Shop Smith Magazine Review

Combination woodworking machines have gotten a mixed reputation — some woodworkers swear by them, others dismiss them as a compromise. As someone who has used a Shopsmith Mark 7 extensively in a small shop where floor space was the binding constraint, I have opinions about where these machines genuinely shine and where they fall short. Today I want to give you a real picture of what the Shopsmith is, what it does well, and who it’s actually built for.

What the Shopsmith Actually Is

The Shopsmith is a combination woodworking machine that consolidates five core tools into a single unit: a table saw, a horizontal boring machine, a disc sander, a lathe, and a drill press. The same motor and the same main horizontal quill drive all five functions — you reconfigure the machine between uses rather than having five separate tools consuming five separate footprints.

Shopsmith Inc. has been making these machines since 1947, originally in Dayton, Ohio. The design has evolved through several generations — the Mark V is the machine most people have encountered in vintage form, while the current Mark 7 is the updated production model. The core concept has remained the same across all of them: one powerful motor, one main horizontal shaft, multiple tool configurations.

The Real Advantage: Floor Space

The honest case for a Shopsmith is space. A fully configured Shopsmith in table saw mode takes up roughly the footprint of a single contractor table saw. When you’re done cutting, you break it down and roll it aside — or convert it to lathe mode in the same space. For a one-car garage shop or a basement with a low ceiling, that matters enormously.

Separate tools for each function would require a table saw footprint, plus the outfeed and infeed space that a table saw needs, plus a drill press column, plus a lathe bench, plus a dedicated sanding station. In a small shop, that’s simply not feasible. The Shopsmith compresses all of that into one machine.

How Each Function Performs

Table saw performance is where the most skepticism lives, and it’s partially warranted. The horizontal quill orientation means the blade arbor is driven differently than a conventional table saw, and the rip fence and blade height adjustment feel less intuitive than a dedicated saw. For ripping 8/4 hardwood or cutting production quantities of sheet goods, a dedicated table saw is more capable. For a hobbyist cutting occasional solid wood and plywood, the Shopsmith’s table saw does the job.

The lathe function is genuinely good. The horizontal shaft is well-suited to turning, the speed range is appropriate for most spindle and bowl work, and Shopsmith has a full ecosystem of lathe accessories — faceplates, chucks, steady rests — that have been refined over decades. Woodturners who also do flat work find the Shopsmith’s lathe capability a significant advantage.

The drill press function works well for vertical boring. The horizontal boring mode is genuinely unique — it allows boring into the end of a board horizontally, useful for doweling, Forstner bit work on end grain, and some mortising operations. It’s not something you can replicate easily on a conventional drill press.

The disc sander is the most limited function — useful for quick clean-up of end grain and small parts, but not a replacement for a dedicated belt-disc sander combination for heavier work.

The Shopsmith Ecosystem

One underappreciated aspect of the Shopsmith platform is the accessory ecosystem built around it. Shopsmith has produced bandsaw, jointer, planer, scroll saw, and belt sander attachments over the years that run off the main Shopsmith power head. This means a Shopsmith owner can add capabilities incrementally without buying entirely separate motor-drive systems for each tool.

The bandsaw attachment, in particular, is well-regarded. It’s a legitimate small bandsaw that mounts to the Shopsmith power head and performs comparably to standalone benchtop bandsaws in the same price class. For a small shop building out capacity gradually, being able to add a bandsaw without buying a second motor is meaningful.

Buying Vintage vs. New

A significant portion of Shopsmith users are running vintage Mark V units bought secondhand. The Mark V was produced for decades with relatively consistent specifications, and the used market has a large supply of machines in good condition. Parts and accessories are still available through Shopsmith directly and through a robust aftermarket community.

Buying vintage makes sense if you can inspect the machine before purchase — check the quill bearings for slop, verify the motor runs smoothly without excessive vibration, and confirm that the tables and fences are not warped or damaged. A well-maintained Mark V will serve a hobbyist woodworker for decades.

The Mark 7, the current production model, offers improved dust collection integration, a more refined fence system, and updated motor specifications. It’s a meaningful step forward from older machines but comes at a significantly higher price point than a clean used Mark V.

Who the Shopsmith Is Actually For

The Shopsmith is the right machine for a hobbyist woodworker with limited floor space who wants to do a range of work — flat work, turning, drilling — without dedicating a room to machinery. It’s not the right machine for a high-production shop, for someone who primarily does one specific type of work where a dedicated tool would be more efficient, or for someone who has the space for individual machines and the budget to equip them properly.

If you’re working in 300 square feet and want to make furniture, turn bowls, and cut joinery without building a separate shop building, the Shopsmith is a serious answer to a genuine problem. That’s been true since 1947 and remains true today.