Dragged out a shopsmith

[jsburger]

And it looks to be in excellent+ condition.

[ArcticsShop]

It’s cleaning up nicely, it was in a shed covered with many generations of squirrel cones and other unknown material so lots of scrubbing has been in order. I polished the tubes today, and made sure they were all seated and tightened down at the stand legs, and adjusted the fence with a micrometer.

Definitely going to have to invest in their new dust collector soon. The sheer amount of chips I can now make in a small space is impressive!

I’ve definitely used better table saws, (used to work in a high end cabinet shop out of high school) but, I realistically can’t afford the space or the expense of that level of tooling.

I think I’ll upgrade the quill to a two bearing unit eventually, it’s not a metal lathe, but there’s just more side to side potential for play in the single bearing than I’d like. After some serious adjusting time I am beginning to think it’s going to work well once I acclimate to the systems. There’s lots of safety checks to remember for sure.

I peered into the motor housing and it’s almost completely free of dust and debris. It looks new inside, so that’s a plus.

[JPG]

Whatsa "squirrel cone"?

[ArcticsShop]

Whatsa "squirrel cone"?

Where red tree squirrels sit and eat their pine/spruce/conifer cones habitually, they will do this generation after generation and make huge piles called “middens” I’ll attach a picture.

It’s pretty common out west and in Alaska, not sure about other areas of the nation.

Anyway, this shopsmith was getting buried by some of the red tree rats.

[JPG]

Ah So!

[edflorence]

I think I’ll upgrade the quill to a two bearing unit eventually, it’s not a metal lathe, but there’s just more side to side potential for play in the single bearing than I’d like.

ArcticShop;

Upgrading to the two bearing quill is, IMHO, almost a "must" if you plan on doing any bowl turning. Any bowl has to be reversed at least once during shaping, and it is essential that the center of the piece not shift regardless of whether the outside of the bowl or its inside is being shaped. Before I converted my old '54 greenie into a mini, I used it, with its original single bearing quill, for all the Shopsmith functions. For drilling, sawing, jointing, bandsawing and sanding the quill runout was generally acceptable, but when used as a lathe,I found it impossible to maintain the centering of a bowl as it was reversed. Upgrade the quill and you will never regret it. Best of luck with your new machine!

[ArcticsShop]

Question about the preferred wax. I don’t have paste wax on hand, but I have a microcrystalline renaissance wax I used on the sliding components (rails tables after I cleaned them etc) it seems like it’s an equivalent product to the preferred “Johnson’s paste wax” it’s a wax with a solvent that I believe is similar? I may be kicking myself later as I clean this stuff off if not lol.

[chapmanruss]

Below is some information on waxing metal parts on the Shopsmith tools from early Owner's Guides. It is a section I add to Owner's Guides of Model 10E and 10ER Shopsmith tools when I sell a restoration.

Maintenance: Waxing

CAUTION

Use paste floor or furniture wax. Do not use car wax or spray furniture polish. Car wax, although it offers good protection for metal it is extremely hard and has little value as a lubricant. Spray furniture polish isn’t hard enough. Paste floor or furniture wax protects and lubricates. Johnson Paste Wax,
Original Formula works well.

NOTE: Johnson Paste Wax has been discontinued by SC Johnson but Minwax is currently supplied by Shopsmith and some have used Trewax as an alternative.

[RonKlein]

I would be cautious about recommending paste floor wax. Many now have abrasives added for a non-slip finish, and this is not what you want to use on your Shopsmith.

[JPG]

I would be cautious about recommending paste floor wax. Many now have abrasives added for a non-slip finish, and this is not what you want to use on your Shopsmith.

Which is why "Original Johnson Paste Floor Wax has been the staple in the past Min wax is a finishing wax and does not contailn "anti slip" ingredients..