Shopsmith Forums

Hi. I just brought home a Mark V that my late uncle purchased around 1984. It has sat in his basement for quite awhile unused. I dont have the manual but I found a woodworking book about using the ss, a hard-cover book. What should I use to polish the ss? I have removed alot of sawdust already. I took one cover off last night and it looked like two belts were in good condition. I just ordered a pair of arbors today. The saw blade he used is steel and it looked like it was never sharpened, so I will start with a new one. Anything anyone can chime in with, as to cleaning or 'breaking in' an older idled ss will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I think the best thing for you to do is become familiar with the Nationakl Woodworking Academy's "Hands Online" Sawdust Sessions.

http://www.shopsmithacademy.com/

http://www.shopsmithacademy.com/Sawdust_Sessions.htm

There are currently 22 sessions available for viewing. Each session is from 90 to 120 minutes of excellent instruction on the care and use of your Shopsmith.

I would suggest that sessions 4, 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 21 and 22 are particularly applicable to you as a new user.

Session #11 covers cleaning and lubricationg; this is something that I believe you should do before you do much else with your Shopsmith.

One word of caution: Do not change the speed control dial unless the Shopsmith is running. You can do some serious damage if you do. When you become a bit more familiar, you'll find that there are some minor exceptions to this "hard fast rule" but for now - do not.

Welcome aboard. It is always good to have another new Shopsmith user. I know you will enjoy the experience. This forum is a good place to come with your questions. There are many, very qualified users who are always ready to answer them:) .

First of all, welcome to our group.

Before you do anything else go here: http://www.shopsmithacademy.com/SS_Archives/SS122/SS122_Shopsmith_Reborn_Pt2.htm and watch the expert (Nick) take you through the first steps of restoring an older Shopsmith to perfect running order.

Do this BEFORE you turn it on if possible. I don't expect you will have problems similar to what he finds on the one he demonstrates but it won't hurt to be prepared. A 1984 machine should be basically OK unless it was mistreated or not properly maintained.

You will get lots of great advice from others on this forum quickly but I wanted to at least get you started in the right direction.

One basic rule you need to always remember: NEVER turn the speed control dial unless you turn the motor on first. There is only one exception and that is if you put a sanding disk on the machine and use it to turn the shaft while slowly turning the speed control dial.

Again, welcome to the group. Take your time and ask any questions you may have. There are many helpful folks on this group and they are most willing to assist in any way they can.

Edited to add: Dusty -You must type faster than I do.

I did fire it up last night for a few seconds and ran the ss thru the speeds from slow to Mach 3. I was listening to it, listening for any sounds that might say "Uh oh" but it seemed ok. I will go thru those items that were posted. Thanks for the help.