What would you use an Atlas 7B shapper for?

S

setlab

Joined
Apr 11, 2012
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There's a guy I know selling a small 7" shaper and I'm thinking of buying it from him. But other than "it look's neat" I really can't think of many situations that I would use one for, especially a 7" stroke. I'm thinking maybe I could make dovetail bolsters or integral bolsters with one but that's about it. What would you guys use one for?
 
Knife related?

Not much

But I want one because they are cute and it looks neat.
Something about saving that old machinery appeals to me.

It can do most of what a milll can do plus some a mill can't, but with a 3$ toolbit instead of high dollar cutters



If you were making grinding drive wheels, they would cut the keyway nicely, but then again so would a simple broach.

How much?
The little baby ones are more than a full sized industrial capable one because it appeals to the home shop people.
If it's cheap I'd snap it up.

Take it apart
Make complete detailed drawings
Sell the drawings and photos to those who will make one or need info to fix theirs.
 
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I can get it for $500, doesn't really look worn out at all and has a nice paint job with the cast iron stand. I would have it in my garage already if he would take $400, I guess $100 for a nice looking machine isn't too much more to argue about though. I wish I had the time to make drawings of it.
 
A good for a shaper is

...as a boat anchor....
 
Shapers are very cool machines, but they also have a reputation as fairly dangerous machines. What ever you use it for, use it carefully.
 
A shaper !?!? Are you kidding ? Say you had a cool idea to make a fuller , or you had to make a keyway type of slot , or you were trying to work out some kind of fancy dovetails , or making a new slide for your automatic ,or just texturing some handle materials ,anything you would need a planing type action for ,with a setable stroke and a settable feed rate,they can take cutters similar to lathe cutters .For 500 dollars its a must have toy.
 
You can make anything with a shaper... except money...
 
No, definitely not a money maker, but cool. A very interesting machine.
When I was much younger I worked in a swiss screw machine shop. It was filled with all sorts of archaic equipment, some very similar to this.
I'd probably buy it to play around with for awhile. You can always resell it if you don't want it.
 
Texturing handle material, thats a good idea. Can g10 and micarta be machined with a nice finish? Could you set a shapper up to make a checkering pattern?
 
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