Craftsman Lathe...Capacitor problem????

well, that certainly is an odd looking lathe. The link says it has a "vairable speed induction motor" - that could mean a two speed motor or it could mean a 3 phase motor with a variable frequency drive - can you tell us which one it is?

Presuming it is the former and not the latter, what you are describing sounds like the centrifugal switch that disconnects the start winding is not opening - could be caused by dust, or contact could be welded, - it doesn't sound like a capacitor, though a failed start cap might do something similar. I would start by figuring out what kind of motor

Thanx for the response Bill. I don't know a heck of a lot about electric motors, but I can tell you that it is not a two speed motor. I actually took the headstock into the local repair shop & they took a look at it & changed the start capacitor for me($12.00) & it seems to be working just fine again.

If you are the curious type of person & want to learn more about this "odd looking lathe" a have attached a link to a page on Darrell Feltmate's site that covers maintenance etc. on this type of lathe.

well, it looks like I was mislead by cluess copy writers again - Reeves drive is the key - of course it is a single speed motor, the fact that the copy in the link says "vairable speed induction motor" is just proof that those who write these things are even more clueless

it's rare for a capacitor to go out in the first few years of opeation - but if they charged you only $12, I'd say you live in an area where there are honest shops who have not yet adopted the "rip off the customer" mantra since a capacitor alone would cost around that much.

a motor with a bad capacitor has a particular sound and acts a particular way - now that you have heard/experienced it on your machine you will recognize it the next time it happens, should there be a next time.

Well Bill, the $12 capacitor was actually due to incredibly lucky coincidence. the first shop I went to said they would Charge me $100 initial bench charge plus parts, I thought that was a bit steep so I drove around the corner to another shop. When I went into the shop the person a the counter was an old school buddy that I hadn't seen in over 30 years. He invited me into the back of his shop & we reminisced about the old days while he worked on the motor. We had lots of laughs. Needless to say this guy has my business from this day forward.

He might be a source for a good replacement for the lathe or other machines in the shop. They often get motors - fix this one and take these...

I had a motor repair friend at one time. I gave him my old electric oven. It had good burners. He use it to burn out the windings of trashed out motors. Then the wire would pull out. Once melted - it is tough...

Mart> Well Bill, the $12 capacitor was actually due to incredibly lucky