Cheap Dust Collector

[jamesj]

Im buying next week and considering one of these two, anybody got one of them?

or which would you get ?

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=prod...P400&lpage=none

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Disp...temnumber=45378

[Doc]

Good morning,

What are you going to do with this collector? What kind of machinery are you using?

How long a run are you going to have on your collection pipe?

Since almost all of this stuff comes out of China these days there probably isn't a great deal of difference in the quality of the two.

I have a Grizzly like the Harbor and a Jet like the Delta, and I'd go with the two hp model. They just seem to move a whole lot more dust, and the cost is the same.

[dayvo]

Im buying next week and considering one of these two, anybody got one of them?

or which  would you get ?

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=prod...P400&lpage=none

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Disp...temnumber=45378

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Have you thought of building your own?

Check out this link Cyclone Dust Collector Research

dayvo

[jay5]

The HF unit gets pretty decent reviews on many woodworking boards from what Ive seen.

[ryanb]

The Delta unit in your first link is a good dust collector FOR A SINGLE MACHINE. If you are willing to move the collector from one machine to another as needed, this is a good deal.

If you want a collector you can connect to everything in your shop and not move around, you have a lot more work to do. The size you need depends on how many machines, what type of machines, duct length, size and type, how many machines you want to feed at once, etc. You have to design the whole system and do the airflow loss calculations before you will know how many CFM you will need.

A collector in the 1100 CFM or higher range (like the HF one you mentioned) will handle a couple of machines, and can probably fit your whole shop if you install the ducts and blast gates correctly. (Be sure to properly ground your ductwork so you don't blow up your shop!)

Dust collectors aren't exactly high-tech ... a blower and some sheet metal. The HF unit probably works pretty well.

If you can afford the extra cost, I would recommend looking at the "canister" style collectors. They do a much better job of filtering the fine dust (some dust blows right through the cloth filter bags), and the plastic dust bags on the bottom are a lot easier and cleaner to empty/replace.

[M_A_T_T]

Like is said before, the size of your dust collector should depend on the type and amount of machines you plan to hook it up to. I remember reading somewhere a calculation for the CFM of a DC where you'd punch in the CFM requirements of all your tools, the lenght of ducting and any bends. Be aware, the longer and more bent your ducting the weaker your DC will end up being. I have mine (General International 1HP) about 3ft from the two main machines I use it on. I hook each one up separately when I use it . I have a section of hose on the DC, then a section of hose on the saw and sander as well, and I fitted male/female plumber pipe fittings on each hose so I quickly connect the hose of the DC to each tool (been thinking about a Y connector lately, though).

[ryanb]

Spend some time on this site:

http://www.airhand.com/

for info on how to design your system ... There are some good books out there too.