I wanted a 6x48 belt and 12" disc combo as big and heavy as possible. A new American made unit was ~$2500 Chinese was ~$12-1500.
I found this on craigslist in Detroit for $150 iirc. 1970's vintage Rockwell. It was running and had a 3 ph motor. I hooked it up with a cheap vfd and tried to use it. With a 3450 rpm motor and roughly 1.5 pulley ratio it was way to fast. With the vfd I could slow it down but at slower speed is was easy to bog it down. It sat unused while I gathered parts. All the mechanical stuff is common and readily available. I added all new wiring and a 2hp 240volt single phase TEFC motor running at 1740 rpm with a roughly 3:1 ratio. This feels like a much better speed to me. I have been able to ebay most of the missing guards and sheet metal stuff when I get the last few parts it will get some cosmetic work.
