My beloved Skil 100 is acting up! I’ve recently used it to shape four EPS blanks (1.9lb w/ tightly fused beads) and today noticed that the blades would jam momentarily on board number five. Once I role the blades by hand (when off) it starts right back up and work fine. Is it possible that the bearing needs to be lubricated or am i am tool for cutting EPS with it? I was thinking that the EPS could be melting or clogging the blade spindle somehow, but on close inspection I don’t see any evidence of that. Maybe it’s just getting old… I always blow the dust out/off of it even when in use. All blades are tight and inline. What care instructions are recommended to keep it in tip-top shape?
Lowel is right about the noise, it helps to make a sound-insulating box but watch out the vacuum doesn’t overheat. I used to use my Festool CT-23 vacuum since it was real quiet and switched on with the planer, but it doesn’t have the power like a shopvac (about 1/3) to handle long piping runs. A cyclone attachment ahead of the vac will catch 80% of everything before it gets to the vac, and especially keeps all that stringer wood out of there. Definitely look at the Festool and Fein hoses, they have built-in rotating cuffs and are very durable. Another hose option is to use truck heater hose about 2.50" diameter. Check out the videos of Terry Martin on youtube using one.
foamtheory, In addition to the bearings check your brushes and the motor armature. The removable shield over the motor housing has large openings and EPS dust and beads can easily get in and possibly foul the brushes. I found some fine mesh stainless steel screen that I put under the guard. Rich Harbour posted something about this years ago so you might find it in the archives.
Thanks guys. I will check the brushes, housing, and bearing tonight upon disassembly. If anything looks suspicious then I will post pictures to share. Where can I purchase a new bearing?
So I got an early start on the disassembly of the Skil 100. It turns out that the bearing turns pretty good, but there was a lot of built up gunk in the motor area. The attached pictures show the white crust that formed on the motor parts. The crust has slowed the motors ability to turn when cranked by hand. Once I removed the main motor component I found that it spins freely. This undoubtedly leads to the culprit being the layer of bonded gunk between the motor parts.
How can I clean this stuff off without harming the parts? The gunk is bonded so well that it seems that a scrubbing would be the only way to remove it. Wouldsteel wool or a wire brush do it (delicately)? Carbide sandpaper?
EPS gunk. Hold off until PeteC can chime in or either contact him by PM! I am sure he can recommend a safe way to clean that with no damage to your motor parts. From the pics it looks like your Skil is in great shape.
Never mechanically clean an electric motor, will damage the rotor and/or stator windings. Just use a good dielectric spray solvent/cleaner (not WD-40), flush thoroughly, then use your air compressor to blow clean and dry (goggles and mask). If really embedded, let it soak for a while before respraying, may take a couple of cycles, it should clean up fine.
If you don’t have any, local auto part store will, used for cleaning out alternators, etc.
Those EPS beads can also get in to your trigger assembly and goober stuff up.. I taped some nylon mesh over the trigger to keep that crud out.
I've also had pieces of melted/cooled EPS (it had turned to hard plastic) start rattling around inside a planer and finally shooting out in chunks and embed themselves in the blank. I initially thought my planer had exploded but it was just pieces of the hardened EPS. With a bit of cleaning the planer was fine.
The trigger thing was Skil 100 specific. The hard chunky stuff was with a Makita.
Electric spray and a soft toothbrush, maybe a plastic fork if needed. Be really careful with the armature, these things are so old now that looking at them the wrong way causes shorts. The air intake is going suck everything into the motor unless you use a vacuum system with EPS. The problem is that if you try and screen the intake, you’ll reduce the airflow and fry the motor anyhow. It’s only $20 for a shopvac and make your own adapter, you’ll be able to see what you doing now without that snowstorm in your bay. Also, never replace one bearing. Always do all four at once. They cannot be lubricated by the way.
The toothbrush method worked like a charm. I just purchased a hose mount (off of Ebay) for the Skil dust chut track in order to establish the vacuum system. Thanks for the feedback everyone!
Hi Rooster, I always recommend a vac system but particularly so with EPS because it’s chunks rather than the flakes from poly. I also feel that running over and through piles of any kind of foam dust doesn’t lead to precise work either. The hose is the cumbersome part if you drag it along the floor, but if you make an overhead system it’s not a problem. There’s a number of overhead methods, but I prefer a boom arm which can just be a board with a hinge and hard-piped vacuum from the arm down.
Foamtheory, I’m glad you got all the melted stuff off so don’t throw away those old toothbrushes there’s a million uses in the shop for them.
Thanks Pete! I’ve rigged up a vacum to my Hitachi in the past looped overhead with an old bike tire. Very ghetto, but my overhead lights are kind of in the way and may not be doable for a boom. I found the hose combersome, too, but think I will revisit the idea, plus I don’t want foam melting on my old classic planers. Hitachis I won’t worry about. Mike
The Vac attachment that Dbslim makes is the best I’ve seen for the money. Regular Home Depot type Vac hoses are cumbersome. There is one made for the Hitachi that is a “slinky” hose(foamEZ and Surf Source) and can be fitted to the Skil. If you look thru amazon under “Fein” vacums there is an attachment made by Fein, Bosch and Festool that can be used to reduce diameters at the hose. There are also good flexible hoses available made by each of the above companys. My pick is Fein for vacums. Six or nine gallon can be bought for as low as $300( saw one for $289) the other day. Automatic on/off switch and the lowest db noise factor. If you can place it somewhere outside the room and plumb it thru the wall so much the better. I rather turn my stereo up max and not wear ear plugs than listen to a Shop Vac or one of those 747 monsters from Home Depot. Distorted Paul Rogers and the whine of a Skil sound better than that $#!t. Lowel
Hey guys, thought I’d chime in on the vac topic. 20 years ago when shaping @ Linden, we had a pulley system for the vac hose. Being a tall guy, I hated the vac hose always hanging in front of my face. So I built a swinging arm with the vac hose hooked to it. After some years of refinement, this is what I came up with. I found that the vacs with the motor inside are MUCH quieter! They are out there. This one is built by Ryobi. Shop vacs are indeed too loud! I built this set-up years before Clark sold his. Built with 2" PVC, all glued except at the elbow where is swivels. When not in use, it tucks against the wall. Well out of way. I set up a quick connect for switching between my Skil and Hitachi’s. My next project is to attach it to my router for doing my outlines. I recently added a second vac connection for sweeping up my mess on the floor directly into my vac unit. That is what the valves are for. I close one to use the other.
Rather then spending big money or a industrial vac system I thought of useing an old Kirby Vac motor with a feed tube gong into a large container., like a 55 gal drum or maybe a Rubber maid out door trash can.
The Kirby has a very strong motor that last forever. They also have a very nice vac hose. That can stretch and twist without braking. You can pick up old Kirbys cheap. I use an old one from the 1980s in the House and will soon be making my shop vac system when I find one on craigslist.
