Tried taking the pulley off the motor?

 

Yes and the motor spins with the same vibration. Maybe there is some kind of pulley/counterweight combination I could put on?

 

Many years ago, I had a Craftsman contractor saw. I replaced the factory pulleys with turned steel pulleys and replaced the belt with a linked belt. It really reduced the vibration. YMMV.
Rick

 

The linked belt solved a bad vibration in my old Rockwell Contractors saw. You can't believe the difference that kind of belt makes. Woodcraft has them for about $25 and it is money well spent.

 

but when making bevel cuts the table shakes side to side.

That is not normal is it? If not you best find out what it is before one day your table is a shakin and your fingers go flying or worse….

If the bearings were out of the motor could that be the cause of the vibration….

 

The motor vibrates in an up and down fashion when in the normal 90 degree position. My brother suggested the spindle may be bent. When the trunnion is turned for bevel cuts, the motor goes with it, of course, and that up and down jumping changes direction with the trunnion so that it is sort of side to side - actually 45 degrees or whatever the bevel angle happens to be. Now the weight of the table has less to do with absorbing the vibration because the legs on the base are now taking the force of the vibration. Maybe I need cast iron legs too. LOL

It's not so bad that it's dangerous but it is really annoying. I guess a new motor is the only fix.

 

If I do change the motor, what is the maximum horsepower I can put on my delta 2000 series contractor saw? Current motor is rated at 1 or 1.5 HP depending on voltage.

 

It takes quite a bit of force to bend a rotor, that's something you can check yourself by turning the motor and watching the arbor for out of round( or use a dial indicator if you have one). Anyway, if you can rotate it by hand and hear any noises it may just be bearings….or grab the arbor and try to move it side to side with your hand. Almost any motor shop can replace the bearings (if that's what it is) for a lot less than a new motor. It's a fairly easy job if you want to try it yourself. If it is indeed a bent rotor, best keep looking for a replacement. You can go up to 2 HP with out any problem, but you may need more electric (it would take a 20A/120V circuit). Pretty much anything over 2 HP will be 240V.

 

Thanks for the advice. There is no noticeable slop in the spindle or unusual noise but rotating it by hand shows the wobble. The wobble exists without the pulley. I know that by running the motor without the pulley. But the wobble is only visible to the naked eye when the pulley is attached.

 

Has the vibration always been present? I've encountered very few motors that vibrate without having sustained some kind of damage. Could it have been dropped at some point that you're aware of? The three things that come to mind that could be wrong with the motor are: Bent shaft within the motor, broken internal cooling fan, bad bearings. No pulley combination will eliminate a problem inherent with the motor, nor will a link belt help. The idea behind using a link belt is to reduce the vibration that would be caused by a normal v-belt.

 

The saw is almost 20 years old and has been moved a few times. I know the original owner and all the places it's been moved to. The vibration has always been there since I've owned it - I'm just getting annoyed by it lately. It's likely it was dropped before.

Like I said before, it's not a condition that is dangerous or anything. In fact, with normal 90 degree operation it's only noticeable on shut down. It is noticeable during operation on bevel cuts. I'm planning to build a base with storage and outfeed table anyway. Maybe a really stiff base with lateral bracing will take care of the bevel condition.