On the stand alone, that was a point I intended to make more clear – swapping over functions is one major reason so many Shop Smiths go on the market.

Buying woodworking equipment is like buying stereos. If you’re really into music, you would buy a component system, rather than a console.

Going that route, you can add devices, or upgrade existing ones. Not so with a console. Then there is the matter of everything being down if part of it fails.