1. Home
  2. ⏣ General Metalworking
  3. Wire wheel and motor sizing

Wire wheel and motor sizing

I have right now a wire wheel on a 1940's 1/2 HP motor.

The wheel is very much out of whack, and I suspect the shaft has some play also. It has way too much vibration. Since I have all kinds of motors, etc, I am thinking of making a new motor/wheel combo. I would use a shaft adaptor (from McMaster also, not the cheapest kind).

I want to buy a wheel at McMaster-Carr.

My main use of it is "clean stuff prior to selling" or "clean little welded parts" or "remove rust from smaller parts". I have either 1/2 HP, or 3/4 HP single phase motors.

What motor size and wheel size would you say works best?

I would ideally like to complete my wheel order today as I am ordering some other things also.

thanks

i
Reply to
Ignoramus12236
Loading thread data ...

The 1/2 will stall very easily while wire brushing, so use the 3/4 HP. As far as size of brush wheel, that depends on how you mount the motor. If on a stand so the wire wheel is not obstructed, go for an 8 inch or so. If Bench mounted motor, then you already know how big a wheel you can use.

What are you doing "buying" an adapter. Shame on you, with all the tools, you should be able to make just what you need in a few minutes!

In any case, you need to fabricate some type of shield/guard for the wire wheel. The thing will shed wires and they will attempt to go into your hands or arms. Always use a face shield to stop the remaining wires from aiming for the eyes!

Paul

Reply to
co_farmer

Right now I have it bolted to a bench, however the wheel protrudes outside the bench.

Do not have a lathe.

I always wear eye protection with wire wheel, even when I wore eyeglasses. Now I wear eye protection even more religiously after I had lasik surgery.

As for having a shield, I am not so sure, it is very convenient to have it unshielded.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus12236

My unit is unshielded, but I have learned where to keep the body parts while using it. Also wear leather gloves.

The wire brush is on one side and an abrasive flap wheel is on the other.

One other problem I forgot to mention is the wire brush throws the removed crap quite a ways, so allow with no shield, make sure it doesn't throw it on something important, like your mill. Best used outside when the weather permits.

Paul

Reply to
co_farmer

Be sure you get a good quality wheel. It will work much better, last longer, and thrown wires will be rare. A 3450 RPM motor is generally better suited than a 1725 motor.

Don Young

Reply to
Don Young

FWIW, I have not had good luck mounting wire wheels that way - I'd suggest a separate arbor - they are cheap enough, and a belt drive - I have two wire wheel assemblies - a 10 inch wheel driven by a 1 hp motor that I use for cleaning welded items, and a cuple of 6 inch wheels driven by a 1/3 hp motor that I use for smaller/lighter cleaning -

Reply to
William Noble

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.