Lathe Dust Collection question

Re: Lathe Dust Collection question

Bill Howatt

>That's probably what I do with my DC. It is a 600cfm unit and the piping is about 16'. I only use it when sanding since the shavings have too much energy and go in all directions so why bother just catching some.

I have a cardboard box on the end of the 4" flexible hose that I position behind my work.

Bill

Re: Lathe Dust Collection question

Fog Tanner

>I have both the Jet and the Onedia. I only use the Jet for some special hand sanding applications, not related to turning. Its not realy adequate for the lathe, I tried that first and then bought the 2hp Onedia and never looked back. I have metal pipe to everything now. The pipe to the lathe has a wye so I can run hose to the front and back of the machine, like the Raffin setup.

The problem with the bag units, is they just move dust from one place to another. The bags are porus and really only good for chips. You need to get into the sub 1 micron filtration before you are doing any good. If you can see the dust, your body can filter it out. Its the dust you don't see floating around that will bypass your body's system and into your lungs.

An alternative to putting money in the Jet unit, is to take the money and but a powered respirator like the Airstream, Cap, or the new (and cheaper) Triton. I use the Powervisor which doesn't filter the sub 1 micron dust, but I also have the Onedia going. As long as I do this my sinus and allergy problems don't crop up. When I replace the Powervisor (its been discontinued - along with parts), I'll move on to the Triton unit based on what others have posted in this group.

There are several good books on dust collecting that you can either buy at your local woodwordking store or check out at the library. It would be worth you time and health to find out a little more about whats going into your lungs. After some reading I decided that the Onedia and Powervisor were a lot cheaper than getting my lungs replaced.

Good luck in your quest, but don't wait too ling like I did and wind up with permanent sinus problems.

Fog

Re: Lathe Dust Collection question

Bob

>Hi, Do you split the pipe into 2-4'' pipes or keep 2-6'' pipes? Bob

A Different Approach

Garrett in Victoria BC CA

>No DC has enough power to trap, grab and pull the material coming off a lathe.

The low-tech but most effective solution is a clear shower curtain that surrounds your work area plus a broom, dust pan and garbage pail used assiduously from time to time.

Cheers, Garrett

Re: Lathe Dust Collection question

Fog Tanner

>The main run along that wall is 5". It feeds the lathe, floor sweep next and the bandsaw. The wye reduces the 5" to two 4". I put a blast gate on the lower hose (which feeds the front) so I can run the one behind the lathe or both the front and back. There is also a blast gate in front of the wye. I have a similar setup to the bandsaw, except it is 4" and 3" (reduced to 2"). The floor sweep is straight 5". The 5" feed runs into a 6" feed and then into a 7" which runs into the cyclone.

The 2hp unit has enough flow to run two of the feeds at a time. But I only do this on the lathe and bandsaw. You have to be careful to match the pipe size to the airflow. Too small or too large can cause a loss in vacume. I sent a drawing of my machine layout to Onedia and the fixgured the pipe sizes and runs. They tried to keep the runs as short as possible with the correct size of pipe on each run and for each machine. Overall I am happy with the unit and the support I got from them.

Fog

Re: Lathe Dust Collection question

Harry Ludke

>I've incorporated a variety of methods to control lathe dust and chips using my 3 hp commercial cyclone DC. Fortunately I've got LOT'S of sucking power!

1. First I made a long rectangular box that sits under the lathe rail. On the back of the box I have a high kicker board that extends above the lathe. This board helps catch sanding dust and directs it down into the box. Box is connected to a 4" DC pipe with blast gate. Does a good job collecting fine dust and some of the lathe chips.

2. Stapled sheet of clear plastic on the wall behind the lathe. Tapered it down and under the lathe.

This gets all the chips that fly behind the lathe. Directing them to the floor right under the lathe.

Sweeping is much easier.

3. On the ceiling, strung a thin cable between the lathe area and the main shop. Have clear plastic shower curtain that can be pulled closed to contain chips. Used whenever I'm rough turning a piece, especially when it's a bark covered log. Does a excellent job of containing the mess.

4. The BEST improvement was the placement of a FLOOR SWEEP right next to the lathe. Open the blast gate and a quick sweep with a wide push broom and all is well.

With the combination of measures I described, clean up only takes a few minutes each day.