National B.E. Motors

[RGP]

Had my first real experience with National B.E. motors and gear boxes yesterday. Just a couple of questions. I know WSTH & GE motor are reversable to be used on either machine. Are Nationals and if so which wires do you change? Second question: How the h*** do you get the #%*#*$ things seperated from the *$#*&$% gearboxes without wrecking something. I bent the motor shaft but fortunatly with an accurately aimed TAP with my BFH all was ok. Took an hour and a half of my day to seperate them though. Any words of wisdom from the Bowling Mechanics Gods out there would be appreciated.

[masternut]

Re: National B.E. Motors

Sorry,Nationals are not reverseable...Stahl's seventys has a tool for seperating....
Here is a link to the site with contactinfo.

Stahl\'s Seventy\'s

[RGP]

Re: National B.E. Motors

We are just down the road from Stahls. Checked out the websight. Thanx for the link, Nut. I guess I better have the boss run over and get another B.E. motor though only have one, right side. Thanx for the info too. Would hate to find out some Fri afternoon the hard way.

[talkintrash]

Re: National B.E. Motors

I work on 90's but I learned a cool trick (and this might be what you did).

To separate the gearboxes (on a 90), pull the 3 bolts holding the motor/gearbox together off. Then you take a 7/16 - 14 tap and tap the holes on the motor. Rotate the motor so that the holes line up with the gearbox casting. Then you take a 7/16 - 14 x 2 1/2 bolt and screw it into the holes, wrenching on it a little at one bolt and a little at another...want to apply an even amount of pressure. With a little effort, the gearbox should pry away from the motor. It sure beats doing it with a screwdriver and a BFH.

[Lampie]

Re: National B.E. Motors

Originally posted by masternut:
[QB]Sorry,Nationals are not reverseable...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Most of my National motors are from Quality and you CAN reverse them(just have to swap the start winding).
Martin

[Dutch]

Re: National B.E. Motors

Original National motors are not reversible. However, most of the National replacement motors are.

To separate stubborn motors from their gearboxes;

1) Remove the bolts &amp; thread them in from the gearbox side.
2) Turn the motor slightly (So that the bolts meet the flat part of the bottom of the motor)
3) Turn the bolts equally, a little at a time until the bolts bottom out.

This should get you far enough to be able to jiggle it the rest of the way off. If not, use 2 pry bars (one on each side) to pry the motor straight off. This is most easily done with 2 people or you may end up dropping the motor into the pit. Been there…

To keep this from happening again;

1) Find a way to supply power to the motor while it’s on your bench.
2) Start the motor &amp; LIGHTLY apply pressure to the shaft with a file. (Emery cloth will also work)

File the length of the shaft evenly &amp; only enough to allow you to assemble it without having to jiggle it much.
(Note) Size it without the key. The key should fit tight. If it's too tight, you may mistake the tightness of the key for tightness of the shaft.

When assembling, apply anti-seize to the shaft. You should be able to find it at your local hardware store or you can get it from Grainger.

[RGP]

Re: National B.E. Motors

Great tips guys. I thought of the bolts in backwards today (A day late and a dollor short). How do I tell which style motor I have and if I have the old style does anyone have an extra used RH (even # machine) National BE motor they want to sell.