On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 16:19:04 -0500, dpb wrote:

On 3/27/2018 3:11 PM, wrote:
...

... The fact that NO ONE copied Shopsmith kind of implies its not a good idea.

Actually there WERE Knock-offs of the Shopsmith.
Can't remember the name - but there was one that was actually fully
compatible with all the accessories, but as in MOST Chui-Clone stuff
internal parts were not interchangeable.

TotalShop?I think was the one major name.
There were 8 or 9 companies named by Shopsmith in actions
infringement.

The were introduced in a different time, different environment and
primarily for a specific type of clientele. Just having a limited
market doesn't necessarily mean it isn't a good idea -- only that niche
markets don't support mass production and high volume.

My uncle after the end of WW II started his interior decorating business
and cabinet shop with nothing more than a Shopsmith and some
Craftsman-type hand tools and succeeded to build the largest Armstrong
dealership in the state with it as the only power tool for quite a
number of years. He was still using it regularly albeit not for
everything as initially when I was helping set tile on weekends to earn
a few extra bucks while at university nearly 15 years later and it still
had a place in the shop when he retired/sold the business after almost 40...

As production equipment for a large shop with the "veritable plethora"
of imports and benchtops they're no longer as attractive; even for the
casual weekender the mobile stuff is now small enough can actually do
something with it to make room but back then that just was not an option.