Lot-O tumbler motor malfunction

Me too!

Is there a different replacement motor made by a different company
other than Fasco?
Same size and rpm as the U2iB?
712112835
Mine was only 3 months old and started making a loud racquet.

I had a the same problem with my Lot O rock tumbler. I called the manufacturer told them I had the tumbler only 3 months and it died. They told me to ship it back to them and within 2 weeks I had a new motor which didn’t last much longer than the first one. There was only one company that has the motor in stock and they want $190.00 for it. What I did was pull the motor apart put the Armature on my lathe and put a v groove on it and retrofitted a old washer machine motor with a belt to run it. It’s been running for over 6 months now and doing a good job. Thought no use getting another motor if they only last less than 3 months

Figured I would post over in this thread because it's more likely to be found when someone is searching for a "lot-o motor" problem. Here's the original post I made back on Feb 14th, about 3 weeks after owning my Lot-o. I wish I could go back in time and kick myself for not calling the company immediately, but I know nothing about motors so I didn't.

A few months went by. My motor died completely. I called the number listed for the Lot-o manufacturer on rocktumbling.com and spoke to a man named Tom that told me I was out of luck because it was past the 90 day warranty and that it doesn't matter what video proof I have that the failure started just 1 month after purchase. Basically just told me tough luck, can't help you. So personally I rate their customer support a 1/5. I just wish there was more I could do about it.

Don't buy from them, go to a local motor shop and they can order a real for you ! Take the old motor with you and they will come up with an exact fit !

I took the motor apart to see what the inside looks like. The outside looked mostly fine. On the right side, I didn't see anything.




On the left side, I could see evidence that the bearing was shot. It was really dirty and had black gunk all over it.




After I got it open, everything looked perfectly fine other than the single bearing. It looked pretty bad on the inside too. When spinning it, there is a lot of wobble. I assume this is what caused the problem.

That is really unfortunate, I hope you are able to locate a replacement motor shortly. I keep having issues with mine after a slurry is developed (regardless of stage), my rock movement just stalls out. I do not think my motor is strong enough.

I have called and spoken with a few of the retailers that sell the motor separately. They have all told me the same thing. When I spoke to Tom, he was very condescending. When I told him it failed after 4 months, he said "Sounds like you got a good amount of use from it then." I was like ,"uhhhh, well I didn't run it 24/7 over the last 4 months. I bet I only got 8 - 10 batches completed." His response to that was, "Like I said, it sounds like you got a good amount of use from it."

I am waiting for someone to have the Minisonic MT4 in stock and I'm going to purchase that and try to sell my lot-o frame and 2 barrels.

I was finally able to get a new motor from Kingsley North after being on a waiting list for about 4 months. Had an issue already after only 24 hours, but I think it's minor and easily fixable. Here is an album with some pictures showing the issue.

What's interesting though is this new motor is a different brand, Imesa. I think the design of this motor is better. The original motor from Fasco had a design where most of the motor housing is one solid piece. The shaft is placed in the center, and then an end cap is placed on. This end cap holds the bearing. The end cap is then put on the motor and attached to the rest of the housing with some clips.

The new motor appears to be two halves. So there is no end cap. The two halves are held securely together by two bolts that run through the entire housing. So one side is the bolt head and the other side has a lock washer and nut. I don't know anything about motors, but this design seems better to me. The washer never really fit right in the endcap of the Fasco motor and I think this is where most of the issues stemmed from. When I took it apart, the washer on this side was discolored from heat and there was a bunch of black powder in the Lot-O fans and the inside of the motor. I think the bearing was spinning inside the endcap and rubbing away the metal until it got to the point where it was to loose and the shaft locked up. Once re-seated, I think the motor failed because of all the metallic dust that had built up inside it. This is just my personal theory though. I feel like this new motor's design more effectively sandwiches the bearings in place. But only time will tell.

So what problem did I have? The nut at the end of one of the two bolts that holds the two motor halves together came loose. I tried to put it back on and tighten it, but the end of bolt is stripped. I'm hoping the size is common enough that I can just go down to Lowe's and get a new one. But just in case it's not, I've already contacted Kingsley North and they are going to see what they can do about getting me a new bolt, washer, and nut.