Tristar CXL 2 speed wiring question?

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dustin

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 12, 2010
Messages
708
Location
Jackson, MI
I have a Tristar CXL 2 speed, which runs but has bad bearings. I got a used motor (but in good running condition) from another member, which I think came out of a Filter Queen 2 speed. They are both Lamb motors, 7.5 amps, but the replacement has an extra wire. The original has 3 wires- brown, yellow, and red, and the replacement has 4 wires- black, yellow, red, and blue. Before I try wiring it myself (and possibly 1. Electrocute myself, 2. knock out power to the entire city, or 3. destroy the motor), does anyone know which wires go with which wires? Thanks!
(original motor)

dustin++11-21-2013-15-16-49.jpg
 
Hmm.  It looks to me like the black and red wires are possibly coming out of a thermal overload protector?  Not entirely sure how to wire that in, though.
 
Glad it arrived safely,

And yes, It came from a Filter-Queen Majestic two speed. One of those wires did go to a performance indicator, I checked and appears to be the red/orange wire. I don't think the Tristar has a Performance Indicator? Which may explain the extra wire.


 


Just to make sure, We better wait until someone comes forth with a Filter-Queen diagram, or knowledge to back me up with my hopefully correct response.
 
Ok, from my curiosity (and impatience!), I have started doing ohms readings on combinations of wires, and have found that the black and red wires on the new motor are the same (0 ohms). Can I connect the two wires together or should I just eliminate one completely?
 
That sounds like a bad idea,

Since the red's only function was to take power to the performance indicator, And if you're in the mood to gamble, I'd say cap of the red wire and cross your fingers, Let's hope you won't need a 2nd replacement motor!


 


Connecting them would likely short-out the motor, which is a definite no-no.
 
I capped the red wire, used the black as hot, and the blue and yellow wires for the two speeds. I said a prayer and flipped the switch..... And it runs perfectly on both speeds! Yay! I can't believe how much quieter it is. Before I could barely tell if the power nozzle was running or not... now the power nozzle is louder than the suction unit lol! The suction is much improved as well.
 
"Nailed it on the head"

I'm very glad to see it runs smooth and soft in your Tristar, would you mind posting a picture of the finished product?


I'm still (Barely) Anxiously waiting my new Duopower to magically appear at the doorstep, Monday is in 2 days, <span style="text-decoration: underline;">But it seems so far!</span>


 


<span style="text-decoration: underline;">Hope you and your Tri-Star have fun, I'm sure you can't wait to tour it trough the House
smiley-laughing.gif

</span>



 


<span style="text-decoration: underline;">-Alex.</span>
 
Sure, I will take a picture of it in the morning. It's no beauty queen, but it works SO well. I can't believe what it pulls out of our carpets!
 
Got mine today & here's a picture. The previous owner probably replaced the motor & rewired to work as a 1 speed. Motor currently in vac have 2 wires & i need help in restoring this vac to having 2 speeds.I plan on buying a 4 wire motor for it.

bbfvac76-2014061120101905837_1.jpg
 
BikerRay

No, actually they don't. When Compact was still around they used 6 amp Ametek motors that pulled 80" Waterlift; when they changed the name to Tristar, they used 7.5 amp Ametek motors that pulled 90" Waterlift, & that includes both single speed & 2 speed models. Same goes for Filter Queen, their single & 2 speed motors used 6 amps & pulled 80" Waterlift. They used the same Ametek double stage motor until the early 2000's, was discontinued when the new-style hose, wand & powerhead came out, then they switched to a single stage Ametek motor. Most TriStar motors, on top of the fan housing there is a raised rim, whereas the Filter Queen & Compact motors have a flat top.

Rob
 
I would like to revive this old discussion to see if I can answer a mystery regarding an old Sears Kenmore canister vacuum from 1971, model 116.29971, my Avocado Bomber. This vacuum used a Lamb motor (no Ametek back then I believe), an on/off pedal switch and a big toggle switch for high and low speeds. The on/off switch has two wires and the high/low speed switch had four wires coming out of it. The motor was bad, making noises and changing brushes had no effect so I replaced it with a modern single speed Ametek Lamb motor and removed the high/low speed switch and that was subsequently lost in the garage. Now I want to go back to original.

I regret not having carefully photographed everything years ago before I re-motored it. I never intended to become a vacuum enthusiast. Reviving that old vacuum is what did it! The wiring diagram inside the vacuum is too small and dirty for me to read.

My strong recollection is there were five wires coming off the motor. I took the motor to be rebuilt and the shop tells me one of the brush leads is no longer attached to the field like the other and thus the motor cannot be rebuilt. There are four wires coming out of the motor fields as it sits. My recollection is that only one brush lead was attached to the field. The other was taped to the top of the field but was connected to a bunch of other wires, some of which also came off the field, and some from other places on the vacuum.

I can't prove it though. Any help is greatly appreciated. I need to figure out the motor and figure out a high/low speed switch. When I get back I will try to post up some images of the motor as it sits disassembled.
 

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