Where to buy 220 volt power cord?

[Thomas Bank]

Welding supply stores are a good source of heavy-duty 220V extension cords such as this one: http://store.cyberweld.com/230voexco25.html

[Michael Pyron]

That only sounds like a great idea until someone plugs a 120 volt device into your Frankencord.

actually its a great idea on a jobsite...some jerkwad, who is too lazy to roll out his own cord, comes over, unplugs your splitter from your lead and plugs in....and promptly proceeds to fry his tool....very, very funny and karmic...

[Matt Meiser]

I've been buying some really nice cord from my local hardware, plus some very nice Pass and Seymor plugs when I restore tools.

I try not to buy rubber jacketed cord. It seems to break down after a few years and splits/cracks everywhere.

[Pat Germain]

For my compressor and band saw, I bought 12ga outdoor extenstion cords from my local home center. It's only about $20 for a 25' cord. I found them to be very durable and flexible even when they're cold. I'm going to buy another for my jointer as it came with a very short power cord. As mentioned, this is less expensive than buying wire by the foot or buying a "power cord".

I was at Harbor Freight just the other day. The 12ga extension cords there weren't any cheaper than the cords I bought. They just had three-outlet adapters on one end. Since I cut the ends off anyway, that's not a plus for me.

I installed a twist lock 220V outlet in my shop. The twist lock plugs cost a little more than a standard 220V plug. But they're very easy to wire up and assemble and they stay plugged in!

[Mark Norman]

I have another new tablesaw question. I need to change the plug on the saw as it’s a twist lock which I don’t have plus the previous owner used 10/2 Romex for the cable. Needless to say it’s pretty inflexible.

Saw details:
5 hp 19.8 amp 220 Volt motor
6’ distance to outlet

Does anyone make a NEMA 6 style power cord?

Thanks,
Wes

Wes,
its been a couple weeks since ya posted, have you got the cord yet?

If the saw is 18.9 amps a 12 ga is barely adequate/ i would go 10ga SO cord and a nema twistlock plug and a new receptacle to match. Like most have said the stuff can be found at the BORG or any electrical supply outlet. I have the stuff laying around the shop. shoot me a pm if yer interested in a bargain.
Mark

[Bartee Lamar]

HD or Lowes, I cannot remember which one I used for this.

It's 10g...

[Wes Billups]

Mark, sorry as I've been pretty slow getting this together. I did use the same plug as Bartee's pictures show just used 12/3 Carol cable instead of the 10/3 as Bartee did. Everything works great. I may hook up my amp meter and measure the amount of draw during usage. I'll try to get some pictures and post them tomorrow.

Wes

[Rob Russell]

Wes,

You never said what the circuit breaker is that's protecting this. If it's a 30A breaker, using 12/3 SO/SJO is a no-no - you need 10/3 SO/SJO.

Rob

[Wes Billups]

Rob, the circuit it's wired to is 20 amp (12/2 Romex). I was worried about the startup amperage on this saw tripping the 20 amp breaker but most people assured me that wouldn't be an issue as the motor's rated at 19 amps.

So far no issues. If I do ever trip the circuit, I'll wire a dedicated 30 amp circuit to the saw. I'm glad I screwed the OSB to the walls in my shop rather than using the nail gun.

I'll get some pictures posted tonight of the saw and power cord.

Wes

P.S. One note is the cable was much bigger in diameter than I would have thought. It barely fit in the compression fitting Sawstop supplies. I have no idea on how Bartee got that 10 gauge into the electrical box.

[Craig Cee]

Nice to see you are wired up. I might suggest that as you run your TS that you check from time to time the motor, cord, plug/receptacle and breaker for any heat out of the ordinary (compare it to one of your other tools). You mention that you're wired with 12/2 romex which is rated for 20 amps. Saw Stop specs. list 20.5 amps on their 5hp motor. I would venture a guess that things will be warm. Suggest you drop a 30amp circuit in with some 10/2 romex and 10/3 SJ cord (with correctly rated plug/recep.); you'll find it's smaller in diameter than SO cord.
Good luck!!
Wisdom: If your motor runs hot than have some $$$ ready for a new motor. Heat KILLS motors.

[Wes Billups]

Craig, the motor plate shows 19.8 amp. This saw is two years old so they may have changed motors. I ran the saw pretty hard last night and didn't see any heat build up in the cord or plug. The max amperage I measured was 12 amps during use.

I was wondering what everyone thinks I should do? The last thing I want to do is burn up the motor or even worse my house. If I keep an eye on the amperage and never go above 15 amps, am I safe with the 20 amp circuit?

Running a new 30 amp circuit wouldn't be the end of the world but will probably take 8-12 hours as I'd have to remove the lumber rack from the wall, unscrew four sheets of OSB, route the new cable, and then put everything back. Which considering I only get 4-6 hours in my shop per week this would be a big deal.

Another item I just thought of and would like input. I could add a 30 amp outlet right below my subpanel which is 15 feet from the saw. I could then get a 20-25 foot power cord for the saw and plug it in right next to the panel. Would this be better than my present setup?
I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks,
Wes

[Mark Norman]

You are good Wes.

Dont worry about it, ya did fine IMHO.

Now its time to enjoy the workshop.