Shopsmith Forums

i looked in my jointer owners manual and could not find the answer. the question i have is, my fence is running up hill and how do i get it to run parallel to the in feed table without using a bending force as i dont see any way to adjust it.


TIA

The first thing I would try is to loosen it and position it the way you want, and tighten it again. If nothing is damaged, that might take care of the problem.

It is running uphill, but what direction do you mean by uphill? Pics would be helpful here. I am wondering if perhaps you mean that the fence is angled to the jointer bed. If so, the same handle that adjusts the jointer fence left<->right also adjusts the angle of the jointer fence. Please see the link below to get more information on this (assuming this is your problem).

viewtopic.php?p=279041#p279041

OK when I say it is running up hill the bottom edge of the fence is closer to the in feed table in the front than it is at the cutter head. I measured .140 clearance from the bottom of the fence to the bed at the front and .265 just behind the cutter head where the fence has a short drop down. I also just now put a square on the fence mounting bar and it is also out of square to the infeed table just as the fence is.

Sorry, I can't offer much help without seeing a picture for this. Perhaps one of the other forum members has had this problem before and knows what you are describing. Know that the Jointer Fence Tilt Quadrant is one of the most replaced parts on Shopsmith equipment so it is in their Frequently Ordered Service Parts List. Overtightening of the jointer fence adjustment can distort this part causing fence alignment issues necessitating its replacement.

viewtopic.php?p=281586#p281586

https://www.shopsmith.com/service/mostf ... dparts.htm

I have an old Jointer that does the same thing but I basically quit using it when I got a newer one. 'Old' and 'newer' are relative, late 50's and early 90's. The old one has some visible damage to the quadrant. Looking at it as a "C" channel that slides over the mounting bar, the upper portion of the "C" is slightly distorted. In checking things out for this thread I noted that both fences work fine on the 90's Jointer, but only the 90's fence works correctly on the 50's Jointer. The mounting bar on the 90's Jointer has much sharper square corners, and this appears to be what is making the difference. Similarly, the 90's fence quadrant has much more square corners inside the "C."

bill50cal wrote: ↑Thu Jun 03, 2021 6:47 pm I also just now put a square on the fence mounting bar and it is also out of square to the infeed table just as the fence is.

Definitely not what I see on mine. IIWM I'd remove the mounting bar and check the surfaces of the infeed that it mounts to. I've never looked at these, but presume the are precision ground 90 degrees to the table surface.

Another thing that contributes to the over-tightened lock distorting the quadrants is handle size. I have three versions with three handle lengths. The 50's version handle is significantly longer than the other two. 'Hand tight' is completely different among these.

- David

bill50cal,

As long as the fence is square to the Jointer tables it is okay to use. David's explanation of the quadrant distorting from overtightening seems to be the reason you are seeing that rise. Keep an eye on it and if it gets worse replace the quadrant with a new one, not used. Buying a used one may have the same or other problems. I currently have 2 Jointers. The oldest is a Model 4E made for the Shopsmith Model 10E and10ER in the early 1950's. It had a damaged quadrant which I replaced with a new one. All Jointers use the same quadrant assembly as is true with many parts from the original Model 4E to current Jointers although some parts have to be replaced as assemblies while others as individual parts.

thanks for the help. i am convinced so far that where the fence mounting bar is fastened to the infeed table is not square but i have not removed to confirm it. yes i can use it as is but i dont like the gap as you reach the out feed table. just cant run real thin stock as it is but i guess i could all ways put an aux fence on it.

bill50cal wrote: ↑Fri Jun 04, 2021 6:57 pm thanks for the help. i am convinced so far that where the fence mounting bar is fastened to the infeed table is not square but i have not removed to confirm it. yes i can use it as is but i dont like the gap as you reach the out feed table. just cant run real thin stock as it is but i guess i could all ways put an aux fence on it.

How thin stock are you trying to run? You said you have a 1/4" gap at the cutter head. I would never run stock that thin on a jointer. That is seriously dangerous.

I had the same question as John when I read your last post. I do agree with John that putting stock through the Jointer that could possibly go under a 1/4" gap would be dangerous.

As for replacing the quadrant, my Model 4E fence does not have any gap under the fence on the infeed table side with the new quadrant. All other parts are original. As for the fence mounting bar attached to the infeed table not being square there is no real adjustment room for it and is not needed since the fence is squared to the table.