Roadrunner reapearance

I've got an older VPI motor from a TNT 3 with captive electric cord. How can I determine if the SOTA will fit and what modifications I might need to make?

I've never looked under the hood of my current motor if I just remove the 4 screws will the motor lift out of the base? I'm hoping the SOTA one just drops in. Anyone done this?

Thanks pdp24. The VPI forum is where I found out about it. New VPI owner lots to learn....long time viny guy with a Basis TT.

The SOTA site gives me the feeling you could almost DIY it. Hoping that is the case as to not send my motor to them if at all possible. I'm hoping the VPIForum member paved the way for the rest of us.

I did remove my 4 screws on my SAMA and it seems the motor is a lot smaller than the housing and might just swap out.

@lewm

That is direct from SOTA. Like I said they have been great at answering my emails. The Condor PSU gets it power from the wall wort which in turn powers the SOTA 3-phase motor. Here is the info form the email.

As far as installation goes, you'd have no need for that line to the wall. The Eclipse motor gets its power from the Condor PSU, which is neatly run in one line with two disconnect points. Installation is very straightforward - drop the motor in and just run the line to the Condor as you please. The condor will sit in the black box shown on the website, and get its power from a wall wart, as it needs 24VDC power.

Give SOTA a call, I hear they're great to deal with

I got an email back from them saying a screw driver is all that is needed depending on motor/housing configuration. That seemed too good to be true so this morning I got more adventurous and removed the bottom plate of the motor/housing. Looks pretty simple wire nuts with a few electrical bits (cap/resistor I think) up to the switch and in turn to the motor. So maybe drop in the motor, fish some wires through and some SOTA specific bits to make it change from 2-phase to 3-phase...though I'm not very electrically inclined I get there is a difference.

They also said in coming weeks a VPI specific options for IEC plates and pully options.

I'm still not clear on what is the difference is between the wall plug and the motor base. If there is a wall wort and small wiring then I guess in the case of an IEC connection something is needed. Mine is just a standard cord passing through the SAMA housing. No removable IEC connection on the outside of the housing.

Long time reader of AGon forums but never posted. So I can't seem to figure out how to post pix. As they say worth a thousand words. I've got a round motor on top which sits under a round decorative plate covering a black, square plate with 4 holes about 2" on center. Wires run to the switch which runs to the "stuff" at the bottom in the top part I mentioned in this post.

Never mind on the above...I'm an idiot. The PSU is what handles the power to the motor. SOTA has been great at answering my questions. All the wiring from SAMA to wall goes away because the new set up would be:

Wall plug >> Wall wort/cord >> PSU >> SOTA Motor >> Belt >> Platter

I believe the only function of the VPI, housing once converted, is height and weight.