Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Has anyone made their own servos from DC Motors?

Hi Chris,

I used 110V treadmill motors from Surplus Center on my Bridgeport Series
1 mill. The motors have a handy flange on the front that can be used for
mounting. Surplus center also sell a very small servo motor with a 200
line encoder. I used the encoders off of these on the treadmill motors.
They work very well with Gecko or Rutex drives and I am extremely
pleased with the results.

I haven't yet got round to making up covers for the rear of the motors
but I must remedy that soon. Having exposed encoders on a mill is a
recipe for disaster.

Les

lcdpublishing wrote:

>Has anyone made servos (that work well) from DC motors? I am not
>sure but unless I am missing something, it seems very possible to do
>and affordable too.
>
>There are a host of 90 Volt DC treadmill motors out there for very
>cheap ($20.00 ~ $50.00). While the claimed HP is 2.5, I suspect
>they are more close to 3/4 ~ 1 HP, which should be fine for small
>servos on a home shop machine.
>
>Most of these motors have a small shaft on the back end which is
>usually for a fan blade of some sort. This could be used to attach
>a rotary encoder with relative ease. Rotary encoders can be
>purchase new from US Digital for around $35.00.
>
>This gets you a motor and encoder for less than $100.00
>
>Next up is an enclosure of sorts for the motor to make it suitable
>for use in a metalworking shop. This could be any form of aluminum
>from square tubing to round tubing (if the id matches the od of the
>motor). Incorporating a flange for mounting should also be pretty
>easy to do. I suspect this would add another $40.00 or so.
>
>In the end, you could have a decent sized servo for around $140.00
>give or take a few bucks.
>
>I don't know what else is different about a servo than from what was
>just described (I am sure they are little more heavy duty for
>industrial use). The electricals is something I am unsure of.
>Encoders are encoders - that isn't much of a problem. But not all
>DC motors are the same (I am guessing).
>
>Has anyone done this and how did it work out for you? Any
>suggestions on what type of motor to use or avoid? What about a
>servo driver, Gecko or other?
>
>TIA
>
>Chris
>
>
>
>
>
>
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