Shopsmith Forums

This may be a replacement part no one else will ever have to replace, but thought I'd share my experience.

Evidently I had twisted the shaft of one of the Glide Hex Head Screws (under the Miter Gauge) when adjusting it. After noticing the weird tilt to my miter gauge, I went to adjusting the glides. These black screws are made from nylon. I later found they are solid nylon - previously thought they were just coated in something that would slide.

Since I couldn't turn one of the screws, I tried to remove it. Whoops! It twisted off! Nothing left to do but to order another. I ordered two because the other had silver showing on the head. Later found out it was just a little aluminum from the table.

These hex head nylon screws cost $12 each! Lucky they were on sale for 20% off. Threw them into the order for sandpaper disks.

Oh yeah! One more thing! Remember the old fashioned method of aligning the table and the rip fence? The one where you locked a long Allen wrench into the miter gauge and slid it along the surface to be aligned. Well, I had left a set screw in the top of the miter gauge where you would tighten the Allen wrench. Evidently I had screwed the set screw down to where it touched the nylon glide screw. No wonder it wouldn't go in any farther! Here is where I must have twisted the screw shaft.

Had to drill out the old broken one. Good thing nylon was easy to drill. BTW they are a bugger to install. Had to run a 5/16 x 18 die part way up the screw (scraping the excess nylon off) to be able to start it without cross threading.

Charlese
Something must be wrong here. Either my mitre gauge is different or I simply don't understand.
In my mitre gauge there are two nylon slot headed screws, I looked at the blow up picture at SS site and they are listed as item#270 Part number514566 Glide 2 @ $12.63 Sale: $10.10 However they look different than the one I got. Mine are set screw without any flattened head.

I then went to the Grainger catalog and looked up what I think I have and found 5/16 18 nylon set screws selling for $17.42 a hundred.

I can't imagine why the ones from SS would cost $12 a piece as you reported or $10.10 as now is listed if they are simply nylon set screws.

Any idea
Ed

Here's the screws I'm talking about. They are the glides that look like 1/2" hex screws. They are black in color. The ones the miter gauge rides on.
The screw is 5/16 X 18 TPI
[ATTACH]1424[/ATTACH]

Here's the 1/2" head I had twisted off.

[ATTACH]1425[/ATTACH]

Hope this clears up the confusion!

charlese wrote:Here's the screws I'm talking about. They are the glides that look like 1/2" hex screws. They are black in color. The ones the miter gauge rides on.
The screw is 5/16 X 18 TPI
[ATTACH]1424[/ATTACH]

Here's the 1/2" head I had twisted off.

[ATTACH]1425[/ATTACH]

Hope this clears up the confusion!

Where was the head that you twisted off. Attached to the top or bottom of the set screw?
My glides look like your except I have slot on the top side so it doesn't get worn off. Mine do not have a hex head like you shown broken off. In the picture you glide mounted in the miter gauge don't seem to have head either.
I'm still lost
Ed

Here is what my glide looks like. [ATTACH]1426[/ATTACH]

The top of the screw is a slot for a screw driver and it is up inside the mitre gauge so it doesn't wear off. The bottom as you see is nothing more than flat and rubs on the table.
I can't believe this costs $12 Like I said Grainger sells them for $17 per hundred.
Ed

chuck
Check out thread https://forum.shopsmith.com/viewtopic.php?t=1155
Post number 9 apparently if you order the guide I have it is only $0.90 if you get the one with the hex head which I have no idea of how it looks it must cost the $12 you paid.

Ed in Tampa & Charlese,

Try McMaster-Carr part number 91970A579 5/16x18x1/2 length black nylon hex head cap screw fully threaded........box of 50 $10.70

Cut a screw driver slot in the head and you are in business for the type Charlese needed.........Cut the head off, cut a screw driver slot and you have the type Ed needs.

I use several mitre gauges for jigs so when I come across an old one I buy and rebuild.

Use just a dab of Hard as Nails nail polish to keep them in adjustment.

LDH

Ed,

I can concur with what both you and charlese have said. There is a pair of flat hex head nylon screws in my miter gauge and there is a pair of set screws.

If I take the flat head nylon screw and the steel setscrew out, there is a hole (vertically) all the way through the fence on the miter gauge. It is threaded most of the way. The top part of the hole is not threaded.

It sounds to me as though you are using a nylon set screw in lieu of the nylon glides and do not have set screws at all.

The set screws in my two miter gauges are coming out today and going into the spare parts drawer. I never have a need to tighten those set screws. I abandoned the old method of testing rip fence alignment a long time ago.

I'm taking them out because I suspect that charlese' problem is an indirect result of those steel setscrews. If one tightens those setscrews down onto the tip of the nylon glides, I fear that the glide will spread and be lodged in the hole - begging for the nylon glide to break off. New glides probably wouldn't break under normal pressure but older, more brittle glides might. Mine definately qualify as older.

Faced with the cost ($10.10 ea.) of replacing the glides, I suspect that I just might revert to "nylon set screws".

Incidently, there is a drawing error in the Exploded Parts View for the Miter Gauge. The Miter Stud #278 does not go through the hole where it is depicted and one of the Nylon Glides is shown to be in the wrong location. The one nylon glide should be shown in the hole where #278 is located and #278 (along with all of the related parts) should be relocated to what is now an unoccupied hole.

This drawing (page B-12) does not show the the steel set screws that I have at all.

http://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/productmanuals/MKVSTDPartsList%20_1_14.pdf

Dusty said, ... "I'm taking them out because I suspect that charlese' problem is an indirect result of those steel setscrews. If one tightens those setscrews down onto the tip of the nylon glides, I fear that the glide will spread and be lodged in the hole - begging for the nylon glide to break off. New glides probably wouldn't break under normal pressure but older, more brittle glides might. Mine definately qualify as older...."

Exactly, Dusty!!! This is what I tried to explain in my first post. Actually, $12 bucks isn't really too much when you consider the new screws need a nut driver or socket to get started, and then need the slot in order to adjust. This is one part I would rather buy than make. The slot is wide and must stand up to a bit of torque.

As earlier reported the excess nylon must be cleaned off the threads in order to start the screws. The excess nylon on the other threads of the screw prevent vibrating out, but they also cause the screw to fit pretty tight.

I think I mindlessly screwed down one of the metal allen head screws to prevent the nylon screw from being moved.

Ed in Tampa wrote:chuck
Check out thread https://forum.shopsmith.com/viewtopic.php?t=1155
Post number 9 apparently if you order the guide I have it is only $0.90 if you get the one with the hex head which I have no idea of how it looks it must cost the $12 you paid.

Just like "solicitr" in the referenced post. I talked with Jan because I couldn't find the part number. She knew what I was talking about and furnished the hex head screws.

Guess I'm gliding on 1/2" heads and you and solicitr are gliding on 5/8" screws. Glad it all works!

As for the part that was snapped off of the head - I had bored a hole through it and after removing it, broke it apart with pliers just to see what it was made of. As for my extra glide - I put it somewhere I knew I could find it. Couldn't find it this morning to take it's photo! Isn't that the way it happens sometimes? When I locate it, I'll send you a photo.