Shopsmith Forums

Hello
Has anyone seen or made a router collet for the SS that uses a tapered collet with a and nut to tighten and release it? I was thinking of buying a replacement collet and nut for router and then machining the SS 1/2 inch router collet with an internal taper and external threads to match the collet. Has anyone tried this or know where I could find something like this without having to make it? Also, if SS made something like this, How many people out there would be interested?
Thanks
karl

karlvollmers wrote:Hello
Has anyone seen or made a router collet for the SS that uses a tapered collet with a and nut to tighten and release it? I was thinking of buying a replacement collet and nut for router and then machining the SS 1/2 inch router collet with an internal taper and external threads to match the collet. Has anyone tried this or know where I could find something like this without having to make it? Also, if SS made something like this, How many people out there would be interested?
Thanks
karl

Not sure what you are trying to do but Beal makes lathe collets of various sizes and you get get a Shopsmith adapter from several vendors (some US made and some Chinese) that will connect the headstock to it.

I have had bad experience with the $15 Chinese adapters, they had a great deal of run-out and great experience with the $35 US made ones which I currently use. It was several years ago when I first purchased them and I don't remember the vendors but the US made ones were marked as to where they were made on the website and the Chinese ones were not.

Karl,

If I read you correctly, what you have in mind is a spindle adapter that would allow you to use a router collet (Porter Cable, for example) to mount and dismount router bits.
I know of no such adapter, and it's an interesting concept, but I don't uderstand what advantage it would have over the Shopsmith router chuck.

Sincerely,

Ron309753

Maybe I don't really know how to use the Shopsmith router chuck. However, I find that using a router bit in the Shopsmith router chuck set screw damages the bit shank so it can't be used in a normal router chuck. I have only used the 1/4 inch chuck.

I would like to have a normal router collet.

Hello All
Thanks for the feedback. As Rlkeeney suggested I find the SS router chucks mark up the shaft on my router bits so 1) they are difficult to get in and out of the SS chuck and 2) they don't work on real router chucks until I sand them smooth and 3) under heavy loading they will twist and extend the marks a significant way around the shaft.

In effort to make use of the increased speed in the power pro head stock and the possibility for under the table router setup enabled by the left tilt option it would be nice if there was an acceptable way to chuck up a router bit. On first examination, I believe Beall lathe chucks look like they would work, but I need to figure out how long the stack of adaptors and such would be. ( @paulmcohen, Can you shed any light on this?)

I was looking at the Router Technologies EX 2080 Xtreme Xtension Professional Router Bit/Collet Extension with the thought that I could (permanently) mount that in the 1/2" SS chuck and then mount bits in that, but it It looks like it is adding quite a bit of moment (leverage) on the quill which I would like to avoid, as the stiffer the system is the smoother the cut.

karlvollmers wrote:Hello All
Thanks for the feedback. As Rlkeeney suggested I find the SS router chucks mark up the shaft on my router bits so 1) they are difficult to get in and out of the SS chuck and 2) they don't work on real router chucks until I sand them smooth and 3) under heavy loading they will twist and extend the marks a significant way around the shaft.

In effort to make use of the increased speed in the power pro head stock and the possibility for under the table router setup enabled by the left tilt option it would be nice if there was an acceptable way to chuck up a router bit. On first examination, I believe Beall lathe chucks look like they would work, but I need to figure out how long the stack of adaptors and such would be. ( @paulmcohen, Can you shed any light on this?)

I was looking at the Router Technologies EX 2080 Xtreme Xtension Professional Router Bit/Collet Extension with the thought that I could (permanently) mount that in the 1/2" SS chuck and then mount bits in that, but it It looks like it is adding quite a bit of moment (leverage) on the quill which I would like to avoid, as the stiffer the system is the smoother the cut.

GL! What type points are on your router bit chuck set screws? I would hope they are flat, NOT cupped or knurled cup!!!!!:eek:

JPG40504 wrote:GL! What type points are on your router bit chuck set screws? I would hope they are flat, NOT cupped or knurled cup!!!!!:eek:

LOL, The are the ones SS sent with the router collet! Judging from the marks I would guess they are cupped, but even so the bit still spins in the collet. After some more research, I'm going to try to figure out a way to mount an ER-20 collet on the machine.

karlvollmers wrote:I was looking at the Router Technologies EX 2080 Xtreme Xtension Professional Router Bit/Collet Extension with the thought that I could (permanently) mount that in the 1/2" SS chuck and then mount bits in that, but it It looks like it is adding quite a bit of moment (leverage) on the quill which I would like to avoid, as the stiffer the system is the smoother the cut.

The Router Technologies EX 2080 Xtreme Xtension Professional Router Bit/Collet Extension is designed to run at 25,000 RPM where run-out would cause extreme vibration and I have not heard complaints. I think the idea of putting it permanently in the Shopsmith 1/2" router is an excellent idea, it would also make changing the bit very easy when the Power Head in under the table. While the Beal Collets are very high quality I don't know they are designed to run at 10,000 RPM since they are designed for more conventional lathes but it would be worth asking.

I got my adapter from http://bestwoodtools.stores.yahoo.net/ they make very high quality adapters of all kinds and they are familiar with Shopsmith when you need something custom. They also sell really nice tool rests of strong, ground and polished alloy steel for the Shopsmith, both for the Universal Tool Rest Banjo with the 1" hole and the standard 3/4" hole.

karlvollmers wrote:LOL, The are the ones SS sent with the router collet! Judging from the marks I would guess they are cupped, but even so the bit still spins in the collet. After some more research, I'm going to try to figure out a way to mount an ER-20 collet on the machine.

Cupped and knurled cup points are intended for use with soft shafts so that they 'dig' on. Router bits shafts are hard. The flat points provide more surface contact and should grip better. That's the way I see it!;)

However I finally realized what was being described in the first post(a typical router collet). They are more capable of the task.

Penn State Industries (and others) sell a collet chuck and collets that could be mounted on a Shopsmith with an appropriate adapter. The chuck itself has 1"x8 TPI female threads in order to fit a lathe with a matching spindle. You could get one of the Penn State adapters -- 5/8" smooth bore to 1"x8TPI -- and mount the collet chuck on the Shopsmith. These chuck comes with five ER-32 collets that are about 1 1/2" in length. You'll have to decide if the collet length is adequate for your needs.