Portable DC or new vacuum?

[CarvedTones]

EDIT - I ended up going with a vacuum for now. Thanks for all the help in responses.

Yeah, I know there are lots of old threads and I have read many of them, but newer products and current or upcoming deals will weigh into this...

I don't do a lot of powered flat work; my tablesaw and power jopinter may go a month or more without being plugged in, and when they are it is usually for a really small amount. Where I am producing more dust is turning and using rotary tools. My lathe is on a stand with a top shelf it is on and a midddle shelf currently filled with wood and containers that could be elsewhere:



Just to the left of that is my carving bench/stand:

So what I am thinking is that a portable DC with a short duct and small dust hood (which most seem to some with) would work nice tucked away on the lower shelf. I also have an air cleaner very nearby, so while an ultra fine bag would be nice, if some fines get thorugh they will get cleaned up quickly. Anyway, I also have an older big ShopVac that will wake the dead, though I have used a router speed control to quiet it with some success, but by the time I get it quiet enough to run a long time without it bothering me, the suction is pretty feeble. But I know the newer ones claim to be a lot more quiet, so a new vaccuum instead of a DC isn't entirely out of the question. At the low end, I know the smallest HF one is one sale now for $85 and there are 20% coupons to be scrounged, but I have not read a lot of good things about that unit. The next size up from them seems to be better. Rockler has that wall mount one, which could probably be shelf mounted instead. And there are numerous others. Suggestions?

I am not sure this will happen right away; may end up being a Christmas hint.

 

[JimmyC]

Andy,
I know that you've built a Thien seperator before, but have you thought about one that would fit on a 5 gal. can and use 2.5" fittings? Or you could always buy a dust deputy or clearvue for a 5 gal. can. I think that the thien would take up less room and be a better choice.

Just food for thought,

 

[CarvedTones]

Jimmy,

The last Thein I built was huge and yes, I know it didn't have to be. But besides size, part of the problem with it was that my ShopVac is also large and very loud. So if a vaccum is part of the solution, it will be a new vacuum.

One other consideration is the shape of the space I can conveniently open up. If you look at the picture of my lathe, that shelf below it is about right for housing a portable DC (I think; I need to measure it and one or more of the little units). If whatever I use is located there, I will not have wires or ducts in the way. I have a tiny area there; when my wife's car is backed out, I have other machines that roll out and tables to set up to work there. But where the lathe and carving stand are, I have a 6' x 2' area of open floor between them and a couple of workbenches and cabinets. It's not as bad as it may sound; I have organized it so I can carve or turn without having to drag anything out and my drillpress and WorkSharp are out on one of the accesible workbenches with the majority of my hand tools in cabinets, drawers or hanging in that area. Anyway, that's a long winded way of saying I really want the solution to fit on that shelf. Note that it will be emptied to fit the solution; all that stuff can find a new home that is less accesible.

 

[MrAudio815]

i think if you got the Rockler wall mount one, that would be the choice I would pick and then you could hook it up to your thein? If thats an option for you.

Just my 2 cents

 

[CarvedTones]

If I got the Rockler one, I would probably mount it sideways on the shelf. Its appeal is that it is designed to be mounted and fit in a small space. Others may be small and portable, but their frames/wheels add unnecessary size and since they are designed to be out in the open may have stuff at awkward angles for mounting. It's biggest downside is losing in the "bang for buck" category. Rockler sells the portable Delta for the same price, but it includes a dust hood, short hose and an arm/bracket. Price those parts separately and they add up pretty quickly.

 

[Dudelive]

Consider as mentioned the thien baffle setup connected to a small collector overhead if possible. That would help with the better collection process and allow you to catch the chips before the collector making it so you don't have to clean the overhead as often. This is if you can go overhead with the collector.

 

[CarvedTones]

I have some wood storage overhead and a garage door track where that rack ends, so overhead is pretty much used up. I pretty much have to move the stuff off the olwer shelf on the stand my lathe is on and put it there. It's a reasonable sized spot, but the more I consider options, the more I think nothing other than a portable DC and bag is going to fit the shape of that space.

 

[Travis Porter]

There were some plans for shop vac mufflers in Woodsmith or Shopnotes awhile back that seemed to work pretty well.

The downside of a dust collector is space and noise not to mention the quality of the bags/filters. If you get a cheap dust collector you are going to want/need to upgrade the bags to keep the fine dust down. Another issue with a dust collector is the velocity. Since you are using rotary tools with small chips and dust I would think a vacuum is a better solution.

JMTCW

 

[CarvedTones]

The more I research, the more I think you might be right. The Fein vaccuum would not fit that space on the shelf, but that is about the only thing about it that doesn't fit my needs. I am finding that the dust I am worried most about would blow right through a lot of the standard bags with small systems and by the time you upgrade, there are little or no cost savings.

 

[Warren]

My lathe produces a lot of chips and dust that would not be picked up efficiently with a vacuum. I bought a Delta DC and converted it to a 6" inlet. I added 0.22 filter bags and it worked very well. But, it was not what I wanted for the saw, planer. and other dust generators like the router table. It now takes up space after I bit the bullet and got a central cyclone system. The Delta has only a few hours on it and just takes up space in the shop. In any event, it sounds as if your situation would best be served with a dust collector. However, a vacuum with a small separator may be what you need. The separataor is easily made with a 5 gal. bucket. I think PSI has a lid for converting a bucket to a separator. I would consider parting with my DC for more, maybe. than you are looking to spend ($250 for Delta 50-850). Hope this is helpful.
Warren

 

[CarvedTones]

I bought a new vacuum when I happened on a deal for the quiet ShopVac:
http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/f77/6-gallon-quiet-shop-vac-35-biglots-25934-post259789/