MAR/APR 2004
Volume 47/Issue 2

IN THIS ISSUE
Project Articles
• Strip Laminate Bending
• The Turned Hall Tree
• Two Great Kitchen Gift Items

DEPARTMENTS
• Ask Smitty
• Owner’s Gallery
• Letters from Owners
• New Baby Workshop Calendar
 
Academy Notes
Clean Cuts - Pt. 5- Sharpening Jointer, Molder & Shaper Knives
 
Service Pointers
Troubleshooting the Shopsmith Lathe Duplicator
 
Safety Tips
Safety Cans for Flammable Liquids

What's New
Check out our New Shopsmith Website

EDUCATION
• Find A Shopsmith Woodworking Academy Near You
• National Woodworking Academy in Dayton, OH

ONLINE CATALOGS
• Online Accessory Catalog
• Request Printed Accessory Catalog
• Online Replacement Parts Catalog

MARK V INFORMATION
• Find A Shopsmith
MARK V Demo Near You
• Request MARK V Information Package

LINKS
• Links Worth Visiting
• Free Woodworking Tips

FEEDBACK
Contacting Shopsmith

Copyright 2004.
Shopsmith, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

ASK SMITTY!
Here are the questions . . .
and SMITTY’S answers for this issue!

Using universal arbor to turn bracelets.

There sure is. Besides Faceplates, Screw Centers and Chucks, one of the easiest ways would be to drill a hole in the center of your turning stock and mount it to Shopsmith's 1/2" Shaper Arbor or our 5/8" Molder/Dado Arbor.

Splitting table is a Splitting Headache for its makers!
 
From Diane & Bill M., Alberta, Canada:
 
My husband built us a kitchen table out of spruce. We stained it and then used a water-based top-coat to protect it . Now it is starting to split, one spot along the place where he joined it (with wood glue and biscuits), the other split is in the center of a board. What can we do about this? Is it just from our dry weather (we live in Alberta, Canada) or should we have used a oil based finish? Would that have sealed it better? Thank you for any advice.

Here's the bad (I'm sorry) news. After asking a number of experts, the unanimous opinion is that the problem lies in the wood you used to build the project.

It is highly likely that the moisture content of your spruce was far too high when the project was originally built. Once glued-up and then finished, that moisture was “trapped” inside...causing your problems.

There are two options:

1) Wherever you have a split, saw your pieces apart, making your kerf follow the splits. Then, glue the pieces back together and allow them to dry thoroughly before applying another coat or so of finish. PERHAPS this will work for you.

2) If this procedure doesn't work, you have no option other than to re-build your table, using kiln-dried lumber.

Your Canadian environment should have no effect. And it will make NO DIFFERENCE whether you use water or oil-based varnish. Wish I had better news.

Solving “sticky Quill” problems
 
From Jon D.., via email:
 
The quill on my MARK V Model 520 sticks on a regular basis and does not move freely. I rub the paste wax on it and it frees up for a while but then gets sticky again. Please tell me how to maintain the Quill so it will always move smoothly in and out.

My first question would be....“What kind of wood are you cutting most often?” If your answer is pine or some other highly resinous wood, I can understand your problem. Woods with resinous sapwood will gum-up moving parts.

Here's my suggestion. Run the Quill all the way out and lock it in that position. Lay some newspapers under it across the Way Tubes to protect them. Spray the quill thoroughly with WD-40 and use a toothbrush to clean out the rack teeth on the underside. If WD-40 won't cut the build-up, try turpentine or mineral spirits.

Once cleaned thoroughly (and dried)...spray the quill with a product such as Dri-Cote. If you're cutting a lot of resinous woods, you may have to do this frequently.

If this doesn't solve your problem...or if you're not cutting resinous woods, you may have a Quill spring problem. Try my approach first. If it doesn't work for you, call Tech Services TOLL-FREE at 1-800-762-7555 for further instructions.

Rabbeting on the Jointer
 
From G. Snarr, Winchester, VA:
 
When I form a rabbet using my Jointer, the width of the cut gets narrower from the beginning to the end. How can I correct this ?

Knives extend 1/16”.

Either the setting of your Jointer Knives is wrong or your Jointer Fence isn't lining up parallel to the outside left edge of the Outfeed Table. The Knives should extend 1/32" to 1/16" beyond the outside edge of the Outfeed Table.

To adjust the Fence, add metal shims (such as a thin washer or piece of sheet metal) between the Fence Bar and the “bosses” at the end of the Infeed Table until the Fence is parallel with the Outfeed Table. Be sure to keep your stock against the Fence on the infeed side at all times when cutting rabbets.