15 amp vs 20 amp
Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 11:44 am
I replace the 14 or 16 gauge wire from the motors with 12 gauge black and white stranded wire for my personal Shopsmiths and on any motor that I am replacing the bearings since I have the motor disassemblied. I find most of the 3/4 HP motors have the wire insulation breaking down internally so I replace the wires on all 3/4 HP motors. Also, I use insulated terminals for the switch connections.
jg300da wrote:Bingo. The circuit breaker is there to protect the WIRE. Nothing else. It doesn't care what type of load is connected, inductive (like the Shopsmith) or resistive (like incandescent shop lighting).
Upgrading the wire from the panel to the Shopsmith outlet means nothing unless you also upgrade the 14ga SJ cordset that came with your Shopsmith from the factory as Ed did. The circuit is only as strong as the weakest link.