Bader BC 154 speed control.

Jesse Latham

Well-Known Member
I have a new to me Bader III with a DC motor (factory) and a Baldor BC154 control. It was set to run on 220 when I bought it but I've changed it to 110 with the help of the Baldor manual. The issue is it runs on at a low speed when the speed control is at the lowest setting. If speeded up then turned down it stops for a moment then runs again. Reading the manual I don't find a trim pot to adjust. Or more likely I have no idea what to look for because it's like all greek to me. I'm looking for help, thanks in advance.
 
I've own one of those, and if it is indeed a BC154, there is a "min" trim pot. According to the manual:
Minimum Speed (MIN)The MIN trimpot sets the minimum speed of the motor as a % of full range.
Adjust the MIN trimpot as follows:1. Rotate Main Potentiometer to minimum speed position (full counterclockwise).2. Increase setting of MIN trimpot so that motor runs at desired minimum speed.

What this means is that depending on how this trim pot is set, the motor MAY not completely stop when the speed dial is set to it's lowest setting. Most recently I owned/used a BC160 controller, and even with the trim pot set to "0", and the speed dial turned all the way down, the motor still slightly turned.

There could also be other things impacting the situation..... you didn't mention the motor (90V or 180V?), HP? I'm assuming that since you got everything as a unit, the motor/controller are properly matched. I do know that there are a number of settings/jumpers that must be changed when going from 220V to 110V or vice-versa.....any of those not properly set can cause issues.

Something to be aware of with DC motors/controllers..... they need to be wired into a shut off switch between the incoming power and the controller....otherwise the field (controller wiring and motor windings) will always have current running through them..... I burnt out my first DC motor because I didn't have a power shutoff. I came into the shop one morning, smelled something like "hot electrical" and found the motor housing too hot to touch! Needless to say, I'd toasted the motor by leaving power applied to it overnight, and was lucky the shop was still standing. That mistake cost me $350 to have that motor re-wound. That was at a time when there was no such thing as VFDs readily available. Once VFDs came about, I switched to them (and 3-phase motors) and would never go back to DC controllers/motor, unless there was no other choice.

I hesitated to say this previously, but.... DC technology is rather old and somewhat fragile. Personally, I would consider changing out to a VFD and a 3-phase motor...... far more hardy, and not nearly as finicky when it comes to settings and such.
 
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That DC motor also has brushes, if you look you'll see two flat head cap screws on either side of the motor. once in a while they'll get funky on the ends and the motor will jog on it's own at different speeds. you can pull those brushes out and reface them by just touching them to a disk sander or platen to make them flat. I do that to mine usually once a year and it runs like new. that might help your new to you machine run better, good luck.
 
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