Hoping I can make this Startrite Mercury 2 live again!

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

Today I picked up a Startrite Mercury mk2 pillar drill for 35 quid and I’m quite excited about it!
It was being sold after someone passed away and untested, but I figured it was worthwhile for the money - and it will be a significant improvement to my car boot Hilka that I’ve had for years and is in a very poor state.

I plugged it in, crossed my fingers and turned it on and it ran like a monster, however after turning it off for a bit, the second time I turned it on it tripped the house fuse - wife wasn’t happy.

I’m absolutely not an electrics guy but figured it would be worth learning about to bring this old girl back to life.

During the disassembly I’ve seen a bunch of chocolate blocks being used on one end only, some scary electrical tape tomfoolery, and a lot of carbon build up in the motor

I’ve got a new switch and some three core coming tomorrow, and I’m hoping to redo all the connections that are questionable in the above pictures.

I have no idea about electrics though, so I’m figuring it out as I go. I realised afterwards that I did not mark the rotation of the ends of the motor before disassembly so I’m hoping that’s not going to be problematic?

No idea if this was originally the 3ph version that someone wired to single because the motor doesn’t have any writing on the tag - or where the tag should be.

If nothing else, the main pillar looked nice at the end of the day - here’s the before and after

So if anyone has any advice or helpful suggestions I’m all ears!

 

[Distinterior]

£35..? That's a bargain! even without it's original rotary switch and dodgy wiring!
I bought the same model drill in similar condition to yours and refurbished it earlier this year.....I'm really pleased with mine!

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

£35..? That's a bargain! even without it's original rotary switch and dodgy wiring!
I bought the same model drill in similar condition to yours and refurbished it earlier this year.....I'm really pleased with mine!

That’s awesome! Did you do a thread on here about the restoration?

I’m a little concerned about the wiring, and how much blackness there is in the motor. I’ll be using contact cleaner on the insides and try to replace the connections like for like as well as adding a new switch and leads.

I’m pretty clueless to be fair though lol

 

[Distinterior]

I didnt do a restoration thread on it, but I do have a couple of pictures of the finished result.

I think your drill may be a bit earlier than mine, as my drill has a black & yellow Startrite badge whereas yours is black & red.

Have you ordered an original style rotary switch? (About £38 to buy online...)
Electrically, they are pretty simple to wire up as it only has L & N in to the switch and SWL & SWN out to the motor with the earth run directly to the motor. However, they can be tricky to fit into position, due to the limited space where they are located.
I fitted an additional NVR switch to mine just for safety, but I still have the original rotary switch fitted for aesthetic reasons....

The internals of your motor do look a bit Black!!....But a quick insulation resistance check of the motor windings will tell you if it's okay or not.

Edit. Your motor does look like the original motor and that 3 core cable is also the original cable..!!!
When you clean up the connection terminals in that motor, you should find each terminal is marked with a number on the bakolite board.

 

[clive griffiths]

Yes I purchased an ex school same model last year, fitted a new switch and single phase motor,money well spent.

 

[Distinterior]

Here are a couple of pictures of my Startrite drill and a couple of pictures showing the internal label on the motor terminal cover, as well as my notes ( still written on the side of one of my cupboards in my workshop)

 

[clogs]

quality, u lucky boy.....worth it's weight in gold....
I managed to buy a cobbled up Meddings floor mounted drill 20 odd years ago...
it's very old but give me a smile every time I use it....

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

I didnt do a restoration thread on it, but I do have a couple of pictures of the finished result.

I think your drill may be a bit earlier than mine, as my drill has a black & yellow Startrite badge whereas yours is black & red.

Have you ordered an original style rotary switch? (About £38 to buy online...)
Electrically, they are pretty simple to wire up as it only has L & N in to the switch and SWL & SWN out to the motor with the earth run directly to the motor. However, they can be tricky to fit into position, due to the limited space where they are located.
I fitted an additional NVR switch to mine just for safety, but I still have the original rotary switch fitted for aesthetic reasons....

The internals of your motor do look a bit Black!!....But a quick insulation resistance check of the motor windings will tell you if it's okay or not.

Edit. Your motor does look like the original motor and that 3 core cable is also the original cable..!!!
When you clean up the connection terminals in that motor, you should find each terminal is marked with a number on the bakolite board.

Thanks! Yes based on your pics mine is a bit earlier. The steel around the top badge plate is different, mine has the three quarter circles each side and yours has the one.

I may be get one of the original switches later down the line, but I’ve just gone for a cheap NVR for the moment (should arrive today).

Once I can get it going I’ll be more comfortable spending money on it (when I have some!).

I am concerned about the motor, clearly it’s been run on a normal single phase regular plug setup for a fair while, but I’m not sure if somewhere in it’s life someone did a dubious three to single phase DIY conversion.
With no markings on the motor, I’m also in the dark about its amperage requirements.

It’s a case of replacing the wiring where I can, getting the multimeter out, and keeping my fingers crossed I think!

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

@Distinterior I’ve just seen the serial number on mine, so a wee bit older for sure lol

 

[HOJ]

If you have any doubts about the motor, and you are in Norwich, why don't you drop into Electric Rewind Services on Bessemer road, off Hall road, behind Asda, really helpfull. Electrical Rewind Services-electrical and mechanical repairs,East Anglia,UK,ERS

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

If you have any doubts about the motor, and you are in Norwich, why don't you drop into Electric Rewind Services on Bessemer road, off Hall road, behind Asda, really helpfull. Electrical Rewind Services-electrical and mechanical repairs,East Anglia,UK,ERS

Ooo good idea, I’m hoping to get it together today after doing some work on it, we’ll see what happens after that. If it works I may never open it up again, just in case

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

IT LIVES!!!!!!

While waiting for Amazon to deliver the 3 core and on button I set about cleaning up the table and base a bit

Then I got into the electrics a bit more

For some reason, the thin bit of black wire in the right has been spliced in with chocolate blocks for no good reason. The fact that it was thinner made me think it could be a point of failure so I took it out and connected the ends of the proper stuff with a bullet connector

I didn’t have any round or fork connectors so I made some by drilling out spade connections

That definitely tidied things up, strong connections, and I sanded away the built up muck where the earth connects to the body.

Examining the previous wiring this was definitely a point where it could and may have shorted. You can see the wire insulation is cracked so as access to the other end was a challenge, so I wrapped electrical tape around it.

Threw in a switch and it lives!!!!! I’m so happy it’s ridiculous. I’ll be painting etc soon to give it back it’s looks.

I now need to get the correct chuck key for this, which I believe is the original chuck.

So, 35 quid for a not working drill, two days and about 15 quid on Amazon later and I’ve got a beast of a pillar drill.
Honestly could not be happier

 

[Fergie 307]

Well done you, cracking result.

 

[Andy's Shed]

An excellent result. I'll look out for your next video

 

[ScottyT]

I use a MK1 and a MK2 at my work almost daily, they are superb drills. They never ever miss a beat, it will do you countless years of good service I have no doubt. Enjoy.

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

Aaaaaand it’s back to tripping out the fuse board in the house. In exactly the same place it was yesterday when working.

Gutted

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

I don’t know what this switch internally does, but I imagine it should be a lot cleaner than that

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

Well this doesn’t look right, but I doubt it would be the cause of the short?

 

[Woodwork Journey Dean]

Well I think that wire needs replacing, but surely that’s not enough to cause a short?!

 

[Distinterior]

With all due respect,.....The whole of the inside of that motor looks like it could do with a good clean, and while you're at it, you can check to see if all the connections are okay.

Did you find the terminal code markings on the terminal board...? Check to see if your connections are the same as I posted up in my pictures......