dustmask question

Re: dustmask question

Carole in VA

>Regardless of dust collection, you need to wear a face shield. DAMHIKT! I was lucky.

Re: dustmask question

JL

>Faceshields are always nice. Bowls coming off the lathe, splinters, catches and lots of water if you are turning green. Do you need more than an ordinary dust mask if you have an overhead air purfier and a dust collector system ported to your lathe? Possibly not. However if you are turning exotics (cocobolo especially) or even some domestics (walnut for example) - these woods contain allergenic compounds. A little bit getting in can have a possible severe reaction. My rule of thumb - facemask and dust mask when sanding anything or turning dry woods. (I have a DC.) Facemask and airpurifying respirator when doing anything with potentially allergenic woods. (I have a 1/2 mask and a fullface respirator.) One of these days, I'll bite the bullet and get a AirTrend or similar.

Re: dustmask question *LINK*

Fog Tanner

>The short answer is no. Unless you have a serious dust collector with hoses on the front and back, you will still get some dust off the tool. I have a 2hp Onedia with a dust hood which gets most of the dust. You can actually see a stream from the tool back into the hose. But, if I turn cedar without my powered respirator, I still have problems. Not as bad with the collector running, but still have problems. There is going to be some dust that will escape.

I don't turn anymore without the dust collector running, except for roughing out stock. Any other time I have the machine running. And with certain woods, I wear the powered respirator. And after the last couple of incidents where some bark blew off the bowl, while roughing, I am think about the Airstream again for the helmet - along with the air filtration.

Below is a link with some more info.


http://billpentz.com//woodworking/cyclone/index.cfm

Re: dustmask question

Mainebowlman

>Despite a DC inlet at my lathe and a 20" box fan with filter blowing air out of the area to my left, I still have to wipe ultra-fine dust from the inside of my face shield and from my glasses. If you're not wearing a filter, that ultra-fine dust makes it into your lungs...and that's the worst kind of dust for your lungs to deal with.

Dust mask or respirator always - turning and sanding - for me.

Jack (in the Mud)

Trend mast helped my ribs

Wayne Cooper Charlotte NC

>Ken

I am a newbie woodturner and I found that my ribs always hurt this next morning after working in the shop. I bought a Trend air mask and my ribs quit hurting. I discovered the problem and the connection. When I worked without the filter, I would start snoring and my wife would elbow my ribs and I would roll over :>) Good air protection is expensive but good lungs are too, protect them and your face at all costs.

Capital Equipment

David

>I'm pretty sensitive to sawdust - not in the sense of allergic reaction, but in the sense that I can pick up a sinus infection faster than you can say "$750 minimum requirement for entry into turning as a hobby". I wear a dust mask even if I'm just sawing a 2x4 with a hand saw.

Last week, I turned some practice wood - some glued-together thing that somebody gave me that was destined for life as a newel post or however you spell it. It was either something in that wood or dressing the grinder for the first time that bought me what feels like a cold. Nothing got in my lungs, but enough in the old sinus plate to do the trick. And I wore the gas mask, by the way, but it doesn't seal up perfectly because frankly my schnoz is too big.

So, a couple of things I guess. First is that in this hobby, we are dealing with nasty, nasty, nasty stuff, (most of which is not flying off the lathe like a spear), and we simply have to respect it - finishes, sawdust, exotics, aluminum-oxide (that's gotta be good for you). My answer of dust or gas mask combined with safety glasses apparently isn't going to cut it. I'll have to change. But a faceshield without a mask or filtration isn't going to cut it either. Part of my answer by the way is that I'm never going to work with an exotic - I say that now, but that's the plan.

This is another great example of a hidden cost of this hobby. You buy a lathe, a few tools, and then people start showing you behind the curtain of the capital equipment you really need. Where's your grinder that costs $100? Where's your chuck that costs $200? Where's your zillion grit sandpaper that nobody carries in stores? Where's your fill-in-the-blank-specialized gouge? Where's your face shield? Where's your filtration system? Arrgggghh. But the protection is probably the most important thing in the tool kit - and I can't believe how many people wear absolutely nothing.

Re: dustmask question

John K Jordan

>I think you need dust protection at your face, same as eye protection.

By "special helmet" I assume you mean one with a fan for filtered air? I use the Trend and it is wonderful. Besides filtering the dust, it protects the face and head, feeds welcome air to your face if it's hot in the shop, and very important - won't fog up.

The paper masks are notorious for fogging up safety glasses or face shields since the moist exhaust air usually comes right up either side of your nose. Those masks with a valve on the front for exhaust are better. The best one I have is a dual canister-type respirator with special dust filters mounted instead of chemical filters. I use this along with a standard face shield. It's actually more comfortable than a paper dust mask.

Another nice thing about the powered masks is the face sheld flips up easily - the respirator is more trouble to put on and off.

I also have a professional canister-type respirator with an integral face shield (non-powered). It works almost as well as the Trend but without the cooling from moving air. (I mostly use it for spraying chemicals to keep them out of my eyes!)

I consider the face shield necessary for nearly all turning, but I usually only use the filtered face shield when power sanding or sanding on the lathe or turning cocobolo. I also use it when bandsawing cocobolo and certain other woods.

I usually do not use a dust mask when hand sanding (except with cocobolo) since that doesn't throw dust into the air.

JKJ in East TN