Shopsmith Forums

Hey All,

I have a PPro and and considering running a 220 outlet for it. I am wondering if the power difference from going to 220 would be worth the extra trouble to run the line and install a 220 breaker? Are there other benefits that I should consider?

Thanks
Jack

claimdude wrote:Hey All,

I have a PPro and and considering running a 220 outlet for it. I am wondering if the power difference from going to 220 would be worth the extra trouble to run the line and install a 220 breaker? Are there other benefits that I should consider?

Thanks
Jack

Do you have 220 vac available in the shop or do you have to pull a line from the breaker box?

I have both 110 and 220 wired in my garage and so far I have only used 110 for my PowerPro. I have used the band saw, joiner, table saw, disk sander, drill press and lathe and have had no issues which would cause me to think the 220 would do a better job. So, for the money I spent putting in 220 I might have been better off buying something else I need for my SS first.

Jack,
It is almost 6 of one, half a dozen of another… Someone else today asked about installing a 220/240 outlet & breaker himself. It's one of those things you either feel comfortable with or don't. I can do it with my eyes closed, but I have a graduate degree from the school of hard knocks. I was almost electrocuted once because I assumed something was safe & locked out- but it wasn't. I don't suggest anyone to electrical work if they are not completely sure of what they are doing.

The Power Pro gives you 1 3/4 HP with constant torque over the 1 1/8 HP Mark V motor which does what it needs to do- but once you use the Power Pro, you'll fall in love- well, you know what I mean.

The benefit of 220/240 for the Power Pro is 1/4 more HP and the ability to use other 220/240 VAC tools in your shop.

Different people have different circumstances. In my case, my shop was 100 feet from my main circuit breaker panel. I was losing too much voltage because of the long home run from the outlet the garage/shop to the breaker panel in the far side of my basement. My Mark V was constantly tripping the beaker in the basement as there were several outlets (loads) on the 20 amp run. Ever watch the 1960's show "Green Acres"? The solution?

I ran a new 100-amp subpanel from the basement & into the garage/shop & then dedicated circuits to each of my power tools. This totally improved performance and eliminated any circuit breaker tripping whenever I used my Mark V and other tools along with the Shop Vac.

You make do with what you have & can afford.

People often use 50/100/150 foot extension cords and wonder why their tools run slow. They don't realize how much loss a 14-gauge extension cord has. Well, the same thing happens inside the walls of one's home when a person starts to add different loads to the original wiring of a house that was meant only to power lights & they expect to run power tools & then experience problems like tripped breakers.

I knew one guy who wired a window air conditioner in his garage to the garage lighting circuit. To stop the 15-amp breaker from tripping, he put in a 20-amp breaker… I pointed this out to the guy and he told me to mind my own business. He used essentially a 20-amp load and a 20-amp breaker and only a 15-amp wire… He was too cheap to buy 25 feet of 12 gauge wire.

If you are setting up a shop, it might be worth installing a subpanel which will extremely simplify the running of wires from the tools to the box by keeping them short. The benefits are worth the trouble if you plan on expanding your shop or adding more circuits to your house if your main circuit breaker panel is on the distant end of the house like mine was. But if the panel is in your garage, it will be relatively simple and much easier to add a 220/240 outlet.

Good luck. (corrected. I had put down 1.5 hp at 120 VAC. My bad. It's 1.75 HP)

dusty wrote:Do you have 220 vac available in the shop or do you have to pull a line from the breaker box?

I will need to pull from the breaker box. I have a 220 outlet on other side of shop that runs the a/c.

Jack

backhertz wrote:Jack,
It is almost 6 of one, half a dozen of another… Someone else today asked about installing a 220/240 outlet & breaker himself. It's one of those things you either feel comfortable with or don't. I can do it with my eyes closed, but I have a graduate degree from the school of hard knocks. I was almost electrocuted once because I assumed something was safe & locked out- but it wasn't. I don't suggest anyone to electrical work if they are not completely sure of what they are doing.

The Power Pro gives you 1 1/2 HP with constant torque over the 1 1/8 HP Mark V motor which does what it needs to do- but once you use the Power Pro, you'll fall in love- well, you know what I mean.

The benefit of 220/240 for the Power Pro is 1/2 more HP and the ability to use other 220/240 VAC tools in your shop.

Different people have different circumstances. In my case, my shop was 100 feet from my main circuit breaker panel. I was losing too much voltage because of the long home run from the outlet the garage/shop to the breaker panel in the far side of my basement. My Mark V was constantly tripping the beaker in the basement as there were several outlets (loads) on the 20 amp run. Ever watch the 1960's show "Green Acres"? The solution?

I ran a new 100-amp subpanel from the basement & into the garage/shop & then dedicated circuits to each of my power tools. This totally improved performance and eliminated any circuit breaker tripping whenever I used my Mark V and other tools along with the Shop Vac.

You make do with what you have & can afford.

People often use 50/100/150 foot extension cords and wonder why their tools run slow. They don't realize how much loss a 14-gauge extension cord has. Well, the same thing happens inside the walls of one's home when a person starts to add different loads to the original wiring of a house that was meant only to power lights & they expect to run power tools & then experience problems like tripped breakers.

I knew one guy who wired a window air conditioner in his garage to the garage lighting circuit. To stop the 15-amp breaker from tripping, he put in a 20-amp breaker… I pointed this out to the guy and he told me to mind my own business. He used essentially a 20-amp load and a 20-amp breaker and only a 15-amp wire… He was too cheap to buy 25 feet of 12 gauge wire.

If you are setting up a shop, it might be worth installing a subpanel which will extremely simplify the running of wires from the tools to the box by keeping them short. The benefits are worth the trouble if you plan on expanding your shop or adding more circuits to your house if your main circuit breaker panel is on the distant end of the house like mine was. But if the panel is in your garage, it will be relatively simple and much easier to add a 220/240 outlet.

Good luck.

Thanks for the input. My shop is set up already and there is room in my breaker box for a 220 amp circuit. I am just wondering if the extra half horse would be beneficial when ripping hardwood? In other words would I be able to appreciably increase the feed rate of a 3/4 in piece of walnut with the extra half horse? Also, my shop is only 16x24 but is full of tools and moving my PPro to another location would not work.

Jack

You might consider a making a heavy duty extension cord for now. I know it's too cold in NJ to use an air conditioner right now. You could go to one of the stores and purchase a couple of plugs and receptacles to see how it works for yourself. I made an extension cord for mine & didn't notice a difference for what I was doing.

I have no experience in comparing the 120 VAC operation of the Power Pro vs 220/240 VAC operation. The strength of the Power Pro is in the constant torque as I understand it. I am not sure if you will notice a difference providing your TS blade is sharp.

backhertz wrote:You might consider a making a heavy duty extension cord for now. I know it's too cold in NJ to use an air conditioner right now. You could go to one of the stores and purchase a couple of plugs and receptacles to see how it works for yourself. I made an extension cord for mine & didn't notice a difference for what I was doing.

I have no experience in comparing the 120 VAC operation of the Power Pro vs 220/240 VAC operation. The strength of the Power Pro is in the constant torque as I understand it. I am not sure if you will notice a difference providing your TS blade is sharp.

That's a great idea! I make an extension cord and use the 220 outlet across the room when doing some heavy ripping for direct comparison.

Thanks again,
Jack

claimdude wrote:Thanks for the input. My shop is set up already and there is room in my breaker box for a 220 amp circuit. I am just wondering if the extra half horse would be beneficial when ripping hardwood? In other words would I be able to appreciably increase the feed rate of a 3/4 in piece of walnut with the extra half horse? Also, my shop is only 16x24 but is full of tools and moving my PPro to another location would not work.

Jack

The only place I notice the difference and it could be in my head is when I use my 8lb Dadonator blade doing 3/4 dado's. The blade comes up to speed noticeably faster and stays there no matter what I cut.

The main advantages of 220 over 110 is in the power usage and output torque. If you are not on the machine everyday all day, you might not notice the difference in either of these. If you are in a production shop, you might consider it. It will make a difference in your overall power bill and in tough situations you would have more torque to turn the bit.