# Leeson AC motors



## spankyway (Jun 14, 2008)

I have a Leeson 220VAC electric motor, I think it is 7.5 hp, would this be a good motor to start with to make an EV? I will be looking for to build a small lightweight car that can reach 55 mph and make a 75 mile round trip to work and back. I could most likely plug in at work and recharge in necessary but I would like to see about building one that could make it round trip for me.
I would be looking at maybe a Fiero, older Civic or Corolla, something small like that.
If this motor will work, how do I go about converting the battery DC to AC to drive my motor?


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

I'm not an ev expert but I think you need a little more power than that. HOWEVER, I too am looking at industrial motors to power my project. It would be good to experiment with if you have the resources.

I'm thinking of buying a motor and some sort of drive, ev or otherwise, and trying it out. I can get the motors cheap from a machinery recycling operation near my shop. They sell them for scrap! They even sell on ebay for a couple hundred dollars for say a 20HP 350lb motor!

ONE THING TO EMPHASIZE about industrial motors used in this manner. You will have to keep it cool as industrial motors are rated to cool at design rpm. However, IF it is an "Inverter" rated motor you should be ok. 

The problem with a standard motor is the fan won't handle the cooling job if it is running say in a traffic jam situation where you are crawling along and the motor is only turning 25% of design speed.

If you can experiment with this one first, keep us posted. 

Being able to use industrial motors will make EV much more affordable as there are lots of drives and motors on ebay. A good electrician can put the system together and make it work. I would buy a pot box though instead of trying to make one.


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## spankyway (Jun 14, 2008)

I am completely new to this so a lot of what you said only makes sense to me in the industrial world, I run a tool repair shop and know a little about definite purpose motors. This particular motor I have came off a Saylor Beall air compressor.


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

I think your motor would = roughly 60-70hp gas engine. A little less than a small 4 cylinder. However I'm not too sure of that now as I've read where it is about double the electric hp for the gas or say 15HP. That's quite a bit different and why I want to experiment.

I had a guy give me a Reliance drive today for I think up to a 5HP. I'm going to tinker with it. We're talking about making a pusher to experiment with. Ie take a car axle and build a cart around it. Mount the motor and batteries on it and run the controls to the drivers window.


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## CPLTECH (Sep 14, 2007)

On an EVALBUM page since removed, there was a guy in Cincinnati that converted a 5 sp Dodge Caravan (Yes, a 5 sp) and he told me he used a 20HP 3ph industrial motor & made his own converter. But 7.5HP doesn’t sound sufficient to get the job done. Many of us use the 20-30HP DC types for $implicity. I’ve heard that 3PH AC motors are about 10% more efficient than DC, but is the extra cost worth the difference to you for the benefit received? As for me, I just wanted to get on the road the least expensive way possible.


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## Dennis (Feb 25, 2008)

Many people have asked about using industrial grade 3-phase motors. The answer is they are not designed to be used for portability applications such as EV's. They use heavy cast iron frames which puts on some serious weight versus their typical EV 3-phase AC cousins. Now I know they are cheap compared to an EV purpose built AC motor, but one has to remember that industrial 3-phase motors have a HUGE market in which they dominate 80% or greater in industry where as the EV market is small in comparison.


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

There are some motors, the leeson's are one, that use a thinner steel casing which is lighter weight than the cast iron. I've changed those monsters out and no you don't want one of those in your carriage!

Also most industrials use a "foot" mounting versus a C-Face mounting. The C face is bolted to the driven through the face of the motor where the shaft comes out. Finding a large one would likely be a pump motor, which some if not all have a bearing which is designed to eliminate end play of the motor shaft moving in and out.


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## spankyway (Jun 14, 2008)

All excellent responses, thank you. I don't believe I will use this motor. I think I will keep looking for a good DC motor.
Steve


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