Don't apologize. If you feel that way so be it. We all have opinions that are different than those of others.Ed in Tampa wrote: ↑Tue Jan 10, 2023 11:05 am I am not a precision freak and in fact much of my work shows how little precision I seek. But I owned and used the 500, 510 and 520. To me the the 500 was the most precise but suffered from size and other restraints that both the 510 and 520 overcame. However when I got my 510 I was sickened but tge lack of precision in it. My tables would mount one way one time and another the next. Sure if I pulled pushed lifted shoved down I could get them into some sort of alignment but but to duplicate a setup was nearly impossible. I always forgot to push this shove that lift these. I worked with Shopsmith over this and they sent me two main tables, a aux table a new fence and connector tubes along with many fence tubes both for tge main table and aux tables. I will say they were very willing to work with me and over time it became obvious to me I was chasing something I could not achieve. I gave up and pushed my Shopsmith into the corner. It sat there for years unused and untouched. I kept up with Shopsmith and followed all developments but I viewed the whole thing as hopeless. If someone would have came along and made an offer I probably would have sold it.
Then one day I was at state fair and the wife wanted to see something so to waste time I walked over to the Shopsmith demo. That is where I saw the 520, after the Demo I talked to the salesman and played with the machine and I found all the flaws of the 510 were addressed and corrected by the 520. I ordered my upgrade. It is excellent even the build quality had 100 percent improvement! My opinion give me a 500 or a 520 but if I had to have a 510 I would rather give up woodworking.
Which I nearly have being as old as I am. My days in the shop are nothing more than walking through and touching my old tools and wondering what will happen to them since the youth of today find working with their hands beneath them. Someday people are going to wake up and find there is no one to build them a house or fix a water leak. I see they are thinking about outlawing gas stoves it might be a good thing since everyone thinks digging a gas line ditch is too much work for them. Sorry for the rant.
As far as being so old that you are about to give up woodworking - how old are you? I am 83 and am now building from spare parts (for the most part) a fourth Shopsmith. One is already in the possession of a son-in-law. A second has been tagged by my oldest daughter with a third being built for a grand-son-in-law. The fourth (actually the first) will remain with me until I can no longer make saw dust safely.