Shopsmith Forums

This isn't a review per se, I'm just passing on some info and asking some questions about my recently acquired Shopsmith table saw blades and arbors.

1. I'm not making any judgment good or bad about this, just passing on information, but the 1 1/4 blade arbors are currently Made in Taiwan according to the packaging. Maybe this has been the case for a while, I'm not sure. On an initial exam, the arbors don't look or feel any different from the only other 1 1/4 arbor I own, but since I acquired that arbor second hand with my circa 2001 520 I don't know where that arbor was made, although I have assumed it was made in the USA given its vintage.

2. The new table saw blades, which I knew were made in Germany, are listed as 0.098" kerf on the package. So the kerf is actually somewhere between a 1/8th" (0.125")standard kerf and a 3/32nd" (0.9375") thin kerf. My guess is that, as these are made in Germany, the kerf probably is really 0.25MM which works out to 0.098424 inches.

3. The maximum speed for these table saw blades is listed at a whopping 7600 RPM!! Are there any table saw operations that would call for such a high speed? Even if there were, the max speed of my non-Power Pro headstock is "only" 5200 RPM so I guess I won't be running these blades up their top speed any time soon.

4. For reasons I cannot discern,all three saw blades have a tiny, semicircular cut out on the circumference of the 1 1/4 arbor hole, almost like it was designed to be used on a keyed shaft of some sort, as seen in this photo: I probably won't write a performance review of these blades for a while as most saw blades cut quite well when new and I want to see how these hold up.

These are very interesting observations. I have the same Shopsmith Saw Blade (mine is a combo 555598) that was purchased not too long ago. It is the same as yours. I am pleased to report that it has performed well. I am pleased.

Being from Germany, I would assume that the blade is made by Amana. That is good in my opinion. I agree that max RPM is not an issue.

Arbors from Taiwan are disappointing to me. I would prefer "Made in the USA" even though there might be NO quality differences. It is obvious that Shopsmith can no longer make the "Made in the USA" claim; and this is not the only positive evidence of that fact. SAD

Comment: the italicized comment is a change to the original post.

dusty wrote:It is obvious that Shopsmith can no longer make the "Made in the USA" claim; and this is not the only positive evidence of that fact. SAD

If you believe "Made in the USA" should mean 100% made in the USA it is obvious. But as usual, the manufacturers have succeeded in getting the regulator (the FTC) to pass rules that make nothing obvious. "Made in the USA" means "all or virtually all" made in the U.S.

Making matters worse, there are no hard and fast rules as to what constitutes "virtually all." https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/busines ... d#standard

I found this example from the FTC site somewhat amusing:

"Example: A company produces propane barbecue grills at a plant in Nevada. The product’s major components include the gas valve, burner and aluminum housing, each of which is made in the U.S. The grill’s knobs and tubing are imported from Mexico. An unqualified Made in USA claim is not likely to be deceptive because the knobs and tubing make up a negligible portion of the product’s total manufacturing costs and are insignificant parts of the final product."

If you ever have had a knob or tube on a gas grille fail, you might disagree with the statement that they are "insignificant parts of the final product."

And if a saw arbor ever fails in use it would be pretty damn significant to the operator.

Those slots are for heat expansion and/or vibration/resonance reduction.

See the part on the laser cut here: http://www.dewalt.com/featured-articles ... means.aspx

Roy

algale wrote: 4. For reasons I cannot discern,all three saw blades have a tiny, semicircular cut out on the circumference of the 1 1/4 arbor hole, almost like it was designed to be used on a keyed shaft of some sort.

I suspect it is used to provide indexing during manufacturing, which is no doubt automated and computerized.