Broken Pro planner height adjustment handle

[BigJohn]

Hi Guys/gals. New to shopsmith after inheriting a full 505 setup plus jointer, planner, bandsaw, scrollsaw. Spent a year restoring things including new 520 fence, rebuild of the powerhead, new bandsaw tire, blade, bearing and dust chute, new jointer blades and guard and dustchute and fine tuning the table saw. Just got around to the pro planner and found that the movers had dropped it and cracked the pulley shield/sideframe, and most critically, bent the height adjustment handle to the point where it snapped off the lift screw as soon as I touched it.

Attached are some pictures. Any idea of how I should remove the broken stub from the handle? (Don't think going medieval on it with a pair of vice crips wil work). I think the hexagonal nut in the handle is just used to hold the Knob holding the turn guage. The replacement lift screw ends in a flat area that probably goes into the handle. However, Shopsmith changed the hande to a crank and the wheel I have is no longer available. Will i have to order the crank and forget the wheel? Seems a shame.

Also any help on replacing the broken lift screw? Assume I need to remove the planner from the stand, loosen the chain on the bottom pulley and probably remove the pulley at the base. Flying just by intuition and guessing so any help from an experienced user greatefullyl appreciated.

thanks

[JPG]

It is unclear to me that the lift screw is also bent. It appears the knob was the sacrificial lamb?

I will examine my knob later and hopefully come up with some ideas. I prefer the knob to the crank. The plastic part replacement can be made by hand.

[BigJohn]

Hi!

Thanks so much for the reply. The handle itself was not damaged. Nor does it look like the lift screw was damaged either. When I disassembled the handle, I found the plastic depth guage attached to the handle by a small knob. I removed the guage and knob and found a hexagonal bolt in the middle of the handle that appeared to be press fitted into the handle. I created a press to push the bolt out and the attached pic shows the bolt. I noticed the striations at the bottom. It looks like this fitted inside the sleve at the top of the plannar. The lift screw that is still in the plannar seems undamaged.(see pic of the top of the lift screw inside the plannar).Looking down from the top of the plannar you can see the flat part of the lift screw.

Perhaps there was something inside the sleve that connected the bolt to the list screw? I didn't see anything when it took the sleeve out. I doubt shopsmith still makes the hex bolt since they don't carry the wheel handle any more. I might be able to get a machinist to make one but I'm not sure what to tell him/her to do to get it to attach to the list screw.

Do I simply need to throw in the towel and order the new style crank and hope it will mate with the lift screw?

Any thoughts greatly approciated!

Big John

[JPG]

Yes the SIMPLEST path is to get the new crank style handle. It WILL work correctly. Just make sure it is NOT the feed crank handle.

As for making a replacement, the difficult part is creating the internal double d hole that slips over the double flat end of the height adjustment screw. The striations are to provide a secure force fit between the two parts.

[chapmanruss]

Option C is to watch for someone parting out a Planer, selling the parts on ebay or somewhere. It does happen from time to time. That may take some time to get if ever.
Option A is your thought of getting a new part machined to keep the wheel.
Option B is JPG's suggestion of buying the crank. It is the quickest and easiest way to get your Planer back operating. The manual feed crank JPG refers to is different but I don't believe Shopsmith sells that part any longer.

[br549]

The manual feed crank JPG refers to is different but I don't believe Shopsmith sells that part any longer.

I purchased a manual feed crank 5 years ago, and it still appears to be available. Part number is 51372703. https://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/ite ... m=51372703 I stumbled up it when ordering other parts for my manual feed planer and it popped up as other related parts in which I might be interested.

[chapmanruss]

br549 is correct. So to help eliminate any confusion the height adjustment handle is reference number 27 in the online parts diagram and part number 51413703 as Planer Elevating Crank which is $39.74 plus S & H.

[BigJohn]

Thanks for all the suggestions and information guys. I hate the idea of abandoning the perfectly good wheel handle and guage i have. I talked with a machinist and he said they could duplicate the hex bolt in the old handle if I could supply them with a picture of what an undamaged one looked like. That is, they need to see how it actually connected to the flat part of the lift screw. Does anyone have a picture of the hex bolt/connector? jpg mentioned an "internal double d hole that slips over the double flat end of the height adjustment screw." I assume there must have been something more than the stub I found when I removed the handle. The machinist also suggested getting a steel rod the same diameter as the lift screw, cutting an appropriate notch in it, and then threading it to screw into a new hex bolt.(seems a bit of bother but might actually be cheaper than the new handle).

After I get the handle problem fixed, i'll clean the planner up. It hasn't been run in 20-25 years so I suspect the main drive belt is stiff and possibly cracked. Il replace it, lubricate the chain and check the table height. If you can think of anything else I should do before turning it on, let me know.

Thanks again!

Big John