Well, this was just about the end for Magna American. The Shopsmith Mark VII was the first complete tool designed without the help of Dr/ Hans Goldschmidt, and it showed. Some of the ideas were good, but the execution was not. Plastic parts were made without knowledge of plastic, so many of them melted in use, or cracked in unheated garage shops. This misstep derailed the company and ultimately they never recovered. Years later when John Folkerth purchased the Shopsmith tool line it was with the hope that the Sawsmith could be resurrected, but by that time safety requirements would have required expensive redesigns, and ridiculously punitive court judgments against power tool manufacturers discouraged Shopsmith Inc. from bringing the Sawsmith back from the grave.
Magna Sawsmith & Shopsmith Mark VII ad from 1965
Well, this was just about the end for Magna American. The Shopsmith Mark VII was the first complete tool designed without the help of Dr/ Hans Goldschmidt, and it showed. Some of the ideas were good, but the execution was not. Plastic parts were made without knowledge of plastic, so many of them melted in use, or cracked in unheated garage shops. This misstep derailed the company and ultimately they never recovered. Years later when John Folkerth purchased the Shopsmith tool line it was with the hope that the Sawsmith could be resurrected, but by that time safety requirements would have required expensive redesigns, and ridiculously punitive court judgments against power tool manufacturers discouraged Shopsmith Inc. from bringing the Sawsmith back from the grave.
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1 comment:
I have a 1965 mark 7 and just about all the attachments what a wonderful tool works like new
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