Shopsmith Forums

Hi all, first timer here. I went to pick up a 1979 Mark V today, and between myself and the seller, we broke it. He inherited it from his dad and knew very little about it. I knew enough to get myself into trouble...

So basically, it ran beautifully. Then I attempted to move the speed controller (WITH THE UNIT OFF) and it bound up. Shocking, I know, but it was new to me then. Then the seller tried to figure it out and REALLY yanked on it, turning it by brute force. It 'clicked' a couple of times while he was turning it. We tried turning it on and off, and it wouldn't really turn over, and made some pretty bad noises. At some point, we got it to go, but it would only spin at lower speeds, and as the speed got increased, it sounded like gears shearing at a certain point. So more changing of the speed with the machine off ensued.

Basically, I think he managed to snap some stuff internally to the point that it doesn't spin at all now. It binds on something and blows the breaker. Turning the speed controller does nothing at this point.

So how bad is it? The machine is in mint condition otherwise, but clearly the headstock will need work now.
Is it just the speed controller that needs replacement, or am I in for a lot more parts to get it functioning again?

Thanks, I appreciate the advice. I promise that I will RTFM thoroughly before endeavoring into projects with my new tool.

Sorry about thy experience. I hope the seller discounted his 'price' after damaging it!!!!!

May not be as bad as it sounds.

Remove the hole cover(SS badge on the back side) and poke a camera in there and take some pix.

Yes the damage is likely limited to the speed control and control sheave.

Depending upon which direction it was being forced the loop may be pulled off or worst case the crack(?) was a leg of the speed control breaking.

Look up 'removing the speed control' as that needs to be your second step(after taking the pix). You will need a 3/32 allen wrench and a medium screw driver.

Sawdust Session #23 would be a good place to start.

Jacob Anderson has a several videos on youtube with information on the speed control assembly.

JPG wrote:Sorry about thy experience... May not be as bad as it sounds.
I hope the seller discounted his 'price' after damaging it!!!!!

benmcn wrote:Sawdust Session #23 would be a good place to start.

Jacob Anderson has a several videos on youtube with information on the speed control assembly.

Thanks JPG and benmcn! I appreciate the quick response.

So I decided to venture out and see what was wrong right after posting. I watched a few of Jacob Anderson's videos on getting the headstock apart and went at it.

Turns out the speed control was turned clockwise far enough that the sheave was extended beyond its design specification. This caused the belt going to the motor to get completely jammed between the sheaves, and one of the fins on the back of the sheave that moves apart was making contact with something, completely preventing the quill from spinning and also making it so the speed control couldn't move at all.

Took out the motor and button, and tested those separately. It ran smooth as butter.
Freed the belt, and slowly retracted the sheave with the speed control. Seemed to be turning smoothly, especially once the sawdust gunk was removed from the gear.
Unfortunately, it now can extend far enough to make contact with that fin on the back if I go keep turning. I noticed that at the slowest, it's still showing E, so I think I need to follow the speed control recalibration process to fix that, which will hopefully limit the full open side as well.

As for the seller, he couldn't have been more awesome. He was so bummed about the headstock seemingly dying that he told me to just take it for free. He wanted it gone from his garage, and figured I could try to fix it myself.
In the end, I got the SS with the bandsaw attachment and dust collector unit for a 2 hour round trip. He even included drill bits, woodworking books, saw blades, 2 sander discs, a roller support for ripping sheet materials, and 2 boxes of spare parts and accessories.

I'm stoked!

Reassemble, perform a 'high speed adjustment', calibrate speed indicator ring, and enjoy!

Welcome to the funny farm!!

Ya got lucky!!!!

Make sure ya lube it while in thar!!!

You can find a concise write up up complete with photos on how to do a high speed adjustment at this website.

http://www.songofthegreatlakes.com/sshighspeed.htm

Or in Sawdust Session 23 somewhere near the 30 minute mark

http://www.shopsmithacademy.com/SS_Arch ... rn_Pt3.htm

Or This Video by Jacob Anderson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWVxeTqUgT8

As JPG already said,

Make sure ya lube it while in thar!!!

While it is apart is a great time to lubricate individual assemblies. Make sure the sheaves of the motor and idler pulleys are oiled and move freely before putting things back together. A good dry lubricant on the moving speed control parts too.

As JPG said welcome to the funny farm Lobuzz... You will find these guys are a wealth of information. This is what I love about these SS's... They are tough and parts are easy to find and repair. I did not get my SS for free but still for a song. You scored well sir!!!

Thanks, all. "Funny farm" made me chuckle. It does seem like the very devout group of enthusiasts really makes the SS what it is. I am a forum junkie as it is, so having a good community is a huge bonus.

As for my SS, I will have to lube everything up soon. I had it closed back up by the time I saw those suggestions, so I will need to dive back into the case.

I had been trying to figure out what model I had, because the things I was seeing & reading didn't line up. The serial # as given to me by the seller was 032691. Which would put it right in the range of the 1979 model year. Turns out, it's 03/26/91 production date, so I actually got a MUCH newer unit. The mint shape makes more sense, given that it's 12 years newer than I thought.

I initially thought that it had been upgraded, since it had the 510 table, rails, extending supports, updated fence, etc. I had hoped that the seller had also done the double bearing quill, but wasn't sure.

I was looking at potentially replacing the power switch, because one of the little winglets on the back broke off. In researching that, I realized that this red safety switch wasn't introduced until 1991. Then it all clicked. Not a 32xxx serial #, but a date code. Duh!

So now I know that it for sure has the double bearing quill, which is huge.

I ordered a lathe drive spur, since it didn't come with one, as well as a Nova G3 chuck kit with some additional jaws. I'm still research chisels, but I'm leaning toward the PSI/Benjamin's Best 8pc set to get me started.
I'm very excited to try turning and will hopefully make some beginner-level turned goods for family as throw in Christmas gifts.

Now I just need to re-arrange my garage a bit to be able to fit this beast along the wall.

Fun stuff!

Regardless of what chisels thee gets, do some research on sharpening them in the meantime.

They ain't really sharp when you get them.