Powerpro Competitor

procrastinator

The "For The Love Of Wood" web site has a very interesting Powerpro alternative!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJEbHGBGc5s

algale

Looks interesting. Wonder what the innards are like.

jsburger

procrastinator wroteThe "For The Love Of Wood" web site has a very interesting Powerpro alternative!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJEbHGBGc5s

Interesting but... Lots of questions. Do you need a SS PowerPro to start with? If not whose motor and controller is this guy using? If you do need a SS power pro then you have to buy this guys controller for more money. Why? He has no web site so why would one promote this without a web site and an offer to sell his product?

I don't see anything better than the SS unit. You can buy an after market stop switch pretty cheap so that is a non starter. Why would I want a knob for speed control as opposed to a push button? His remote is interesting but it does not have a readout for the speed so I still have to look under the table to set the speed I want. So I may as well push the speed buttons while I am looking under the table to see the speed setting with the remote.

I have to think SS will have something to say about this if it ever goes forward more than the video.

reible

This guy use to be a traveling shopsmith sales person.... not sure if he is anymore???

Ed

rpd

jsburger wrote
procrastinator wroteThe "For The Love Of Wood" web site has a very interesting Powerpro alternative!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJEbHGBGc5s
Interesting but... Lots of questions. Do you need a SS PowerPro to start with? If not whose motor and controller is this guy using? If you do need a SS power pro then you have to buy this guys controller for more money. Why? He has no web site so why would one promote this without a web site and an offer to sell his product?

I don't see anything better than the SS unit. You can buy an after market stop switch pretty cheap so that is a non starter. Why would I want a knob for speed control as opposed to a push button? His remote is interesting but it does not have a readout for the speed so I still have to look under the table to set the speed I want. So I may as well push the speed buttons while I am looking under the table to see the speed setting with the remote.

I have to think SS will have something to say about this if it ever goes forward more than the video.

The control panel looks to be stock Nova, though the case is rearranged so the screen is below the controls, no doubt the motor and remote are also. One would have to wonder if the controls have been programed and tweaked for the Shopsmith like the Power Pro is.

https://www.teknatool.com/product/nova-dvr-upgrade-for-1624/

reible wroteThis guy use to be a traveling shopsmith sales person.... not sure if he is anymore???

Ed

I would suspect not. :eek: In his first video he said he had been a commercial banker for 30 years, one could wonder how much use he would be for technical support. :rolleyes:

JPG

rpd wrote
jsburger wrote
procrastinator wroteThe "For The Love Of Wood" web site has a very interesting Powerpro alternative!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJEbHGBGc5s
Interesting but... Lots of questions. Do you need a SS PowerPro to start with? If not whose motor and controller is this guy using? If you do need a SS power pro then you have to buy this guys controller for more money. Why? He has no web site so why would one promote this without a web site and an offer to sell his product?

I don't see anything better than the SS unit. You can buy an after market stop switch pretty cheap so that is a non starter. Why would I want a knob for speed control as opposed to a push button? His remote is interesting but it does not have a readout for the speed so I still have to look under the table to set the speed I want. So I may as well push the speed buttons while I am looking under the table to see the speed setting with the remote.

I have to think SS will have something to say about this if it ever goes forward more than the video.
The control panel looks to be stock Nova, though the case is rearranged so the screen is below the controls, no doubt the motor and remote are also. One would have to wonder if the controls have been programed and tweaked for the Shopsmith like the Power Pro is.

https://www.teknatool.com/product/nova-dvr-upgrade-for-1624/

reible wroteThis guy use to be a traveling shopsmith sales person.... not sure if he is anymore???

Ed
I would suspect not. :eek: In his first video he said he had been a commercial banker for 30 years, one could wonder how much use he would be for technical support. :rolleyes:

Having seen a few of his you tube stuff I am not impressed with his wood working expertise.

Ed in Tampa

Looks like the control board is outside the motor case, away from the heat of the motor. Any one that knows electronics knows heat is a killer for electronics.

Also the speed control looks like a simple pot easily replaceable by owner. Also requires less electronics to operate.

Be interesting to see the price. If he brings it in $500 lower than SS, I would say he has a winner.

rjent

Ed in Tampa wroteLooks like the control board is outside the motor case, away from the heat of the motor. Any one that knows electronics knows heat is a killer for electronics.

Also the speed control looks like a simple pot easily replaceable by owner. Also requires less electronics to operate.

Be interesting to see the price. If he brings it in $500 lower than SS, I would say he has a winner.

From one of his answers onYoutube:

MarkwoodAcademy

1 day ago

Are you offering this for purchase? How about a URL?

FOR THE LOVE OF WOOD

1 day ago

Yes, it will cost $1,375 and will include the stop button and remote. This compares to the PowerPro's cost of $2,159. URL will be posted soon. I have a few tweeks to the website, such as adding this video, before I publish and can get a URL. The website will answer a lot of questions.

To be honest, I wish SS had done it this way. I am now having intermittent button response problems on the panel .... :rolleyes:

ChrisNeilan

A couple of observations. While this unit uses the same dvr motor as the Mark 7, it has a different sound. My Powerpro ia almost silent compared to this demo unit. Makes me wonder what internal parts remain that give it a most tradional mechanical headstock sound. My other observation is that I thought my Shopsmith band saws were noisy. They are quiet compared to his! All in all though, this may be a good way to go for those on a tight budget. I have seen these parts, or parts very similar, for sale online for a song!

fredsheldon

Ed in Tampa wroteLooks like the control board is outside the motor case, away from the heat of the motor. Any one that knows electronics knows heat is a killer for electronics.

Also the speed control looks like a simple pot easily replaceable by owner. Also requires less electronics to operate.

Be interesting to see the price. If he brings it in $500 lower than SS, I would say he has a winner.

My PP failed due to a failed power supply, not the control panel. Does not look like he has solved this issue.

Fred

claimdude

I couldn't tell that the sound was much different than my DIY PowerPro upgraded headstock. Both are much quieter than my old Mark V.

Jack

Ed in Tampa

rjent wrote
Ed in Tampa wroteLooks like the control board is outside the motor case, away from the heat of the motor. Any one that knows electronics knows heat is a killer for electronics.

Also the speed control looks like a simple pot easily replaceable by owner. Also requires less electronics to operate.

Be interesting to see the price. If he brings it in $500 lower than SS, I would say he has a winner.
From one of his answers onYoutube:
MarkwoodAcademy

1 day ago

Are you offering this for purchase? How about a URL?

FOR THE LOVE OF WOOD

1 day ago

Yes, it will cost $1,375 and will include the stop button and remote. This compares to the PowerPro's cost of $2,159. URL will be posted soon. I have a few tweeks to the website, such as adding this video, before I publish and can get a URL. The website will answer a lot of questions.

To be honest, I wish SS had done it this way. I am now having intermittent button response problems on the panel .... :rolleyes:

It sounds like he is on track. Price seems about right based on cost of equipment he must buy plus a very nice profit. Implementation seems to be better but only time will confirm or deny that. Not sure what he did/does on the inside but I like how he seems to be doing it. Again time will be the final verdict.

roy_okc

He has the start of a web site up. Not going to post here, but it is in the comments of the Youtube video.

dusty

I'm waiting for the lawsuit.

However, other than being mounted in a Shopsmith carcass all it appears to be is the Nova hardware repackaged using devices available on the open market.

Then there is the software that makes the PowerPro unique. Features like automatic speed change when the load varies will set the PowerPro apart.

If I was tempted, even a little bit, I would buy the required assemblies and fit it into one of my own headstocks. Assuming of course that Teknatool sells outright to an end user.

algale

Specs are up on his website. 50-5500 rpms is the biggest spec difference I see, which has advantages and disadvantages.

jsburger

Ed in Tampa wrote
rjent wrote
Ed in Tampa wroteLooks like the control board is outside the motor case, away from the heat of the motor. Any one that knows electronics knows heat is a killer for electronics.

Also the speed control looks like a simple pot easily replaceable by owner. Also requires less electronics to operate.

Be interesting to see the price. If he brings it in $500 lower than SS, I would say he has a winner.
From one of his answers onYoutube:
MarkwoodAcademy

1 day ago

Are you offering this for purchase? How about a URL?

FOR THE LOVE OF WOOD

1 day ago

Yes, it will cost $1,375 and will include the stop button and remote. This compares to the PowerPro's cost of $2,159. URL will be posted soon. I have a few tweeks to the website, such as adding this video, before I publish and can get a URL. The website will answer a lot of questions.

To be honest, I wish SS had done it this way. I am now having intermittent button response problems on the panel .... :rolleyes:

It sounds like he is on track. Price seems about right based on cost of equipment he must buy plus a very nice profit. Implementation seems to be better but only time will confirm or deny that. Not sure what he did/does on the inside but I like how he seems to be doing it. Again time will be the final verdict.

Please tell us how you have come to that conclusion.

jsburger

algale wroteSpecs are up on his website. 50-5500 rpms is the biggest spec difference I see, which has advantages and disadvantages.

I always have wondered why SS did not go lower with the speed on the Power Pro. SS provides a new quill with the Power Pro. Better bearings to go to 10,000RPMs is my guess. Apparently his upgrade uses the original quill. Hence, 5500RPMs max. So it goes lower. Good for turners. But, it does not go higher which many have said is a problem with the SS for routing and shaping. I can get lower (100RPMs) with a speed reducer for much less money.

I am with Dusty and wondering about litigation. Probably not if he is using off the shelf items and his own software. We shall see.

WileyCoyote

The Nova DVR upgrade mentioned earlier (thanks rpd) looks to be the same unit with the same spec's, including the speed. The only thing I can see that his has over the Nova is the stop button and possibly some mounting hardware. The Nova unit is available all over the internet for $675. If I had a spare headstock and the engineering ability, I would consider playing with the conversion at that price.

I think his idea is ingenious and wish him luck. I am pretty sure if someone on here thought of it first, everyone on the forum would be offering suggestions and supporting him. It is not often that aftermarket products are targeted specifically for Shopsmith.

reible

https://www.amazon.com/Striatech-53010-Intelligent-Reluctance-Controller/dp/B00XCIN2I4

Ed

reible

Still a lot of unanswered questions even with the web site up.

Things I like are the lower speed range, I don't use my powerpro up at the higher speeds very often and if I didn't have it that would be fine with me. And for the machine I have set up as a drill press this would allow me to run big bits even slower.

In all cases the heat issue will have more to do with the power supply and that is likely still in the housing, having the control board else where well that is OK but still not as important as how the power supply is done. FIT rates for power supplies are always worse then other things in the system.

I also like the fact it has a remote control, I can see uses for that for a lot of the things I do when using the scroll saw for instance.

Now I'm a little dismayed by his price point to what he claims is = to the shopsmith prices. Shopsmith sells 4 versions, the total new one is $2,159.00, the refurbished one is $1,987.98 the one where your machine is reconditioned is $1,797.97 and this is basically what his offer is for and then the DIY is $1,689.00. We also know that they offer discounts at demos and if you have a military discount and get it at Lowes that is another 10% off. We also know shopsmith gives you a new quill at that price, now you may or may not already need one but that alone quill runs almost $175 so that along with what else is happening brings one to question his price point comparison.

Anyway it is interesting but I'm not in a rush.

Ed