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A while back, in a previous post, I talked about the news that Shopsmith was in financial trouble. The news today confirms it. Robert Folkerth, the president was quoted as saying,

“…the company ’significantly reduced’ its reliance on sales representatives who often travel to shows to sell Shopsmith’s tools and accessories.” 

Wait a minute. Did he say they cut their sales force? What that tells me is that they don’t see much hope for the Shopmith product that we’ve known and loved since the mid-70’s.  Has the competition for lower-priced standalone woodworking machinery pushed the Shopsmith out of the market? Sadly, I think it’s just a matter of time before Shopsmith goes the way of other woodworking machine manufacturers. Soon, the only place you’ll be able to read about them will be on the Old Woodworking Machines web site.

About 25 years ago, when I was first getting out on my own, I saw a Shopsmith woodworking machine at a woodworking show. I was intrigued that one machine could do so much. And the guy demonstrating it seemed to be able to switch over from table saw to lathe to bandsaw to drill press in no time at all. Pretty impressive.

I liked the idea of a Shopsmith, but wondered about having a “do-all” machine in the shop. But in a period of time when there were limited outlets to buy stationary power tools (think “Sears”), it was one of few woodworking machines around.

Woodworking as a hobby in the last 25 years or so has matured when it comes to tools. There are retail woodworking stores where there once were none. And mail-order resources make almost any tool or supply available with a click of the mouse or just a phone call.

So I wasn’t too surprised when I read this story in the Dayton Daily News. Shopsmith is in trouble, financially. They’ve handed over day-to-day responsibilities to a consulting firm that specializes in financially-troubled companies. When asked about their strategy, they said that they need to increase the value of the company by increasing sales. What does that mean? Lower prices? More options? There wasn’t a clear answer.

If I had the opportunity to lay my hands on a used Shopsmith at a reasonable price, I’d probably grab it…and turn it into a monster lathe.

I’m getting in on the ground floor.

Pre-Owned Woodworking is a brand new woodworking auction site. How new is it? Well, my classified ad is the first. Plus, there’s a single auction that’s been up for about a week. That’s it.

I’m not holding out much hope!

Now, I’ve used all the old auction sites in the past. eBay, Craig’s List and WoodNet Tools Swap n’ Sell are a few that I use the most. I don’t have any idea how many eyes will see my new ad at Pre-Owned Woodworking, but I’ve always rooted for the little guy.

And darn it, Cary Waddell (president of Pre-Owned Woodworking) has moxey. And I like guy’s with moxey. He contacted us a couple of week’s ago, wanting to sponsor our podcasts. After seeing his website start up, our first response here was to wait and see.

But, it’s like my grandpa always used to say, “You’ve got to start somewhere.” So let’s see what happens.

Do you need an old ShopSmith?