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Chapter 1: Omega Lathes Stubby 750 VFD

Emiliano Achaval

Emiliano Achaval

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hawaiiankoaturner.com
My 2005, that's when I got it, could be maybe earlier, Stubby 750 started giving me VFD problems. Felt like the belt was slipping, and I could stop it ,not even with a full cut on a medium bowl. The brake is also not working right. I just talked to Rod Caddaye, owner of Omega lathes. He provided as always first class customer service. He's shipping me a new VFD ready to be installed. We are lucky that we have an electrical engineer club member, he never liked the original VFD, he called it "underrated". He works on top the crater on the government's top secret installations. one of his jobs is to match VFD to electrical motors... Rod is sending me a way better unit. more torque, more power, smoother, more happiness! Those of you considering purchasing an Omega lathe, order one with confidence, Rod's customer service is as good as it gets. In a few days I'll receive the new unit and I will report how it goes.
 
How did the replacement go? I’m looking at a used 750 that has had the vfd replaced. Do you know if you can get other parts? I emailed Rod but haven’t heard back.
 
Guy Scronce said:
How did the replacement go? I’m looking at a used 750 that has had the vfd replaced. Do you know if you can get other parts? I emailed Rod but haven’t heard back.
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Surprised Rod did not respond. I would just call him at the factory. The new VFD is perfect! I did have to play around with some of the settings. Luckily we have an electrical engineer that belongs to our club. He works at a government telescope, he's in charge of all the motors, was easy for him, I tried to keep some notes, but was impossible to follow... You can get every single part for your Stubby. I ordered a new Stubby 1000, I'm expecting delivery next month. Rod is very active on Facebook, send him a message thru Messenger, he will answer you.
 
Thanks. I sent an email to Rod, and who knows if it made it to him. I’m going to look at the Stubby today(it will probably come home with me).
 
Guy Scronce said:
Thanks. I sent an email to Rod, and who knows if it made it to him. I’m going to look at the Stubby today(it will probably come home with me).
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We have a Stubby group on Facebook and for those that worry about privacy or do not know how to use it we have a groups.io Stubby forum. Lots of help there. Aloha.
 
Guy Scronce said:
I bought the lathe! I’m excited to get it set up and start turning. Thank you for the help. I was able to connect with Rod on Facebook.
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Congratulations! You will love it. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. Aloha
 
Bill Boehme said:
Must be a spoiled rotten VFD. :D If I have to stand while at the lathe, I think it's not too much to ask that the VFD do likewise.
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I had to provide my own chair for the lazy vfd, but luckily the price was good enough that I don’t mind. I’ll make a new mount for it, and wire it into new controls. Right now I have to use the controls on the vfd.
 
I have a John Jorden 750 Stubby and the on off box will smoke and pop. After I turn it off it seams ok then it happens again. I wrote omega but have not heard anything yet. I was told that it could be the vfd. Was it hard to replace?
 
I don't know that lathe or wiring, but from what you report I'd start by testing the switch and wiring. But if you don't have that experience, perhaps a turning friend does.

JKJ
 
Les Bauer said:
I have a John Jorden 750 Stubby and the on off box will smoke and pop. After I turn it off it seams ok then it happens again. I wrote omega but have not heard anything yet. I was told that it could be the vfd. Was it hard to replace?
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First off, I'd suggest your breaker is too large for that lathe. If smoke and popping doesn't trip the breaker, you are very close at a shop fire. Manually trip the breaker and call an electrician!!!!!!!!!!! DO NOT use it again until after the electrician shows up.
 
Richard Coers said:
First off, I'd suggest your breaker is too large for that lathe. If smoke and popping doesn't trip the breaker, you are very close at a shop fire. Manually trip the breaker and call an electrician!!!!!!!!!!! DO NOT use it again until after the electrician shows up.
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Thank you, I will try that.
 
I agree with John. I'll bet there is an accumulation of wood dust in the switch box. Based on your description, I don't see a problem with the VFD or the circuit breaker. The purpose of the circuit breaker is to protect the building wiring, including built-in appliances, not equipment plugged into a receptacle.
 
Les Bauer said:
I opened the switch box and it is clean.
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This is what I do: With switch disconnected (and the lathe unplugged of course), use an ohm meter to insure proper conductivity between contacts with the switch closed. Take photos of everything, especially wire connections, mark wires with tags, and make a diagram.

Take the switch apart and inspect the contact points. (Some switches are held together by rivets which I drill out.) Caution: switches often have springs and levers and must be put back together correctly. Take care.

Contact points sometimes become burned with normal use, high humidity, etc. This happens more with high current and loads but can happen with even small devices. It doesn't take much degrading for a switch to make smoke and a sound.

Burned contacts will be obvious. If so, the best thing to do is replace the switch since once the contacts are even slightly degraded they will only get worse. I did that for my 18" bandsaw a couple of years ago - I found a switch on Amazon that had the right specs, physically fit, and even looked the same.

But in the short term contacts can often be cleaned with fine sandpaper and put the machine back in service for at least a while. I always coat switch contacts with dielectric grease before reassembly. Test the switch after reassembly and double-check the connections before applying power.

Over the last 1/2 century I've fixed and replaced many such switches. I've temporarily fixed a few lathes for people until we could find a new switch. Switch failed on one of my drill presses and one of my own lathes. The pressure-activated switch failed on my big air compressor and the maker sent a new one at no charge. A friends air compressor quit just last week and we did the debugging over the phone.

My 2-cents: If not comfortable with electrical circuits maybe don't even try. It's simple once you know how, but make a mistake and the shock you feel might be your last. Find someone who can do it and watch and learn. Someone with experience could also evaluate the switch and decide if it's worth trying to make a temporary fix.

JKJ
 
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