Shopsmith Forums

Just finished the Powerpro upgrade, went great with no hiccups. Didn't bother with the DVD as it would not play on my computer but the book was fine. Couple of questions though. On the belt tension, the upper (Shorter) belt is pretty tight while the lower belt is very loose. I did the belt adjustment but the lower belt still deflects about an inch on either side. I noticed there are adjustment screws on the motor mount I assume to adjust the belt tension and did use those to snug the belt up a bit. Still kinda loose but not nearly as bad as before. Unit runs very quite but I noticed that when I extend the quill out just a bit it gets even quieter, is there a lube point I am missing or is something out of spec. The only thing I don't like that I realized after playing with it for a while is the "confirm" button, it just adds a step when i am use to making adjustments on the fly with the old mechanical wheel. Love everything else about it though. Next up is the 510 to 520 upgrade.

My diy PowerPro does the same as you say yours does, if just running not powering any tool it makes a tiny squeeking like noise until you extend the quill even only 1/16 of an inch. I haven't been able to locate the cause, but has been this way now for over a year and a half. If anyone has any idea what it might be let us know.

Yep! The lower belt is too loose. You want to get balanced tension on the adjustable bearing.

If you want to see the video - at the start when there is just a picture, click on the red wording in the upper part of the picture.

I don't know what the cause is. Maybe you can call Shopsmith. They have good help about the PowerPro, although they'll have to call you back. Wes or Jim Mccann will return a call. They are the PowerPro experts.

Thanks Guys, watched the video and picked up a few pointers but I am still concerned about the belt tension. They really need to list belt deflection as a starting point for belt tension. It is a very good design but I am not sure how tight the belts should be. The lower one is a bit looser than the upper per the video since they are different sizes. Did the adjustment and it seems very quiet, just want to make sure I am not going to burn up a bearing. Both belts have about 1/8 to a 1/4 inch of deflection at the center of each belt with a pretty hard squeeze of the belt. Ran it for about 5 minutes at 9500 and bearings got pretty hot, not burning hot but hot.

Is not the eccentric adjusted to equalize tension of the two belts?

Warm bearings at 9500 is not surprising.

Superpop,

Sounds just like mine. I was unable to get the tension the same between the belts. Mine has run great for 3 years. It does get pretty hot when run at high speeds.

Jack

superpop wrote:Thanks Guys, watched the video and picked up a few pointers but I am still concerned about the belt tension. They really need to list belt deflection as a starting point for belt tension. It is a very good design but I am not sure how tight the belts should be. The lower one is a bit looser than the upper per the video since they are different sizes. Did the adjustment and it seems very quiet, just want to make sure I am not going to burn up a bearing. Both belts have about 1/8 to a 1/4 inch of deflection at the center of each belt with a pretty hard squeeze of the belt. Ran it for about 5 minutes at 9500 and bearings got pretty hot, not burning hot but hot.

superpop wrote:Thanks Guys, watched the video and picked up a few pointers but I am still concerned about the belt tension. .... Did the adjustment and it seems very quiet, just want to make sure I am not going to burn up a bearing. Both belts have about 1/8 to a 1/4 inch of deflection at the center of each belt with a pretty hard squeeze of the belt. Ran it for about 5 minutes at 9500 and bearings got pretty hot, not burning hot but hot.

Sounds like you got it adjusted. 1/4" on the lower belt is a lot better than 1"

Yes, bearing heat up quite a bit at 9500 RPM. Also the spindle bearings. That's why you don't want to run at that speed for hours. I forgot the length of running in Shopsmith's advertising - when the ran their thickness planer, but it was in spurts.

Superpop,

I completed my upgrade to the PowerPro head stock a little over a year ago. I experience the same issue with the loose drive belt. After a phone call to Shopsmith and a review of the maintenance section of the PowerPro upgrade manual, I adjusted the belt tension to 1/8 to 3/16 inch deflection using the motor mount adjustment screws (as directed in the manual). Then revisited the idler shaft adjustment to equalize the tension between the belts. I have been using my shopsmith without any problems.