Hi all!
Speaking of air compressors....
I have a 1940's Curtis air compressor that I have been rebuilding. It is
HUGE (cast iron dual stage with a 60 gallon tank). The only thing left to
crank it up is I need the motor I have repaired. It is a 3 hp, 220V single
phase electric motor with a 184T frame and capacitor start (2 capacitors).
When I got it and tried to run it, it would start to turn like it was under
load for a few seconds and then blow the circuit. I checked the capacitors
and one of them was a 110V capacitor and leaking on top of that. I finally
got new capacitors from Grainger and tried it (thinking it would work
beautifully) and no luck.. it did the exact same thing (and there was even a
spark from inside the motor somewhere for a split second).
It is 17.5 amp under load and I tried to run it (with no load) on a 20 amp
circuit just to see if it works. Once I get it working I'll run it through
a 30 amp breaker on the panel. But with no load, it *should* run for more
than a couple seconds on a 20 amp breaker, right?
Any ideas on what to check? I've got a total of $120 invested in this
compressor and a new motor is at least $290 plus shipping. I'd much rather
spend that money on parts for the truck and tools.
For that matter, anyone got a 220V motor, at least 3hp or higher, that they
want to sell?
Sandblasting my frame is going to be my first project after disassembling so
I really need this compressor running soon.
Thanks for the help!
-Justin Earl
'51 Chevy 1 ton dually
Cartersville, GA
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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