Shopsmith Forums

I was given a lathe. I think it needs to be restore. The motor sat in water in a basement. Its missing several thing.i need help!

Tazster411

Welcome to the forum.

If the Motor has been under water, it will definitely need to be disassembled and cleaned up at the least.


What is the time frame (How long did it sit under water) of when it was sitting in water and then removed to a Safe dry place?

If you have pictures and are able to post them,
That would help the members here on the forum help you to determine what you are missing.

Tazster411 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 13, 2025 5:43 am I was given a lathe. I think it needs to be restore. The motor sat in water in a basement. Its missing several thing.i need help!

Oh, man! You’re almost all the way to Ottawa up there!! A little too far for me to make a house call…

I’ll second Dwayne’s suggestion to add some pictures to this thread. Depending upon what’s missing and what’s water damaged, you may need another machine, rather than just some help. In fact, sometimes merging the best parts of two partial machines is the best and cheapest way to get one running.

At the same time, the 10ERs are very durable, and the open frame makes it very easy to swap out a motor. I’ve taken some pretty ratty and abused vintage Shopsmiths and made them sparkle, so hopefully you can too!

Good luck!
. .

Tazster411,

If you are looking for someone who restores the Shopsmith Model 10E or 10ER for customers, I don't have any suggestions for you.

Because of their design they are not hard to work on and you could restore it yourself. Hopefully it is not all rusted after being underwater. Rust can be removed and the tool made usable again. The motor may need to be replaced but can easily be done. Even though the Model 10E and 10ER Shopsmith's were made from late 1947 through 1953 there are plenty of good used parts available to get your Model 10ER back into running shape. Some accessories made for current Shopsmith tools can be used on these old Shopsmith Tools.

In your title you call it an ER Lathe but the Shopsmith 5 in 1 tools with Model ER on the Logo/Serial Number Plate are actually Model 10ER Shopsmith. John's picture above is a nice example of a restored Model 10ER that says Model ER on the Plate.

Post picture of what you have and we can help guide you through the restoration.