Shopsmith Vs Midi lathe

Shopsmith Vs Midi lathe · 09-09-2009, 10:35 PM

I have been thinking about picking up a good used Shopsmith or a midi lathe. Since I am primarly interested in the lathe aspects, how good of a lathe is the shopsmith. I figured that there are a few other uses i would have for it such as horizontal boring. Thanks for your inputs

WoodWrangler · 09-09-2009, 11:01 PM

Now take this for what it's worth ... I don't have one, but from what I recall the bad thing about the Shopsmith as a lathe is that it doesn't use any "standard" sized accessories (you almost have to keep with it's brand of stuff). Let the owners speak up, as I could be wrong ...

Personally, I'd do a dedicated lathe ...

Deano · 09-09-2009, 11:03 PM

Brad
I have a lathe & a Shopsmith along with all the regular tools = contractors saw, drill press, router table, mortis machine and on and on, but I always go back to the Shopsmith for something. Number one with the table it makes a great drill press itself. As far as the lathe goes it is like a bench top with a frame on wheels. Regards

Deano · 09-09-2009, 11:10 PM

Woodwrangler is correct it is all proprietary parts with Shopsmith.

CarvedTones · 09-10-2009, 07:33 AM

Brad,

You need to drop by and try my Excelsior (Rockler). I am set up for boring, though a tailstock with a longer ram would be nice. I am not pushing the brand in particular (there are several similar), but one feature I am not sure you will get on the ShopSmith is VS. It only takes a few minutes using it to have it change from a "would be nice" feature to a "must have". Having a #2MT and 1"-8TPI for accessories is also important as it gives you a very wide range of choices.

Joe Scharle · 09-10-2009, 08:36 AM

I've had a Shopsmith since 1980 and as others have noted it will perform many functions; turning being one. I personally turn only if I have to, i.e. make a replacement spindle etc. The variable speed is a handy feature when turning square stock to round or high speed polishing. A large blank will make the tool want to 'walk' unless you weigh it down. This pic shows what I've done to lessen that problem. It stores the accessories and adds stabilizing weight to the unit. And yes, it uses proprietary accessories. Look on the Shopsmith site to see what they offer and then on ebay for a used price. I've only turned 2-300 items but found it as good as other lathes in it's class. But it's NOT a Oneway!

CarvedTones · 09-10-2009, 09:21 AM

Joe,

I am not clear about the VS - are you saying yours has it? I had talked to someone a few days ago who was turning on a ShopSmith and he was lamenting (a little; he didn't hate it) the choice of speeds, having to choose between 875 or 1750 (I think) as the "slow" speeds with nothing in between. One of the things that has really made me love VS is the "walk damping" it gives you. I am not sure why, but sometimes a slight speed adjustment up or down has considerably less vibration with an unbalanced blank. As I tend to scrounge wood and use splits from logs a lot, this is important to me. When turning spindles from dimensioned stock, VS is less important but still nice to have.

froglips · 09-10-2009, 09:36 AM

I'm very very very very very biased towards Shopsmith

But, I'll put that aside and try to answer your question.

Simply put, I don't think a midi is a good value. Before the Dark Siders start sharpening their skew chisels, I did not say midi lathes are junk or won't do a job well.

I find the midi lathe is an expensive (Delta is now in the $500 range) and undersized tool that is easily outgrown. It also is of limited use outside of turning.

For that reason, I'd suggest getting a used Shopsmith that has the lathe stuff with it. There was an old Magna era Shopsmith on Craigslist this week for $75.

Also, you get 700 to 5,200 rpm variable speed control using a dial, not changing belts. In the end, you also have a tool capable of many tasks. As a drill press and disc sander, its hard to beat.

I'd say you can safely find a well equipped Shopsmith in the $350 range. You will also find ~2.38 gazillion parted out Shopsmiths on e-bay, so I'd not let the "proprietary" issue factor too heavily in such comparisons.

Hope I kept my bias to a minimum.....

Jim

Joe Scharle · 09-10-2009, 09:51 AM

Andy, the Shopsmith uses a sheave pulley drive, where by turning a hand crank you can vary the speeds from 700-2500 rpm on the fly. Here's a link.

http://www.shopsmith.com/markvsite/lathe.htm

CarvedTones · 09-10-2009, 10:15 AM

Interesting; is VS on older ones? Maybe that is what he has. I will PM him about this thread in case I am misquoting...

Joe Scharle · 09-10-2009, 10:27 AM

Don't know...mine is a 1980 Mark V. Mark Vs have VS.

froglips · 09-10-2009, 11:02 AM

The Shopsmith has always had the variable speed sheave pully setup. It goes back to the 1950's with the Magna models.

The head design and the frame have changed very little. They've added more of an enclosure around the belts and the motors have improved. But, with few exceptions parts from today's Shopsmith can be used on any model in the line. A majority of the changes come in larger table systems.

Yeah, yeah, I really dig this stuff

Jim

sasjzl · 09-10-2009, 12:02 PM

Andy is referring to my Shopsmith which is the model 10ER which is the predecessor of the Shopsmith V which is the essential Shopsmith machine today. It does not have variable speed but has three pulley settings. I believe that the speeds are about 900, 1725, 3450 as the motor is 1725 rpm.
I just recently discovered how much easier it can be to turn at a higher speed as long as everything is trued up and in order. The one really positive thing about my venerable 10ER is that it is made out of some serious cast iron. I have only once got it to dance around with an out of balance piece and was able to calm it down by lowering the speed. It has a 5/8" arbor but I had no problem finding an adapter to make it a standard 1" 8tpi. It is an amazingly useful and substantial piece of iron. The icing on the cake was that it cost me $50.

Unfortunately I cannot really comment on how it compares to other lathes because I have never used any others but I can say with complete confidence that you can turn on it. At least find out if turning is something you want to do. I have not regretted buying, and hauling it home.
I am in the process of finding a Harbor Freight 34706 so I am very curious to see how that will differ. The first thing I will be doing is putting some serious cement bags on the bottom.

Here is a link to a pdf of the original manual.
http://www.songofthegreatlakes.com/ss10ermanual.html
This is a nicely restored 10ER from the same site.
http://www.songofthegreatlakes.com/ss10errcrestore.htm

I will be sure to post my thoughts on the differences between the 10ER and whatever lathe I get next is. Part of the beauty of the Shopsmith is that I can tell my significant other that I can continue to use the Shopsmith for all kinds of non lathe stuff.

Happy turning,
Jim Lee

sasjzl · 09-10-2009, 12:04 PM

The Shopsmith 10ER manual.
http://www.songofthegreatlakes.com/ss10ermanual.htm

Thanks,
Jim Lee

froglips · 09-10-2009, 12:20 PM

Thanks for that detail Jim! I didn't know much about the 10ER. Can't say that anymore

Jim