How to connect Dewalt ROS Sander to vacuum

[Andrew Pitonyak]

I own two sanders, one is a Festool and the other is a Dewalt D26543 (see http://www.dewalt.com/tools/woodworking-sanders-random-orbital-sanders-d26453.aspx).

Dust collection on the Festool is great. The Dewalt is not bad, but it has a bag that connects to the back and I would prefer to connect it to my Festool vacuum. I have not found a decent way to connect this, however. Am I missing a simple part available from Dewalt that I simply have not seen? The dust bag connects to a plastic piece on the back that has three different size openings. When I connect using the host that I use for my Festool sander, the slightest movement causes it to come off.

If I pull the plastic attachment, it looks the base is very much like a rectangle with rounded edges (not sure how to take that plastic piece off, but it looks like it can come off) (see http://www.ereplacementparts.com/dewalt-d26453-type-random-orbit-sander-parts-c-1009_2742_4001.html)

The bag is OK, but fine dust escapes the bag and the bag can fill quickly with aggressive sanding.

[Lee Ludden]

I have that same ROS. What I used is one of the rubber Cast Iron - PVC couplings from Home Depot. I got the size that fits the ROS and a 2 1/2" hose that is connected to my Dust Collector - works pretty well.
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[Pat Barry]

The rectangle is for the Dewalt adapter to plug into. I take off the DeWalt bag from the adapter and plug my vacuum hose right on to the round hole inside.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi, for my Dewalt ROS, they make an adapter that's a rectangular to round connector to fit a vacuum hose.

Call the DeWalt # and order one for your sander. I use it with my Festool vacuum..............Rod.

[Charles Lent]

I think you may be dealing with an Imperial / Metric conversion between the Festool hose and the Sander port. You will likely need to wrap some electrical tape around the sander port so the Festool hose fits tighter or use a rubber adapter and clamps like Lee suggested above. I have a similar problem with the vacuum port on my Leigh FMT and found a short piece of hose at Lowes that adapts to my (American) vacuum. If you find something that works well, please tell us about it.

Charley

[Jim Rimmer]

The rectangle is for the Dewalt adapter to plug into. I take off the DeWalt bag from the adapter and plug my vacuum hose right on to the round hole inside.

That's what I do. You have to really push it on hard. I was using the same coupler Lee shows on my Ryobi but when it died I got the DeWalt and didn't need it.

[Victor Robinson]

Fein sells a rubber step adapter (around $5 or $6). *Once you cut it to size, it will give you a nice snug fit around the Dewalt's inner port.

[Don Jarvie]

You should be able to remove the bag and put a 2 1/2 inch hose in the female opening. I wonder if the Festool hose is slightly smaller than 2 1/2 inches.

I have a C-man ROS with the same design for the DC bag and the bag comes off and the hose fits in very snug. If you have a pair of calipers check it to see waht size everything is.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Thanks much for the input.... It had not occurred to me to try a larger vacuum hose. I have at least two Fein rubber step adapters (I use one with my Kreg jig) and I will see how I need to cut it so that it will work with the sander. I will also check out the other solutions (such as calling Dewalt). I really appreciate it.