Shopsmith Forums

I am turning pens and pencils on the Shopsmith. The problem I am having is that I cannot get the rest to the suggested 1/8" from the blank. I have all the specialty rests but the rest holder won't allow any of them to get close. Any ideas? Thanks

I wouldn’t worry about getting it that close, just get it as close as you can and it will be fine.

Have you extended the Quill, leaving more room for the carriage to find a friendly position? That helps me sometimes.

Chris

Hi Rick
What model of SS do you have? If you have a 505, 510 or 520 there are two spots where the tool rest can be installed on the tool post. The 505, 510 and 520 have a wider carriage and in order to get close to small turnings you have to use the mounting hole at the end of the tool rest arm so the arm will reach further into the turning. If your tool rest arm only has one hole on the arm it is a model for the model 500 and will not reach to the center of a turning with the wider carriage.
Bill V

I had the same issue. Somebody on the site suggested an extender that mounts in the tail rest. It moves the tail rest to the left and then you can position the tool rest so that you can move it in close to the work. I also found that the universal base works well if you are doing multiple pens. I think I got the extender out of the General tool catalog for about $15.

Rick
Now I understand. You don't have enough room between the headstock and the tailstock. What you need is a morse #2 adapter.
I got mine from Grizzly Industries. The part # is H5895. It is labeled as H&G extension Socket 2-2 MT. I think about $15 to $20 bucks.
Bill V

Rickk wrote:I am turning pens and pencils on the Shopsmith. The problem I am having is that I cannot get the rest to the suggested 1/8" from the blank. I have all the specialty rests but the rest holder won't allow any of them to get close. Any ideas? Thanks

I will take another crack at it.
Because the set up for pens is so short you need to position the carriage to the left, close to the headstock, and angle the arm to the right, to get rest in the proper position.
Here is a picture of the setup on my 10er. I didn't have a drilled blank to mount but you'll get the idea. Let us know if any of the suggestions have helped. If not, more information would help to zero in on the answer.
What model SS do you have? Do you have the Universal Lathe Tool Rest or the stock tool rest?
A picture showing the problem would also be helpful.

After I acquired a second tool rest in an eBay deal, I hack sawed about an inch off each end of the original. Works great for pens.