Table Saw Score

[whtbaron]

So I'm at a farm auction yesterday (it rained and I'm a farmer, so I had to go...) and there's a table saw on a rack of small tools that is going cheap. I had no time to check it out, but for $20 I'm thinking WTF, let's take a chance. It appears to be complete and very well built so I cart it home and decide to check it out. Pick up the plugin and I see the prongs of the normal size plug has the blades sideways so I'm thinking it will need a high amperage breaker...time to check it out. ID plate says it is 220 volts. I called the owner to see if it had been converted to 110 because I don't want to fry it, but so far he's not returning my calls. It could be that I'm the proud owner of a fried POS or he's just too busy dealing with people that bought $80k machines to worry about my $20 saw. I'm thinking about putting a standard 110 plug on it to see if it spins slowly before I try a 220 because I don't want a melt down if it is good. Any other suggestions? I don't have a lot of electrical equipment, but I do have a couple cheap multi testers around.

[leightrepairs]

Is there a data plate on the electric motor?

Mike

[dmatt]

How much info is on the name plate? If it gives amperage draw at 220 and 110 and you have a similar sized motor a comparison of the ohm meter readings should let you know. If I remember my motor science high voltage will have the field windings in series (higher resistance) and low voltage will have the field windings in parallel (lower resistance)

[bigb]

If the motor name plate says 220-240 volts and it has a Nema 6-15 plug cap on it as you described and the motor name plate does not indicate that it is a dual voltage motor then it is a 240 volt saw requiring a 15 amp circuit. This is not unusual at all for a table saw.

[Iain P]

If the plug looks like either of these it's a 220 plug. The one with both prongs sideways is 15amp and the other is 20amp.

[whtbaron]

I guess technically I should be calling this a radial arm saw and not a table saw. No tag on the motor but the one on the frame just says 220 (10 amp, 2 HP, single phase) and that's what the plug indicates so I'm reasonably sure that's what it is, but I'd sure hate to smoke it if somebody has been messing around where they shouldn't have been. Maybe the 220 is what scared off the other bidders, but I have enough plugins and extensions for the welders, compressor and grain aeration fans that it doesn't bother me if that's what it is. Sure like to plug it in and see if it works though. I'll pull the cover plate off the electrical inlet later to see if there's anything printed under it.

[WyoRoy]

Looks to be a proprietary motor for that saw. While not a 100% certainty...with that build plate and the plug I don't see much reason to think it would be other than 220v.

[whtbaron]

Yea...I'm thinking that way too. I don't have any 220 outlets with that configuration so I"ll have to switch plugins to try it anyway. I'll start with a 110 just to be sure, but I'm thinking it should be 220. If it works on the welder circuit I'll get the proper plugin/circuit breaker wired in for it when I rewire the shop for floor heat.

[duaneb55]

I'll start with a 110 just to be sure

Why would you do that??

The plate states 10A/220V/1Ph, the plug says 220V, your gut says 220V, you're thinking 220V so plug it into 220V and hit the switch!

[WyoRoy]

Why would you do that??
The plate states 10A/220V/1Ph, the plug says 220V, your gut says 220V, you're thinking 220V so plug it into 220V and hit the switch!

Ditto on that recommendation! Patch cord for your welder circuit receptacle...or just install the same plug on the end of the cord and you'll be up and running. No problem feeding more than the 10 amps as the motor will only take what it needs.

[whtbaron]

No guts, no glory, huh?

[storeman]

You have a 220 saw with a 220 plug on it. Plug it in.

[whtbaron]

Score! Slapped a welder plug on it and fired it up. No smoke, no sparks, no shocks and she purrs like a kitten. I've got a feeling this one really wasn't used much but it's been around a long time. I think the board stop the previous owner put on could be moved back a little more to allow for more clearance for longer cuts, but other than that all it needs is a new sawdust catcher and possibly a couple wheels. Sweet deal. Head rotates and angles and everything seems to work fine. Nice and tight, no play. I'm a happy camper.

[duaneb55]

Sweet!!

[storeman]

Great score!

[Willie B]

The only 220 Volt machine I've ever seen was Chinese. The nameplate was a mix of English and lightning bolts, and other Heiroglyphics. I suspect it too was a 230 volt motor, confusion lay in translation.

The nameplate should tell you if it can be 120 or 240 supplied. The wirebox cover will usually have connection info for 115 or 230.
Depending which side is flat (horizontal) your plug configuration is either 20 amp 120 or 20 amp 240. Looking at the receptacle in the wall with the U shaped ground down, if it is 120 the horizontal slot is on the left. If 240 on the right.

That's not to say someone didn't put a 240 volt cord on a 120 volt motor, or vice versa.

[Willie B]

By the way, that ain't no table saw.

[Willie B]

Typically these were great tools except they need frequent adjustment to cut square. Most have a tapered keyway on the back of the post supporting the carriage. There is a tapered follower with jam nut that must be set to touch without binding. Most get out of adjustment and get sloppy.

[duaneb55]

By the way, that ain't no table saw.

OP pointed out his error in post #6.

[whtbaron]

Yea, since it was Sunday I was trying not to be the suicidal farmer, but these guys convinced me to go shoving unknowns into a 220 outlet. Once again I have cheated death. Did a few quick searches online and not finding out much about the Concord Machinery Corporation. With the French/English I suspect that it may have been a Canadian company, so if it is rebadged Chinese it's old enough to be well built Chinese. I would guess late 70's or very early 80's with the orange plastic handles. There is a keyway at the back, but it appears to be a straight key and not a tapered one. The previous owner did contact me today, but he also bought the saw at an auction and never got around to getting a proper plugin that it would fit so he never used it. Like I said earlier, everything seems really tight and it has sealed ball bearings on the slides and seems to be well built. The places where wear is possible are all adjustable so it should be fine for my limited use applications.

[DSW]

220v power tools are usually fairly high quality. That usually is an indication of at least light industrial or heavy duty serious hobby stuff. All the wood working equipment in my buddy's "hobby" shop was all 230v, and all fairly serious tooling. I had the option of buying a bunch of 110v/230v Powermatic stuff from a friend of mine who's husband had passed away. I really didn't need the stuff, though it was at least one level up from most of my serious wood working stuff. If I'd known what she was going to get for everything together off ebay, I would have bought it and sold my stuff. Everything together went for less than my 14" upright bandsaw cost me used ( 10" table saw, 14" wood bandsaw, dust collection system...)

[whtbaron]

It seems the 220v has scared everyone away from this thing...worked out well for me.

[ezduzit]

I really like my radial arm saw. But it can't take the place of a table saw.

[whtbaron]

Maybe not, but if I ever come across another one like this for $20, I would consider turning it upside down in the frame and making a table saw out of it.

[DSW]

On most radial arms, you can turn the blade 90 deg and feed wood thru it like you do with a table saw to rip sheet goods.