Shopsmith Power Station and Crafters Station Information, Review and History

It looks like the Shopsmith Power Station is currently out of production. The last add I received promoting it was in 2014, though Shopsmith may have inventory from time to time. It's worth a call to them if you want to add one to your shop.  The last published MSRP of the Shopsmith Powerstation was $599.99.

FYI, There have been two tools built on this design, the Shopsmith Power Station (Photo 1 above), which is still produced, and the now-defunct Crafters Station (# 2 above). The Power Station was Shopsmith's attempt to take their SPT's like the bandsaw, scroll saw, etc. into the non-Shopsmith-loving world of woodworkers. It turned out that this target audience still wasn't interested in swapping-out one tool for another, and this was also about the time when the Taiwanese started flooding the USA with cheap stand-alone tools. The unexpected market that opened-up for this tool was the folks who already owned a Mark V and appreciated it's flexibility with its variable speed, but who wanted to free their Mark V for turning or other specific tasks.

The Crafter's Station was Shopsmith's 1998 failed attempt to go after non-woodworkers who were thinking about getting into the craft, but who didn't have an allegiance to a tool brand yet. SS mounted a simple carriage on the base of the Power Station that held the main table from the Mark V Model 510, and they added a reversing switch to the motor. This allowed the new tool to power the SPT's and to also function as a small and underpowered tablesaw. The other catch is that the SS jointer was designed to be driven on the lower high-speed shaft on the Mark V, but the P.S. and C.S. didn't approach the proper speed, so the jointer wasn't ideal on either version of this tool. If you already own a Mark V and have a couple SPT's clogging your Mark V, either of these tools could be your salvation but leave your jointer on your Mark V!

Click here for Shopsmith Power Stations For Sale

Click here for Shopsmith Crafters Stations For Sale (Very light activity)