$50 Shopsmith

dgale · Post by **dgale** » Thu Dec 06, 2012 7:55 pm

Yup, that post on my local CraigsList sure grabbed my eye. Listed as a "50's" model with everything reportedly fuctioning properly. I went up there today to check it out and found a 10ER in nice shape...he had owned it for years and used it to build his house and it's sat in the garage ever since...just wanted to free up the space and pass it along. Needless to say I plunked down the $50 immediately and am going back up there this weekend to take it apart to transport to my house - he has a bad back and wasn't going to be able to help get it into the truck (and I don't think the two of us could have in one piece if we had wanted to).

Anyway, can't say no to a $50 SS

I'm excited to get it home and figure it out - I'm not that familiar with the 10ER but plan to make it a dedicated drilling and perhaps sanding station. So yes, I've now entered the world of the multiple SS onwer's club. Motor sounded smooth when he ran it and it was for the most part rust-free, so a coat of paint is in the near future. Photos to follow once I get it home.

Gene Howe · Post by **Gene Howe** » Thu Dec 06, 2012 11:20 pm

What a deal! Great find. Have fun with it.

skou · Post by **skou** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 12:08 am

dgale wrote:Anyway, can't say no to a $50 SS I'm excited to get it home and figure it out - I'm not that familiar with the 10ER but plan to make it a dedicated drilling and perhaps sanding station. So yes, I've now entered the world of the multiple SS onwer's club. Motor sounded smooth when he ran it and it was for the most part rust-free, so a coat of paint is in the near future. Photos to follow once I get it home.

WARNING!!

You will like the ER better than your Mk-whatever. Yes, it has exposed belts. STAY CLEAR, when it's running.

With some "FrankenSmith-ing," you can get almost every MkV/5 attachment to run on the ER. Don't even think the table saw is a REAL table saw. That "table" is TINY! But, the lathe is world-class, as are the drill-presses. (If you use the vertical drill press, you'll tend to appreciate the horizontal mode, if you know what I mean.)

Another word of warning, SSs do breed. You'll soon have a shop full of them.

Oh, CONGRATS!! $50 for a Shopsmith? SCORE!

steve

dgale · Post by **dgale** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 12:26 am

Based on a quick glance at it, I assume you change speeds by switching the belt position on the two pulleys (?)

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 8:47 am

dgale wrote:Based on a quick glance at it, I assume you change speeds by switching the belt position on the two pulleys (?)

Yep! Three choices 1/2 motor rpm, = motor, 2xmotor.

However there are used speed changers out there, but, they be worth 3x what ya paid for the 10ER.

So $200 is still a good deal!!!!

dgale · Post by **dgale** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 9:34 pm

I picked it up today - I had to disassemble it to fit it in my car, as I didn't have a truck available or enough henchmen to help me lift it as one piece. Took virtually no time to disassemble and load it up. Checking out each piece made me really realize how much the times have changed in terms of how things were built to last back then vs. now. So now just a good cleaning, apply some paste wax to the tubes, and a few coats of paint to spruce it up and it seems good to go. It included all of the lathe supplies other than a face plate, as well as the drill chuck, sanding disc, several saw blades, a dado blade, the saw table with rip fence and miter gauge, and lots of odds and ends I haven't sorted through yet in the drawer of the table it is mounted on. I also hadn't realized the motors on the 10ER had a reverse/forward switch. Anyway, I'm pretty excited and am planning to make it a drilling/mortising machine, although lathe use is a possibility as well.

timsturnings · Post by **timsturnings** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 10:16 pm

I have one 10ER now and also had a 10E awhile back and neither one had a reverse switch. Could you just be seeing the on/off switch?

skou · Post by **skou** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 10:55 pm

Most ERs don't have a reverse/forward switch, that is probably a user installed item. Also means the motor is not the suggested one, since the AO Smith motor won't run backwards.

You will find that because of the ER's weight, it makes a great lathe. Also, cast iron has great dampening abilities.

steve

skou · Post by **skou** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 11:02 pm

dgale wrote:Based on a quick glance at it, I assume you change speeds by switching the belt position on the two pulleys (?)

Well, kinda.

You can go to different pulleys, and get different speeds. The belt does not have to go straight up and down, although I wouldn't jump 2 steps.

In other words, you don't have to run (postition a would be the pulley groove furthest away from the headstock) a-a, b-b or c-c. You an run a-b, b-a or whatever you want. That will give you some more intermediate speeds.

Of course, the speedchanger is the best solution. (Outside of a DC conversion, that is.)

steve

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Fri Dec 07, 2012 11:40 pm

skou wrote:Well, kinda.

You can go to different pulleys, and get different speeds. The belt does not have to go straight up and down, although I wouldn't jump 2 steps.

In other words, you don't have to run (postition a would be the pulley groove furthest away from the headstock) a-a, b-b or c-c. You an run a-b, b-a or whatever you want. That will give you some more intermediate speeds.

Of course, the speedchanger is the best solution. (Outside of a DC conversion, that is.)

steve

Where did ya get the notion that is a good idea? Not from the 'manufacturer'.

Instead of abc/cba, lets call them 234/432.

'Normal' combinations are 2/4, 3/3, 4/2 resulting in half, full, and 2x motor speed.

'Abnormal' combinations are 2/3,3/4,3/2,4/3 resulting in 2/3,3/4,3/2,4/3 motor speed. 2/2 and 4/4 are pointless.

So a 1725 rpm motor would provide 863, 1725, and 3450 rpm 'normally', and 1150,1294,2588,2300 rpm 'abnormally'.

From a practical standpoint, the 'abnormal' combinations require readjusting the motor to maintain proper pulley spacing and pulleys on the shaft(or motor mount) to align them correctly. I do not recommend them.

A later model speed control(5 index) provides 425 to 6800 rpm.