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Not a photocopy, of an original Craftsman Wood Shaper Model No. 113.23930 Owners and Parts Manual. This manual contains information on installation, operations, lubrication, maintenance, adjustments, trouble shooting chart, and a complete set of exploded view parts diagrams of all the parts. Looking for a manual? Download a pdf copy by choosing from the model numbers listed below. RIKON METAL BANDSAW 4IN. SHAPER WOOD 3/4.
- a photographic essay -
Cowell Lathe
Offered during the 1950s and 1960s, this small, hand-operated shaper was offered as a set of casting by E.W. Cowell of 7A Sydney Road, Watford in Hertfordshire - a company quite separate from the current Cowells Small Machine Tools Ltd who manufacture a range miniature machine tools.
Once well known in model-engineering circles for their range of built-it-yourself workshop equipment, other casting kits sold included such useful items as a plain-turning precision lathe, power hacksaws, drilling machines, compound milling tables and machine vices. However, as the country's standard of living improved, there was a decline in demand for this type of low-cost, do-it-yourself product, leaving only keener enthusiasts to attempt what was often a considerable task for completion in a home workshop. A similar situation existed in the United States, with the Pootatuck Corporation (later the David Jones Machine Company) offering sets of castings and drawings to build lathes, shapers and milling machines.
Made from good quality materials, the Cowell shaper was supplied as a set of casting with the major machining already finished - leaving the enthusiastic owner to manage all the smaller parts and final construction. When complete the shaper was capable of machining an area of 6' by 6' with five rates of automatic cross feed from 0.0025' to 0.125'.
Although they may appear to be very old-fashioned and of little use, the reality is that this type of shaper can still perform a most useful function in the hands of the more knowledgeable and skilful enthusiast. With sharp tools (and sharpness really is very important), it's quite astonishing what a variety of useful work these little machines can do. In the harder economic times of the 1940s and 1950s they offered model engineers an inexpensive way of accomplishing tasks that would otherwise have involved a great deal of laborious, and usually inaccurate, hand-filing and cutting. Remarkably, it is easy to use a hand shaper too quickly, rather than at its correct speed. Sixty strokes a minute by hand on a 5-inch stroke machine may feel comfortable but, allowing for the lost time at the end of each half stroke, this gives at tool speed of over 60 feet/minute - which is 30% greater than that recommended for high speed steel on cast iron. Experimenting with slower strokes on a hand shaper will often produce better results..
This manual contains information about the metal shaper specifications, the initial set up, lubrication diagram with the amounts of oil each size of metal shaper takes, proper operating instructions, speed change procedures, and how to make various adjustments.
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With a long heritage of over 63 years and 600,000 plus machines in circulation, our Customers have asked for more access to Shopsmith Engineer Support to:
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- Or even just to walk you through how to get started!
The Shopsmith Engineering Team is lead by our Shopsmith Engineer, a leading Quality Assurance Professional And 40+ Year Shopsmith Veteran. If his team can't help, it's likely nobody can.
While we wish we could bottle Shopsmith Experts, and have unlimited resources, they just aren't available. So, we have created a special Shopsmith Engineering Support Line especially dedicated for Equipment No Longer Under Warranty. (Our equipment is such high quality; it lasts and lasts!)
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Shared Features
make shaping with the Shopsmith easier & more convenient than with conventional shapers
Powerful Motor
Unique, technologically advanced DVR (Digital Variable Reluctance) motor produces 1-3/4 hp at 120 volts or 2 hp at 240 volts - more than enough power for shaping the edges of even the hardest woods with ease and no bogging.
Electronic Variable Speed
...lets you select any speed up to 10,000 rpm for super-smooth shaping.
Reversible Motor
...makes it possible for you to feed your workpiece from either side of your worktable by simply inverting your cutter on its arbor
Support Table System
...includes a 17' x 22' main worktable plus fixed & floating extension tables that let you build support configurations that measure up to 40' deep by 22' wide for handling small or large components with precision & safety.
Quill Micro-Feed Feature
...from the drill press function lets you raise or lower your shaper cutters up to 4-1/4' for achieving the exact profile you want - where you want it.
Full Tilting Table
...lets you achieve unique decorative edging cuts with your existing cutters that would not be achievable with conventional, non-tilting shapers.
Click Here to learn more about how Shopsmith's shared features will improve your precision & save your time.
Where the molder is used primarily to create decorative accents on the surfaces of boards, the shaper is used to decorate board edges and create specialized joinery such as tongues-&-grooves, drop leafs, glue joints and more.
Now offering your choice of under or over-table shaping... The Shopsmith has always offered over-table shaping capabilities. However, the new Mark 7 will now also function with the cutter below the worktable...a method preferred by many woodworkers.
For example, if you're making an internal cut (as with a picture frame opening) you can simply drop the workpiece opening over the cutter, turn on the machine and go to work. Whereas with over-table shaping, this procedure would require you to raise and lower the cutter position each time you change workpieces.
However, if you prefer to work with the cutter above the table, on the top surface of the workpiece, The Mark 7 will allow you to do this as well.
Super-smooth, high-speed shaping at speeds up to 10,000 rpm... Most commercial shapers operate at high speeds, allowing their operators to create a wide variety of edging cuts for joinery or decorative accent quickly and smoothly.
And although some commercial shapers offer two or three speeds... the ability to select an infinite range of speeds in 1 rpm increments (such as with the Mark 7) is virtually unheard-of !
Metal Shaper Owner's Manual Free
This broad range of speeds also allows you to avoid workpiece burning by slowing your cutter down to the ideal speed for working with hard or highly figured woods.
Reverse operation... With the Mark 7 (as with costly commercial shapers), you can change the direction of the motor to cut in either forward or reverse direction. As a result, if you prefer, you can invert the cutter on its arbor and reverse the feed direction of your stock from one side of the worktable to the other.
This reversing ability also allows you to access all profiles on a multi-profile cutter from the OUTside side of the machine (with no throat restrictions).
A generous sized worktable... that allows you to create huge, supportive surfaces for handling super-long and / or wide workpieces by adding your included extension tables.
The dual T-shaped slots in the worktable surface let you use your Shopsmith miter gauge to create fixtures or stops for controlling your stock... or hold those workpieces firmly while you shape straight or angled edge or end grains.
You can even attach the Shopsmith rip fence to the surfaces of the main table or extension tables and use it as a guide or stop for improved workpiece control.
Tilt your worktable and make unique, specialized cuts... Here's a unique capability that even commercial shapers costing up to $5000 don't offer ! Thanks to the Mark 7's full tilting worktable, you can make an infinite range of unique, angled decorative edging cut combinations that are impossible with fixed table commercial shapers.
Just one more example of the Shopsmith's unique Shared Features concept.
To Perform Over-Table Shaping
Use the worktable in its carriage as you would for sawing, drilling and other major operations
User's Manual
Tilt the Mark 7 to the right as you would for drill press operation