transformer/inverter.

Andy B
CNC Guru
CNC Guru
Posts: 396
Joined: Mon 20 Nov , 2006 18:19 pm
Hardware/Software: 280 VS lathe, Denford Senior E-type mill, Senior Major Universal Mill
Location: East Midlands, UK

Re: Viceroy on 240v three phase?

Post by Andy B » Mon 17 Aug , 2009 15:26 pm

There are 2 types of 280VS - one with a manually operated wheel to change the speed (with the motor under the headstock in the cabinet), and the other with a 'pilot' motor to change the speed (with the main motor mounted on the back of the headstock) and operated via a joystick switch on the pendant control panel.

On the manual type (which I don't have but have seen one), there are 2 potential issues to check - 1) Is there a transformer for the speed display / contactor coils, and if so does it have a 220 or 240V input as well as a 415 or 440V, and 2) Are there thermal cut-outs for the spindle motor - can they be re-set for the increased current when operating at a lower voltage?
This one currently on ebay is this type.

On the electric type (which I do have), my experience is that it needs full 415V to operate the pilot motor (you can't reconfigure the pilot for different voltages). The transformer does have a 220V input terminal, but the thermal cutouts cannot be adjusted up far enough to cope with the extra current.

If you decide to go for it and need a 415V phase converter, I can recommend sticking a 'wanted' ad on homeworkshop.org.uk - I got several offers and ended up with a good deal!

Hope this helps,

Andy

alister21
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon 07 Apr , 2008 7:38 am

Re: Viceroy on 240v three phase?

Post by alister21 » Mon 17 Aug , 2009 16:01 pm

Thanks for the info Andy. It seems that in both the scenarios that you have outlined there is more to consider than simply driving the spindle motor. I had not taken into account ancilliares like displays etc. I think it would be a lot easier to run it off 415v. I just need to take that into account in my budget.

Al

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