Thread: Table Saw Overhead Dust Collection

With TS guards, if you want to control both chips and fine dust the following general principles apply.

1) 100mm ducting as a minimum when a DC is used this means the guard needs to be at least 100 mm wide..
2) The back of the guard should be completely open to allow air to get into the back of the guard to sweep up the fine dust
3) The dust pick up point should be above and in front of the blade because this is where the dust is thrown by the blade
4) The front of the guard should slope away from the blade and up towards the operator - this is to deflect the sawdust upwards into the dust pick up point.
5) The guard should be as well sealed as possible on top of the work piece and table - this is not always possible so you just do the best you can
6) you know it's working if your hood can pick up a matchbox size piece of wood from the top of the table.
7) A shop vac can do a good job of picking up chips but is unlikely to capture as much fine dust as 4" DC collection.

Point 1 requires that guard be easily able to be moved laterally so that the TS fence can be brought closer than 50mm from the blade. It is unlikely that the guard can be fully employed and the fence brought closer than ~20 mm to the blade.

Points 3/4 can obscure vision so some care needs to be taken that this is not too much.

I won't show a picture of my TS guard (mine is also a contractor saw) because mine is attached to the building and as it's on the fairly complex side it tends to put people off. Ive posted details somewhere on the this forum if you want to see it.

I have the same requirement (for very old contractor saw) so keen to see the replies and what you do.