Is a shaper right for the home shop? I'm not the person to ask – since only you can answer the question yourself, based on what you do in your shop, and why you do it.
I happen to like shapers – so I'm biased in favor of them. Other people don't like them – and that shows in their dismissal of them without further examination.
Let's start by saying if your shop is closet sized, then there's probably better ways to use your small space instead of trying to wedge a shaper into it; after all, some people don't even have a milling machine of any sort, resorting to adapting their lathe for most machining tasks.
There are plenty of arguments against having one, such as there being "better" or faster ways to remove metal from a surface. They are obsolete, outmoded, old fashioned, slow, and a host of other terms intended to denigrate them and dismiss their usefulness in the home shop. Personally, I never understood this, because for me the working of metal and working with various machines _is_ the reason I enjoy metalworking. Making a part as quickly as I can, either to make a buck or simply because metalworking isn't what I really want to do but it's required to build some widget that really is my hobby focus isn't what I'm here to do. In other words, for me it's not only the destination but the journey that I fine enjoyable.
The arguments for having a shaper in the shop are manifold, in my opinion. It's another way to do what I need done, when I choose to employ that machine in my task instead of heading for the mill. Why might I do that? Could be that I don't have a needed milling cutter on hand, and want to do the job today; the shaper often lets me do that by grinding my own and continuing on my way without interruption. It might be a part where surface finish is important, and the shaper lets me make parts that are almost mirror finish; a short time with the buffer on a part from the shaper and you'd think it came off the surface grinder. It might just be because I _like_ using that machine instead of a different machine for the task. Shapers are flexible in terms of their application; I've heard it said that "shapers are lathes for flat things". I rather like that " since they really are versatile, and like a lathe, with a little additional tooling can do all sorts of machining operations that one wouldn't normally think of doing on the machine.
No, I'm not the right person to ask this question of; after all, I've had an Atlas 7B and an AAMCO 7" shaper for years. No I don't use them every day, or even every time I'm in the shop, but when I do use them I enjoy what I'm doing with them.
No, I'm unquestionably the incorrect person to ask this question of, because just a week ago I saw a shaper that had been pulled out of an old foundry building that's being sold, and stopped to look it over. I sought out the person that was handling the clearing of the building and saved the machine from the scrapper. With the help of a rollback wrecker, I now have that machine in my garage. I've started going through it, and it's in amazing shape – much of the frosting still on the bearing surfaces. Internally, it's also in really good shape from what I've cleaned and inspected so far. It will be operational in another week or two, with any luck and a little free time in the garage. What did I adopt? A 20" Rockford Hy-draulic universal, with power downfeed and tool lifter. Even has the original vise and safety cranks. Paid less than scrap for it. Likely just shy of three tons. Makes my Van Norman #26 " which I always considered to be a large mill " look unremarkable sitting next to it in my garage shop (large tools in the garage, small ones in the basement).
In the final analysis, it's not really important what someone else thinks about the usefulness of a particular machine or machine type " it's what you think about it, and what drives you to work metal. I found that I like saving older machines, bringing them back to useful life, and using them to work metal " often to make parts for more broken or cast-off machines that need saving. Why? Because it amuses me to do so. When it stops amusing me, I'll find another hobby " because that's what it's about for me, and based on the name of this message board, it's a hobby for many other people, too. Enjoy it!
-Carl