Shopsmith Forums

DLB wrote: ↑Fri Oct 15, 2021 6:28 pm

Majones1 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 11:40 am Plus, I had never used my bandsaw since getting it from MickyD, and doing some clean up on it. It worked great. I had purchased some eccentric mounting posts and got it aligned perfectly with the headstock. The original posts had it misaligned about 1/4" so the power connection will have less stress on it.

I presume that means the original mounting posts were straight posts.(?) If I had 1/4" error with straight posts I would want to make sure I understood why. That's a pretty big error. To me it suggests a problem in the base alignment. That can be caused by the big set screw in the Headrest being out of adjustment (if you have one) or something wrong. Others would disagree with me on this, to some extent the eccentrics eliminate the need for accurate base alignment.

Side note: IIRC dust collection can be easily and inexpensively added to any bandsaw. It ain't perfect, but it's an improvement. You do have to cut a hole in the cover, so some purists may be opposed for that reason.

- David

Hmmm, I’m going to have to think about that alignment and check it out. After I did the initial maintenance on this Mark 5, and was ready to use it, the first thing I did was go through a full alignment procedure, as instructed. But it might be worth checking again. How much can that power shaft (idler shaft) move off center as you adjust the eccentric to tighten the gilmer belt?

I bought the dust port upgrade and plan to install it soon. This was the first time I’ve used the band saw so I just work a good face mask to keep from breathing the dust. Then I vacuumed the bandsaw out and everything around it. Everything in my shop (garage/laundry room) is covered with dust now, again. It’s almost as bad as the sanding disk, and that took a while to (mostly) clean up.

The alignment of the base casting to the tubes affects the alignment.(angular twist of the base relative to the long axis of the tubes).

I would never adjust the big set screw for this(that is for way tube twist). This is where I disagree with SS.(Nick, jointer instructions)

The eccentric belt tension adjustment guarantees altering alignment. That is why the eccentric mounting tubes are a good approach. They can compensate without affecting other alignment. They shift laterally like the shaft eccentric.

Majones1 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 15, 2021 6:45 pm Hmmm, I’m going to have to think about that alignment and check it out. After I did the initial maintenance on this Mark 5, and was ready to use it, the first thing I did was go through a full alignment procedure, as instructed. But it might be worth checking again. How much can that power shaft (idler shaft) move off center as you adjust the eccentric to tighten the gilmer belt?

I think it can move about 1/10" off center horizontally at the 'worst case' position (9:00). But the position of the upper drive does not move. In this case the Idler offset for belt tension isn't a factor. [There was a period in which SPTs connected to the Idler (Jointer, for example) had eccentric mounts but SPTs driven by the upper shaft (Bandsaw) did not.] So I think 1/4" error for the bandsaw is pretty high, though within the range correctable with the eccentrics. (Barely, IIRC, aren't they +/- 1/4"?)

Just to be clear, I'm not advocating adjusting the big set screw and 'aligning' to any SPT. I'm suggesting that if the base is well aligned this error won't be present. Simply adjusting the setscrew can make it look right without being right. For example, one thing I found was that it was difficult to hold the headrest casting true/square while clamping it to the bench tubes. Unlike the base casting, the headrest seems happy to clamp to the tubes with or without angular errors in two axes. So in some cases the big setscrew will offset for an error rather than correcting it, and it will usually then show up somewhere else (like the lathe).

- David

DLB, sorry, I temporarily forgot that I had been talking about the bandsaw, and of course you are correct about it using the top power shaft. I got new eccentric posts for both my bandsaw and the jointer, and installed them within a couple of days of each other.

At some point I’ll take a look at the alignment, but it’s going to have to wait. I think things seem to be working pretty well and I’ve been working on the machines so much for the past few months that I now want to try to keep focused on making sawdust. I have a few projects I want, and need, to make.

I do want to make sure I acknowledge you and everyone else who has been helping me out since I first got my ShopSmiths. While I might have been able to do some of this without you all, some of it certainly couldn’t have been done with out your experience, and many tasks would have taken much longer and not been performed as well. I am very glad to be able to help someone else here, and pay it back.

You have already helped others!!!

Thanks JPG. My last line didn’t come out quite like what I meant. I was trying to say that the level of support you all provide on this forum encourages me to try to do what I can to add value to it also. I am glad to be able to participate when I can, in gratitude for what I have been given. So I was trying to say thanks to everyone who participates in this forum to make it so valuable.

We got that message. Did you get mine?

Yes, I did.

Was finally able to het back to work on this cat scratching post project this weekend, and it is starting to come together.

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It looks real good. I just hope the cat(s) will use it. We had some scratchers that would not, Thankfully they used the carpet.