Shopsmith Forums

WileyCoyote, thanks! It's very helpful to know what items are especially popular.

garys, thanks for validating my plan. One obvious reason for choosing simple cabinetry was the hope that my beginner's skills would be up to the challenge.

masonsailer2, that's a somewhat scary shopping list. But I've noticed that the prices on even the new gear are not all that high. So a pretty elaborate shop is not that far beyond my budget. Space is another matter . . .

Hobbyman2, yes! Even without a SS I've discovered the value of rollers. I've also made good use of inverted Home Depot buckets, which can be used to support large work pieces.

FYI, it used to be that when you purchased a new machine (at least at the demos), a Special Purpose Tool (SPT) was included for free. I know at least the bandsaw and jointer were choices but there may be other SPTs that you could get instead.

I'm a fan of shopsmith but I will never again make a cabinet or like structure using a table saw. I feel guided saw systems are far better and safer for most of the project like the cutting up the sheet stock and even sizing it.

Rather then try to explain how this works take a look at this series of you tube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znFwKJsZBIQ

(lots of other videos if this interests you)


I have the festool version but other systems are out there. Expensive yes but I'm sold on the system.

Ed

wbmccarty wrote:I am new to woodworking. My initial ambition is to create some cabinets for my garage/patio. I plan to purchase a Mark 7. What other machines or accessories would the community recommend that I consider? And why would these purchases be of use to me now or later?

Thanks for the benefit of your experience!

Cheers,

You have already received some great advice here from the community. If I may, let me offer a counterpoint for you to consider in your decision making. Seasoned members can cue up the stones now...

What size space do you have for woodworking? A big benefit for the Shopsmith is its relative compactness and 5 in 1 tool capability. You mention building cabinets for your garage, so I assume you are using all/part of a garage as your wood shop? I work out of a single bay of my garage so I have about 10' x 21' to work in. You can do a lot with the base Shopsmith, particularly if you buy dimensioned (S2S, S4S) lumber. In addition to my Shopsmith, I also have the planer, jointer, bandsaw, belt sander, router table. I love my Shopsmith, but at times I also hate it. Changeovers are a pain in the butt. The bandsaw is inadequate for my needs. The jointer is too small. The tablesaw, at times, has been underpowered for what I wanted to do (I don't have a PowerPro). Storing the accessories takes up considerable space in a shop, akin to the amount of space of having a dedicated, self powered tool.

For me, there is an emotional connection which is why I own a Shopsmith. I learned how to use a Shopsmith alongside of my Dad. We built his wood shop by hand and it is only 12' x 18'. He is constantly tripping over himself in that shop with his Shopsmith. I followed suit and bought my own Shopsmith. If it wasn't for this, and I was starting fresh today, I don't think I would go down the Shopsmith path. When I bought mine it was 100% built in Dayton, OH. Today it is anyone's guess what percentage is built here. There are some great videos on YouTube, but I would encourage that you check out what Blake Weber has done with his one car garage wood shop (link below). Depending on your price level, you can purchase some great individual tools for the price of a complete new Shopsmith setup. With some creative layout, as Blake and others have shown online you can do a lot even in a one car garage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kErNwKA-Ao

New Shopsmith tools depreciate, ALOT. I think I have spent something like $8k+ over my lifetime on Shopsmith tools and accessories. I would be lucky to sell the lot of it for $1k today. If you buy from a quality woodworking tool company, you can easily resell their tools if you want to upgrade down the road since their depreciation is far less.

There are lots of different kinds of woodworkers, e.g. some prefer all hand tools like chisels, bench planes, etc. Some prefer all power tools. Some like a mix of each. Some do only woodturning, wood carving, etc., etc. If you intend to start with sheet goods (plywood) by building garage cabinets then a track saw is a great way to start, but you can also do the same with only a circular saw, clamps and a straight edge. If you are just starting out and getting into the hobby, why not get a few small power tools like circular saw, cordless drill, maybe even a sliding miter saw? You can build the cabinets with this and as your experience grows you can decide what you want to buy to outfit your shop? If you do decide on getting a Shopsmith, seriously consider getting a used one. It varies by location, but around most of the US, it is crazy how cheap these sell for. Often a complete setup can be had for $250-500. Please also consider Powermatic, Jet, etc.

For instruction, there is some great free content on YouTube these days. Try to find a local woodworking club if you can. They can point you towards any local hands on classes if you have interest. If you want to build furniture, consider online classes by the Wood Whisperer. Good luck on the start of your woodworking journey.

https://thewoodwhisperer.com

Excellent post and excellent advice.

I certainly do not have a Weber Woodshop.

That was an excellent post. Woodworking in a limited space such as a single car garage is always a challenge but as in the Weber shop can be done very well. There are many limitations to be overcome but not insurmountable by any means. One simple design factor when planning your shop is to keep everything at one level. Even though I now have a larger shop I still maintain that feature. The trick is to pick the tool with the highest level and build the rest of the shop to match. In my shop it was the big bandsaw. So all countertops work tables and other tools were raised to match that height. This allows you to slide materials and projects around the shop without lifting them. And yes you can include the SS in that scenario. We designed a simple stand for the SS attached to the end of a workbench that quickly and simply raised the SS up and down to match the level of the workbench when raising and lowering the table. This feature also allows for using other tools and workbenches as run off tables for each other. For instance my router table and workbench provide a surface to feed sheets of plywood or long pieces of wood into the tablesaw which means you are not holding up the end of the piece while feeding it into the saw and gives you much better control. As far as choice of tools I can only offer what has and currently works for me. I know this is turning into a long post so please forgive me. Are large stationary tools better than the SS ? Yes in some ways and not others. Can you buy an entire set of stationary tools for the price of a SS ? Yes, but they do not work as well as the SS in a smaller space. Also there are specific functions of the SS which are simply not available. The quill fed disc sander is one of them. With the Mark 7 lack of power is really not an issue. Another is having variable speed for all the functions. Even though I have all the big stationary tools I use a SS every day on every project. An example is when I am working with exotic woods. Not having variable speed abrasives ( disc and belt sander ) would be very irritating. Personally with the space limitations I would choose the SS hands down. Cost wise I would buy a used complete SS including all the SPT’s and then do the Power Pro upgrade.
Paul

If you are talking about what special purpose tool to buy first I would opt for the jointer. Yes the SS jointer is a bit on the small side but for cabinet work it is nice to have the jointer to clean up the table saw cut. I have made a bunch of cabinet doors using the stub tenon and groove construction and I really appreciated having the Jointer. I work in a one car garage and all of my tools have to be on wheels. I mostly do small stuff now, lathe work etc but I still will not get rid of my toys. Someone is going to have to pry them out of my cold dead hands.
Bil V