Shopsmith Forums

After surviving (barely) much unsupervised use of my father’s Shopsmith nearly 50 years ago, now that I’m officially retired I figured it’s time to get one of my own and see if I can manage to keep the trend going. So, I purchased a 50th Golden Anniversary model because it was priced right, super
clean (no rust), and came with sharp blades and a big box of attachments. But I was excited and in a hurry and failed to plug it in to make sure it ran. It was covered in saw dust, owned by a contractor, and in really good shape—that’s my excuse! Anyway, it DOES run but the outer ring that is supposed to turn the opposite direction from the speed adjustment crank doesn’t turn. The speed does change when I turn the crank. I looked (briefly) through the forum for posts on this issue but didn’t find any. Any ideas? Also, I searched “50th Golden Anniversary” to see if I could find any info about whether this machine is any different from the other 510 machines but didn’t find a single post. Are there any significant differences other than the badging? Thanks for any help y’all can provide and please forgive me if I should have searched harder before asking these questions.

The only difference is the commemorative badge. From your description it sounds like you may have a problem with the speed controller. Shopsmith Sawdust Sessions:

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

or a review of Jacob Anderson’s Shopsmith videos on you tube will show you how to take the speed controller apart.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4oaJCKKT3E

And

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

JohnZilla wrote: Thu Nov 04, 2021 9:34 pm After surviving (barely) much unsupervised use of my father’s Shopsmith nearly 50 years ago, now that I’m officially retired I figured it’s time to get one of my own and see if I can manage to keep the trend going. So, I purchased a 50th Golden Anniversary model because it was priced right, super
clean (no rust), and came with sharp blades and a big box of attachments. But I was excited and in a hurry and failed to plug it in to make sure it ran. It was covered in saw dust, owned by a contractor, and in really good shape—that’s my excuse! Anyway, it DOES run but the outer ring that is supposed to turn the opposite direction from the speed adjustment crank doesn’t turn. The speed does change when I turn the crank. I looked (briefly) through the forum for posts on this issue but didn’t find any. Any ideas? Also, I searched “50th Golden Anniversary” to see if I could find any info about whether this machine is any different from the other 510 machines but didn’t find a single post. Are there any significant differences other than the badging? Thanks for any help y’all can provide and please forgive me if I should have searched harder before asking these questions.

Congratulations and welcome to the forum. The most common cause of that problem is a stripped gear on the back of the speed control knob. You can remove your speed control knob to inspect it. There is a seller on ebay that rebuilds the knobs with a steel gear. Even if you don't want to go that route, the pictures and explanation on his page are useful: https://www.ebay.com/itm/284456275998?h ... Sw6O1hRVUK If this is the problem, common choices are replace the knob with a new, used, or rebuilt knob. IIWM, I'd go with the rebuilt knob. If that is not the problem, post some pictures and we can help you determine the cause.

Sounds like your machine was pretty dirty so I'd encourage you to do a thorough cleaning, headstock lubrication, and wax lubrication of tables, tubes, etc. The machine is pretty robust but demands a bit of care that might have been neglected by the previous owner.

- David

While the gear may be stripped, it may also be as simple as sawdust buildup (or perhaps it was a screw holding one of the gears had come loose), which has happened before to me when my outer ring didn't turn correctly.

If you were lucky enough to get the original manuals with it, pretty much all the information you need to repair it is in there. I've had mine apart a couple of times, and the job is easy once I look in my 1983 manuals.

JohnZilla,

Again, Welcome to the Shopsmith Forum. The 50th Anniversary edition of the Mark V began in 2001 and lasted a few years. It is believed they had a bunch of the 50th Logo Plates made and all Mark V Models had them until they ran out. The Headstock is the same for all Mark V models. That logo Plate/Access Cover is the only difference between it and any conventional "C" headstock made prior to or after it. I am not sure what 50th Anniversary the were commemorating since the original Shopsmith the Model 10E was introduced in 1947 and the Mark 5 was introduced in 1954. The 50th Anniversary edition Mark V's were sold into 2005 and had ended sometime before April 2006.

As for the problem of the Speed Indicator Dial not moving it is likely one of the problems already described. The simplest cause would be the Speed Control Handle not being fully seated on the Worm Gear Shaft there by not engaging the gear for the ring. The gear between the Speed Control Handle and the Speed Indicator Dial may be loose there by not engaging it. Lastly and the cause that will cost to repair would be the teeth on the Speed Control Handle, the Gear between or the Speed Indicator Dial are stripped. Very uncommon to have the teeth on the gear or Indicator Dial stripped but the teeth on the Speed Control Handle commonly get stripped.

While searching for the cause of the problem with the Speed Indicator Dial it is a good time to do some headstock maintenance. Clean out any sawdust and debris from the headstock and lubricate the sheaves of the Motor and Idler Shaft Pulleys along with the gear on the back of the Speed Control Assembly. These and other maintenance items can be found in the Owner's Manual. If you did not get an Owner's Manual with it refer to the link below for a Summary Manual to get you started.

https://www.shopsmith.com/getting_start ... Manual.pdf

The link above is for the 520 Summary Manual and there are other Summary Manuals for the different models at the bottom of the page at the link below.

https://www.shopsmith.com/service/mark/index.htm

Lastly, there is always help that can be found here.

Chapmanruss said above:

" I am not sure what 50th Anniversary the were commemorating since the original Shopsmith the Model 10E was introduced in 1947 and the Mark 5 was introduced in 1954."

Question. What is the date of the MK 5 patent?Maybe they used that as the start date. It should be prior to the first release on the MK 5.