Need help wiring Baldor 8100W

[Mr. Wonderful]

I recently aquired a Baldor 8100W. It came with a four prong twist lock cord on it. The label in the picture shows that it can run on 115v. Can anyone help point me to how to wire this from 230v to 115v? It has all white wires inside which is what is making it more difficult for me to understand. There are two black, one red and one green that were inside going to the internal white wires. Attached are the pictures of how it is set up now. Thank you

 

[Norcal]

There should be numbers stamped on the individual conductors, check that and if that is the case just connect them per the wiring diagram and you will be good to go.

 

[bczygan]

Why not run a 240V circuit?

Bill

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

There should be numbers stamped on the individual conductors, check that and if that is the case just connect them per the wiring diagram and you will be good to go.

You'll have to forgive me on this one I havent been able to locate any markings that relate to that decal on the outside. I'm afraid electrical work is my weakest dicipline.

One black wire goes to the left side of the swich. The red wire is connected to both sides of the switch. And the second black wire is connected to the right of the switch and up to the motor.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Why not run a 240V circuit?

Bill

I dont have a 240v outlet in a convienient area for needs or I would love to leave it as is.

 

[bczygan]

I dont have a 240v outlet in a convienient area for needs or I would love to leave it as is.

It is so easy to run a 240V circuit though.

Wire plus outlet plus breaker.

Boom! Done!

Bill

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

It is so easy to run a 240V circuit though.

Wire plus outlet plus breaker.

Boom! Done!

Bill

I appreciate the idea but I'd really rather just have it 115v. I asked on GJ a little while back if there would be any significant performance loss by changing it to 115 and everyone said no.

 

[BillK]

Are you certain there are no numbers on the white wires ? Look with a magnifying glass. Without knowing where the individual white wires go it will be impossible to tell you anything. If there are no numbers on them you might have to pull it further apart to see where they are going.

 

[tysonxj]

Check again for labels on the 4 white wires that come out of the motor body, they will be there, L1, L2, L3, L4.
Assuming it was wired for 240V before: L2 & L3 are connected with a wire nut. (top right of photo)
Switch looks fine, 2 poles, 4 wires.
Remove the wire nut from L2 & L3, separate the wires, and connect L2 to L4, and L3 to L1.

YMMV

 

[BillK]

Switch looks fine, 2 poles, 4 wires.

My bad, I missed the two hidden on the right side

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Check again for labels on the 4 white wires that come out of the motor body, they will be there, L1, L2, L3, L4.
Assuming it was wired for 240V before: L2 & L3 are connected with a wire nut. (top right of photo)
Switch looks fine, 2 poles, 4 wires.
Remove the wire nut from L2 & L3, separate the wires, and connect L2 to L4, and L3 to L1.

YMMV

Tyson, thank you for the input. When you say L2 & L3 do you mean the ones with the black wire nut connected to the black wire?

Once those are separated if there are no markings how do I tell which is which? Lets get real ambitious for a moment and assume I can get this done the way you say. The wires on the new power cord would then be white to 1 and 3 and black to 2 and 4? If I read that decal correctly?

If the wires are not marked at all what would you suggest be the best way to identify them? Im guessing trial and error is not an option here.

And lastly the wires for the eye shields. Do the black and white wires from them just go the same wire nut as the white and black on the new cord?

 

[MattT]

The following positions refer to the third picture:

Incoming power is the far left black and bottom red which connect to white switch wires.

The two white motor leads tied together with a black wire nut at the very top are 2 & 3.

The yellow wire nut covering the switch is either 1 or 4.

The black wire nut with two whites and a black is the other 1 or 4. The black wire appears to be a switched tap which was probably used for external lighting or dust extraction so it can be removed.

The two motor to capacitor connections should be left as they are.

For figuring out which white motor leads are which disconnect 2 & 3 then check continuity between each of them and one of the 1 or 4 connections. You'll have a few ohms across one and the other will be open circuit. Connect the open one to that 1 or 4 connection. Then connect the one that showed a few ohms to the other 1 or 4.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Matt, thank you for the reply. I am still trying to work on this.

I dont know if this helps but I showed the pictures to an electrician at work. He was busy doing his own work and took a minute to help. He said it looks like it was wired for 3 phase and needs to be changed back so single phase. What does this change to what I need to do to get this on 115v?

 

[DieselNut88]

That is a single phase motor. Not 3 phase. You need to identify the wires and hook them up per the diagram. If the numbers are gone you should leave it as is.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Matt, thank you for the reply. I am still trying to work on this.

I dont know if this helps but I showed the pictures to an electrician at work. He was busy doing his own work and took a minute to help. He said it looks like it was wired for 3 phase and needs to be changed back so single phase. What does this change to what I need to do to get this on 115v?

No way that is 3 phase.

Your coworker wasnt paying attention.

 

[MattT]

Matt, thank you for the reply. I am still trying to work on this.

I dont know if this helps but I showed the pictures to an electrician at work. He was busy doing his own work and took a minute to help. He said it looks like it was wired for 3 phase and needs to be changed back so single phase. What does this change to what I need to do to get this on 115v?

You're welcome. The extra black wire does make it look like it's maybe three phase at first glance. It's not and hooking it up to 3 phase would result in a phase to phase short across the switch

The black wire nut with two whites and a black is the other 1 or 4. The black wire appears to be a switched tap which was probably used for external lighting or dust extraction so it can be removed.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

To all thank you for your help! I was able with some help to get this beast properly hooked up and running!

One last question, the bulbs on the eye shields look like automotive bulbs. They have no markings and I would like to get some LED replacements. What type of bulb is this so I can search the right kind???? They twist in.

 

[Norcal]

To all thank you for your help! I was able with some help to get this beast properly hooked up and running!

One last question, the bulbs on the eye shields look like automotive bulbs. They have no markings and I would like to get some LED replacements. What type of bulb is this so I can search the right kind???? They twist in.

The lamps have a double contact bayonet base but are 120 volts they can be found in either 15 or 25 watt, look for appliance lamps at a big box store. Edit: you might find them in LED.