Shopsmith Forums

Good to know. I'll make sure to keep a watchful eye on the speed gauge. Is there a way to calibrate the 0-8 gauge after taking everything apart for a thorough cleaning and possible new paint job? Looks like there can be a bit of adjustment on the gauge.

I'm planning on putting all the parts through a bath in the ultrasonic cleaner to clean up/out old grease and compacted saw dust. I know the quill return spring has a large section on the coil jammed with sawdust. It's a ton of fun opening up old tools and finding evidence of past projects and possibly the leftover bits of wood or metal that completed a project to put food on the table for there family.

Simply do NOT adjust above "5". AIUI the 0-5 scale is simply truncated at 5(no 6,7,8).

Belt position establishes "0" position. Lotta other stuff affecting belt position.

I am curious what the sliding sheave looks like at the area around the bore.

Do take it all apart except maybe the bearings in the variable pulley sleeve. These need to be pressed in and if they are in good shape no need to chance damaging them by removing and re-installing. When reassembling, the main things to watch for is do not compress the springs on the end of the adjusting screw assembly. The lock nut should just hold the springs, washers and the lug in place but not compress the springs. As for resetting the pulley assembly, the belt should be flush with the top of the pulley on one side while just a bit short of touching the sleeve on the other side of the pulley. When assembling the pulley remember to lubricate the pulley assembly between the sleeve and the floating sheave of the pulley assembly. Lubricate the bearings as the pulley assembly goes on the shaft. Use light weight oil and remember to check lubrication of these parts regularly. When re-lubricating the pulley assembly it is best to remove one fixed sheave to take the floating sheave off, then reassemble and adjust the belt position in the pulley. That way you will always be readjusting for any belt wear. Setting the 0 to 5 speed indicator is done when mounted on the Shopsmith. With the speed at its slowest, set the indicator to 0. Run through the speeds in either low or high range and check that it goes to 5. If it does not the pulley may not be adjusted correctly. The belts should never bottom out in the pulley. Recheck the indicator each time after re-lubricating the pulley assembly. Below is a PDF copy of a Speed Changer Manual.

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Also note how the Screw Assembly is mounted in the picture on the first page. Yours may have come mounted on the other side of the ears. Mounting it this way interferes less with the Headstock Way Tub Lock.

Below is a PDF copy of the Speed Changer Chart. I find it handy to have it available when using the Speed Changer and I have a laminated copy on the bench.

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Lastly JPG said

I am curious what the sliding sheave looks like at the area around the bore.

He is wondering just how early of the a Speed Changer you have and I am too. A picture looking at the pulley assembly seeing the sleeve with the floating sheave to one side or a picture of the floating sheave by itself will tell.

Near as I can tell the unit was made in 49' #r23879. Everything was very carefully taken apart and packed with lots of padding to get ready for a move. Good call on the bearings, I always try and clean them up without taking them off/out if I can. I hope this picture helps.

I came up with a neat way to "blow" new grease into older bearings that are still good (no noise or roughness or damage). Take a piece of PVC pipe close to the correct OD size of the bearing and warm it up slowly with a heat gun. Then while it's pliable force it around the bearing and it will cool to the correct size and create a near air tight seal. Then place grease round the seal, inside pvc pipe side, and gently apply air into the pvc pipe while sealing the inner bearing hole (finger works good). Go slow and check if more grease is needed as it will flow around the seal and into the bearing. I like to spin the bearings afterwards for a time using a drill to make sure it's working the new grease into where it's supposed to go and to flush out any over fill. I learned this trick from an old school mechanic. Works great.

Nice progress.
I see there is a drum switch on the motor, so I am guessing the motor is set up for forward and reverse.

When you reassemble the speed changer you can mount the crank assembly on the left side of the "ears". That will give better clearance between the crank and the headstock lock lever.

"OLD" school includes PVC pipe ?

Lol, he showed me how to do it with a piece of radiator hose. Different size hose for different bearings. Great idea on mounting g the crank on the other side. That'll help save my knuckles. The switch is wired for forward only at the moment, but I'll be taking it apart and carefully inspecting the wiring. Will most likely need a new cord and switch wiring.

Something to note when putting the Speed Changer on the Shopsmith. The belts go to the 2" & 4" pulleys on the Headstock and the Motor as shown in the Manual.

The picture is exactly how I picked it up, before I took it apart for packing. I took the belts off to test the motor, I didn't want to risk damaging anything when I noticed the speed control pulleys didn't turn when I tried to spin it by hand. I don't think it's been really used in a long time.