Shopsmith Forums

Hello,

I'm the head-scratching new owner of what I believe is a 1986 or so vintage Mark V model 500. It is rough grey and has serial number 217200.

I've been shopping for a used Shopsmith for a while. Locally they seem to be going for about $500. An ad on Craigslist this week claimed a "Shopsmith, purchased in 2005, never used" and asking not much over the $500. Cutting the long story, it was of course used when bought in 2005. The sellers were anxious to clear some garage space, and they took my $200 offer.

Some details:
Motor runs, seems smooth. Spindle does not appear to have excessive endplay.
Minor surface rust on upright posts. Minor surface rust lots of other places. Nothing a wire brush and/or Emory cloth won't make quick work of.

The problem
The Shopsmith is missing all lathe and sander parts/attachments. My guess when I made my $200 offer was that I could buy the needed parts rather inexpensively ($150ish). But it was a very uniformed guess, and if I goofed, it is back to the drawing board.

So did I mess up? What should I be looking for in terms of the missing parts. Are the standard parts the best bet, or are their upgraded versions I should consider?

Oh, and hi! Glad to be onboard. I've wanted a Shopsmith for nearly 35 years, since seeing one on TV as a young lad. No matter what folks say about them, I've yet to meet a hobbyist who hasn't lusted over a Shopsmith at one point in their life.

For $200 you couldn't hardly go wrong. Now the seller might have had a box of accessories and parts that you could have bartered for but ....

Give us some pictures of what you have and we'll be able to tell you what you NEED to go get and what you might WANT to start looking for.

Welcome to the forum; a merry band of gentlemen for sure.

paulrussell wrote:Hello,

I'm the head-scratching new owner of what I believe is a 1986 or so vintage Mark V model 500. It is rough grey and has serial number 217200.

I've been shopping for a used Shopsmith for a while. Locally they seem to be going for about $500. An ad on Craigslist this week claimed a "Shopsmith, purchased in 2005, never used" and asking not much over the $500. Cutting the long story, it was of course used when bought in 2005. The sellers were anxious to clear some garage space, and they took my $200 offer.

Some details:
Motor runs, seems smooth. Spindle does not appear to have excessive endplay.
Minor surface rust on upright posts. Minor surface rust lots of other places. Nothing a wire brush and/or Emory cloth won't make quick work of.

The problem
The Shopsmith is missing all lathe and sander parts/attachments. My guess when I made my $200 offer was that I could buy the needed parts rather inexpensively ($150ish). But it was a very uniformed guess, and if I goofed, it is back to the drawing board.

So did I mess up? What should I be looking for in terms of the missing parts. Are the standard parts the best bet, or are their upgraded versions I should consider?

Oh, and hi! Glad to be onboard. I've wanted a Shopsmith for nearly 35 years, since seeing one on TV as a young lad. No matter what folks say about them, I've yet to meet a hobbyist who hasn't lusted over a Shopsmith at one point in their life.

You didn't mess up IMHO. That's a good deal.
You can always post your equipment needs here and surely some one can point you in the right direction. Bill Mayo, on this forum comes to mind. He deals in used and refurbished SS equipment.
Craig's List is a good place to look, too. More often than not, sellers on CL are selling the whole set up, tho.
Check ebay, too. However, recently SS items have gone pretty high.
Then of course there's the Shopsmith owner's site for new equipment.

IIUC, all you are missing is the disk sander disk and the tailstock and lathe spindles and tools. All those ARE easily obtained on e-bay for less than $150(you may need to be patient to avoid a bidding war). Yes Bill is probably a better source. There are others who regularly sell on e-bay, that will sell for a reasonable price when approached.

Yu dun gud!

The initial advice to a 'newbie'. is:

DO NOT TURN THE SPEED DIAL UNLESS THE SPINDLES ARE ROTATING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. Edit yer profile so we all know from whence ye come!

P.P.S. WELCOME!!!

Pics of what I have :

Ya did gooder than gud!;)

Add quill lock wing nut and upper blade guard(500) to the missing stuff list.

Ok, let me make sure my shopping list is complete:

5041729 Feed Stop Handle ($9.21)
505875 Upper and Lower Saw Guards ($184)
55143 Sanding Disk Assembly ($55.60)
504276 Tail Stock Assembly ($83.09)
505716 Cup Center ($18.47)
514398 Tool Rest Assembly ($80.40)
522215 Caster wheels (3.99 each)
505586 Lathe Chisels ($97)
Lathe Centers / Lathe Plates

The prices above are new from the Shopsmith store, and with the possible exception of the casters and feed handle, I'll be shopping used.

paulrussell wrote:Ok, let me make sure my shopping list is complete:

5041729 Feed Stop Handle ($9.21)
505875 Upper and Lower Saw Guards ($184)
55143 Sanding Disk Assembly ($55.60)
504276 Tail Stock Assembly ($83.09)
505716 Cup Center ($18.47)
514398 Tool Rest Assembly ($80.40)
522215 Caster wheels (3.99 each)
505586 Lathe Chisels ($97)
Lathe Centers / Lathe Plates

The prices above are new from the Shopsmith store, and with the possible exception of the casters and feed handle, I'll be shopping used.

For lathe work, you will need 505715(drive center).

I assume you have all the rest of the caster assembly (looks like a sliver of one in the first pix). If so casters only otherwise......

A saw blade might be useful!

The quill feed lock: Make sure you have two 501311[36] and one 501627[37]. They may be missing since the 'handle'[35] is missing.

Check with Bill Mayo re handle and casters!

Unless you have definite plans for lathe work, the lathe accessories are not a 'hot button'!(many disappear from lack of use;)).