Want to make a shorty... How much to cut?

[ChrisNeilan]

I think I'll start with 14, that would let me keep the option of drill press mode. My current drill press which I purchased in 1985 from Hormier Tools has developed a crack in the cast iron trunnion and will soon break in two! Probably easier to use the Mark V rather than find a new trunion.

[scooters]

I cut my old 500 (Craigslist) down last weekend. I used my sawzall and some metal blades from Harbor Freight. No problem with cutting. I used 2 bi-metal blades, but could have done it with one. Only a couple of minutes cutting time per tube.

It was easiest to measure the distance that I wanted to cut off each tube, rather than the distance that I wanted to keep. I marked each tube with a sharpie and then backed it up with a "round" of Blue Tape. Remember that the top and bottom tubes are NOT the same length.

No Problemo.

I spent the rest of the weekend rust removing, painting, lubing, and waxing. Alignment is next, then off to try the shaper and speed increaser that I bought from Bill!

The base was well-rusted. Naval Jelly from the auto parts store worked well on the metal. Naval Aluminum Jelly from e-bay worked on the Table and other Aluminum. I bought a replacement set of tubes on e-bay, which saved me a good day's work.

It is now nice enough to be a very good workpiece. I didn't try to detail it to become a total showpiece. Nothing too difficult. A long weekend and a lot of "fun"!

Enjoy!!

I did find that the Shopsmith paint seemed to be a bit off from my existing color. Not bad, but Shopsmith was just a bit greener and the new paint had just a bit more blue or gray. I'm probably the only one who will ever notice.

[polycarp]

Scooters,
How much did you end up cutting off? I have a recently acquired 500 and I'd like to cut it down for space considerations but want to be able to use a speed increaser for shaping. I don't yet have the increaser so can't make the measurements . I can go ahead and make the cuts based on your experience. This is very timely! Thanks!

[ChrisNeilan]

Just cut 14 inches off the tubes with the sawsall. Cut like butter with a Diablo metal cutting blade. Squares them off on the Grizley 12 inch sander. Paper still good!;)

[polycarp]

Chris,
So you think 14 inches off is as much as I can remove while still maintaining the use of a speed increaser? I need to make this as short as possible while still maintaining the capability to use the machine as a shaper in horizontal mode with the increaser. I could start at 14 and work my way in once I have the increaser but I'd like to only cut this once if possible! Guess I'm getting lazy!
Thanks!

Mike

[fjimp]

I have cut tubes twice and found using pipe cutter from Harbor Freight the simplest solution. Jim

[JPG]

The 'limit' is the space between the carriage and the headstock.

The rubber spacer(about 1 1/2") will not fit between the SI clamp and the headstock(so says Nick), so the clamp is less than 1 1/2" away from the headstock. The spacer will fit between the clamp and the carriage. The clamp is about 1".

So the least amount of way tube between the carriage and the headstock is less than 4". The max is not known since I do not know how much wider than 1 1/2" the clamp is from the carriage.

So 48"(exposed way tube of 'normal' length) less headstock less carriage less something greater than 4" is the minimum exposed waytube length. The model of carriage you have will make this different. As a 'guess', I would use 5" or more for the greater than 4" length. Subtract that length from 52" and you have the cutoff length for all 4 tubes.

The missing 'detail' is the space between the SI clamp and the carriage.

This does not allow for any carriage adjustment along the way tubes.


I would not do any cutting until that missing 'detail' is determined!:eek:



P.S. Pipe cutter from HF was not a good experience for me! I have since acquired/rebuilt an old ridgid pipe cutter(a different planet for sure).

[joedw00]

1) Remove the hub from the 'right' shaft.

2) Pull the shiny cover off the 'left' shaft'

3) Install the hub on the 'left' shaft.

4) Push the shaft cover over the 'right' shaft.

:)

Finally got around and changed the belt sander around. I cut the tubes too short for it to work. Will have to get longer tubes. If I remember right I think I just cut tubes in half.

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[dusty]

to be removed immediately.[ATTACH]25564[/ATTACH]

[scooters]

I cut 16 inches off of my tube set. Here are some pictures.

Start Disclaimer: You will need to decide what meets your application. I did all of this as a "dry fit." Please don't cut based on this and then complain if it doesn't work for you! End Disclaimer.

Note: I don't have the rubber collar on the tubes of either of my SS. Do I need it??

This shows "shorty" with the Speed Increaser installed and the coupler on the jointer. Looks like the fit is OK. I can slide the head back and disengage it from the Speed Increaser. The "4 fingers" of space were taken with the SI engaged, so you should be able to accommodate the SI and the Jointer on the machine at the same time.[ATTACH]25559[/ATTACH][ATTACH]25560[/ATTACH]

The belt Sander is a different story. With a 16" tube cut and the SI engaged to the right, there is no room for the coupler to the sander on the left.. You would need several additional inches of tube to make this work.[ATTACH]25561[/ATTACH][ATTACH]25562[/ATTACH]

Also, I thought that I would throw in a picture of my shop in our new home. We have a 3 car garage with a 5 foot width extension. Cars go in bay 1 & 2. The shop lives in the other 1.5 bays. I'm standing in bay 1. Overhead wood storage is in bay 2. The Shop takes up the rest. "Shorty" was still "long" in the picture. One thing that I'm glad that I got was a butcher paper roll and holder. You will see it hanging on the left side of the picture. It is great to pull off a sheet to cover the workbench when doing messy stuff!
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