Hello to all, its my first post. I picked up a 1956 Mark V from a neighbor that looked to be in pretty good condition. It has the joiner, bandsaw, scroll saw, belt sander, flexible drivehead for handheld tools, and air compressor with paint spray gun attachments. My sons and I cleaned and lubed it this past weekend. I'm a Shopsmith noob, so I spent some time researching things on this website and I hope someone here can help.
The bad news is the motor smokes after being run for any length of time. It appears to be the original GE 3/4 hp motor. I thought originally it was the drive belts, but removed it from the headstock today and the smoke is definitely coming from inside the motor, not the capacitors. Problem with the windings? Can these motors be repaired or serviced? Or should I just bite the bullet and replace it with the better 1 1/8 hp model? Money is tight and I'd prefer to rebuild/repair over replace as we really haven't had the opportunity to really test out the unit yet.
I HATE to tell you, but another member found it it would cost MORE to repair than replace.
Have you visited the sawdust session yet? It covers a rebuild in progress and maintanance. And MUCH more.
SS 500(09/1980), DC3300, jointer, bandsaw, belt sander, Strip Sander, drum sanders,molder, dado, biscuit joiner, universal lathe tool rest, Oneway talon chuck, router bits & chucks and a De Walt 735 planer,a #5,#6, block planes. ALL in a 100 square foot shop. .
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Bob
I do not recommend rewinding any Shopsmith motor. Is there a burn smell present? If so, you need another motor. If not, you should try blowing out all the sawdust that has collected inside the motor first. You need to remove the motor pan and the motor so you can do a good job of blowing the sawdust out. There are plenty of used 3/4 and 1 1/8 HP motors available on Ebay and from forum members.
If your Shopsmith headstock has no access hole under the logo cover, I would recommend that you should invest your money in the later 1 1/8 HP headstock and sell your headstock as is.
However, I have been upgrading the non-access hole headstock (Greenie) by cutting a 3" hole under the logo cover, adding a bracket for the logo cover, adding oiling holes to the floating and control sheaves, drilling the headstock for #10 clips for the motor pan and belt cover and drilling the headstock for a washer and screw to retain the eccentric bushing.
Bob S wrote:Hello to all, its my first post. I picked up a 1956 Mark V from a neighbor that looked to be in pretty good condition. It has the joiner, bandsaw, scroll saw, belt sander, flexible drivehead for handheld tools, and air compressor with paint spray gun attachments. My sons and I cleaned and lubed it this past weekend. I'm a Shopsmith noob, so I spent some time researching things on this website and I hope someone here can help.
The bad news is the motor smokes after being run for any length of time. It appears to be the original GE 3/4 hp motor. I thought originally it was the drive belts, but removed it from the headstock today and the smoke is definitely coming from inside the motor, not the capacitors. Problem with the windings? Can these motors be repaired or serviced? Or should I just bite the bullet and replace it with the better 1 1/8 hp model? Money is tight and I'd prefer to rebuild/repair over replace as we really haven't had the opportunity to really test out the unit yet.
Appreciate any though or suggestions.
Thanks, Bob S.
Bill Mayo bill.mayo@verizon.net
Shopsmith owner since 73. Sell, repair and rebuild Shopsmith, Total Shop & Wood Master headstocks, SPTs, attachments, accessories and parts. US Navy 1955-1975 (FTCS/E-8)
Thanks Bob and Bill for the replies. You confirmed my fears that another purchase will be required. I contacted a local electric motor shop and their minimal charge for a rebuild was $300. Mine does have the access hole in the headstock (first year done per the Shopsmith website). I took the motor off and blew it out with an air compressor and quite a bit of sawdust came out. Fired the motor back up and it took longer to smoke but started to again. The smoke smelled more like a campfire than electrical in nature. Since I have nothing to lose, I'm going to open the motor up and see what's up.
I watched the 35-minute maintenance video starring Nick and it was very informative. My boys can't wait to fire the thing up and make something. Looks like its time to spend more money.
Before you open the motor, use a center punch or scratch awl and mark the main motor housing and the two end caps. Mark them in such a way that they can be realigned mechanically when you go to put them back together.
The end caps will probably need a little force to get separated. I used a common screw driver and small hammer to TAP the ends off.
"Making Sawdust Safely" Dusty
Sent from my Dell XPS using Firefox.
I hope this helps as an alternative. I just got off the phone with my better half who works at G.E. in customer service. She told me the GE still makes both types of motors. If you are interested in purchasing this type of motor, you will need to check in the yellow pages for a distributor.
Well this has taken a bit longer than I thought,but here you go. My wife told me that your best bet would be to call the GE number 1-800-626-2000. While she was with GE motors a few years ago, she is now involved with controls and no longer has that much to do with motors anymore. Have your serial number and model number of the older motor. They should be able to direct you to a distributor in your area. I hope this helps.
I picked up a 1956 Mark V from a neighbor that looked to be in pretty good condition. It has the joiner, bandsaw, scroll saw, belt sander, flexible drivehead for handheld tools, and air compressor with paint spray gun attachments. My sons and I cleaned and lubed it this past weekend. I'm a Shopsmith noob, so I spent some time researching things on this website and I hope someone here can help.
