ferris wheel motor

[sirloinofbeef001]

I am still working on my Ferris wheel and my question is can I use a simple dimmer switch to control the speed of the motor?  By the way the motor is a garage door motor 1/2 Hp. 

[JoeFromOzarks]

Isn't your garage door motor rated for intermittent duty only?   PWM controlled wiper motor might be an alternative.

joe

[tbone321]

I am still working on my Ferris wheel and my question is can I use a simple dimmer switch to control the speed of the motor?  By the way the motor is a garage door motor 1/2 Hp.

Not only would that not work, it will probably burn out the motor.  Motors of that much power would also cook the dimmer so you would lose on both fronts.  If you want speed control, I would look for a large DC motor, perhaps like the wiper motor Joe suggested.  They can be controled directly by the voltage applied to them as well as PWM.

[rm357]

AC motors are not good for speed control. The speed of an AC motor is determined by the internal wiring and frequency of the applied power, not by how much voltage is applied. AC motors are also inefficient at low speeds.

[rrawlings]

Using a router speed control that can be picked up on eBay for around $20 and most any AC hand tool motor would work.  True that a lot of AC motors are not suitable, but any AC motor that has brushes will work.  You might look at a drill from Harbor Freight.

[t.jo13]

An option that alot of people use is razor electric scooter motors. If you get the right one they have a variable speed controller. Then take a 110v to 24v converter to power it . You can find all the stuff on ebay for around $60.00 very easy to control speed and plenty of torque

[sirloinofbeef001]

Thanks for your input.... the problem is the size of the wheel.. i dont think a little motor like a razor will spin the wheel.

[t.jo13]

You would be suprized how powerful the little motor is . I originally planned on using a bigger motor but boy that motor has some power . Check over at PC in their forum under trains, ferris wheels ect. quite a few use them for trains and ferris wheels thats where i found out about the motor, before I became a member here

[chrisatpsu]

Thanks for your input.... the problem is the size of the wheel.. i dont think a little motor like a razor will spin the wheel.

just in case you didn't catch it, it's from a razor electric scooter, not your grampa's remington.  ; )

[jess_her]

tread mill motor and controler
J