# Craftsman Shaper



## SuperDave (Apr 4, 2010)

I hope this is not a no no but i have a Craftsman shaper








it was in real bad shape when i got it. rust real bad, i had to replace the drive motor and have a new arbor made at a local machine shop and a lot of elbow grease getting rid of all the rust. i replaced the motor with a aftermarket 1/2 hp 3450 rpm motor and i installed a switch so i could reverse the rotation. my problem is i did all this thinking that the shaper cutters were widely available in my area (there not). i have 1 cutter and it works great. i guess i could buy cutters online but i was wondering that maybe for whatever reason someone out there might have some cutters they want to get rid of and i could buy them. I'm game for whatever kind of cutters just to start a collection but would really like some cabinet door cutters. by the way its a 1/2" arbor but it can handle 3/4" too with a bushing.
you can email me if your interested
[email protected]
Thanks


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## davidpettinger (Aug 21, 2009)

Nice Save, I love the old Craftsman stuff. I have 3 older machines myself that I restored. No shaper though. Guess I should look around. Again, Nice score.


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

You have to be careful, those 1/2" arbors cannot take a whole lot of stress from vibration, and they can disintegrate at the worst possible time. Hope your machinist used the proper steel! My old AMT 1/2" shaper only gets used with a 4-wing dado cutter, 1/4" wide. As I stare down at it, it sometimes acts like it wants to break, at no-load a harmonic vibration sets in, y'know, the noise, it's scary. Plus, the table is uhhh, the same height as the plums. Please do not think this machine will do the work of a shaper with a 3/4" or bigger spindle, and probably not try to machine hardwoods on this unit. I DO like the spindle height adjustment on this model, one of its best features and made it a joy to use, otherwise.


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## SuperDave (Apr 4, 2010)

nice point there poopiekat, this machine was my dads and it never got used so i have no real exp with shapers and i dont know the steel that was used. i very rarely use this machine due to only having 1 bit but i am going to re think using it in the future. it does have some vibration. thanks for the heads up.


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Dave, I think I do have some shaper bits with 1/2 bore. Most are still new in the original package….It will be tomorrow AM before I can get a chance to see what's there. Got any interesting old planes? Maybe a trade of some sort..


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## olddutchman (Aug 17, 2007)

You can also use 1/2 1n. shank router bits. check out the Grizzly industrial catalog, They have cutters. Nice find, by the way. Find them online at grizzlyoutlet.com .


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## SuperDave (Apr 4, 2010)

no i wish im kinda just starting to collect tools i mean i have a bunch of tools but not ww tools.


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## Lenny (Sep 28, 2008)

Hi Dave. Are you aware of the trade and swap forum on Lumberjocks? If not, click on the Forums tab and scroll down to "Woodworking Trade and Swap". Lots of LJs trade and sell items there. Good luck.


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## SuperDave (Apr 4, 2010)

hey olddutchman maybe a stupid question but how do you chuck in a 1/2"router bit is there some sort of adapter for these??


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## olddutchman (Aug 17, 2007)

Yes, I believe so, You should be able to get a 1/2 in spindle chuck that will fit the shaper. I know that Grizzly has them, Check grizzly.com for one that will fit. They may show them at the shapers, and also at the shaper, or router cutters, and bits.


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## mwm5053 (Feb 27, 2010)

I'm thinking about getting a shaper, and did not know they came in two different arbor sizes so that's one thing to consider. I was curious though why would you install a switch to reverse the rotation?


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## SuperDave (Apr 4, 2010)

im not sure if there is any benefit but with the bit that i have with the shaper spinning the default direction counter clockwise and pushing the board from right to left the cutter cuts the top of the board, if you reverse the rotation and flip the cutter around you can feed the board from left to right and the cutter will cut the bottom of the board like a router table. im not experienced with shapers but for me it is weird having the cutter cut the top of the board.

my cutter is like one of these http://www.grizzly.com/products/category.aspx?key=162280

thanks for the info olddutchman.


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