Shopsmith Forums

I've got a shopsmith 510 with double quill bearings. My question is how good canews the lathe be? I realize it isn't going to be a top of the line oneway but how much does that matter. Right now, I'm happy with the swing and hp. 2 things that I don't like are the light weight and a slow speed that isn't slow enough. I could spend the money for a speed reducer and build a weighted stand to address those issues OR I could spend $1500 on a Grizzly that will go down to 200 and weighs over 500 pounds. Do you use your lathe extensively?

I use my lathe function rarely, but when I need it for a project, I find it does the job very well.
I'm sure there are others here who have much more experience with the lathe function.

I've used my to turn a few Christmas ornaments and a couple bowls. I've had pretty good success but I've also run into the limitations I spoke of earlier.

I do a lot of lathe work- on a Powermatuc. I do some on the Shopsmith and it works fiine enough, but since I have a dedicated 800 ish pound lathe, i use it. That being said, when I become a snowbird in a few years, I'm taking the Powerpro with me an investing in the upgraded too rests system!

Tking308 wrote:I've used my to turn a few Christmas ornaments and a couple bowls. I've had pretty good success but I've also run into the limitations I spoke of earlier.

With patience, I was able to buy a nice speed reducer on eBay for $150. Which takes the minimum speed down to 100 RPM. That not only solves the bowl-speed problem, but is also a great for low-speed drill press applications. Large Forstner bits are no problem, and I recently cut a perfect 7" diameter hole in 1/2" baltic birch plywood with a cheap circle cutter. Safely.

I've been very pleased with my 520 for turning handles and such. But I did have some chatter problems when hollowing a large bowl. I plan to try the $220 Universal Tool Rest before seriously considering a stand-alone lathe. I'm already pressed for shop space, and more space would cost even more than the additional machinery.

BuckeyeDennis wrote:

Tking308 wrote:I've used my to turn a few Christmas ornaments and a couple bowls. I've had pretty good success but I've also run into the limitations I spoke of earlier.

With patience, I was able to buy a nice speed reducer on eBay for $150. Which takes the minimum speed down to 100 RPM. That not only solves the bowl-speed problem, but is also a great for low-speed drill press applications. Large Forstner bits are no problem, and I recently cut a perfect 7" diameter hole in 1/2" baltic birch plywood with a cheap circle cutter. Safely.

I've been very pleased with my 520 for turning handles and such. But I did have some chatter problems when hollowing a large bowl. I plan to try the $220 Universal Tool Rest before seriously considering a stand-alone lathe. I'm already pressed for shop space, and more space would cost even more than the additional machinery.

That's actually the decision I'm facing. Spend $600 upgrading the lathe with speed reducer and universal tool rest or put that money towards a stand alone lathe.

I have been using my Shopsmiths Mark V's as lathe's for about 30 years but I am NOT a terribly good lathe turner. I started with a 500 then upgraded to a 510 (although there is really little difference in lathe capabilities between the two). I have added a Nova chuck to the mix and do some pen turning, bowl turning and the like.

This is probably heresy but I have recently purchased a Delta midi-lathe (a Delta 46-460). It is close to the Shopsmith in capability (although I don't have the bed extension yet) - a little shy on HP (1 HP vs 1-1/2 HP) but about same swing. And the Delta does have more conventional tailstock and it is easier to get around when turning bowls. And it is smaller. It is variable speed (electronic) which is very nice and handy. I got mine on sale recently for $370.

I plan on selling my 510 (keeping my 520). I think the Delta will do what I want as a lathe better than my 510.

Regarding the Shopsmith and not enough weight... Are you referring to "walking" due to large out of balance turnings or the disconcerting "hop" ? Either can easily be solved with tube sand bags. If the SS walks, place three sandbags around the exterior of the legs on each end. That little bit of help seems to end any walking, or at least it did for me on large turnings. The hop is as simple as draping a couple sand bags over the lower tubes. I have seen a couple solutions where hanging wooden trays were made that clamp on to the lower tubes and then weight is added to them. It really doesn't take much extra weight to even out the hops until you get the piece shaved down. If you are still getting significant hop it might be wise to buy or make a support rest. I have one that I built from plans on Sketchup's Warehouse. Commercial ones are also very nicely made; probably more forgiving and adaptable.
The speed is a whole nuther ball game. I have a Mark 7 so the PowerPro makes it so much easier. With spindles is even helps avoid catches by momentarily stopping when it sense a catch. And I've not had anything that was so large or wobbly that the lowest speed about 250 rpm couldn't handle.
A good friend bought a 10ER strictly for use as a lathe. He copied the angle iron stand which my Dad's sets on plus adding more steel AND a tray underneath to add extra ballast. He bought a speed control for it on Ebay and has been a happy camper. I think the whole things was under $700 including stand fabrication.
All the previous posts have great ideas and suggestions. THOUGH I might add the PowerPro motor is the same one used on the Teknatool Nova DVRs and if you look at them, their stands aren't as well stabilized as the Shopsmith.
Good Luck with you search.

Just my 2 cents.

Be well,
Ben