Chances are that no more than you are likely to use that machine, it would have been ok with 10w-30 in it, but it will probably outlive you n I both with continuing ND SAE30 in it...
X2...we use Mobil oils almost exclusively at work, other than a few "specialty" applications. The fact that we are just now starting to need to rebuild machinery that has been installed/operating since 1988/89 (some of it pretty much nonstop) says a lot about using good oil, and proper drain intervals.
But my vehicles factory owners manual says I don't need to change my oil till 10k miles and the transmission and axles are filled for life...... They can't be wrong..... Right?
Glad to hear that. I run it in my big compressor, it’s what Speedaire recommends for their compressors. Not to railroad my own thread, does Mobil make an oil you should stay away from? They generally seem to be at the top of the heap when it comes to folks recommending which oil brand to buy.
54" belt fit perfectly. Have a dedicated 20AMP / 120V outlet in my basement for a sump pump I never put in (have a French drain). Motor starts, pump rolls over a few times and then it blows the breaker. Motor runs fine, and in reverse when not hooked up to the pump. My assumption is, on 120V it needs to pull >20AMPS (LRA) to get the pump initially moving. Looked on my panel in the basement and I do have a slot open for a 240V outlet. I'll just wire up an outlet and wire up the motor for 24oV. Screwloose will #5 and #8 stay the same for 240V or should they be put back?
There should be a tag on the motor somewhere that shows the different wiring options...might be under a cover somewhere. That little motor should not be blowing a 20A breaker...but, 1 thing that sticks out to me is the pulley on the motor seems awful big...that could overload the motor...but I expect that it has ran with that pulley like that forever?
The tag is pretty faint, and next to the plate that I posted a picture of. From what I can see on the plate, #5 and #8 stay the same whether it's 120v or 240v, I'll leave them alone. You have to change some jumper wires when going from 120V -> 240V and vice versa. This is a motor my dad found / bought that's on it now is a different RPM than the previous motor (I'm assuming). The previous motor is on his table saw. My guess is, the previous motor was a 3400RPM motor and this is a 1725RPM motor. Based off of a calculator I found online (and the yellow note my dad attached to some notes he made for me), a 1725RPM motor * 5" motor pulley * 10" pulley on the compressor should give me 875RPMs which seems to be in the area of what the tag my dad wrote on the compressor. The joys of resurrecting home-built stuff!!! Found this tag on the compressor too
It will give a similar final rpm, but it also increases the load on the motor greatly. That's crazy on that old tag about using 10w-30 detergent oil...first time that I've personally seen an oem recommend that in an old piston compressor! Just goes to show, never say never!
Using a smaller pulley on the motor would decrease the load on it, but it would also lower the CFM of the compressor too...which is no big deal unless you are using it for something that needs high CFM/pressure non stop.
That's my excuse on why I used 10w/30. It would definitely make it more portable leaving it at 120V vs switching it to 240V. A 4" pulley would give me more than enough air for what I plan on doing with it. It will mostly be used for blowing saws off in the winter, and blowing furnace filters out. Going to my parents tomorrow and will see what my dad has laying around. If he doesn't have a 4" pulley, I'll see if I can find a place locally to buy one or I'll just bite the bullet and convert it over to 240V. Will be a nice project next week when I'm off from work.
Its possible that the motor capacitor has failed too. (under that half-round doghouse/cover on the side of the motor there)
I was taught to use a detergent oil when the engine has a filter and non detergent with no filter. On a no filter/splash lubed engine they want the dirt to stick to the inside walls of the engine. Won't get to the bearings that way. Use detergent oil in an engine with no filter thats run non detergent and it'll "wash" all that gunk down into the crankcase for the crankshaft to splash everywhere. Would be curious to hear others reasoning.
That's a 1 1/2 hp motor so it is no surprise it is popping a 20 amp breaker. A 4 pole 1800 rpm motor has double the torque of a 2 pole 3600 rpm one so pulley size doesn't matter as long as an equal driven speed results. Detergent oil keeps contamination suspended to be collected by a filter. I believe that is a sears (Campbell Hausefeld) pump and back then it was more of a keep it simple thing rather than a long life consideration. In most cases it will outlive the reeds with any oil.
Talked to my uncle last night who worked with my dad as a control's electrician. My dad fabricated and built the machines, and my uncle wired it up. Was telling my uncle about the problem I was having, and the above is the first thing he said. He also said it could be a weak capacitor. The second thing he said was, "wire it up to 220V and don't look back".
We have life on 240V. Unfortunately the pressure switch is leaking from the bottom when it gets up to about 40 - 50PSI. When I get some time over the next few days I'll see if I can figure out what the problem is. The switch is probably close to 40 years old at this point, I'm thinking it might just be old age. It definitely is not going to win any speed races.
Tore into the pressure switch today. There's a rubber gasket between the switch, and plate that screws to the tanks. Air was leaking from the gasket so I put some Hyloam Blue on both sides of the gasket and put it all back together. Now it gets up to 100 PSI and starts leaking from the same area as before. I'm guessing the rubber gasket is old and dry rotted, and can't hold the pressure anymore. Ordered a Milton pressure switch off of Amazon. The Milton pressure switch has an on / off switch which I like too. Hopefully it isn't a big PITA to move the unloader pipe. Thought that these pressure switches would be a little high tech, they are pretty rudimentary. From what I can tell it's a NC switch and there's a vertical piece of metal that sits on the rubber bladder between the switch and the tank mount, when that hits the pressure you have it set to, the vertical piece pushes up which then opens the switch up. Vice versa for when you need more air.
