Well, mostly I have not been paying attention. We went off to see PM'r Hanermo at the beginning of March, got back to a couple business trips, and just realized I did not miss posting so very much.
But responsibility is responsibility, after all.
....I have made a baroque lute, citterns, orpharion, hautboy and now a 36 string harp using a Shopsmith. It is a machine and they are doing woodworking.
This^^^
I try to consider that exceptional, even professional, woodworking gets done on often strange and unexpected equipment. Even stuff like import chopsaws, cheap/import TS's and RAS's, W & H moulders, the occasional Belsaw, and maybe rarely a Shopsmith can be found in plants or studio shops where the bulk of the machinery is industrial. What I would prefer to see is the work.
The alternate viewpoint is that Practical Machinist is intentionally an industrial site. So to talk about the machines alone, preference is to avoid the hobby machines (which are outright prohibited on the metal parts of PM). I'll consider them when the question is straight forward parts and modifications. Such as the OP's. I tend to let them ride since they usually peter out in 5 or so posts.
We are machinists. The answer for most of us is source it if it is a commodity, otherwise we do the cost-benenfit analysis and if we can spend a mere few $$hundred$$ in time and materials to make a $10 part, we're like moths to the flame. Sadly.
If you are not in this demographic, this site probably won't serve you well. But we'll give the benefit of the doubt for a few posts.
but.. if users had names like Margie or Julie then their threads don't get closed
It would not have been conscious on my part to be more tolerant of women because it betrays an insidious bias that they may be more in need of help. Providence forbid. I know I have been tolerant of people who present as or plausibly claim to be youngsters because we all have to start somewhere and that age usually has minimal options where cost is a factor.
All the above said, I'm closing this now since it has devolved into chit-chat.
Margie - I believe there is probably a Shopsmith group or 2. They would be your best resource.
smt