OEM Shopsmith Accessories made in Taiwan while Clone parts are made in the USA!

An OEM part or accessory is a component manufactured by the "Original Equipment Company" who offered it in the first place.  Every so often someone posts a photo on the Shopsmith forum or on one of the multiple Shopsmith Facebook groups after they were surprised to receive a set of casters, (or a saw arbor, a lathe drive center, etc.) that it was clearly printed on the package that it was "Made In Taiwan"!  This is by no means a new thing.

Shopsmith Headstock Rebuilt Kit

I remember back in the 1980s when I first started working in the Shopsmith Factory Showroom in Dayton, Ohio that many of these components were being produced in Taiwan and were repackaged in packages that disguised the country of origin. I can recall a perforated anti-fatigue matt, that was in use in one section of the factory, that was filled with little gold oval stickers that said: "Made in Taiwan". The workers in that area were instructed to remove these stickers as they repacked the parts into tubes and display packages. Someone eventually called them on it and they began printing the country of origin in small print on the package, but they still don't disclose this information in their catalog or on their website, which is why I think customers continue to react with surprise when receiving their orders. 

So that brings me to the title of this post. Way back in 2010 (I'm typing this in 2020) I received an email from a gentleman asking if I'd be interested in testing an aftermarket Idler Bearing that he was producing and selling on eBay. At the time Shopsmith had announced that they were changing the Idler Shaft because the water pump bearing assembly was no longer available and that they needed to change the bearing to a higher speed version for use in the PowerPro headstock. I wrote about the Idler Shaft change here. Anyway, he sent me two to test and they worked perfectly. At the time he was exploring alternatives to selling on eBay because eBay and Paypal (the owned by eBay) we taking so much from each sale, but all these years later he is still active on eBay and on Amazon. See links below.

His company produces the "BLUE MAX" silicone replacement bandsaw tire, but more importantly, his company is producing with CNC equipment in the USA "clone" accessories for use on Shopsmith tools. I'm talking such things as lathe drive centers, live centers, 5/8" table saw arbors for the Mark V 500, 510, 520 and Mark 7. And of course, they have silicone replacement bandsaw tires. They even sell drive belts, Poly-V belts and Gilmer belts for the old pre-1962 Mark V's. On top of that, they have an adapter that will allow you to mount a Delta, Powermatic or Craftsman faceplate, or any jaw or 4 jaw lathe chuck you might want to mount.  They also offer a "Shopsmith Rebuilt Kit" that includes belts, bearings and even that idler shaft I was just talking about

I certainly do not want to take away profitable sales from Shopsmith, but the fact that these are high-quality American-made parts makes them worth a look.  BTW, they do offer a keyless chuck that is made in China but was modified for use on the Shopsmith in the USA. If you have any questions about the country of origin, send them a note prior to placing your order. 

Click this link to see American Made Shopsmith Accessories for sale on eBay and buy American!  

Here are his items listed on Amazon: American-Made Shopsmith Accessories for sale on Amazon.

I suggest checking the price on the same items on eBay and Amazon before purchasing to get the best value.