Shopsmith Forums

Hello all!
I was given a Mark VII, 1963ish vintage, by a friend.
It was his father in laws from new until he passed in the mid 80's.
The son in law(my friend) moved it to Florida from Virginia and used it very little.
It has sat protected from weather but not the Florida heat and humidity in a shed at his house for past 30 plus years, needless to say the shiny parts aren't shiny any more, but, for the most part it is in reasonable condition.
The issue is that the motor lead wiring to the switch has dry rotted and corroded (read falls apart at the touch of a finger).
It will hum for a second and trips the breaker when plugged in (only did this to test it before I dropped the motor out of it, won't do it again).
So here is my question, is this worth repairing?
I see there is a guy on ebay that will rebuild the motor for $90 plus shipping, this would add up to close to $200.00 shipping from Florida to California and back.
Has anyone used this guy and does he do good work?
I took the motor to a local supposed to be electric motor repair shop and he doesn't do that kind of repair.
Looking for suggestions.
Thanks!

anything can be restored with enough money ,, well all most anything .. they say beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder . with out knowing just how bad the thing is it is tough to give a honest opinion . can it be fixed , yes I am sure ot can be , how much will it cost ? can you pick one up for the money that it takes to repair that one that is in working condition ? I dont know about the ebay person so your guess is just that ? what if you picked up another working unit and kept the one you have for parts ? it could be made in to a shorty? you may go to the fb page for SS and some there may also have a motor ? good luck .my .02

Hobbyman2 wrote: Mon Nov 02, 2020 8:07 pm anything can be restored with enough money ,, well all most anything .. they say beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder . with out knowing just how bad the thing is it is tough to give a honest opinion . can it be fixed , yes I am sure ot can be , how much will it cost ? can you pick one up for the money that it takes to repair that one that is in working condition ? I dont know about the ebay person so your guess is just that ? what if you picked up another working unit and kept the one you have for parts ? it could be made in to a shorty? you may go to the fb page for SS and some there may also have a motor ? good luck .my .02

I don't think a MK VII can be made into a "shorty". I could be wrong. I am sure someone will chime in. James?

Is it worth getting running? Absolutely. In my opinion, the 60's Mark VII is the best designed and easiest to use SS ever made. With the 7 modes of operations like the new Mark 7 (which I own so I have a fair compairison) it is a goto machine for me 50% of the time. If it had the speed range and power of the PowerPro, I would get rid of the Mark 7,

Spend the money IMO, it is well worth the trouble.

Only words of warning, there are a few parts that can be difficult to find. The infamous cam is easy now with replicas being 3D printed. The way tube gear rack is another potential problem as is the switch (but there are work arounds) and the speed control and bearing. If properly maintained, you should not have any trouble with a sound machine.

If it was me, make it a primary machine. I know I have....

JMHO

The racks can be 3d printed too,

Link to the file on the Facebook Shopsmith Owners Group.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/6844615 ... 9626253819

rpd wrote: Tue Nov 03, 2020 12:50 am The racks can be 3d printed too,

Link to the file on the Facebook Shopsmith Owners Group.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/6844615 ... 9626253819

I don't do Facebook/Lifelog LOL. Is there a link to download that file, or better yet, like the cam, is there anyone who is printing the gear itself and has it for sale?

Honestly 99% of the parts for these machines can be made by a local machine shop, even the sheaves. I would like to get a copy of that rack gear for future. 3D file or actual gear if there is a source.

Thanks for all of your input!
As I stated in my first post, I believe that the machine is in reasonably good condition.
The first issue, besides the motor, is lubrication, everything is pretty dry, probably a good thing that the motor didn't move.
I have the quill moving a lot better, gonna let that soak for a while.
I opened the back and looked at the cam, it looks as good as new.
Both badges popped loose when I opened the front and back, old glue, the edges of the front badge are broken, not a big deal at this point.
With the motor out and the belt off, the speed control moves easily through all of the detents, the sheaves open and close, probably need more lube here.
The ways, tubes are surface rusty, some oil and sanding should make them work fine without replacing.
The rack is all there, I have only moved the headstock an inch or so back and forth to see how that works, will take my time with this part, not sure of its structural condition, plus more lube on the drive gears here.
I have not spent a lot of time actually touching, just looking and seeing, there are parts that I'm figuring out that seem to be stuck or frozen to each other, corrosion between aluminum and steel, dissimilar metals, that will take some effort to release.
Plus the boxes of other parts/pieces.
All in all this will be a project just to get operational.
I wonder if I can replace the wire leads on the motor.....
Greg

Forum member JPG is very knowledgeable about the wiring for a Mark VII (and all things electrical, for that matter). I recall seeing several threads and posts about Mark VII motor wiring ... if you do a search, you may find something that matches your situation.

As was said above JPG is very knowledgeable on the Mark VII so hopefully he will add to this. With regard to Dick's comments everything I have seen about the Mark VII he says is true. The Mark VII is a very versatile tool. It is different from the Mark 5 in many ways from the Headstock to the frame. It has a larger table than the original Mark 5 and different accessories to match. If I had the space I would already own one myself but maybe someday.

Right now this is just another project to fix. I believe that once the motor is running it will make a difference and add some versatility to my shop and maybe a tool one of my sons could use. So here is the next question, has anyone replaced the winding leads that come out of the motor? I'm not afraid to attempt it, just really looking for some guidance.