Shopsmith Forums

Picked up a 505 today and noticed the top way tubes are dented slightly (not sure how) but the lower tubes are pristine. Just wondering if they are interchangeable or if I should just swap my 500 tube in its place to make the 510 in much better shape.

I'm just wondering if the specs on the two sets of tubes are the same.

The bench tubes are longer than the way tubes.

Turn them so the dents face down.

rpd wrote:The bench tubes are longer than the way tubes.

Turn them so the dents face down.

Lol I like the thought. Might have to do that. How much of a debt impacts reliabiliry/accuracy of the headstock when on it?

Yes put the dented part on the down side. Some tighten them so tight it is unreal. Also when putting them back make it 48 1/2 inches between the ends or the casters may not raise the legs up high enough when you extend them.

If it were me those dented tubes would get replace. Watch ebay for a pair and hope they are better then you have.

Yes you can use the old ones but if you do make sure they are not also bent. The dents may indicate bent tubes which really means you need to replace them or suffer alignment issues.

Ed

reible wrote:If it were me those dented tubes would get replace. Watch ebay for a pair and hope they are better then you have.

Yes you can use the old ones but if you do make sure they are not also bent. The dents may indicate bent tubes which really means you need to replace them or suffer alignment issues.

Ed

The dents are minimal but still appear to me. Here is a picture of the recent acquisition. As you can see, it's in really nice shape but I do see the minor dents. I'll see if I can get better pictures. Still, not a bad haul for $350 with bandsaw. It's a 2008 with items like the lathe tools, drill chuck, drill bits, and a few other items never used and still in the original packaging.

I will see if I can get a picture of the dents to see if it's actually a worry

Here are some close ups of the dents. I doubt they bent the tubes but there are still dents

I did that on my '07 510 about 6 weeks after buying it, getting paranoid on headstock lock tightness with some overhead routing in drill-press position. Then I rotated the tubes and lived with the (hidden) dents several years. Around 2010 I put a different set of tubes on the machine.

Somewhere I remember that Nick recommended positioning each tube so that the 'bow along the length' was highest in the middle. So turning them 180 degrees from that might not be the ultimate most accurate setup.

Chris

If the headstock does not bind and easily slides over the area wear the dents are i would live with it. If it catches even slightly replace them.

Try to find a set of Model 10 waytubes.

You will NOT bend those.

steve