Transporting a Shopsmith

bluekayak · Post by **bluekayak** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 4:31 pm

I was lucky enough to get a good deal on a "Greenie" on eBay and plan to pick it up tomorrow morning. I am hoping to take the back seats out of our Chrysler mini van and transport it inside the van. Does anyone know if it will fit?

I have no experience with a Shopsmith and have only seen demonstrations of it being used at the state fair.

Will it need to be disassembled? If so, will I need any other tools than allen wrenches, regular wrenches, and screwdrivers? Maybe some penetrating oil; there was quite a bit a rust on the bottom tubes. Should I remove the headstock? If so, any tips or links showing how that is done.

I'm about 60 miles away from it. I plan to bring some moving quilts, rope, and cardboard. Is there anything else I might need.

Thank,

Jerry

RobertTaylor · Post by **RobertTaylor** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 4:38 pm

with the seats out, the mini-van should work just fine. if there are two adults i would lay the shopsmith on it's side. if not you should block/tie it down as best you can. i live in ohio and bought a shopsmith in north carolina and brought it home in a toyota camry.

robinson46176 · Post by **robinson46176** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 5:20 pm

I hauled most of the 20+ that I bought in the trunk and back seat of a Lincoln Town Car. I could knock one down and have the doors and trunk lid shut in 15 minutes or less.
For my purposes I wanted to reassemble any of them from scratch since most of them were poorly assembled by the original owner anyway (not Shopsmith).
If you want to haul one apart include in your tool kit a rubber mallet (I like a dead blow hammer) and a socket to fit the cap-screws that hold the leg clamps and an extension and ratchet for it.
Also take "extra" Allen wrenches.

iclark · Post by **iclark** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 6:25 pm

I'm not sure about the height, but a 510 fit easily in the back of my Outback (rear seats folded down) once I took the legs off. that is very easy with 2 people:

take off the tables (do this whether you take the legs off or not),
slide the headstock to one end,
put the other end next to the vehicle and take off that leg (one person supports while the other one takes out the screws - large flat head slots on mine) and then set that end in the vehicle on a rug or cardboard,
slide the headstock to the end in the car and lock it,
slide that end into the vehicle most of the way,
repeat process to remove other leg.

when you get home, you can reverse the process fairly easily by yourself with one sawhorse.

with the legs on, the SS is top heavy. if you do not lay it down, be sure to secure it in the vehicle. with the legs off, it was very stable for me.

remember not to turn the speed control unless the SS is running.

congratulations,
Ivan

heathicus · Post by **heathicus** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 9:32 pm

It's on wheels already. Tie a rope to it and pull it like a trailer.

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 9:50 pm

heathicus wrote:It's on wheels already. Tie a rope to it and pull it like a trailer.

Not all SS have 'wheels' They were an 'extra cost option'. Mine did not get wheels until it was 40 yrs old!

Hope you realize Justofftheboaticus(Heathicus) was KIDDING! Previous advice was all good. I recommend the leg removal in any event. They remove easily and reduce the height and top heavyness.

Make sure the waytube clamp is tight. It is on the end opposite to the 'hinged end'.

charlese · Post by **charlese** » Fri Nov 13, 2009 11:01 pm

Hi Jerry! Your greenie will fit in the rear of your mini van nicely. I agree with Ivan's instructions (Post #4).

About laying the machine on it's side: New Mark Vs are shipped without legs attached. The instructions for installing the legs tell us to lay the machine on it's side and then put on the legs. However before laying down the machine, they instruct us to pad the ground (floor) with some of the heavy cardboard from the shipping container.

Pliers and screwdriver (flat blade) ought to be enough tools, but to be safe take a few more and that dead blow hammer recommended above.

bluekayak · Post by **bluekayak** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 12:01 am

Thank you everyone for all of your tips. I have the seats out of the mini van and will get an early start in the morning. I'll let you know how it goes.

Jerry Floren
St. Peter, MN

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 1:55 am

charlese wrote:Hi Jerry! Your greenie will fit in the rear of your mini van nicely. I agree with Ivan's instructions (Post #4).

About laying the machine on it's side: New Mark Vs are shipped without legs attached. The instructions for installing the legs tell us to lay the machine on it's side and then put on the legs. However before laying down the machine, they instruct us to pad the ground (floor) with some of the heavy cardboard from the shipping container.

Pliers and screwdriver (flat blade) ought to be enough tools, but to be safe take a few more and that dead blow hammer recommended above.

For leg removal, make sure the screwdriver is a biggun! A cresent(adjustable) wrench is kinder to the nuts!

Older instructions suggest setting the extension table on one end, setting its height to match the main table. and turn it upside down and rest it on the table tops(upside down). Those instructions also show two people doing it!

The hammer is not needed unless you intend to remove the headstock.

Some pieces of cardboard to keep parts from banging into each other will be a good idea.

mickyd · Post by **mickyd** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 8:04 am

heathicus wrote:It's on wheels already. Tie a rope to it and pull it like a trailer.

Just watch those turns!!

JPG40504 wrote:Not all SS have 'wheels' .......

What difference does that make? Just bolt on a couple 2x4 skid plates.