Help compessor seized

whichwire

whichwire

Well-Known Member
First of all I m a Muppet...got a great deal on an athlas copco 300litre compressor. It was sitting inside the door of the workshop waiting on its final home and to be wired a little bit too long. I needed it one day and decided to wire it in myself (a bull shitters guide to electrical wiring). No probs, swapped phases until it ran. A couple of weeks later and only a few hours on the clock...this morning the lads told me it was nt starting. Took a close look, motor buzzing but not turning when started. Thought it might have dropped a phase, checked everything with meter and all ok. Put my hand into the fan ( it and compressor are all direct drive ), no budge, solid. Seems it may have been spinning the wrong flipping direction and not cooling, hence overheated n seized.....am sick....

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i wouldnt panic just yet.
have you a model number, might be a bit of info on the net maybe.
have you a pic of it.
 
whichwire said:
First of all I m a Muppet...got a great deal on an athlas copco 300litre compressor. It was sitting inside the door of the workshop waiting on its final home and to be wired a little bit too long. I needed it one day and decided to wire it in myself (a bull shitters guide to electrical wiring). No probs, swapped phases until it ran. A couple of weeks later and only a few hours on the clock...this morning the lads told me it was nt starting. Took a close look, motor buzzing but not turning when started. Thought it might have dropped a phase, checked everything with meter and all ok. Put my hand into the fan ( it and compressor are all direct drive ), no budge, solid. Seems it may have been spinning the wrong flipping direction and not cooling, hence overheated n seized.....am sick....

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how was it building pressure in reverse:001_huh:
 
How is it lubricated because our compressor that runs the discharge on the grain dryer seized and was condemned by experts and I unseized it . It had run out of oil I just stayed rocking the flywheel until I got movement . that is about five years ago and it is still working .
 
Very similar, no oil, dunno where it went or if there was much in the first place...the expert has condemned it...that's heartening....

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A bit more information, now that the dust has settled a bit...

Its an LF series compressor, see pics

I'm thinking of filling it with oil and seeing what happens, maybe rocking the flywheel/fan and see if I can get it to move....
 

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whichwire said:
A bit more information, now that the dust has settled a bit...

Its an LF series compressor, see pics

I'm thinking of filling it with oil and seeing what happens, maybe rocking the flywheel/fan and see if I can get it to move....
Click to expand...

nothing to loose:thumbup:
open it the best you can and fill it with wd40 or diesel and light oil
 
headcase said:
nothing to loose:thumbup:
open it the best you can and fill it with wd40 or diesel and light oil
Click to expand...

but if you do that i would take the pipe out of the tank and let the compressor blow the air into the workshop untill its clear of oil

pressurize oil vapour in the tank wouldnt be very good:scared:
 
I've seen a car engine unseized with a breaker bar and a scaffold pole, to run for several thousand more miles.

Worth a try to pour some diesel into the cylinder and let it soak.

Then try rocking it and see what happens..
 
Compressor has been on the long finger for a while...but got a chance to strip it last week with the help of Johno Kelly. Pistons are grand, pots are grand, it was the con rods seized to the crank. Removed the shells and are scored. Could be hard found, tried the main distributor for Altas Copoco but they only wanted to sell the full assembly.

Anyone any ideas who would make or would I be as lucky to find a shell common to an engine?

Was going to try my luck with Engine Remanufacturing in Castlebar...
 

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whichwire said:
Compressor has been on the long finger for a while...but got a chance to strip it last week with the help of Johno Kelly. Pistons are grand, pots are grand, it was the con rods seized to the crank. Removed the shells and are scored. Could be hard found, tried the main distributor for Altas Copoco but they only wanted to sell the full assembly.

Anyone any ideas who would make or would I be as lucky to find a shell common to an engine?

Was going to try my luck with Engine Remanufacturing in Castlebar...
Click to expand...

if they cant source you parts your in doo dah
 
whichwire said:
was thinking at a pinch, long evening and some various grades of emery cloth?
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if all else failed id try it, but not until that tbh.
it will knock inside it if there is any play at all.

try them lads, as hc says, if they cant source anything, you could be in bother then.
 
an update on this....this evening it roared for the first time since 2013!

Eventually I was convinced by a Uncle to leave it a compressor expert (well he landed one day after the uncle organised him). Initially he dismissed the idea of tackling it at all, we went at stripping it anyway and found the bearing shells badly scored so had to try and find parts.

Months pass, and eventually find them in UK from Athlas Copco but they wouldn't sell them to Ireland. More months pass and a compressor spares company in London could supply, ordered and still shipped from the factory in Belgium.

Then first attempt at reassembly and nothing moved. Stripped again their this evening and loosened the nuts on the conrod until it got moving stiffly...then oil, hand rotate, more oil...chance the motor and away...hopefully this is it!
 
tinman said:
i suppose longevity depends on how loose the nuts are.......:whistle:
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Its the bit I m not happy about...gonna run a few hours and see but lying here thinking about stripping it tomorrow again just to give them a half turn back!

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whichwire said:
Its the bit I m not happy about...gonna run a few hours and see but lying here thinking about stripping it tomorrow again just to give them a half turn back!

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Click to expand...
id be inclined to either slightly sand the crank, or hone out the end.
but leaving the nuts loose would be dangerous.
you could make a tab to lock them either.
or bang in a bit of grinding paste and turn it over by hand while tightening the nuts a bit.
 
Set of shells came with new nylock. It ran and cut out at pressure but seemed....noisier than before...:-/ could be me but I thought if shells were too loose it rattle like...

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