Shopsmith Forums

Howdy all:
just a cpl opinion questions for folks with alot more experience than I.

looking at post retirement, and have been doing some minor woodworking in the garage and wanting to delve deeper. i am curious to know from people that have used the router and lathe functions of the SS mark 7. Am wanting to do some minor to medium turning. pens and bowls, and was wondering what the general thoughts were for folks.

also does the routing and shaping capabilities good for the non-professional hobbyist ??

Im not doing this for income but rather enjoyment.


thank you all

Troy

I'll start my comments with the lathe. I have used my Mark 7 (completely upgraded from a Mark V 520) for lathe work including small items although I have not tried turning pens. With it's speed range of 250 to 10,000 PRM's it has a much wider range than the conventional Headstock found on the Mark V. That lower range is helpful for lathe turning but some turners like even slower speeds depending on the project. A reason the Speed Reducer exists with it's 7 to 1 reduction ratio bringing a conventional Headstock down to 100 RPM's. So far, for myself, it works.

Shaping and routing can be done successfully on the Mark 7 and I have had good success using it. The RPM's are much slower than you will find on a routing table or portable router. The key to successful routing and shaping on the Mark 7 is a slow feed rate and as with any shaping and routing sharp cutters. The plus with the Mark 7 is the ability to use both under table and over table routing and shaping with this single tool.

I am not saying the Mark 7 is better than stand alone tools for lathe work or shaping/routing work but that has worked for me.

Enjoy your retirement

thank you very much sir, that is what i was looking for. ill be here lurking and learning.

Troy

I haven't done any routing on the Shopsmith because it's been easier to use handheld routers and a router table so far. I have used large shaper bits on the Shopsmith at 5200RPM and lower and it's worked quite well. I have a PowerPro headstock now and haven't tried routing with it but I think it will work well enough when a stationary router is needed. Without the double tilt option routing is normally performed with headstock over the table. If you really prefer under the table routing you can get the double tilt option which is standard on the Mark 7 model, or you can get the Speed Increaser which uses a right angle gear so you can rout at 10,000 RPM from the under the table without tilting the headstock at all.

I can't tell you much about turning except that it's easy to set up a Shopsmith in lathe mode and to get started on the basics. Russ mentioned the low speed options above, using a Speed Reducer or a PowerPro headstock.

Along with all th options there are for routing and turning you can have all the other features of the Shopsmith available to you as well.

i have located a slightly used looks to be in almost new condition mark 7 with all the oem accessories and manuals. what add-ons would be need from SS to do lathe and router work ??

thank you
Troy

tkjones63 wrote: ↑Wed Oct 06, 2021 7:58 am
looking at post retirement, and have been doing some minor woodworking in the garage and wanting to delve deeper. i am curious to know from people that have used the router and lathe functions of the SS mark 7. Am wanting to do some minor to medium turning. pens and bowls, and was wondering what the general thoughts were for folks.

Shopsmith recently introduced the Mark 4 which is available with the same PowerPro headstock as the Mark 7. It is essentially a shorter Mark 7 that makes much of the accessory equipment optional, therefore a lower price and more customizable configuration. The shorter overall length compromises turning length on the lathe, but it would be fine for pens and bowls. Unfortunately I can't find this listing in their on-line catalog right now, except priced with all available option packages which puts it in the same price range as a Mark 7. I would consider this option.

I'm a fan of the Mark 7. But I would not be without a router table. If I was buying for these two functions only, I'd buy a lathe and router table. The real strength of the Marks is their ability to do everything, providing numerous functions in one machine. As a router, its strengths are its ability to operate at essentially any angle. It does under-table and overhead routing, but also horizontal and you can set the table at an angle in both horizontal and vertical modes. Its weaknesses are: it is limited to 10K RPM, aftermarket accessories don't play well, mine picks up vibration at higher speeds (I think it is normal), and I haven't measured but would expect runout and end play to be high compared to a table-mounted router. There are several excellent fences available for router tables, but the Mark is limited to the SS fence (as far as I know) which I'd put in the 'good' range. You can, of course, make a nice fence for it. The machine is adequate as a router, but I would expect even a mid-range router table to be superior for the 99+% of cuts where the spindle is perpendicular to the table.

- David

DLB wrote: ↑Wed Oct 06, 2021 1:07 pm If I was buying for these two functions only, I'd buy a lathe and router table.
- David

I second this. I much prefer to do routing with standalone routers, either handheld or mounted in a router table.

tkjones63 wrote: ↑Wed Oct 06, 2021 12:40 pm i have located a slightly used looks to be in almost new condition mark 7 with all the oem accessories and manuals. what add-ons would be need from SS to do lathe and router work ??

thank you
Troy

It should include basic lathe accessories you probably want to add some kind of lathe chuck or faceplate and a live center. The machines used to come with a basic set of lathe chisels, not sure if they still do so you may need those. For routing it comes with a 1/2" router chuck, a shaper arbor, a table insert and a shield with a dust collection port. You should review the product page for the Mark 7, used machines are often missing a standard accessory or two that you need: https://www.shopsmith.com/markvsite/index.htm

i want to say thank you all for the advice. after doing some more reading and video watching i called and have made a appointment to pickup a nice very slightly used mark 7. Its about a 6 hour drive from me but its about half the price of a new system. Its good place for me to start. And everything is there that came with it.

thank you all again and ill be checking things out here more and more as my experience grow.

Troy

Congratulations and welcome. Is yours located in Arkansas by chance? If so, that is a nice looking machine and appears to be in great condition.

- David