Homebrew Shop Deputy

[billmayo]

I have had available a MINI Benchtop frame kit for some time. The minimum space required for mounting this unit is 12” X 38”. To provide a vertical drill press capacity, you need a 12” X 48” mounting area. A few of my friends have gotten the kit from me. I believe this is a good addition to a small shop where space is a problem. I have mine mounted on a 2X12 board. I added setscrews to the base arm to provide additional holding force for the SPTs legs. I am waiting on my son to weld the sawed off legs of a 500 table so the legs fit in the SPT holes. I have jig for this operation. This will give me a sawing capability for the MINI Shopsmith.

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[reible]

Bill,

I'm glad you did this post because I have been thinking about the very thing you have done, that being the setscrew in the SPT holes. I had thought about adding two of them, top and bottom in the hopes of making the lathe end more stable.

One of my shopsmiths seems to have more play in that area and I have tried using larger diameter stop collars and a few other things that have helped but not as much as I would have liked. Adding a set screw was next on my list of things to try.

I'd like to hear how well this did when you have the time.

Ed

I have had available a MINI Benchtop frame kit for some time. The minimum space required for mounting this unit is 12” X 38”. To provide a vertical drill press capacity, you need a 12” X 48” mounting area. A few of my friends have gotten the kit from me. I believe this is a good addition to a small shop where space is a problem. I have mine mounted on a 2X12 board. I added setscrews to the base arm to provide additional holding force for the SPTs legs. I am waiting on my son to weld the sawed off legs of a 500 table so the legs fit in the SPT holes. I have jig for this operation. This will give me a sawing capability for the MINI Shopsmith.

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[dusty]

I am skeptical.

How much SPT leg movement do you have?

Is the unwanted movement end to end OR infeed to outfeed?

Is the problem only when turning?

[reible]

I am skeptical.

How much SPT leg movement do you have?

Is the unwanted movement end to end OR infeed to outfeed?

Is the problem only when turning?

The issue I have is with one of my machines and it appears or rears it ugly head when drilling using the tail stock with drill chuck and the bit mounted there. The stock is mounted in a chuck on the quill and feeds into the fix location of the bit in the tail stock. So as you drill the pressure allows the tail stock to move or if you will tip back, that in turn lets the drill bit drill at a slight angle rather then a straight line.

I do this same drilling on my other machines so I was confused why when I did it on this machine I had less then stellar results. What you see are over sized holes, ovals so to speak and that is fine for some applications but not so much for others. If this setscrew option works it will fix my issue and if not then getting a new part or used end might be the best next option.

I'm sure this happens to some extent on all machines but I'm not sure to what extent. I've seen reports here on lathe issues when applying pressure from the quill but that minor misalignment I feel is less of a problem then the drilling issue or at least it is for me.

Ed

[reubenjames]

Much of the rigidness of the shopsmith is due to the 4 tubes, so while they might not be needed I think I'd at least think seriously about adding them just so you retain the stability. As I said it is only one more cut and the bottom tubes need not be pretty or can even be painted but they will add to the structure of the machine.

I thought more about this. The bench tubes do add stability to the Shopsmith because they permanently secure the two bases, and by extension the legs, together. In a Shop Deputy, however, the 2 inch thick board that you are mounting the bases to is providing that same function and adding stability. I'm not saying the bench tubes wouldn't add more (though I don't know how much at that point) and I'm not saying I won't add mine (I may well do so) but I wanted to point out that its design encompasses a method for stabilizing the unit in lieu of way tubes. Looks like Bill Mayo's units that the MotherShip stole the design for also do not have way tubes, at least in those pics. His measurements (12 x 38) are almost exactly what Shop Deputy minimums are (12.5 x 39). Maybe Bill could comment further on stability of his units in that regard.

[BuckeyeDennis]

Much of the rigidness of the shopsmith is due to the 4 tubes, so while they might not be needed I think I'd at least think seriously about adding them just so you retain the stability. As I said it is only one more cut and the bottom tubes need not be pretty or can even be painted but they will add to the structure of the machine.

I thought more about this. The bench tubes do add stability to the Shopsmith because they permanently secure the two bases, and by extension the legs, together. In a Shop Deputy, however, the 2 inch thick board that you are mounting the bases to is providing that same function and adding stability. I'm not saying the bench tubes wouldn't add more (though I don't know how much at that point) and I'm not saying I won't add mine (I may well do so) but I wanted to point out that its design encompasses a method for stabilizing the unit in lieu of way tubes. Looks like Bill Mayo's units that the MotherShip stole the design for also do not have way tubes, at least in those pics. His measurements (12 x 38) are almost exactly what Shop Deputy minimums are (12.5 x 39). Maybe Bill could comment further on stability of his units in that regard.

There's a reason why they're called "bench tubes". If you look at a Model 10, the end castings are, by design, bolted to a wooden bench. Which bench Magna did not supply. When the Mark V came along, the function of the wooden bench was replaced with the metal bench tubes, which were more practical for volume manufacturing and shipping. But there's certainly nothing wrong with using wood for the "bench".

[reible]

This is the direction I'm leaning if I make one of these. A sheet of plywood and then a couple of mounting blocks that have notches for the tubes then a clamp over the bar to hold everything in place.

I don't have parts to mock this up but picture if you will a part like this that has the spacing of the bench tubes.

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It would be high enough so that the end parts of the shopsmith would just rest on the plywood but would just set there rather then be screwed down. One of these blocks on each end.

Then the bench tubes are clamped down sort of like I have pictured here:

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Of course the part would be spaced under both tubes and a clamp on each tube. Since the part I have is not the right one you will have to picture it centered under the tubes and then having the clamps of the right size bolting it down.

At this point one could start working on a tilting system like on the MK VII if you so choose.

Well that is about as far as I care to go on the subject unless I do decide to build one of these.

Ed

[reubenjames]

Makes sense. I see what you are getting at. It's a neat idea.

[masonsailor2]

Essentially it's the same as mounting a Mark V to use as a stand alone drill press.
Paul

[reible]

Essentially it's the same as mounting a Mark V to use as a stand alone drill press.
Paul

Yes the same idea but by using the hardware I showed you should not loose the thickness of the 2 x 4 as is the case in your drill press mount. Of course that amount of space isn't much in the scheme of things in drill press mode but it might be for a mini type design.

I have not played with actual parts so I might be over looking something but in my mind it sounds like it would work really well.

Ed