Strippit Servo Drive Motors
The Strippit Company used D.C. Brush-Type Servo Motors on all their HECC80 CNC and "A" NC Control Turret Punch Machines Manufactured in the 1970's & 1980's.
This discussion will pertain only to these Motors used on Strippit Machines of this Era. They are Typically Tagged as
Porter / Peerless / Magna / Machine Technology on the Motor Name-Plate.
I Stock, Here at Machine Technologies, All these Servo Motors, and I can Provide Motor Testing, Rebuilt-Exchange Motors, Rebuilding of Your Motors, & Repair Parts.
Later-on, in 1986 on FC1000/3's, and in 1987 on the FC1250/30/1500 Machines,
Strippit started Converting to the Fanuc GN6 Controls,
which used Fanuc's Own D.C. Servo Drive Motors.
Around 1989, Strippit Converted again to the New Fanuc OP Controls,
which used a Newer & Superior Motor Technology, A.C. Servo Drive Motors.
A.C Motors & Motor Drives are a Superior Technologies,
But God Help You if you Need to Replace one of these Fanuc Motors,
because Fanuc often Quotes Months Delivery and Costs of $10,000 to $15,000!
I Do Not Repair or Stock Any Fanuc Motors at this Time.
The Following are these DC Servo Motor Types,
and the Strippit HECC80 Control Machines that they were Used On;
Strippit #17539-000
Model #181-04-0020-0
Used on the T-Axis of FC1000/1, FC1000/2, and FC1250/30/1500 Machines with 20-Station Turrets. But is Not used on 33-Station FC1250/30/1500 Machines.
This Motor is the Same as the #17497-000 Motor, Except it does Not have the Air Cooling Ports. You can Substitute a #17497-000 for a #17539-000 on a
T-Axis, but you can not Substitute a #17539-000 for a #17497-000 on a X-Axis because of the Lack of Cooling Ports.
Brushes & Caps are Same as #17497-000.
Strippit #17497-000
Model #181-04-0011-0
Used on the X-Axis on Strippit FC750, FC750/2, FC1000/1, FC1000/2 Machines. Has a 1 1/2" Pipe-Thread Cooling-Air Inlet Port at the Back of Motor, Air goes through Motor and Out Slots at Bottom Front of Motor.
Uses 4 -- #17506-000 Brushes. Most Motors use 3/4" Small-Disk Type Brush Caps, Older Motors use Cup-Type Brush Cap with Inside Threads.
Strippit #17360-000
Model #181-12-0015-0
Used on the Y-Axis of FC750, FC750/2, FC1000/1, FC1000/2, FC1250/30/1500, FC1250/30/1500 LaserTool, FC1250/45,
and Blanking Center Machines.
Motors use 6 -- #17788-000 Brushes and 7/8" Disk Brush-Caps.
Strippit #17538-000
Model #181-12-0019-0
Used on the X-Axis of FC1250/30/1500, FC1250/30/1500 Lasertool, FC1250/45,
and Blanking Center Machines.
This is just a Shorter Version of the #17360-000 Motor.
Motors use 6 -- #17788-000 Brushes and 7/8" Disk Brush-Caps.
Strippit #17510-000
Model #183-18-0190-0
Used on the T-Axis of FC1250/45,
and the Old-Style FC51/30 & FC1250/30 (Not FC1250/30/1500) Machines.
Motors use 8 -- #17506-000 Brushes and Special Top-Hat Disk or the Small 3/4" Brush-Caps.
This particular Motor is a "Pull" from a Machine I Scraped, and still has it's Coupling & Special Geared Resolver Feedback Package.
Strippit #17463-000
Model #181-04-0034-0
Used on the T-Axis of FC1000/3 and FC1250/30/1500 Machines with
33-Station Turrets.
Motors use 4 -- #19463-000 "Type-C" Brushes, and have a Steel Rectangle Brush-Cover.
This Motor was also Sometimes used on the X-Axis of FC750, FC750/2, FC1000/1, and FC1000/2 Machines in a Mistaken Attempt at Increased Reliability. They will work OK, but give No Added Benefit, and Cost a Lot More.
This particular Motor is one that I just Personally Rebuilt.
Strippit #19399-000
Model #191-04-0029-0
Used Only-On the
Y-Axis of FC1000/3 Machines.
Motors use 4 -- #19463-000 "Type-C" Brushes, and have a Steel Rectangle Brush-Cover.
Strippit #19462-000
Model #191-04-0033-0
Used Only-On the
X-Axis of FC1000/3 Machines.
Motors use 4 -- #19463-000 "Type-C" Brushes, and have a Steel Rectangle Brush-Cover.
#17506-000
"Small Brush"
.250" Thick x
.500" Wide x
.625" Long
The Round Plastic Brush Caps used on these Motors are Easily Chipped and Broken by Careless Removal with a Screwdriver. Make a Special Tool from Thin Sheetmetal Cut to the Width of each Caps Slot. We Stock the Following Replacement Brush Caps.
Motor Brushes & Caps
Motor Brushes should be Checked Regularly for Wear. Replace Brushes if Worn to Half their New Length. Check X & T Motor Brushes once a Year, and check Y-Axis Brushes every 6-Months. Check more often if these seem to be Wearing Rapidly.
I usually "Tag" Each Motor on Machine with It's Brush "Inspection Date",
or else keep a Repair Maintenance Log Book with this Data Recorded in it.
If you Don't Check them, Brushes will Wear Down until Carbon is Gone,
the Copper Wire & Steel-Spring Digs & Burns into the Commutator, Ruining Motor.
#17788-000
"Large Brush"
.250" Thick x
.750" Wide x
.750" Long
#19463-000
"Type-C Brush"
for FC1000/3's
.250" Thick x
1.000" Wide x
.875" Long
"Small-Disk" Type Brush-Cap that are used on Most of the Motors that use the Small #17506-000 Brush.
3/4" Wide with Outer-Diameter Threads
"Small-Cup" Type Brush-Caps that are used on a Old-Style Motors that use the Small #17506-000 Brush.
13/16" Wide with Inner-Diameter Threads
"Large-Disk" Type Brush-Caps that are used on Most of the Motors that use the Large #17788-000 Brush.
7/8" Wide with Outer-Diameter Threads
Steel Rectangle Type Brush-Cover that are used on the FC1000/3 "Type C" Motors that use the #19463-000 Brush.
Early Version Covers had Cork-Insulation Glued on the Underside. Later Covers Also had a a Heavy-Paper Shield to help protect against the Brush-Wire from Shorting against the Motor Housing.
This page was last updated: August 4, 2007
Tachometers are Built-In to the Back-End of each Motor. This is the Velocity Transducer
(DC Generator) that tells the Servo-Drive how Fast the Motor is Rotating. A Properly Working Tach is Critical to Operation of the Servo-Drive.
A Good Clean Tach Assembly will read about 60 to 70 Ohms. Check it, Rotate Motor Shaft a Bit by Hand and Check it again. Repeat several times more to gain confidence that the Tach is Working OK in All Positions.
A Bad Tach will show Thousands or More of Resistance in Ohms. Usually caused by;
--- Dirty or Tarnished Tach Commutator, Clean with
Soft Pencil Eraser or Fine Scotch-Brite Pad.
--- Stuck Tach Brush. Take out Holder & Clean out
with Electrical Cleaner, and Very Lightly Sand 4
Brush Sides with 400 Grit Paper.
--- Bad Tach Armature. The Potting Compound on
Armature Shrinks with Age and Breaks the Fine
Wires in Armature.
Tach Armature Must be Replaced.
--- Bent Tach Brush, you can Not Fix Bent Springs,
they Must be Replaced!
Springs are Bent by Careless Brush Insertion.
I Carefully Pull-Back the Spring with a Small
Screwdriver while Pushing In the Tach Brush
with Another Small Screwdriver.
This Tach-Ring is Installed Upside Down! Tach-Cable is Usually at the Top of the Motor.
This Motor has the Original "Blue" Type Tach-Ring with the Original Type 25-segment
Tach-Armature.
Tachometers
In the Good-Old Days,
there was just 1 Type of Tach-Ring & it's Armature, the "Blue" Type.
Then, there was a 2nd Type, the "Black" Type-Ring & and it's Armature.
The "Black" Type Used a Different Size Tach-Ring, Armature, and Magnet-Set Inside
the Motor, so None of the Parts are Interchangeable with the "Blue" Type.
However, as Technology Changed and Venders Come & Go, The "Color" of the
Tach-Ring and Tach-Armature has become Almost Meaningless.
I have seen Blue, 2 sizes of Black, Green, Tan, Red, Etc. of Tach-Rings.
There are really still only 2 Types regardless of the actual Color.
I Measure the Outside Diameter of the Tach Armature to tell them apart.
The "Blue" Type of Tachometer Assemblies will have a Tach Armature with a
Outside Diameter of about 1.895 Inches.
The "Black" Type of Tachometer Assembly will have a Tach Armature with a
Outside Diameter of about 1.937 Inches.
To further complicate, "Blue" Tach Armatures Originally had 25-Segments & Windings.
But to get Better Servo Response at Low Speeds for Laser Continuous Contouring,
a New Type of Armature was Manufactured with 33-Segments and Windings. As long as they are of the Same Type (Blue or Black) and Same Size, 25 & 33 Segment Types are Interchangeable, but with the 33 Type giving Better Servo Response.
Both the "Blue" & "Black" Tach Rings used the Same #17774-300 Tach-Brushs.
Old Brushes were a Dark-Black Color
as they were made of a
Dry Hard Carbon that sometimes would Wear a Groove into the Tach Armature, which would Destroy it.
Later Brushes had More Graphite in the Carbon-Mix, which provided some Lubrication Properties, and would Prevent The Wear-Problem as the
Machines got Faster & Faster.
These Newer Brushes were Silvery
in Color and had a Waxy Feel.
There are at Least 2
"Blue" Type Tach Rings,
Part #17774-100
The Original Blue-Color
"Blue" Type.
And,
a Late Manufacture
"Blue" Type that
happens to be Black in Color.
Here is a Original "Blue" Type 25-Segment Tach Armature that happens to be Red, #17774-000.
The Original "Blue" Color
really referred Only
to the Tach Ring-Color,
Not the Armature Color.
And a Late Manufacture
33-Segment "Blue" Type Armature used in Later Motors.
Here is the Real
"Black" Tach Ring #17774-500.
And, it's #17774-400 Armature.
I Believe that all
"Black" Tachs used only this type 33-Segment Armature.
Note! Most Motors used the "Blue" Tach. I Believe The "Black" Tach was only used on some of the #17360-000
and #17538-000 Motors.
Motor Killers
Here are 2 Armatures from Stalled Servo Motors that got So Hot that the
Plastic Insulation Melted and Oozed Out of the Armatures!
This Starts to Happens at about 400 Degrees Fahrenheit! The Magnet-Wire Insulation Breaks-Down, the Windings Short & Arc Together, and Motor becomes Junk.
Here are Some (But Certainly Not All) of the Causes of Servo Motor Failure;
1 --- The Biggest Cause of Servo Motor Failure is Heat.
When a Motor is Stalled, it Pulls Maximum Current,
and can Overheat and Burn-Out a Motor in only a Minute or Two,
if the Operator is Not Smart Enough to Shut-Off Machine and Clear the Jam-Up!
--- Some causes are a Jammed X or Y Axis. This Occurs when the Machine Pulls a Slug Jamming the Part-Sheet or a Punch Sticks-Down causing a Jam AND it is a Short
(Under 3 Inches) Axis Move so the Control does Not Declare a "Excess Error" and Shutdown the Servo Drive. So, the Control keeps telling the Stalled-Jammed Motor to Move. If the Operator does Not shut off Machine, you Risk Burning the Motor.
--- Sometimes the X or Y Axis Limit Switches are Not Working, or some Knuckle-Head "Adjusted" Switches to try to get a Little More Travel Length on the Axis. Then, if you have a Operator Error, or a Programming Error, or a Control Failure that causes Axis to Hit the End of the Axis-Travel, you Stall the Motor, like Above, and Burn Out the Motor.
--- Similar Jams on the Turret from Slugs, or a Too-Tall Tool Hitting Ram, or a Jammed Part-Sheet still Stuck to a Tool, when the Turret tries to make a Short Move, and causes the same Stalled Motor Burn Out.
These Same Technicians Then think a Megohmmeter is The Answer,
and will tell them a "Bad" Motor.
In Most cases, this is Also Wrong!
A Ohmmeter puts out about a Volt or 2, and then Measures the It's Current Flow,
to Determine the Resistance of a Circuit.
A Megohmmeter uses a Hi-Voltage to do the Same thing. My Megohmmeter at the Left can Put-Out Over a Thousand Volts!
The Idea is, at Hi-Voltage, the Bad or "Cooked" Insulation will Break-Down
and the Megohmmeter will Detect it.
But, You can Not Read the Insulation Breakdown, Winding to Winding, with Either type of Meter! Both of the 2
Melted & Shorted Armatures in the Picture Above will Pass the Megohmmeter Test at the Highest 1000 Volt Setting,
yet these are Quite Bad Armatures!
The Magnet Shell at the Right also Got So Hot that the Glue that Holds the Magnets inside Broke Down, and all the Magnet Segments came out when Motor was Disassembled.
It's Junk Now Also.
Some Technicians try to Determine a Shorted or Burned-Out Motor with a Ohm Meter. You Can't!!!
Most Motors Burn-Out by Shorting their Windings Together,
and You Can Not Ohm This Out!
These Technicians Meg the Armature to Ground.
As there is Always Dirt and Carbon Dust Coating the Inside of the Motor,
they Will Always get a "Reading".
They then Declare the Motor is "Shorted", and send it out to be Rebuilt.
The Motor could Indeed be Bad,
But This Test will Not Prove it One Way or the Other,
as this is Not the Normal Failure Mode!
3 --- Another Common Cause of Motor Failures is Worn-Out Brushes.
Customers Fail to do Routine Maintenance like Check their 3 (X,Y,T) Servo Motor Brushes, which then Wear-Down Until they Destroy the Motor Commutator,
and possibly also the Servo Drive Electronics.
I can Sell You New Brushes, or I can Sell You Motors & Servo-Drives, Your Choice.
Below Photo Shows a New Brush on the Left, and
3 Worn-Out Brushes I Dug-Out of a Customer's Motor. They got to Buy a New Motor.
4 --- Another Common Cause of Motor Failures is Impact Damage.
Motors are Relatively Fragile. Impacts can Break the Magnets Loose inside Motor,
Pull Out the Studs Holding Motor Together, and Break the Resolver Feedback Package Off the End of the Motor, among other Failures. People in Shops Run Into Motors with their Fork-Lifts and Bump them with Work-Tables. Put Guard-Rails around Machine.
Replacement Motors and Motors being Returned for Credit are often Damaged by Shipping! They Must be Very Well Packed in a Heavy-Duty Carton with Lots of Tight Packing Materials. I Now Double-Pack the Bigger Motors inside 2 Boxes.
I often get a Return Motor Back that was just Thrown into a Box with Little or No Packing Material around it, and it comes-in with Part of Motor Sticking Outside of the Box! Needless to say, These Damaged Motors Do Not Receive Credit for the Return.
2 --- More Motor Heat Failures are caused by No Cooling Air-Flow.
The X & Y Motors, and the T Motor on some Machines, are Forced Air Cooled.
-- Is there a Strong Air-Flow coming out of Motor?
-- Is the Cooling Fan Motor Running?
-- Is the Air Filter Clogged-Up?
-- Are the Air Hoses Rotted out?
Find and Repair the above Problems!!!
5 --- Local Motor Shops Permanently Kill a Lot of Servo Motors.
When a Shop Burns-Out a Servo Motor on one of their Machines,
they usually try to go Cheap, and "Give the Local Motor Rewind Shop" a Try.
The Problem Is, Most Motor Shops are Set-Up to Rewind A.C. Motors,
NOT D.C. Servo Motors, which are Very Different!
These Motor Shops Always Do 1 of 2 Things;
A --- They Take Apart Motor and Often Damage Armature & Tach-Armature & Magnet Shell Further. They then "Cut" the Commutator, usually Improperly, which Ruins this Critical Part. Finally, they replace Bearings, Cut-Down and Adapt some Brushes to Fit, Paint It, and Declare it "Rebuilt". When the Customer gets it Back, it is Still Bad or even Worse than Before. Then the Customer (You) is Pissed as you now have a "Rebuild" Bill, Machine is Still Not Running, and You & Repairman Still Don't Know What's Wrong.
B --- Or, They usually Damage the Magnet-Shell, Armature, and the Fragile Tachometer Armature because they do Not Know how to even Take Motor Apart. They then Screw-Around with Motor a While, then they Give-Up, Throw All the Parts Loose & Damaged in a Box, and return the Whole Mess to Customer. Then Customer sends it to Me for a "Trade-In", as I Sell Most Motors on an Exchange Basis. I have been Repairing Strippit's for Over 30 Years, and I have seen "A" & "B" above Over & Over again!
If Anyone Has Opened-Up Motor & Tried to "Repair It", I No Longer Will Give Any Credit!
Below, is a Photo of 1 such Servo Motor Just as I Received It from a Customer,
who used a "Local" Motor Shop to "Try to Rebuild".
--- Motor Arrived with Shaft Sticking Out of Box, and All Parts were Loose Inside.
--- Tach Ring is Broken in to Pieces.
--- Wire was Stripped-Off Motor Armature & Commutator, Damaging Both.
--- Tach Armature had it's Wire Stripped-Off, and is Broken into 2 pieces,
--- Parts are Missing.
So, For those of You who are a little Slow on the Up-Take,
Do Not Take Your Servo Motor Apart,
You Will Damage It!!!
Do Not Take Your Servo Motor To The "Local" Motor Shop,
They Will Damage It!!!
Because of this Problem, I started Rebuilding Servo Motors for Strippit Machines 17 Years ago. All My Servo Motors are Washed, Armatures are Completely Rewound, Magnet Shells Replaced if Necessary, Brush Holder Problems Repaired, Tach Ring
and Tach Armatures Repaired, New Brushes and Bearings Installed, and any other Problems Repaired.
And Finally,
Every One of My Servo Motors are Run on One of My Strippit CNC Punch Machines,
and Tested for Proper Operation, Tuning, and Accel & Decel Characteristics.
No one Else in the World Does This, Servo Motor Testing on a Real Strippit Machine,
so We & You Know that it is a Good Motor that will Perform to Spec on Your Machine.
Motor is then Painted & Boxed-Up after this Final Machine Testing,
so we can Just Pull-It off the Shelf for Quick Overnight Shipping.
6 --- Resolver Feedback Packages and Couplings Eventually Wear-Out and Fail.
The Cables going to the Feedback Package can also Fail.
This Loss of Position Feedback can Then cause the Axis to Run-Away and Crash into the End of Axis Travel, which can cause both Mechanical Damage and Heat Damage to Motor from being in a "Stalled" Condition.
If you see occasional Axis "Jumping Position" this can be a Warning Sign that Feedback Package or Cables are Wearing out.
Fix or Replace Now to Prevent More Problems!
#17546-000
Resolver Feedback Package
and
#17648-000
Resolver Coupling
We Keep Both of these
Parts In-Stock.
To Recap, We Stock Strippit;
--- D.C. Servo Motors
--- Motor Brushes
--- Brush Caps
--- Tachometer Armatures
--- Tachometer Rings
--- Tachometer Brushes
--- Resolver Feedback Packages
--- Feedback Cables
--- Resolver Coupling
--- Servo Motor Drives
There is More Motor Information on our
"Common Strippit Machine Problems & Fixes" Web-Page.
Above is a Servo Motor I received after a "Local Shop" tried to Rebuilt it.
