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New Guy

pprime

Hi there MrDanB! I'm new to this forum. I recently bought two used Mark 5s, both are 500s. I've been working to get both running.

Lots of good folks here with great information.

chapmanruss

pprime,

Welcome to the Shopsmith Forum.

First off, I would encourage you to start your own thread. That way information about your Shopsmith tools will be in one location and not mixed in with another members information. I will be happy to give you some information about your Mark 5 Shopsmith's and I have a question or two also.

MrDanB

pprime wrote Hi there MrDanB! I'm new to this forum. I recently bought two used Mark 5s, both are 500s. I've been working to get both running.

Lots of good folks here with great information.

Hi there. That's great about your machines. I sent you a PM back...

Dan

MrDanB

I've been reading and watching videos on my SS machine. I want to try practicing with the jointer. I loosened the headstock lock, removed the knobs @ the vent area of headstock, lightly lubed the output shafts and the input of the jointer. I put the coupler onto the input shaft and slid headstock into the other end of the coupler. Locked the headstock snug. Plugged in the power cord, dawned safety glasses and fired it up. Listened for any odd noises and looked for anything out of the ordinary. Then, I dialed up the rpm's to the jointer setting. All looked and sounded ok.

I noticed that the coupler wobbled a bit at first while it was just starting to spin, but smoothed out ok in a second or two. Is that normal? If I want to clean up a small piece of wood (say, 2" thick x 4" wide x 1.5' long) would I use some kind of pusher tool or keep pressure on the board as it goes over the blades? I'm very safety minded and want to enjoy this hobby, not lose a digit... Thanks for the help!

edflorence

Hi Mr. Dan B-

Interesting that you lubed the shafts before placing the coupler...I have never done that and actually don't recall ever seeing it as a recommended practice. I wonder if that had something to do with the wobble in the coupler that you noticed.

As far as guiding the stock over the jointer, note that the jointer fence has two raised bumps on the upper surface. The area between these bumps is the "no go zone" for hands. If you keep your hands outside this zone you should be OK. Refer to "Power Tool Woodworking for Everyone" for more detailed explanation. An 18 inch long board should be OK, but I would hesitate to joint anything much shorter than that on the jointer, with the lowest size limit being around 12". Small pieces can be edge jointed with a table saw, a hand plane or a router.

DLB

MrDanB wrote I noticed that the coupler wobbled a bit at first while it was just starting to spin, but smoothed out ok in a second or two. Is that normal? If I want to clean up a small piece of wood (say, 2" thick x 4" wide x 1.5' long) would I use some kind of pusher tool or keep pressure on the board as it goes over the blades? I'm very safety minded and want to enjoy this hobby, not lose a digit... Thanks for the help!

Alignment of headstock hubs to tool hubs is an important step, and you didn't mention it. It's normally a one time adjustment, with more frequent checks. Misalignment would result in coupler wobble, and be less visible at speed. If you have a Jointer manual it will explain the steps, essentially you align it in two dimensions, vertically and front to back.

Push blocks are a good choice on the Jointer to allow you to maintain control of the workpiece with your hands farther from the rotating blades, especially while face planing. IIRC there are two 'humps' on top of the Jointer fence identifying the area you should keep your hands out of. Also, I suggest starting with shallow cuts, 1/16" or less, to allow you to get comfortable with the feel, sights, and sounds. Looking at your pictures I don't see the typical Shopsmith Safety kit, which includes the push blocks. You might want to consider the SS version or see what alternatives there are.

- David

MrDanB

edflorence wrote Hi Mr. Dan B-

Interesting that you lubed the shafts before placing the coupler...I have never done that and actually don't recall ever seeing it as a recommended practice. I wonder if that had something to do with the wobble in the coupler that you noticed.

I had some very slight surface rust on the output of the headstock and on the input area of the jointer, so I used a rust converter, cleaned it all up and used a small squirt of wd40 on them...

chapmanruss

The WD-40 will help prevent future rust but like oils and grease can collect dust gumming things up. Using paste furniture wax on all exposed metal parts is a better idea. It is recommended for the Way Tubes (and other parts) on the Mark tools to protect them and provide some lubrication for the Headstock and Carriage to move on them. The Jointer should have bare metal parts waxed for the same reason.

MrDanB

OK. Roger that! I cleaned up all tubes and used a paste wax on them and removed excess. I learned how to adjust the tailstock stop collars and align the headstock to the tailstock in both horizontal and vertical axis. I just need the tool rest, live center and chisels and I should be ready to try turning.

I have multiple used parts coming from multiple members here on the forum (thanks so much for the help). I'll learn to install guarding for the table saw, disc sanding setup etc. There's a lot to learn for sure! I'm just starting to have fun seeing how things attach, slide, lock etc. All the while, I'm thinking about safety and know that it's so important on a tool like this! You long time members have really helped to make me feel like I can do great things with my shopsmith. I see why they have such a loyal fan base...

chapmanruss

As you start to use your Shopsmith get into the habit of checking all the locks before turning on the motor. For example, you don't want to start cutting some stock on the Table Saw and have the Quill move because it wasn't locked. Something I have done. :o

There are a number of locks to check and it does vary depending on the function. There are additional locks if using an SPT like the Jointer or Bandsaw.

stihlsawer

Great advice and I'll try to remember!

MrDanB

chapmanruss wrote
As you start to use your Shopsmith get into the habit of checking all the locks before turning on the motor. For example, you don't want to start cutting some stock on the Table Saw and have the Quill move because it wasn't locked. Something I have done. :o

There are a number of locks to check and it does vary depending on the function. There are additional locks if using an SPT like the Jointer or Bandsaw.

Once again, y'all are just ahead of me. I was just reading about the 5 locks to check before plugging in the power cord EACH time. I'm writing down notes from the woodworking for everyone book. I will keep this list next to the machine until it's my routine.

 Been reading about chisels for turning and different types of dado blades and biscuits and joining stock to make bigger pieces. Watched some videos about sandblasting turned pieces to bring out the grain. Very neat what folks come up with! Ofcourse I'll have to start slow and progressively work up to more intricate projects.

   I found a floor box lamp that I really like. I would like to tackle this one day. It's design is inspired by Frank Lloys Wright. It's called the "Tree of Life" pattern. Hope the pic will come through

Screenshot_20241105_172157_Samsung Internet.jpg

Screenshot_20241105_172344_Samsung Internet.jpg

JPG

Nothing like setting one's sights on major accomplishments. That looks like a cnc project to me!

MrDanB

Screenshot_20241114_114533_Samsung Internet.jpg

I found another Shopsmith. This one looks to be a little newer than my first one. It came with a whole mess of parts! I got the machine, band saw, tail stock, multiple tables that connect with tubes, jointer, blade w/arbor and 8 misc used blades, Xtra band saw blades, faceplate, drill chuck, something called a lathe duplicator, fence, something that has a miter function and fits in a slot. When you push the handle, it clamps down. A dust collection system, complete with sawdust and extra band clamps.

 This unit has light rust on the way tubes, but little on the base tubes. Doesn't slide easily. Think it's been sitting a good while.

I paid $290 for everything. I think it was a good deal.

  Please help me ID the unit and tell me what some of this stuff is/does. There's some curved metal parts with brackets and a plastic shield, the handheld miter piece, duplicator with knobs and pointy tabs on it.

   I was thinking I would sell the first machine, but it might be smarter to have 2 and set each one up for dedicated routines.

Also, nothing wrong with redundancy to avoid a single point failure. I see many experienced SS users owning multiple machines. Thoughts, suggestions, help... Thanks in advance.

MrDanB

More pics

MrDanB

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MrDanB

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MrDanB

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MrDanB

N/A

JPG

You need the lathe duplicator manual to identify those weird thingies.

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