Shopsmith Forums

Hello all!

I have a PowerPro, works well, except the quill is very difficulty to extend such as during drilling or boring operations. Quill is lubricated, retaining set screw on top is loose/not binding. Hold-downs are unscrewed so not binding.

Any thoughts or suggestions? Do I need to replace the spring or something else?

If the quill moves freely when not drilling/boring, the likely culprit is a dull drill bit or exceptionally hard wood. If the quill is binding even when you just try to advance it without drilling/boring then that suggests to me it is time to remove and inspect the quill to make sure there are no burs in the key slot (where the dog leg set screw is supposed to sit). If you do not know the procedure for removing the quill without making a mess of the quill spring, stop and do some research on the forum before proceeding!!

algale wrote: ↑Mon Jun 09, 2025 9:02 am If the quill moves freely when not drilling/boring, the likely culprit is a dull drill bit or exceptionally hard wood. If the quill is binding even when you just try to advance it without drilling/boring then that suggests to me it is time to remove and inspect the quill to make sure there are no burs in the key slot (where the dog leg set screw is supposed to sit). If you do not know the procedure for removing the quill without making a mess of the quill spring, stop and do some research on the forum before proceeding!!

Thanks, it is tough to move in any function/position. You are correct about being careful removing it, but fortunately have done it before. No burrs in the key slot, already took a look at that.

Any other suggestions come to mind?

Was this a DIY PowerPro upgrade? If so, you might want to check to make sure the wiring inside the headstock is not being pinched by the washer on the quill handle shaft.

The quill operation on my 520 got quite sticky a while back. Like you, I pulled the quill, inspected and waxed it, and had no significant improvement when I reinstalled it.

The problem turned out to be that the pinion shaft (that drives the quill) was sticky to rotate. IIRC, I didn't have to pull the whole shaft to free it up. I just pulled off the stuff mounted at the ends of the pinion shaft, and lubed it liberally with graphite powder, using spray WD-40 to carry the graphite into the sleeve bearings/bushings. That was several years ago, and the quill has operated freely ever since.

If you find that the problem BuckeyeDennis was having is not the culprit in your case check Splines of the Quill and the Drive to see that they are moving smoothly back and forth together.

If the pinion turns freely and the splines slide smoothly I would next check to see if the quill barrel moves freely in the headstock bore with the quill lock loosened. One way the bore can be deformed is if someone tightens the quill lock with no quill in place, that is the reason we use the 'reversed' depth stop rather than the quill lock to hold the pinion and spring tension while the quill is removed. The bore should also be clean and waxed. One member having a similar problem polished his bore, but I don't recall him explaining exactly how he did so.

- David

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Thanks, it is tough to move in any function/position. You are correct about being careful removing it, but fortunately have done it before. No burrs in the key slot, already took a look at that.

Any other suggestions come to mind?
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You might watch Jacob Anderson’s video quill video viewtopic.php?p=306023#p306023

Here’s a couple from Scott at MyGrowthRings
https://youtu.be/cB5KwFVeQFs?si=7cVcgdM8DZNDTUPB

https://youtu.be/rboI7qTKgOs?si=hLJTa-EWfjyihZIm

I had my spring disconnect once, probably when I removed the quill and didn’t pay attention and turned the handle too far when loosening the tension.

These are excellent ideas, I'll give these a try and let you know if it doesn't work!
Thanks,
Wes

Are you a ham?