40 replies to this topic

[amskier]

Emax, on Jun 6 2007, 08:12 AM, said:

Actually, they were converted traction motors. Gulf Electroquip (Houston, TX), and other companies involved in the drill rig industry, buy up the G.E. 752 traction motors that the railroads remove from their locomotives after a prescribed period of use. They then remove the original series field windings and replace them with shunt windings that operate at 100 volts / 50 Amps - creating a clone for the 752 R1A drill rig motor. The armatures are nearly indestructable. Usually, the axle housing (part of the original motor casting) is burned off.

These motors are conservatively rated 1000 HP @ 1100 RPM. They (at the time) cost less than a new GE 250 HP motor built on a 500 frame. Through the use of an adjustable constant-current field supply, they could be made to run at a wide variety of RPMs and torques. A beast of a motor, they're still a very good buy. http://www.gulfelectroquip.com/

Downside: the need for massive cooling. Standard blower from Gulf Electroquip was 10 HP - really LOUD. Attempts were made (by Yan) to alter this blower system and reduce the shrieking sound - all resulted in motor burn-out.

I chuckled when I read this because I have two distinct (and not good) memories of the old Summit chair at Alpine Meadows when it was a Yan HSQ:

• Mechanics stopping the chair throughout the day to make quick replacements of the compression rollers.
  
• On hot spring days, all the windows would be open and fans would be blowing on the motor. I didn't see that on any of their other lifts.