MAR/APR 2005
Volume 48/Issue 2

IN THIS ISSUE
Project Articles
• The Sheltered Swing
• Turn-Of-The-Century Medicine Cabinet
• Puzzle Power

DEPARTMENTS
• Ask Smitty
• Owner’s Gallery
• Letters from Owners
 
Academy Notes
Basic Joinery - The Mortise-And-Tenon
 
Service Pointers
MARK V Work Table and Carriage

Woodworking Technologies
Stepped Dowels
 
Safety
Safety Lessons I've Learned

What's New
Rip Scale Upgrade Kit, Cabinets, & Lift-Assist

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 2005.
Shopsmith, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

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

Bandsaw refuses to “pitch-in”!
 
From R. Greene via email:
 
I have a with the sides of the blades on my 14-inch Bandsaw building up with sawdust ( I cut a lot of yellow pine). Next thing you know, my roller guides get coated...then the blade doesn't track properly. Sometimes I can cut all day and not have any problems. What am I doing wrong?

You're cutting the wrong wood! Just kidding. Actually, yellow pine is absolutely loaded with pitch and resins.

I would suggest that you do the same thing with your bandsaw blades that most woodworkers do with heir circular saw blades....clean off the pitch frequently.

How? Remove the blade and coat it with spray-on sawblade cleaner. Allow it to sit for a half hour, then rinse off, dry and go back to work.

CAUTION: Back-up bearings are another issue. Unfortunately, spraying these cleaners on bearings could ruin them...so you may have to scrape the “crud” off them or use steel wool, etc. Cleaning the bearings will obviously be more difficult.

Woodworker loses his groove
 
From Dennis C. via email:
 
I have my Shopsmith set up in the shaper mode and am running an 18" long piece of 3/4" wood through. I am making the groove portion of a tongue and groove joint.

At the beginning of the cut, the groove is centered. At the end of the 18" cut, the groove is off by 3/32". I believe that all connections are tight. What is going wrong? I am scared to do the tongue portion until I have this figured out and corrected. Can you help me?

After reviewing this problem with a number of folks...the consensus is that either something is loose or slipping....or....your stock is thicker on one end than it is on the other.

Please check to be sure your table is not slipping in the carriage...your quill lock is not slipping...the arbor is not slipping on the spindle...or the headstock is not slipping on the way tubes.

You can check this by placing a piece of tape on the way tubes where they pass through the headstock....or on the Table down-tubes where they pass through the carriage. Attach the tapes before making your cut...then, check the tape again after you make your cuts.