belt sander idler drum torsion srping

[bigG]

Hello all,
I purchased an old mark V last year that included a number of attachments, including a band saw joiner and belt sander. I finally attached the sander to see how it worked and the belt would not track. I tried adjusting the tracking nut but nothing worked. I decided to break the sander down and discovered that the torsion spring in the idler drum is broken. I have access to an entire machine shop at work but do not know much about the spring. Does anyone know the specifics of the spring, or where i can purchase one. My friend at the shop said the pins and ends are stock and we could fix this. Also, the bearings are in need of replacement.

Any and all information would be welcomed.

G

[reible]

First, welcome to the forums!

While you might well be able to do it yourself it is also possible that just getting fresh new parts might be as good solution.

http://www.shopsmith.com/service/beltsander/index.htm

The bad news will be that you can not get just the spring so you will have to get a whole lot more and well you will more then likely get a little sticker shock.......

I recently decided to purchase the whole upper and lower drum assemblies to get my 1976 belt sander back in action so I feel your pain.

There is another option, shopsmith offers a repair service. Someone here recently did that and seemed quite happy with the outcome. You can read about the service here:

http://www.shopsmith.com/service/shopsmith_repairs.htm

Look luck with which ever route you go.

Ed

[bigG]

Thanks Ed,
I understand the situation and am not overly worried about the cost if it comes to that. I think i did ok on the unit. Had the belt sander, joiner, band saw, mark v, most all of the attachments including some i asked questions about in another post, a drum sander, and some kind of 90 degree miter thing, plus tons of sand paper and all the manuals. The quill is a double bearing quill and i paid $450.00 for it. I had to buy a drill chuck so all in is about $500.00. Runs great and all the other attachments work fine. I didn't get hurt even if i have to purchase the items new (or go for the repair). I live about 2 hours away from Dayton, may be worth a drive.

[woodmeister]

I have had several belt sanders. I presently have a Magna belt sander. I did not realize it until I sold the others. I have had zero problems with it. Had I had any I may have sold this one for a newer one. I actually like this accessory over all the other ones so far.