Thread: Dust Extraction for Lathes

Originally Posted by Sturdee

all threads in the dust control section end up as a sermon on the alledged benefits that only a Clearvue cyclone will give..

To paraphrase Monty Python "he is not a dust messiah, he is just a naughty boy."

And from now on every time I see a post promoting clearvue in a context that it is not warranted i am going to make counter-post asking:

"What is it that you are compensating for?"

Cheers

Doug

Back to your corners everyone and simmer down. Some of you are pushing the boundaries.

I am so glad that we have boundaries. If it wasn't for boundaries what would we test?

, I apologise and will try to be civil.

I will also post some pics of my work when the wife gets out of bed and uploads them for me. And no, I am not a professional woodturner.

Soundman, I do read your posts carefully but you still haven't told me how to capture dust at source on my three big lathes running at the same time. Three 2HP DCs? 3 HP? I think not. And I don't agree that the air filters were a waste of money. The fine dust they capture is unbelievable. They just don't get it all. You know, that invisible stuff you don't believe in. You also suggest I need heaps of HP but you won't recommend a cyclone. Why not?

's solution is a massive exhaust fan which works well enough but he still gets covered in so much chips and dust that he actually wears out his turning smock. That's a lot of chips and dust.

I have three different hood requirements and was hoping for some suggestions. At this point, I am almost decided on the ClearVue Max with steel ducting. The hard part is knowing what goes at the business end at the lathes.

More later.

Jeffersonyou may read, but you plainly do not comprehend.

You again state that I don't believe in fine dust.....nothing could be further from the truth....I just refuse to call it "invisable", because if you have eyes to see it plainly is visable.

As for your powered air filters....of course they are going to be full of crap, you have dust everywhere.....that does not mean they are even close to producing acceptable air quality.
Until you address you gross volume dust problem, all ya doing is filling ya filters for no result.

I am totally gob smacked at your cheapness......you say you are running 3 lathes....thats THREE lathes at once...you must obvioulsy then have three men standing at them but you wont cough up for 3 half decent dust extractors.....unbelieveble.

Not, that is the ideal solution.

The easy solution is to arrange the machines so that they are all fairly close together and buy a single modern good quality 5hp 3 phase machine....if you do not have 3 phase power a single 3Hp machine (like this Carba-Tec Industrial Twin Bag 3hp Dust Collector : CARBA-TEC ) would easily support 4 x 100mm hoses with far better air flow than you have at the moment.

Or it maybe easier to buy a couple of modern high efficiency 2Hp units ( like this Carba-Tec® Industrial Twin Bag 2hp Dust Collector : CARBA-TEC )

Whatever, you need to discharge you exhaust air outside the workshop.

Hell I know plenty of amateur woodworkers that have better dust extraction than you.

As far as what is doing.....don't think you are in the same league as him.....he needs a trycycle and a coffee break to get from one end of his big lathe to the other....managing spindle turnng power poles is a whole other game.

AND does so much work he wears out his turners smocks from the inside.

cheers

Pics as promised. Not the best photos, sorry.

The redgum platter is 570mm and is a WIP. Finish off the tool and not sanded. The practice finials are just that. Practice. The box design is not mine - it's out of a pommy book. The lid hit the deck and damaged the tip, making it a second.

Originally Posted by jefferson

I have three different hood requirements and was hoping for some suggestions. At this point, I am almost decided on the ClearVue Max with steel ducting. The hard part is knowing what goes at the business end at the lathes.

More later.

Jefferson,

Exactly my understanding. Getting enough airflow is important, but what hood/port design maximises dust collection?

Improving hood/port/shroud design has made a huge difference to dust collection in my shop, and my guess is that it will be a big success factor for dust collection on a lathe, and that it will not be a one size fits all solution.

Soundman, the 3hp DC that you referred me to has 5 micron bags on it. The fine dust will go straight through those bags. I don't think that's a solution. Or do you suggest that I put the DC outside on the verandah and pipe in 4 inch to the three machines? From what I've read, 6 inch pipe is needed. Bob L may confirm. And I haven't got room for another 2 DCs in the turning end of the shed. Three stand alone DCs instead of a cyclone with a smaller footprint doesn't make sense either.

Originally Posted by soundman

Whatever, you need to discharge you exhaust air outside the workshop.

Originally Posted by jefferson

Or do you suggest that I put the DC outside on the verandah

I think that what he meant

Jefferson Mate....read what I posted....put the extractor outside..or enclose it inside and vent it outside.

As far as the need for 6 inch pipes....that is debatable and dependent on how far you want to run and what you want to service....almost all these extractors with multiple 4 inch inlets have an adaptor that can be removed to reveal a 6 or 8 inch connection.

The biggest failing with so many of the dust installations is they DO NOT keep the duct runs as short as possible.

AND that is the whole point of running an extractor for each machine or one between two...keeping the duct runs as short as possible...less than 2 meters or better still less than a meter.

You are comparing decent dust extractors with 5 micron bags with ya pissy 1hp single baggers with cloth just fine enough to keep wallabies and butterflies in....serioulsy get real.

In your situation, even with the 5 micron bags, you are going to be way ahead ahead, because you are currently up to your donkey in uncaptured dust and a cloud of not so fine dust comming out of ya existing cheapy extractors.

Spend some money on pleated cartrige filters or after market needle felt bags and your existing air filters may actually keep up with what gets thru the dust extractors.

As far as running multiple extractors or a single system.....well that depends a lot on the arrangements.

As far as hoods for the lathes.......forget it.....unless you completely enclose the lathe, this idea simply..will...not...work....read what I said about air velocity and area.

You need to get the extraction close to the work......like within 4 or 6 inches of the area being cut or sanded.....this is possible and this does work...and very well...... but you have to pay attention and adjust the nozzle as needed.

cheers

I thought I replied to this one but it seems to have gone missing.

Soundman, as I think I mentioned, the turning area is 9m x 6.5m. That's 9m between two of the lathes. Are you suggesting I run 4 inch pipe from one 3hp DC for that length? I thought you said to keep the lines short.

I'm looking for solutions and you're not providing any. What about the dust hood/s for the Stubby? Think big platters. And why not a cyclone?

Jefferson,

Have you worked out an estimate of the airflow you will need to do a good job at the lathes? Check with Shedman, but seems to me that if you run an 225 mm line from something like a Max you could either have a single 225 mm inlet at the lathe or two 160 mm inlets. Two inlets can be problematic if the airstreams fight each other, but others know more about that than me.

BobL indicated to me that it was likely the pipe diameter itself was the limiting factor in my system. Don't know what airflow you'd get from a Max at 60 Hz pulling air through a 225 mm pipe, but it will be a bunch more than my system, and it does a very good job grabbing the fine dust.

Nevertheless, it seems that looking around to determine the airflow needed to do a good job on lathes like yours would be a good start.

Cheerio!

John

Thanks for that John.

I've got no idea what airflow I would need. All I know is that I need to vent the entire area on a regular basis. That will cost me a lot in firewood over winter. I need the most flow at the Stubby, as I won't get a hood close enough to the work. Sorting out the ducting alone will be a challenge, let alone the hoods and how to move them.

Where would I find out the figures? I'll try the net as my dust book doesn't go to that level of detail.

I didn't mention that I have 5 separate circuits in the turning room, including 2 x 15 amp. Three lathes to run, plus the bandsaw. Plus other low power things like lights, air filters etc. And with a little re-arranging, I would have a perfect spot to a cyclone inside the room. Less footprint than my existing 2HP DC. And I also have one more circuit on my board if the cyclone needs 20 amps. I'll find out tomorrow.

Challenging times ahead.

Jeff is there any chance you could draw a floor plan of your shop and what is where inside along with considerations outside, like verandas and patios? It doesn't need to be a cad drawing. A felt pen sketch on a large piece of cardboard, photographed and posted would be enough. It would make it easier to make suggestions. Pictures inside and out would work too.

Pete