Power Pro Protection Device
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2026 5:09 pm
I came across this Note/Warning regarding the PowerPro Power Supply in the ShopSmithsonian:
"Gen 1 PowerPro power supplies have been failing widely, and the factory tests the power supply and control panel together because either can be the culprit. A 2024 Shopsmith Repair advisory told owners to stop using Gen 1 machines until a fuse and circuit breaker fix was available." (https://shopsmithsonian.com/#d006/power ... k-7/522638) The Source of the advisory is: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BktwkZkHnrA&t=34s) posted by a third party repair shop.
My first mistake was one of interpretation. This wasn't a "Repair advisory" issued by Shopsmith, but an "advisory" issued by "Shopsmith Repair." They now offer a "Power Pro Protection Device 'that can protect yourself and your machine from $2000 worth of damage.' (I might have paraphrased that, it comes from a video.) I didn't see a price. From another video (https://www.youtube.com/shorts/E5hihp1vjQs) it appears to simply add a fuse and circuit breaker in line on your 115 VAC hot line:
First, I want to be clear that I see no reason not to add a fuse or circuit breaker to your PowerPro Gen 1, especially if you are adding one with greater protection (lower amperage or faster interruption) than your household circuit provides. It can't hurt, and this is essentially what Shopsmith did on Gen 2. I worked in electronics for ~38 years on a wide variety of equipment, and I can say that this Gen 1 Protection Device is the first and only time I have personally seen a fuse and circuit breaker connected directly in series. With modest DIY skills, it is a simple matter to add an in-line fuse and fuse holder inside the headstock if you want to add this protection.
That said, it is extremely rare that a fuse or circuit breaker or both together will actually prevent a downstream failure. The normal sequence of events is something in your power supply fails, creating an overcurrent condition, tripping a circuit breaker or burning out a fuse. The circuit interruption may prevent cascading failures that may make your power supply worse, but it generally won't prevent the initial failure. So in my opinion the company is grossly overstating what the Protection Device can do for you. They reference a $2,000 potential savings which seems overstated. Shopsmith will currently upgrade your Gen 1 to Gen 2 for $1,600 including a new Power Supply and all shipping, or the DIY kit is currently $729 IIRC (I'm still having issues with my upgrade as I described in another thread and will update there when I have an update.)
Bottom line: I'm not a fan of the device itself, and I disagree with the advisory. If the solution made sense, I presume that Shopsmith themselves would offer the fuse and thermal disconnect portion of Gen 2 as a standalone inexpensive upgrade to Gen 1. (I have run a Gen 1 that way due to problems in my Gen 2 upgrade kit, and it works fine as one would expect.)
- David
"Gen 1 PowerPro power supplies have been failing widely, and the factory tests the power supply and control panel together because either can be the culprit. A 2024 Shopsmith Repair advisory told owners to stop using Gen 1 machines until a fuse and circuit breaker fix was available." (https://shopsmithsonian.com/#d006/power ... k-7/522638) The Source of the advisory is: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BktwkZkHnrA&t=34s) posted by a third party repair shop.
My first mistake was one of interpretation. This wasn't a "Repair advisory" issued by Shopsmith, but an "advisory" issued by "Shopsmith Repair." They now offer a "Power Pro Protection Device 'that can protect yourself and your machine from $2000 worth of damage.' (I might have paraphrased that, it comes from a video.) I didn't see a price. From another video (https://www.youtube.com/shorts/E5hihp1vjQs) it appears to simply add a fuse and circuit breaker in line on your 115 VAC hot line:
- PP Protection Device.jpg (63.47 KiB) Viewed 48 times
First, I want to be clear that I see no reason not to add a fuse or circuit breaker to your PowerPro Gen 1, especially if you are adding one with greater protection (lower amperage or faster interruption) than your household circuit provides. It can't hurt, and this is essentially what Shopsmith did on Gen 2. I worked in electronics for ~38 years on a wide variety of equipment, and I can say that this Gen 1 Protection Device is the first and only time I have personally seen a fuse and circuit breaker connected directly in series. With modest DIY skills, it is a simple matter to add an in-line fuse and fuse holder inside the headstock if you want to add this protection.
That said, it is extremely rare that a fuse or circuit breaker or both together will actually prevent a downstream failure. The normal sequence of events is something in your power supply fails, creating an overcurrent condition, tripping a circuit breaker or burning out a fuse. The circuit interruption may prevent cascading failures that may make your power supply worse, but it generally won't prevent the initial failure. So in my opinion the company is grossly overstating what the Protection Device can do for you. They reference a $2,000 potential savings which seems overstated. Shopsmith will currently upgrade your Gen 1 to Gen 2 for $1,600 including a new Power Supply and all shipping, or the DIY kit is currently $729 IIRC (I'm still having issues with my upgrade as I described in another thread and will update there when I have an update.)
Bottom line: I'm not a fan of the device itself, and I disagree with the advisory. If the solution made sense, I presume that Shopsmith themselves would offer the fuse and thermal disconnect portion of Gen 2 as a standalone inexpensive upgrade to Gen 1. (I have run a Gen 1 that way due to problems in my Gen 2 upgrade kit, and it works fine as one would expect.)
- David