# Dayton Drum Switch



## doco (Apr 14, 2013)

I am completely ignorant of electricity and drum switches for that matter. The image is the voltages through the six contact points on a Dayton Model 2X443A drum switch on my SB 16" lathe. It is connected to 230v Single Phase power on a 30A breaker. The motor is a 2HP Baldor and brand new. The motor will start but has alomost no power ( I can nearly stop the chuck with my hands). Any attempt to cut chips slows the motor to a stop. All belts are properly tensioned.

The top part of the image is with the drum switch in neutral or off position. The middle image is with the drum switch in Forward and the bottom is in Reverse.

The plugin checks 120v on each leg except the ground of course.

Anyone see anything wrong here? It looks bazzaar to me...

TIA


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## davidh (Apr 15, 2013)

*has it ever worked right ?*    I had a similar problem with a drill press. . . I was only running on half the motor due to a crappy wiring job I did. . .  that's why I asked if it ever worked right for you.


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## Richard King (Apr 15, 2013)

Contact Grainger they sell Dayton and ask for their tech service dept.   They should be able to help you figure it out over the phone.


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## doco (Apr 15, 2013)

davidh said:


> *has it ever worked right ?*    I had a similar problem with a drill press. . . I was only running on half the motor due to a crappy wiring job I did. . .  that's why I asked if it ever worked right for you.



A couple things I learned:
1. Never measure voltage ground to contact. Always measure voltage across the contacts.
2. Never assume anything. Just because the connections inside the plugin have been good for two years...
3. A 240v motor will start and run on 120v. They will have no HP and they will get hot - but they will run.
4. Drum switches are a real piece of ****! Even if brand new and a quality name brand.

Still have a nagging problem with drum switch connecting appropriately. But it works. Would entertain suggestions for replacement of drum switch to some other device.

Thanks


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## cdhknives (Apr 15, 2013)

davidh said:


> *has it ever worked right ?*    I had a similar problem with a drill press. . . I was only running on half the motor due to a crappy wiring job I did. . .  that's why I asked if it ever worked right for you.



This sounds exactly right...except for the odd voltage readings.

To properly troubleshoot this, you need to check all wiring connections from power to switch to motor...including motor jumpers.  Motor wiring should be on the termination housing.

I'm assuming you have a reversible motor?  (always start simple...not trying to insult your intelligence)

As far as seeing something wrong, yes.  When [off] the leads from the switch to the motor should be ZERO volts line to line and line to ground, and anything other than approximately 120 or 240 V on a household USA split phase system indicates a major wiring issue (usually floating/missing common).


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## cathead (Apr 16, 2013)

Drum switches can be confusing.  Hook up the motor direct to the 220 and
make sure it has good power.  Once you know the motor works properly,
you can wire up the reversing switch.  You can internet search and
easily find out how to wire a drum switch.  I use a drum switch from
yesteryear and it was built to last.  It came to me as a scrap yard find.
I can help you with the wiring if needed, just ask.



Cathead


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## doco (Apr 16, 2013)

cdhknives said:


> This sounds exactly right...except for the odd voltage readings.
> 
> To properly troubleshoot this, you need to check all wiring connections from power to switch to motor...including motor jumpers.  Motor wiring should be on the termination housing.
> 
> ...



My 'intellegence' sometimes needs to be insulted. Knowledge is the issue and electricity is one of those things that I am nearly totally ignorant. EG. what is a common? And how would I know it from any other? Wiring diagrams just as well be written in Hieroglyphics.


The motor worked when purchased new and installed by the motor guy a year ago. Apparently, when the ground came loose inside the plugin causing the start contact in the motor to burn off. I took the motor back to the motor guy and he installed a new switch and tested the motor. I re installed the motor. Yes, I marked all the wires so they are good. I have checked all connections and they appear to be good. The motor is a reversing motor and works fine now except every now and then it growls very loudly (when starting or during running) suggesting there may be an open leg. Just haven't found it. I will run through the connections again et al. I am certain its in the drum switch although it appears to be good. Shutting the motor down and restarting usually does the trick. When it growls and I shut it down, there is quite a bit of arcing on the motor side of the switch as I shut it down.:thinking::thinking:

- - - Updated - - -



cathead said:


> Drum switches can be confusing.  Hook up the motor direct to the 220 and
> make sure it has good power.  Once you know the motor works properly,
> you can wire up the reversing switch.  You can internet search and
> easily find out how to wire a drum switch.  I use a drum switch from
> ...



The drum switch was originally wired by the motor guy I purchased the motor from and has worked flawlessly for over a year. The problems I am experiencing now have come after a new contact switches were installed in the motor. I am certain the problem lies in the drum switch though as the 'growl' is not consistant and is solved (temporarily) by shutting down and re starting.


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## cdhknives (Apr 17, 2013)

Common is also called neutral. Line is also called hot. L1 and L2 are the 2 hot legs of US 220.  Neutral/common is typically the white wire in US standard wiring. US 220VAC has two 120V legs typically colored black and red. Measuring the voltage gives 110 V to neutral/common, 220 line to line, and SHOULD give 110 line to ground. 110 and 220 are nominal designations, actual voltages range from 110-125V and 220-250V in most systems. Anything in or very near those ranges is considered normal. Hence your 70 odd volts is VERY unusual to me, but what it means is not always easy to determine.

BTW, do not ever equate ground to neutral/common. While they SHOULD be tied together in the main power panel of your distribution system, this does not always happen. In a good system they are the same from an electrical sense, but the ground is for safety, the neutral is for power return, and they should not be mixed. It'll work, but only until something else goes wrong and then you can have hazardous situations. I can give plenty of examples but this isn't the place... Enough preaching...pet peeve of mine...just passing along information.

New information. This problem started after work was done on the motor caused by a short. It may be important, it may not. Did your motor guy replace the starting capacitor? Does the growling start after you place a heavy load on the machine? Did he replace all the contacts or just the burned one? If it got hot enough to burn a contact, lots of other wiring can get damaged too.

Is there any way you could hard wire the motor to run forward only and see if you can reproduce the growling problem without the switch? This really does not sound like a switch issue to me. I'd love to be there with a meter checking voltage when you run it...talking through this on a forum is very difficult.


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