Shopsmith Forums

Has anyone replaced the handle on the speed dial with one made of wood or something else light and strong? I have always thought it would make turning the dial easier to have a bigger handle. Would this be a waste of time or something worth doing? My dial is not particularly hard to turn and works ok, just think it could be easier.

I think the tiny handle acts as a welcome force-limiter. Would applying too much force to the handle be akin to turning the handle without the motor spinning? The tiny handle might also make it easier to tell when the innards need to be lubricated.

I agree with davebodner that having a larger handle would allow more force to be applied and therefor increase the risk of damage. On a Conventional Headstock properly maintained and lubricated it is not difficult to turn the Speed Dial. Besides cleaning and lubricating the Headstock components inspection for wear should be done periodically too. One of those parts is the Speed Control Quadrant Assembly aka porkchop. On the old website there was a parts section of the 17 most common replacement parts and that was one of them. This is where inspecting parts comes in checking for wear and deformed gear teeth on that part along with inspecting other parts. Excessive turning force could also cause stripping the gear teeth on the back side of the Speed Control Handle Assembly. I could go on.

The only way I would recommend adding a larger handle to the Speed Control would be for someone that needs a larger handle to be able to grip it for adjusting the speed and only if they can still safely operate the Shopsmith with their limitations.

Here you go. Lathe project. Press-fit onto the current dial (the red part). Make it out of clear acrylic to minimize hiding the speed letters.
I do agree with the others that more leverage on the dial is not the best thing - unless the dial itself is beefed up with a pressed-in steel pinion gear + a better setscrew.
I always grip the dial on the OD and avoid using the crank handle.

Thanks for the replies. I found a small knob (2" diameter) in my jig knob collection that is a press fit on the speed dial handle. It can be removed easily if needed. Works good for my slightly arthritic hands. I am mindful of going slow on my speed changes. This idea may be helpful to those with less dexterity in the hands.

oso2you wrote: ↑Tue Feb 06, 2024 1:22 am Thanks for the replies. I found a small knob (2" diameter) in my jig knob collection that is a press fit on the speed dial handle. It can be removed easily if needed. Works good for my slightly arthritic hands. I am mindful of going slow on my speed changes. This idea may be helpful to those with less dexterity in the hands.

In the past, I had similar problems with hand arthritis affecting my ability to spin the speed dial on my Mark V. Have you looked into cleaning out the speed quadrant (pork-chop) and/or replacing it? I put off rebuilding mine for too long. When I finally replaced the speed quadrant and worm gear, I was amazed at how much easier it was to spin the speed control dial. Lubrication on the pork chop and worm gear also help tremendously. I chose to use white lithium grease here, but other forum members will likely advise a dry lubricant in an attempt to keep sawdust out of this gear mechanism, though I think it is inevitable. FYI...sawdust gets trapped between the pork chop and worm gear causing the speed dial to be hard to turn; also sometimes mis-alignment and/or wear happens to these gears that can also cause the speed dial to be hard to turn.

Hello
I have the Woodmaster 7 in 1 1981 Version of the shop smith 7-1.
It came with a green manual that states to turn on and set speed dial to Route-Shape first then turn off. Remove the name plate on back of headstock, hand turn spindle until a hole can be seen in the shaft. Add 3 drops of oil. No hole.
Also states there are holes in the motor shaft under the spring. Nope! Not there either. A 1 1/2" tube extends as the shaft sleeve then its wrapped or surrounded by a spring. I'm supposed to hand turn spindle until the hole is exposed, but there isnt a hole.
I could get some oil in between the sleeve and shaft that extends from inside of spring but that may just make a mess.
I need to get this thing lubricated.

To comment on SplintersNmeoveralls post above go to the thread "How to lubricate when there are no holes for lubrication" which already has responses posted. No need to duplicate information here.