Just purchased used SS 510 motor turns but not shaft

[bamend13209]

More dust

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Open space between spring and pully

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Lots of Dust

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Just brought home a SS 510. It hasn't been run "in years" and is full of dust. The motor turns but the shaft won't. It turned at first and when I ran the speed control all the way down and back up it stopped turning. The belts look new. I looked at the bottom variable pulley and it's wide open. There's a gap between the spring end and the pulley. The whole speed switch is caked with dust on the back and hasn't been oiled in a while. I ordered the Mk V Help Kit & Train DVD but it's backordered. Would this show me how to clean it up and lube everything up right? What else can I do to clean it up and get it working? Any other tutorials out there? I appreciate the help.

[wa2crk]

Hi and welcome to the "funny farm".
If you can't get it fixed here you can't get it fixed anywhere. There are many good tutorials on the SS website under the Sawdust Session tab.
It looks to me that the motor "floating" sheave is in the low speed setting and the Upper sheave (The control sheave) is also in the slow position.
First You should turn the shafts by hand to see if they turn at all. If they do, then feel the belts to determine if they are tight. The tension on the V belt is determined by the spring on the bottom sheave. If either of the sheaves do not move far enough to maintain the tension on the V belt the shafts will stop turning due to belt slippage.
If this checks OK then install the sanding disc and while turning the disc by hand adjust the speed control so that the spring is fully expanded and oil the sheaves through the oil holes on the shafts.
MAKE SURE THE MACHINE IS UNPLUGGED WHEN YOU DO ANY MAINTENANCE. Full line voltage is on the rear of the switch when the machine plugged in.
After you do this check back here for more info.
Bill V

[bamend13209]

Both shafts turn. I agree with your diagnosis. I'm going to clean up the machine this week and then do the oiling you mentioned. I downloaded the Shopnotes Issue #11 and will use that to get started. Thanks for the help.

[bamend13209]

Why do you have to put the sanding disk in? To put it under load?

[BuckeyeDennis]

Why do you have to put the sanding disk in? To put it under load?

If you try to turn/force the speed dial without the headstock turning, you can damage the mechanism. When you can't power the headstock with the motor, the sanding disc can be used as a big handwheel to turn the spindle, allowing you to slowly move the speed dial.

[wa2crk]

An absolute no-no is to turn the speed control if the shafts are not turning. Doing so will cause damage to the control sheave. The sanding disc gives some leverage to turn the shaft. So, to turn the shaft by hand slowly as you run the speed control handle (also slowly) to the high speed setting will expand the spring on the motor. When the spring is fully open the oil hole can be seen through the coils of the spring. The oil hole in the control (upper) sheave is always visible through the access port.
Also I don't think that the dirt is excessive unless you have already cleaned a bunch of out already.
Bill V

[dusty]

I wish we knew what the speed dial setting was when these pictures were taken.

The motor sheave appears to be somewhere mid-range. At high speed, the spring coils are wide open and the sheaves are close together on the v-belt. The upper sheave is wide open making the oil port accessible.

At low speed, the spring coils are tight together and the lower sheave opens thus releasing tension on the v-belt. The upper sheave should be closed tight on the v-belt.

In your third picture it appears as though both sets of sheaves are open somewhat and that the v-belt is free to move. This should not happen and I believe is the root of your problem.

With these conditions, the speed dial should be at 'mid-range'. What speed setting do you have on the dial?

I don't believe the dust is causing your problem but it does indicate the the previous owner was a bit lax on maintenance. The machine should never look like this. The dust is very fine. I would expect this if cutting a lot of MDF without ever cleaning the machine. When I do MDF, I open up the headstock and blow it out just to prevent this condition.

If you still can, would you post a picture of the speed control taken through the inspection port.

Good luck this. I believe you will be making your own saw dust very soon. A little cleaning with some lubrication and you'll be back in business.

[billmayo]

The motor floating sheave will tend to stick in the open position if not lubricated often. A couple of drops in the floating sheave oil hole will not really do the job. Put the Shopsmith in the drill press position with the speed at FAST and motor off. I slowly using a zoom spout oiler, put oil on the open shaft so it will go in the end of the floating sheave. You may use a screwdriver to open the spring for the spout to do this oiling. I turn the motor slowly and use more than a couple drops of oil. I do not believe you can over oil a Shopsmith. I put 12 to 20 drops 0f oil in the control sheave at this time. I turn on the motor and cycle the speed from FAST to SLOW slowly and then back to FAST. I again do the same oiling procedure at this time. At least once a year will do wonders for the Shopsmith, more often is preferred.

[bamend13209]

Speed Control Setting

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Here's the speed setting as requested.

Bottom sheave and spring

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Also is this spring supposed to be cocked like this?

[wa2crk]

I believe that Dusty asked for a picture taken by looking through the inspection port on the rear of the headstock. This would reveal the condition of the teeth on the speed control mechanism. As well as other potential problems
The spring looks normal to me. The cocked look is caused by the spring trying to move sideways when under compression.
Bill V