SS Newbie

[damagi]

FWIW, the tubes are 52" and 52 3/4" long by them selves. With the end castings attrached and the legs removed, the combination is less than 6'. Barely over 5'!

Mark's procedure is good since it breaks it down into reasonably sized(weight also) assemblies.

Consider: he removes 4 setscrews(way tubes), loosens 4 bolts(bench tubes).

That's IT!

Not the way I hauled one(I merely removed the legs), but then I had to remove 10 screws/nuts!

And his pieces were smaller/lighter!


I think I could put his pieces in my festiva!

I fit a Shopsmith plus jigsaw in my mini cooper the other day with only one half of the split back seat folded down. It was a tight fit, but it worked. Legs were already off, but i removed the bench tubes as well. granted, it was a 500, not a 520.

Then again, I fit a 520 plus bandsaw, beltsander, router table, and jointer in my mitubishi lancer. Had to make a second trip for the dc 3300 though.

scroll saw on stand fits in the back of a mini no-problem.

[damagi]

I use the Nicolas Cage gone in 60 seconds approach. I show up armed with a 9/16" socket and ratchet, T handled allen wrench and a 2' length of 2x4. I slide the head stock all the way to the left and position the carriage assembely about half way between the head stock and the right hand end. I slide the table into the carriage and crank it down onto the 2 x 4 raising the way tubes high enough to slide the head stock off. Using the Allen wrench I then remove the tie bar, slide off the headstock wrap it in a quilt and into my truck it goes. I then fold the table into drill press mode,center the carriage and tighten it down again. I raise the tubes into drill press mode and remove the table and the 2 screws that hold the way tubes into the base arm. The carriage makes a great handle and keeps the tubes together as I remove them from the machine and slide them into the truck. I then flip the base over and with the 9/16 socket I loosen the bolts in the tube lock bars and slide the ends off of the bench tubes. All this while I load every thing to one side of the truck leaving room for all the tables and misc accessories.


The seller is usually dumbfounded and bedazzled as I drive off.

Maybe I am not seeing things correctly, but I haven't been able to get to the way tube set screws because the base arm pivot bar is in the way. I suppose I should look again.

Your procedure is pretty much what I use as well...I have been thinking about getting a small toiletries bag to hold my SSRK - Shopsmith Rescue Kit.

[charlese]

The last few postings here are great!!!!:D Super informative!!! We need to recall them every time someone asks what size truck is needed to haul away a shopsmith.

Thanks guys!:)

[mbcabinetmaker]

Maybe I am not seeing things correctly, but I haven't been able to get to the way tube set screws because the base arm pivot bar is in the way. I suppose I should look again.

Your procedure is pretty much what I use as well...I have been thinking about getting a small toiletries bag to hold my SSRK - Shopsmith Rescue Kit.

The set screws are accessible using the long T handle Allen wrench by going over or under the pivot bar.


I still haven't figured out how to break one down to haul on my 3 wheeled motor bike though.

[robinson46176]

The set screws are accessible using the long T handle Allen wrench by going over or under the pivot bar.

I forgot mention that one of the tools I carried was a little "Mini-mag" flashlight for seeing those setscrews. Some locations, especially basements, did not always have much light.

[dusty]

The set screws are accessible using the long T handle Allen wrench by going over or under the pivot bar.


I still haven't figured out how to break one down to haul on my 3 wheeled motor bike though.

The set screws are hard to get to but when you do find it I have a word of caution to offer.

DO NOT leave the allen wrench inserted if you are not going to immediately use it. I did this and when I came back to the Shopsmith I decided to lower it back to horizontal. When I did that, I snapped the allen wrench into three pieces and cracked the cast housing. Not a smart move at all. In fact - really dumb!!

[wa2crk]

Dusty;
Kind of like leaving the chuck key in the chuck when you turn the drill press on!:o Ask me how I know!!:D

[robinson46176]

Added word of advice...
If you are going after an SS and need to break it down do NOT take a long Allen wrench with you... Take SEVERAL...
Some of those setscrews are quite loose and some are REALLY stuck tight. I popped one Allen wrench in half once and stripped the end of another on another trip.
I usually had 4 or 5 in the tool box. Also inspect the tip of the wrench for wear. A loose fit is asking for trouble. It is one thing to have a setscrew socket strip in your shop and another when you are hundreds of miles from home especially if you are in a small car.


.

[cobalt60]

Reading this thread made me wonder if I kept these attached photos. This is a Honda Civic crammed with a full 510, floating tables, bandsaw, belt sander, full set of older 500 stuff, and stand-alone Planer. Took some time (more than 60 seconds, for sure) and thankfully the seller was both patient and very helpful.

I only used one third-party soft-handled allan wrench and an adjustable crescent wrench. Big steps were to remove the legs, and take the headstock off the rails, and after that is was just a strange game of Tetris to get everything loaded.

If you plan to do it yourself, I'd only recommend that you vacuum the passenger seat before driving your wife around later!


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[dusty]

You coulda got a lot more in that Honda if you had packed more carefully. There are far too many UNoccupied spaces.