Shopsmith Forums

This evening I'm off to check out a ShopSmith planer. Is there anything I should lookout for, it looks to be the MkV mount model that has been mounted on a cabinet.

http://victoria.en.craigslist.ca/tls/3405457204.html

[ATTACH]19059[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]19058[/ATTACH]

That looks like a really nice planer. A new set of knives alone costs about $100 so that is a great deal. Run the thickness adjustment all the way up and down to make sure the table mounting posts are not bent. You could take a look at the knives to see if there are any bad nicks. I would also look at the drive pulley to see if the key has fallen out and marred the shaft or pulley. Good luck.

Check infeed/outfeed rollers, that's where I found abuse on mine. They are about $70 new each if I recall. I have been able to use it, but have to monitor the in and out a little more.

That looks really clean and an excellent price. Since it is a Mark V mount planer mounted on the stand, I would ask if they still have the brackets for locking it onto the Mark V. You also would like the knife setting jig and manual.

Interesting dust collection attachment....looks like the one that mounts to the table insert for shaping/sanding. The most expensive replacement parts are the feed motor and controller, so make sure that it feeds the wood at various speeds.

Look at the infeed roller to see if it is the steel serrated roller. If not you can plan on purchasing the upgrade in the future. You may also want to get the planer dust chute if there is not one as it will offer improved chip collection.

Good luck!!!

Wow - great deal. I humorously watched one come up on E-Bay yesterday (just planer - no table) with a starting bid of $20 and a BIN price of $450...within an hour two people bidding against each other had run it up to $350 (mind you, an item with a 6+ day listing period and within one hour they took it from $20 to $350)...finally one of the people said screw it and paid the BIN price. I'm not sure I'd pay $450 for a used SS Planer period, at least not without exploring my other options first, and I certainly wouldn't do it for a planer I can't even inspect and try first. Now $150...I'd be all over that.

With the price the speed controllers and feed motors are going on EBay these days, I don't think you can lose for that price. It's a nice machine and the power feeder is a great feature. Setting the blades after sharpening out the nicks was a pain for me, probably not for others. But it can be a big money saver. For a price less than a cheap lunch box planner, you've got a nice machine. Looks well taken care and the setup looks like they gave it some thought.

I got it. It seems to be in great shape, table cranked all the way up and down, motor runs great (came with a 1 hp motor), it has the knurled steel infeed roller and the rubber out feed roller is in perfect shape. It also came with the manual, the knife setting gauge and the mounting clamps. The knives need sharpening but I could not feel any big nicks.

That cabinet it's on is huge so I think I may use it as is for now but dump the cabinet once i get my Mk 5 back together.

The man I bought it from said his wifes first husband had been a woodworker before he became ill and the equipment had been his. It was a nice looking shop in a two car garage plus more in an adjoining room, mostly ShopSmith equipment. There was the planer (now mine:)), a Mk V 510, a SS 6" belt sander, a SS bandsaw (cast iron table) and a 6" jointer that looked like it would mount on a ShopSmith (it was on a SS mounting base) (I think it was a Jonson?).

The current owner uses the Mk V as a table saw and the belt sander but is thinking of also selling the jointer and the SS bandsaw to free up some space, (all the SPT's are mounted on cabinets like the one the planer is on. He didn't have prices in mind yet but he is going to get back to me with a price for the bandsaw. Perhaps one day soon it too will follow me home.

[quote="rpd"] I got it. It seems to be in great shape, table cranked all the way up and down, motor runs great (came with a 1 hp motor), it has the knurled steel infeed roller and the rubber out feed roller is in perfect shape. It also came with the manual, the knife setting gauge and the mounting clamps. The knives need sharpening but I could not feel any big nicks.

That cabinet it's on is huge so I think I may use it as is for now but dump the cabinet once i get my Mk 5 back together.

The man I bought it from said his wifes first husband had been a woodworker before he became ill and the equipment had been his. It was a nice looking shop in a two car garage plus more in an adjoining room, mostly ShopSmith equipment. There was the planer (now mine:)), a Mk V 510, a SS 6" belt sander, a SS bandsaw (cast iron table) and a 6" jointer that looked like it would mount on a ShopSmith (it was on a SS mounting base) (I think it was a Jonson?).

The current owner uses the Mk V as a table saw and the belt sander but is thinking of also selling the jointer and the SS bandsaw to free up some space, (all the SPT's are mounted on cabinets like the one the planer is on. He didn't have prices in mind yet but he is going to get back to me with a price for the bandsaw. Perhaps one day soon it too will follow me home.]
congrats!! This is an item I still have to get.

Wow - great deal! I'm jeleous. I'm definitely in need of a planer - can anyone provide some insight on the SS Planer vs. say the DeWalt DW735X that I've eyed before. The DeWalt has gotten pretty good reviews and is ~$525 new with infeed and outfeed tables. Obviously the SS Planer is quite a bit more new - what are the pros of the SS planer over other planers on the market?

Both of the Shopsmith planners have a main motor and a seperate feed motor with variable speed control.

The Shopsmith mounted planer runs off your Shopsmith so you don't have to worry about motor failure. The standalone Pro Planner has a 1 3/4 HP separate motor. Both I believe technically have induction motors which are quieter than the universal motors on the dewalt.

The indeed and outfeed tables are massive on the Shopsmith. The Pro Planner has one solid piece of cast iron that runs from the indeed to the outfeed. This of course makes the Pro Planner weight 150lbs.

Shopsmith's blades while not cheap can be sharpened and reused many times. This can bring the cost of blades down. Either way you can't lose. However, I will say look at how many 20 year old Shopsmith planners are still going strong.

The Dewalt is a nice machine, but the Shopsmith is great if you can find a used one. I was able to pick one up for less than the cost of a lunchbox planner.

Lastly, Shopsmith has parts available for most anything that can go wrong, although several major ones can cost a lot. You can also get tech support for it, no matter how old a planner you have.