Shopsmith Forums

Greetings from the upper Midwest,

I have an older Mark V from the mid 80's. When I switch to the vertical drill press mode and drill a number of repetition holes at a certain depth, the second, third hole and subsequent others are all less than the original depth. (Let's say I set the stop to drill a hole 1/2" deep - first hole is 1/2" deep, second hole is 15/32", third hole is 7/16" and so on. This is really frustrating when you are drilling multiple holes that need to be a set depth. The table is tight - the stop is tight . . . Any suggestions as to what would cause this?

Good woodworking,

Daniel

I know you said the table is tight, but it sounds like you table is creeping down. Rick Davis showed us how to put a 4x4 of the desired height under the table for reinforcement or the table and any downward creep.

I'd bet my Mark V on it. The table has got to be slipping. That small dimension is not detectable by our inherent senses until you drill a couple holes and then it becomes glaring.

I'd start by cleaning up the carriage lock assembly. That done, make sure that you are drilling holes and not pressing them. Let the drill cut the hole slowly (all the way to the depth stop).

Then if that hasn't resolved your issue, a block of wood beneath the carriage (to prevent its' downward movement) should resolve it.

CAUTION: Do not over tighten the carriage lock. I suspect you could damage tubes by doing so.

+1 on the table slipping. I learned early on to slide the carrage all the way to the right before tipping the unit up for Drill Press (or routing) mode, that way the table CAN'T slip down any further.

B4 drilling the first hole, put a piece of tape on the way tube above the table carriage to mark its position. After drilling a few holes(of varying depth!) check the carriage position relative to the tape to see IF it HAS moved.

BTW Overtightening the carriage lock(S) can damage the locks! They ARE a pain to replace!

Hi Daniel! WELCOME to the Forum!:D

Yes, the carriage will slip along the way tubes - Darn it! ----- I noticed it when using my Overarm Router table on to of the main table. This added about 20 lbs to the table.

Like others, I use wood blocks! Here's my fix - - get a few blocks of 2X6 structural wood and stack them beneath the carriage. then lower the table so it rests on the wood blocks before tightening. This way I stop the table from slipping and also can adjust the height of the table to be more comfortable.

Also, like Dusty said, don't over tighten the carriage locks.!!!:eek:

Nick used a small/inexpensive hydraulic jack beneath his table in a couple of Sawdust sessions, but this raises the table too high for me. I hated to allow just the small lifting end of the jack to be the only pressure point on the carriage, so when I tried the jack, I added a piece of wood on top of the jack.
The good thing about the jack method is - it is adjustable!

charlese wrote: Like others, I use wood blocks! Here's my fix - - get a few blocks of 2X6 structural wood and stack them beneath the carriage. then lower the table so it rests on the wood blocks before tightening. This way I stop the table from slipping and also can adjust the height of the table to be more comfortable.

I can not picture the wooden blocks. If the SS is set up in drill press mode the carriage is above the table-I got that. Id the boxes are under the carriage, how can they be under the table?

navycop wrote:I can not picture the wooden blocks. If the SS is set up in drill press mode the carriage is above the table-I got that. Id the boxes are under the carriage, how can they be under the table?

Maybe this will help.

https://forum.shopsmith.com/viewtopic.php?t=1899&highlight=Drill+Press

Reference post#5

navycop wrote:I can not picture the wooden blocks. If the SS is set up in drill press mode the carriage is above the table-I got that.

in drill press mode, the table is above the table bar and tubes. so it is above the carriage.

as I understand it, the blocks go on top of the base arm/hinge and the carriage sits on the blocks (with the carriage lock normal tight).

Dusty,

I must type even slower than I thought.
when I started my reply, yours wasn't up yet.

Ivan