Shopsmith Forums

I have Mark V made in 1979. It has a small amount of rust that I want to touch-up on the leg set. The rest of the machine looks good so I was going to clean and wax it, but not paint it.

I placed an order with Shopsmith for the paint, but I'm being told that there is no estimate on when it may ship. I'm wondering if there is a standard Rustoleum or other paint that will match. I would appreciate any ideas.

Thanks, Dave

Hi and welcome;
I have used the SS paint on several occasions and find that it is excellent.
I only used it on headstocks and table carriages and such due to cost. Any good quality of spray paint will work for the legs. If you have a spray system you may want to try having the color matched by a quality paint supplier such as Sherwin Williams or others. Unless you are very exacting brush painting the legs will work also. Just as a warning there two colors of gray paint one for the older machines and one for the newer.
Bill V

[quote="wa2crk"]Hi and welcome]

I'm trying to restore it as close to "like new" as I can. I have the paint on order and will probably just wait for it to come in. I was just wondering if there was a substitute. I ordered the gray for the older machines. Mine is gray with a rough finish.

Another question. I'm assuming because it is not a high gloss I should be able to repaint just the scratches and the rusted areas an the lower legs and blend it in. Was this your experience when you painted you headstock and carriage? Just curious.

Hi again;
No when I painted the machines I used the SS paint for the outside (visible parts) of the legs and used grey implement paint from Tractor Supply for the inside of the legs. The SS paint did a real good job on a band saw cover that was badly streaked by sunlight and almost was a shade of pale green. The paint covered really good on the plastic.
The SS paint leaves a nice wet edge and is very easy to use.
I used less than two cans of the paint to do a complete 500 model including the band saw and a jointer, both end castings and the table carriage. My son is now using both of these machines. Good luck on your restoration.
Bill V

bdad80 wrote:...Another question. I'm assuming because it is not a high gloss I should be able to repaint just the scratches and the rusted areas an the lower legs and blend it in. Was this your experience when you painted you headstock and carriage? Just curious.

I have knot used the SS touch-up paint. I have used plenty of touch-up paint that is knot ShopSmith. In the use of spray paint, it has been my experience that where ever you finish, after it drys, you will be able to tell where the new paint meets the old. To avoid that, it is best to paint the whole continuos section. In your case, with the rust, clean the rust off, sand the rest of the leg lightly, (making sure to "feather" the edges) and paint the whole leg. If you are painting scratches, I have had good luck spraying paint from the can onto a flat surface (like an artists pallet if you will) and using a small paint brush (like a model brush) to paint just the scratches.

Well I got ambitious this weekend and started working on the Mark V. I ended up sanding down the majority of it getting it ready to prime and paint. I decided to fore go the Shopsmith paint and went with Rustoleum Hammered Gray. I just had a couple of small parts that I primed and painted. I like it.

It's a lot more work to paint the whole machine and I know that this is not the authentic Shopsmith color, but I like the way it looks. I been looking at some of the restorations on this site and that inspired me to try the Rustoleum. I especially like the "Greenie" color scheme. When I get this one done I think I'm going to start looking for a Greenie to restore.

When I get this one complete I'll post some pictures.