Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi Everyone,
I just recently sold my Powermatic PM1300TX-CK (2 Micron Canister) dust collector. This is the variant of the JET with their "Turbo Cone technology". It is a good dust collector but not quite sufficient for my needs. It lists for $850 with free shipping. Here are my thoughts and why I'm selling it -- which may be of help to some of you. I've gone through a number of dust collectors over the years. I started out with a tiny Delta and then upgraded to a Grizzly 3Hp cyclone after I became aware of how dangerous wood dust can be. The Delta really wasn't that good and lost suction very quickly -- I would consider it close to worthless -- better than nothing but not able to protect your health. The Grizzly cyclone was great but way too large for my small shop, especially as I continued to add more equipment. I then went to this Powermatic thinking it would be sufficient and much smaller. I went with the Powermatic over the equivalent Jet product because of the metal duct from the blower to the dust collection area (canister and bag). The JET has a spiral tube and the result is a product that feels very flimsy when you are moving it around. The Powermatic is very rigid and I like that about it. The "Turbo Cone" or "Vortex Cone" do indeed help keep the large chips in the lower bag at all times. There is only ever fine dust at the filter. It might seem gimmicky and it is certainly not a cyclone but it does help significantly. This fine dust still stops the suction eventually and I find that after the lower bag is 1/3 full that it is time to put a new bag on and clean the filter. If you don't clean the filter, then the suction begins to drop even with a new bag. I just grab my dust mask and a blower and set the filter on the grass and blow out the filter. This takes about 15 minutes but the end result is much better suction at all times. However, because I build guitars full-time, I am having to empty the bag and clean out the filter about once a month. I've gone through 11 bags since I've bought it a year ago. Also, I have a wide belt sander and I find the suction is just not quite strong enough to handle this one machine ideally (you need serious dust collection for a wide belt).

My conclusion is that these newer canister dust collectors (from Powermatic and JET) are great for the weekend warrior and for most shop tools. Folks that do this for a hobby are likely not making the amount of dust that those of us building fulltime are -- which means, that you can go much longer before having to empty the bag and clean the filter. I still need something portable and small and am therefore going with an 3HP Oneida Portable. I will post a review of the machine after I've used it for a while.

Thanks for taking the time to share the back story.

How did you decide on the particular Oneida unit & which one is it?

Thanks,
Kevin Looker

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

I'm sure there's alot of people who will have reasons against it, but the best thing I done was move my dust collector outside.

_________________
I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

Woody, I think that is the ideal thing -- especially if you can forego the filter as that would allow one to have optimal suction -- you just have to worry about the return air.

Kevin, I decided on the 3HP Dust Gorilla Portable. I will be wheeling the collector around to each machine and attaching with a 6" flexible hose. I will keep the hose at about 7 to 8' which should still allow me to get adequate suction. One thing I like about this product is that there aren't hoses from the impeller to the filter. I always struggled with small leaks with my Grizzly Cyclone and this Oneida should be very air tight. This machine isn't cheap but I like that it has a small footprint and is portable. I will definitely post a review after a few weeks of owning the Oneida.

Please keep us posted.

If that doesn't get you to dust collecting Nirvana, I wonder if anything will.

Kevin Looker

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Hey Simon - It sounds like the 3 HP Oneida portable is perfect for your situation. You shouldn't have any problem collecting fine dust with that machine and a short hose. Hopefully you won't get tired of hauling it around to each machine. Looking forward to your review.

I have been researching dust collection extensively for the past few months and read through the Bill Pentz site a few times. I settled for a Delta 1.5 HP blower and upgraded to a Wynn Env. 0.5 micron canister filter which really helps get the fine dust. This is adequate (not the best) for my needs as a weekend warrior. I still wear my respirator while running power tools until my Dylos particle counter reads below 500, and try to keep a clean shop. If I ever do this full time I will upgrade to a ClearVue 5 HP cyclone or an Oneida 3 or 5 hp.

If you don't have one I recommend the Dylos Pro air quality monitor. You'll know exactly how much dust is floating around your shop and how efficient your dust collection system is. http://www.dylosproducts.com/ornodcproair.html

Gil,
Some folks are adapting their machines with a homemade version of the "turbo cone". If you look at the interior photo of my Powermatic - it is basically a large wok attached with a brace. My good friend, OLF member Sniggly in fact did this very thing and it does help keep the canister free of larger debris. And it can't be that hard to do because he is insanely incompetent. So it might be worth your time to modify what you have.

I am getting the Oneida within a couple weeks and will post a thorough review.

That's interesting. Do you know of any how-to links?

I haven't seen any how to links (but I haven't really checked either). I imagine someone has posted photos by now since JET came out with their new design more than a year ago. As you seen in the photo, you would need to bend a metal bracket and duplicate what the JET/Powermatic folks do. The bracket would then attach in the very center of the bottom of the wok. You could use something else besides a wok but you want a fairly shallow cone type structure and you should be able to find something cheap. I can try and take dimensions of the Powermatic "cone" if that would help.

Here's the site of the guy who developed the separator baffle:
http://www.cgallery.com/jpthien/cy.htm

_________________
Stay with the happy people.
--Reynolds Large

I installed a Phil Thien separator baffle on my collector and it seems to be working pretty well. I also got a nano filter cartridge up on top. It does not seem to be clogging up at all, yet.

Hey Simon - Yes please when you get a chance can you tell me the diameter of your wok? I am still unable to visualize how this wok thing works.

Gil,

I know you are keeping your costs down, but as an alternative to spending the time and effort to do the modification on your unit, have you thought about spending $200 (on sale now) on Oneida's Super Dust Deputy? http://www.oneida-air.com/inventoryD.as ... =AXD002030 They are selling this as an add on for just the size and type system you now have. This should keep both the chips and dust out of your filter more effectively than the mod would do.

Ed

I have the small version on my vacuum and it works a treat. After three years the vac bag is only 1/4 full, filter is pristine, and it's on a lot!

Hey Ed - Thanks for the link. I have seen the dust deputy and I think I'll get one at some point. Would it still work if I'm only making fine dust most of the time, or will it just separate out big chips?

My apologies Simon, if I'm hijacking your thread!

Gil,
It drops out the big chips and most of the fine dust. It will significantly extend how long your final filters will be effective before they need to be cleaned. That means your suction/air-flow will not fall off nearly as quickly.

Simon,
I hope your new system works well, and with Oneida it should. My hat is off to your self discipline to move your system around from machine to machine.

Excellent. I think I will get one soon then. Thanks.

I have the Super Dust Deputy on my 3 horse system. It is mounted on a 35 Gallon steel drum. Everything goes into the barrel, and nothing appears to go into the bag and filter.

Bob

Hi Goodin,
If you have the space, then the separators are worth the effort and will work better than modifying your collector. My problem is that I just don't have any extra room and a separator would have taken up most of my free space - so that was never an option for me.

--
Simon