- Joined
- Oct 31, 2015
- Messages
- 462
On the Craftsman, the motor was mounted on a hinged plate so that the weight of the motor kept tension on the belt. It could be easily lifted to change belt positions.
On the Logan, it's not necessary to release belt tension to change the position of the motor belt. This is possible because the v belt rides on a flat pulley. The lever on the countershaft only changes tension on the flat belt from the countershaft to the lathe spindle since the countershaft's movement is roughly tangential to an imaginary circle with the motor shaft as its center. (I hope that makes sense)
Typing this makes me realize there's one other thing that may need to be considered if you want to mount the motor to the bench. The 'V belt to flat pulley' arrangement works in part due to the closeness of the two pulleys. Notice how the v belt contacts a large portion of the circumference of the flat pulley. Increasing the distance between the two pulleys will decrease this contact and may make the belt more prone to slipping. I don't know how significant this issue is. On my lathe with the motor mounted as designed, the v belt never slips. The flat belt always slips first when I bog it down with too heavy a cut.
On the Logan, it's not necessary to release belt tension to change the position of the motor belt. This is possible because the v belt rides on a flat pulley. The lever on the countershaft only changes tension on the flat belt from the countershaft to the lathe spindle since the countershaft's movement is roughly tangential to an imaginary circle with the motor shaft as its center. (I hope that makes sense)
Typing this makes me realize there's one other thing that may need to be considered if you want to mount the motor to the bench. The 'V belt to flat pulley' arrangement works in part due to the closeness of the two pulleys. Notice how the v belt contacts a large portion of the circumference of the flat pulley. Increasing the distance between the two pulleys will decrease this contact and may make the belt more prone to slipping. I don't know how significant this issue is. On my lathe with the motor mounted as designed, the v belt never slips. The flat belt always slips first when I bog it down with too heavy a cut.
