TheBackShed.com

Forum Index : Windmills : scrap electric scooter

Author

Message

adric22
Regular Member

Joined: 06/08/2008
Location: United States
Posts: 47

Posted: 01:05pm 14 Aug 2008

Copy link to clipboard

Print this post

Since I've had so much trouble with getting the RPM where it needs to be, I thought using an electric scooter as parts would be good. I bought one from this guy for $10 that was totally trashed out, but the motor and chain-drive mechanisms were all good. The motor has only two wires coming out so I guess it is a brushed motor. I hooked up my volt-meter and spun the rear tire at what I believe would be around 300 RPM and the most I got out of the motor was 4V.

So is there any hope of using this configuration to get 15 to 16 volts? Rewinding motor, etc?

Dinges
Senior Member

Joined: 04/01/2008
Location: Albania
Posts: 510

Posted: 01:58pm 14 Aug 2008

Copy link to clipboard

Print this post

These posts may interest you:

http://www.thebackshed.com/Windmill/FORUM1/forum_posts.asp?T ID=1202&PN=1
http://www.thebackshed.com/windmill/Oatley-windmill.asp

Not sure about your scooter but the one I once took apart had perhaps 10 teeth on the motor sprocket and ~50 (just guessing here) on the wheel sprocket. So the motor was geared down a lot. If you get 4V by spinning the rear wheel at 300 RPM I expect the motor was running at least at 5 times that RPM.

These motors (mine is a MY1018, 250 W, 2750 RPM, 24V, 14 A; not sure what yours is, it is usually wise to give the nameplate data of motors when asking questions like these) are meant to run at high RPMs so would need high RPMs to work as a generator too. Mine has 608 bearings, i.e. tiny. The motors aren't meant for continuous duty as in windturbines. The brushes will likely wear out quickly.

These motors were manufactured in China to power consumer appliances (scooters) at very intermittent duty..

Technically one could gear up or rewind. I doubt it would be worth the effort though.

But I must admit, if I were very bored (short on other projects) or didn't have anything else to play around with I might give rewinding a go. But I'd have low expectations so I wouldn't be too disappointed if it didn't work out (mainly because of the brushes and bearings).

Edit: Forgot to add, Fungus has rewound a similar (commutator) DC motor (tapedrive motor) once. His story may interest you. It was a lot of work but apparently worth it, IIRC. Here's the story:

http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2008/2/20/103938/430
http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2008/2/5/21752/02729
http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2008/2/29/14727/5742

For some reason none of the pictures in his stories appear; the pictures of the rewinding can be found here too:

http://www.anotherpower.com/gallery/album104Edited by Dinges 2008-08-16

Print this page

To reply to this topic, you need to log in.