FILENAMES: VFD-Drill-Press-1.jpg VFD-Drill-Press-2.jpg DESCRIPTION: These are pictures of a variable frequency drive fitted to an imported drillpress. Posted by Dan Doss . Dan provided the following description: ================================================================= Jan 16, 2001 The two attached photos (VFD Drill Press #1.jpg and VFD Drill Press #2.jpg) show what can happen when money is no object! Actually, the drill press, a Buffalo brand (same as many other Chinese imports), was purchased at a local garage sale for $50, the 1 HP 3-phase Dayton motor was a freebee, and the Hitachi SJ100 1 HP Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) was purchased new from automationdirect.com for $250. One of the nice things about using a VFD to control your machines is the infinitely variable speeds which can be obtained. I programmed this one so the drill spindle runs from about 20 rpm to 3200 rpm. The SJ100 has so many programmable options. One I especially like is the ability to scale the display so that it reads spindle rpm directly! VFD's normally display speed as frequency to the motor which in this case would mean nothing to the user. What we really want to see is the speed of the spindle. With my trusty hand tach and some quick math, I came up with the necessary scaling factor that was entered into the SJ100's non-volatile memory to allow it to display actual spindle speed in rpm. The speed is controlled via the small gray knob located on the front panel of the VFD. Another feature that I plan to implement soon is the ability to reverse the motor direction at the touch of a switch. This, combined with the extreme low speed torque available with the VFD, will allow me to do semi-automatic tapping. Just start the tap into the pilot hole, let the press run slowly until the desired depth has been reached, then hit the reverse button and back out the tap. Heck, this machine might pay for itself after all! Recently, a very good friend of mine added a surplus VFD to his bandsaw. It not only allowed him to precisely control the speed of the blade, it also made it possible to run the surplus 3 phase saw off of single phase 230V. He picked up the saw at an auction for $150 and added another $150 for the VFD which he bought on Ebay. Now, for $300, he has a very versatile saw that is built like a tank and will last a lifetime. So, even though it may look like big $$$ and overkill, adding a VFD to your machine tool may be just what the doctor ordered. Oh yes, my current project is a 5 HP 14 x 40 CNC lathe. And yes, it too will have a VFD spinning it's little spindle when it's all said and done! Happy machining! Dan Doss dossdev@earthlink.net