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IndustryArena Forum > MetalWorking Machines > Shopmaster/Shoptask > GOT MY NEW SHOPMASTER PATRIOT
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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458

    GOT MY NEW SHOPMASTER PATRIOT

    I got my new patriot machine last week. Spent saturday getting it out of the crate and setup on the bench. Was going to try some work on Sunday, but got involved in the Super bowl. So far the machine looks real good- I had a 2000 model shoptask which I used for doing hobby engine and hot rod stuff. I built some special fixtures to do valve guides and thread in studs. I also have built a ton of suspension pieces on the old Shoptask. JT had offered me 80% trade in on the new machine, but the freight back to Vegas was too high, so I am going to sell the old machine on E-Bay. At first glance I can see a lot of improvements over the old yellow machines and the larger mill table and longer center distances are what I needed. Probably won't get back into the shop until this weekend, but will post more as I start working.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Posts
    151
    Smallblock,
    I would like to see pictures of your Patriot and any work you do. I do some engine stuff as well- just putting together a 383 stroker. In response to the other thread, I already bought a used 2000 model with quadra lift.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    No pictures or chips yet, but here are some first impressions
    Bench- It has 6 legs and a set of sheet metal sides and back panels plus 2 opening front doors. All the panels were pre-drilled and marked and fit up nice. There is also an instruction sheet on using the wooden crate material to make the shelves, but i think I am going for some nice 3/4" plywood. There is a pre-drilled hole for the coolant drain and a drain tube included. Nicest feature are the 4 big casters that let you roll this thing around.
    Accessories- Pretty much the same stuff they always came with except for the vise which is a really nice milling vise- not the old drill press vise like before.
    Controls- This is a huge improvement over the old machines. All the handles are chromed and all steel- no more of those screw on plastic caps. The levers all have a center screw to keep them fitting tight and gives them that nice "click" The handwheels are the biggest improvement here- they are twice the size of my old machine and have really big grips. This makes the turning effort a lot less.
    Color- This is a personal thing, but I like the red white and blue design- maybe I'm just sick of yellow. The main shield was white in the picture, but mine is stainless steel. JT told me they made the change because the shield takes a lot of abuse and white paint starts to look bad real quick.
    More later

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    413
    Here is a little project we did in the many off hours- dont ask what it does

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    Was there supposed to be a picture?

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    413
    Smallblock,
    I'm a bit uncertain how to post on here. I have some pictures on a disc-
    any hints?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Posts
    151
    Sharpshooter,
    I saw your pictures on the delphi forum. Those are some nice parts- did you use CNC to do the work or manual? You could probably just post the address of your posting here if you cant load the pictures directly.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    413
    Here is the link- parts were made with CNC

    http://forums.delphiforums.com/TRIPO...ages/?msg=55.1

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    Sharpshooter-
    I posted some pictures of a project I did on my old machine- here is the link

    http://forums.delphiforums.com/TRIPO...ages/?msg=55.1

    Still haven't made anything on the patriot, seem to be stuck with honeydos .
    Also took time time out to watch Junior win the clash last night- he is the best on restrictor plates bar none.

    A few more notes on the patriot as I got a few minutes to wipe it down. Moving the carriages back and forth is a lot smoother than my old machine. Some of it could be from the larger handles, but looking up under the cross slide I can see that the machining is much smoother. The old unit looked like it had been fly cut at high speed, while the new machine looks to have been ground. The material appears to be of a much finer grade, as the unfinished parts have no porous areas. The quill fits much tighter in the head than the old machine, and even at full extension it doesnt have a lot of play. The new machine uses a different quill lock than the old ones, which clamps around the quill rather than sqeezing the head. This is probably where the improvement comes from. It also has a full 4" of travel as oppossed to the 3" on the older units. The mill auto stop mechanism was pre-adjusted, and it shuts the drive off just before it reaches its limits up or down. The manual drive works smooth too. I moved the mill head up and down its full travel a couple of times and its real easy on the down stroke, but a little harder going up. I am already thinking of a power drive motor for this, since the mount, drive pulleys and a sheet metal cover are all included with the accessory box.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Posts
    111
    smallblock: how about measuring the backlash in your ballscrews and post that?

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    I didn't order the ball screw option. On my old machine it had the spring loaded acme screws on X and Y axes, and by fiddling around you could get them down to about 0.003-0.005". The real isuue on the old machine was the Z axis which ran through a worm gear and rack drive. It was hard to get under 0.010" because of all the lash in the various gears. The patriot made a big improvement here with a direct drive to the quill by an acme screw. This screw is nicely machined and has very little lash right out of the box- mine measured at 0.002". They also improved the double nuts on the X and Y by getting rid of the spring and making one nut with a flange and 2 set screws. Now you clamp one nut tight and leave the flange one loose and by tightening the set screws it spreads the nuts apart to reduce the lash- you have to be easy on the set screws, because just a little turning will tighten the nuts too tight and you can't turn the handle. After a couple of trys I got my X and Y under 0.001" while keeping the handle resistance at a reasonable level. On this machine I doubt that most CNC guys would even need the ball screw option.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    Just an update, I am very pleased with the carriage movements on my machine. I have the DRO option, so any backlash in the handles is not an issue, but even reading the dials, its about the same as most lathes on the market. My machine has very little lash, so the factory adjustment was pretty good, I can see how the gear mesh can be adjusted if necessary. The handle locations are convenient also allowing you to use both hands. I re-located my DRO display though. In the factory location, it felt too close for me, so I removed the mount and sheet metal cover and put the display up on the top of the 5th column lock.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    2
    I am taking a real hard look at getting a Shopmaster Patriot, it seems to have a lot of good features and addresses a lot of short falls other brands have. You guys seem to have postive first impressions, but I have read some really bad stuff on this forum too. What is the deal? Is the patriot worth the money? I want to buy a 3-1 due space contraints, but I don't want an expensive piece of junk. Your insights & experiences would be appreciated.

    Thanks,

    Chad

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    277
    They have something to do with JT the owner of the company. So don't believe what you hear from those three. Believe what you see. And to do that you need someone with a machine and go see for yourself. It doesn't take a brain scientist to see the problems unless the person is trying to hide them. JT will show you a machine that has been cleaned up and works good but don't expect the same quality when it's shipped. I will be far from it. Finding someone with a new machine will be hard because sales aren't to good for JT right now.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Posts
    281
    Quote Originally Posted by crosche View Post
    I am taking a real hard look at getting a Shopmaster Patriot, it seems to have a lot of good features and addresses a lot of short falls other brands have. You guys seem to have postive first impressions, but I have read some really bad stuff on this forum too. What is the deal? Is the patriot worth the money? I want to buy a 3-1 due space contraints, but I don't want an expensive piece of junk. Your insights & experiences would be appreciated.

    Thanks,

    Chad
    I think there were some issues with the older machines as seen in various posts, but not more than any Chinese product. The Patriot comes from the same factory as the Tormach and has excellent quality control. We have had good results with our machines and they hold up well under student abuse. If you are set on a 3 in1 machine I think its the best choice around. The advantages of space and having CNC lathe and mill in one package saves a lot in those expensive options. If you think its going to a be a Haas or Mazak then you will probably be disappointed, but if you go into it with realistic expectations you will probably be quite satisfied.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    2
    Thanks for the info, guys. I will definitely try before I buy, that's for sure. The biggest problem is finding somebody that acctually owns a Shopmaster Patriot that's within driving distance.
    As far as my expectations of the Patriot (or any piece of equipment) is that it performs to the specifications that are published for it out of the box and does not require a great deal of tweaking to work properly. I am still waiting for a RFQ I sent to Shopmaster, so I will wait and see what they have to say and then proceed with caution.

    BTW - Instructor37, what institution are you teaching at? Do you have any photos or clips of your machines at work? How many machines do you have?

    Cheers

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    277
    Finding someone who really owns a machine is going to be next to impossible. Their not selling very many of them these days.

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    Quote Originally Posted by crosche View Post
    Thanks for the info, guys. I will definitely try before I buy, that's for sure. The biggest problem is finding somebody that acctually owns a Shopmaster Patriot that's within driving distance.

    Yeah- In Canada, sometimes " driving dstance" can be 1000 miles. Too bad you missed out on the Canadian dollar exchang rate of last summer, it was almost 1-1.

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Posts
    4553

    Please post lots of pictures

    Smallblock,

    Please post lots of pictures and your new machine experience!

    Jeff...
    Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    458
    Jeff,
    I have been pretty busy with some engine builds lately. Still doing the same stuff on the new machine that I did on the old one. However, I do have a new idea in mind for the head work. The old shoptask had a rotating mill table, so I could turn it 90 degrees and mount a head on my fixture for doing guides and studs. But the distance to the lathe spindle was too close to do it in a single setup. The new machine doesn't rotate, but the table is 50% wider, so I can still set the head on in the longitudinal axis, plus the extra center distance allows the work to be done in a single pass. I'm now sketching out a double sided angle fixture that will hold 2 heads at once, and according to my tape measure, I should be able to mount 2 heads on the table at once, drill and tap the rocker studs and drill out the stock guides all in one setup.

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