Today I used one of those cheap digital tachometers (discussed on this forum a while ago, and seems to work great) to check the dial on the speed control versus the speed on the Shopsmith main shaft, setup as seen in this photo ( you point the tach at the disk after installing a shiny reflective strip):
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Here is the speed comparison:
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I expected the control dial speeds to be different from the SS shaft speeds because the dial probably shows "no load" speeds and there are pulleys involved. I seem to have a problem with the control above 1955 rpm. Also, at zero on the dial, the SS is actually running. The higher speeds might also be a little below the control dial because the motor pulley is a little smaller than the idler shaft pulley, but that does not explain the low range speeds being higher.

I installed a 10” carbide blade and turned the dial to the top speed to try cutting a small piece of oak flooring scrap.The saw ripped the piece of hardwood ok and left a smooth cut, but I pushed the wood through relatively slowly.
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The motor appeared to be ok wrt power during the cut and the rate of moving the wood past the blade had more to do with the low rpm than power, I think.
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So, all in all, strange results. Maybe my speed control is faulty?

I have an electrical engineer buddy, so may get him to take a look at the control box for me..........maybe I let the smoke out of some of the resisters in the control
