Shopsmith Forums

Hi y'all!

Well, I've developed diabetic neuropathy in both of my legs, ankles and feet and I'm just about to be restricted to using a wheelchair or motorized chair of some sort.

Is there anybody out there that has experience or knowledge of being in a wheelchair and using Shopsmith equipment?

I have a Mark V 520 with a scroll saw, band saw, power station with a jointer/planer on it, lot's of other accessories. Oh, and I have the kit to convert my Mark V so that it will raise up on either end like a Mark VII.

Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Thanks a lot!

Frank Albert

Hi Frank
Sorry to hear about difficulty. My wife is also afflicted with diabetes but not as bad as you.
If it is possible to get some friends to help you to remove the legs from the SS and build a low cabinet to mount the SS lower might be a start. I remember seeing on the website for the Robust lathes an advert for a stand that tilted towards the operator where a wheelchair bound individual could sit at the lathe and work. I don't know if they still have that device but it would be worth a look to get some ideas. Having a SS tilt toward the operator may create a dangerous condition though, because of the table arrangement. Tilting a lathe toward the operator does not change things much except to tilt the turning axis toward the operator
Anyway you have my best regards and wishes to solve your problems.
Bill V

Yup, after I posted initially, I thought about how I've seen some SS 10er's mounted on cabinets. I'll need to look at different options at remounting the main parts. Thanks for your reply and my best to you and your family.

Frank

I am thinking that a square cabinet at each end might leave the center section open for your legs to go under. But depending on your exact needs that may not be practical,
Bill V

Medicare will pay for this. Ask your doctor for a rehab chair. My wife has had one for 10 years.

https://www.quantumrehab.com/

It's about $20,000. You may have to cover the cost of the elevation feature. When working on your SS, please use the seatbelt to keep you from falling out.

You might find something useful in setting up things in a "U" shaped configuration as discussed on this page:
https://www.highlandwoodworking.com/woo ... esign.html

Over the past decade I have given shop access a lot of thought. At one point about 10 years ago my knees got so bad that I was down to only being able to walk about 100' at a time using 2 canes. That turned out to be a result of a thyroid problem and easily cured but really affected my thinking. Then in 2013 a quadruple bypass blocked me out of shop work / farm work etc. for a time. I also had a minor brush with type II diabetes about 10 years ago but I am able to control that with a far more cautious diet.
I guess the biggest thing I learned is just how hard such things are to plan around. It all became a "one day at a time" approach.
I did build a ground level patio at the back of the house back in the 1970's and there is no step at the patio doors. I should note here that this was my parents house and I was deeply involved in 2 additions and a rehab of the old part of the house. Wheel chair access was pretty much my idea. Neither of my parents ever used a wheel chair here. I created a walkout entry that is a ramp when I moved the woodshop into the basement. It is maybe a bit steep for a regular wheel chair but I'm sure a powered unit of most types could handle it fine.
As I said, a couple of glitches can really affect how we think. I watched my parents, my grandparents and all of my aunts and uncles pass through the later years of their lives and I decided that I was going to avoid many of their mistakes by preparing for some of the things that became difficult for them. I've written here before about my large collection of material handling devices like hand trucks, carts, nursery wagons, lifting equipment etc. Of course this being a farm many of my needs are maybe a little broader than the needs of a more normal residence. Many of them were picked up at garage sales and auctions quite cheaply. We have also cheaply accumulated a number of disability items, thankfully we have a large attic. We have a couple of the common aluminum walkers and one on large wheels, several sets of crutches, I have a whole collection of canes and walking sticks and yes, we do have a nice complete conventional wheel chair. Hopefully none of us will need it but this thing a very nice and we only paid $25 for it. If one of us (family wide) does have a need it is there and paid for.


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It depends on the wheelchair walker seniors are using, some can access anywhere.

Thanks to andrew2d, robinson46176, swampgator and wa2crk for your links and suggestions. If I do build a shop around the wheelchair, I'll send some photos for perhaps someone in the future looking for similar answers.