HiTorque Brushless Motors... What's the Difference?

You might wonder what the difference is between the standard mini lathe and the HiTorque mini lathe or between the standard mini mill and the HiTorque mini mill.

They can share many of the same features. The most significant difference is the drive system. The photos below show the major components of the two drives.

"Standard" Drive System	HiTorque Drive System
A standard drive on the mini lathe and mini mill incorporates a conventional wound rotor DC motor and PWM controller card. The gears provide two speed ranges to enhance low speed torque because the output torque of a DC drive like this falls off as the motor speed is reduced.	The HiTorque drive system on the mini lathe and mini mill incorporates a brushless DC motor and controller. The wound stator and permanent magnet rotor provide virtually constant torque over the entire speed range. RPM feedback from the motor to the controller helps insure constant speed through varying loads.

 

Besides simply having more horsepower, the brushless DC drive in the HiTorque lathes and mills have greater torque, especially at low speeds. Compare the typical torque curves.

The HiTorque drive lets you take deeper cuts at all speeds, and the low speed torque makes slow-speed operations like parting off significantly easier.

Because of the nearly linear torque curve, the HiTorque drive does not need 2-speed gears. There is one continuous speed range. This means there are no gears to shift, and no plastic gears to break...