Which cyclone to get????

[Roy Wall]

Hey all,

I'm looking at the Penn State, Oneida or Grizzly 2 hp models..... I've searched and found many happy campers on the "gorilla" cyclone unit....Any happy Grizzly Cyclone users???

Griz boasts heavier steel, ramped inlet, nice "pulll down" cord for the filter cleaning (no blowout with air needed), remote included, rotating this and that....basically all kinds of goodies superior than the Oneida Gorilla for $100 less to boot!! Plus I could drive 2.5 hours and pick it up in one day....

I'll use it on a table saw and switch to bandsaw as needed.

Input and any other manufacturers welcome... ( I probably won't go the Bill Pentz route though....)

Thanks guys!!

[Steve Cox]

There do seem to be a lot of happy Oneida customers here on SMC. Personally, I went with the Woodsucker II and have been very pleased. I bought mine before Oneida came out with the Gorilla and the Woodsucker at the time was several hundred dollars cheaper than the Oneida and I think works just as well. Woodsucker is basically a one man shop and getting hold of him can be a bit difficult (better response from phone calls than e-mails in my experience) but I think the unit is excellent. You can read Bill Pentz's review of it on his website.

[Jamie Buxton]

I looked at them all, and chose a Woodsucker because it's footprint is significantly smaller than the others. I've been quite happy with it.

[Chris Padilla]

Mr. Pentz claims his design and the woodsucker are the best out there. I have Mr. Pentz design although still working on getting it installed! :)

[Mike Weaver]

Mr. Pentz claims his design and the woodsucker are the best out there. I have Mr. Pentz design although still working on getting it installed! :)

Chris,
You'd better hurry up... I figure I'll be finished my Pentz cyclone in about another month. (Of course, it'll probably take 6 months to get pics posted.....hmm, you might beat me yet!:eek:). I started on this endeavor last Thanksgiving when the cyclone body arrived.

Cheers,
-Mike

PS Just so there's a bit of redeeming quality for this post - I don't think there's a "wrong" choice between Woodsucker and Oneida. Grizzly has been doing better wth quality control, so it may fit in the same category.

The convenience of picking it up could be a factor - you could crack the containers & look at it *before* you left Grizzly to be sure there were no obvious defects. I've also heard good things about their customer service.

With all that said though - the free design service of Oneida is said to be quite helpful and their customer servce is excellent too.

Gee, I guess I'm saying I don't have anything that you don't already know...hmm...

[Jim Becker]

Be sceptical of marketing claims in this space--some of them are irrelivant in "real life" and some are not quite true. The yellow machine and the white/green machine are likely to be very similar in most ways, even in final cost. Pick the vendor you are more comfortable with. Both machines will blow away the Tempest...

[JayStPeter]

For a small price difference (like $100), I'd go with the Oneida. Only for the better motor. Once you factor in shipping, the better motor may cost more than it's worth.

Jay

[Mike Kelly]

Jay has a good argument for the Baldor motor as a tie breaker. I don't think there is a better one.

[Jim Hinze]

Try ClearVue Cyclones (http://www.clearvuecyclones.com/)

BTW -- I have no alfiation with ClearVue, just a desire to own one!

They are based on Bill Pentz Design, more efficient than the onieda and penn-state, and competatively priced (with a 5hp motor). They have a sale price on a complete setup, see below:

Blower Housing 95.00 + 30.00 Shipping = $125.00
Cyclone 375.00 + 75.00 Shipping = $450.00
Transition 35.00 + 10.00 Shipping = $ 45.00
6 Blast Gates 96.00 + 10.00 Shipping = $106.00
Leeson 5 hp Motor 242.00 + 30.00 Shipping = $272.00
14" Material Handling Impeller 165.00 + 30.00 Shipping = $195.00
Hanging Bracket 35.00 + 15.00 Shipping = $ 50.00

Price including shipping $ 1193.00

[Mark Singer]

Roy,
I have the Onieda and really like it... The Gorilla seems like a good value...

[Don Frambach]

I have the Oneida 1.5 hp unit. I really like it but would buy the 2 hp system if I had it to do over again. I.5 hp is a little underpowered for me and my fairly modest dust collection needs.

[Keith Foster]

The ONLY quality concerns you or any one else should have with Grizzly is AFTER it leaves the warehouse. The shippers are ruthless! :eek:

If you can pick it up at the warehouse, then it's a no brainer in my opinion. Get the Grizzly. For hobby usage that motor will last forever. Check the forums here and at Woodnet and you'll find a lot of posts on the motors. While you'll find everyone agrees the Baldor motors are made in America, that's about where the agreement ends. Kinda like using a dual cab dual wheel deisel F350 to pick up the cyclone at the warehouse. It will do the job with out a hitch, but the load could just as easily be carried by an minivan pulling a small U-Haul trailer.

I might add, there are several posts from very satisfied Grizzly owners with motors that have never been touch - many of them with over 10 years of service. Is the Baldor better? Maybe, but how long does a motor have to last before it's as good as a Baldor. Personally I think 10 years is enough. Your mileage may vary. And yes, I'm a happy Grizzly owner. Flame suit on - have at it gang! :cool:

[Greg Hairston]

I have the Woodsucker II. I love it. I looked at all the options for over a year and went with woodsucker. I belive that Oneida is probably a well made and well designed Cyclone. May even be a little better than the woodsucker but when looking at what I needed I felt the Woodsucker was the best bang for the buck. The Oneida would have been considerably more expensive. I have a 1300 SQft shop and have 6 hook ups and growing. I often forget to close 1 or 2 of the hook-ups and have no problems with dust collection. I like the design of the filter it just makes sense when you really think about how a filter should work. Since I installed my Cyclone my shop has been relatively dust free. If you have any questions feel free to ask.

Greg

[Allan Johanson]

Re: ClearVue cyclone vs others

FYI, the performance of the ClearVue is more in line with the 3HP Oneida and Grizz cyclones, not the 2HP ones many folks are buying. If you have a larger shop and/or a desire to gather as much dust as possible at the source, you may want to be looking at a 3HP machine.

Cheers,

Allan

[Mike Weaver]

Re: ClearVue cyclone vs others

FYI, the performance of the ClearVue is more in line with the 3HP Oneida and Grizz cyclones, not the 2HP ones many folks are buying. If you have a larger shop and/or a desire to gather as much dust as possible at the source, you may want to be looking at a 3HP machine.

Cheers,

Allan

Good point. The ClearVue is a Pentz design with its inherent perfomance enhancements, but without all the work of building it yourself. I agree - if there's any possibility that you might want to upgrade in the future, thn you might want to bite the bullet and "get more than you need" now.

Anyway, as others have said, there are 3 strong contenders in the 2hp space now if the ClearVue isn't attractive.

Cheers, and please let us know what you get and how you like it.
-Mike

[Chris Padilla]

Chris,
You'd better hurry up... I figure I'll be finished my Pentz cyclone in about another month. (Of course, it'll probably take 6 months to get pics posted.....hmm, you might beat me yet!:). I started on this endeavor last Thanksgiving when the cyclone body arrived.

Cheers,
-Mike

I'll work more on it this weekend...might have the full cyclone installed by COB Sunday! :)

[John Miliunas]

Well, seeing as to how someone else brought it up, mark me down as another happy Woodsucker customer/user. Fit my space beautifully (other side of shop wall) plus, due to the way it exhausts filtered air, I was able to route that right back into the shop, thus recovering my AC/heated air.:) As satisfied as I am with mine, word is that there have been further improvements to the newer model, so all that much better. (Not affiliated with Woodsucker, etc....:) ):) :cool:

[Phil Winn]

Build the Clearvue cyclone--it really is not that difficult to do, and
it works GREAT ! You will love it...
Phil

[Jim O'Dell]

Phil, I sent you a PM. Didn't want to hijack the thread! And I'm in the assembly stage of my Clear Vue. Still don't have electricity to the shop yet, so I'm working on the things I can do! It's a great time to be in the market for a cyclone, there are so many good choices! Jim.

[John Shuk]

The ONLY quality concerns you or any one else should have with Grizzly is AFTER it leaves the warehouse. The shippers are ruthless! :eek:

If you can pick it up at the warehouse, then it's a no brainer in my opinion. Get the Grizzly. For hobby usage that motor will last forever. Check the forums here and at Woodnet and you'll find a lot of posts on the motors. While you'll find everyone agrees the Baldor motors are made in America, that's about where the agreement ends. Kinda like using a dual cab dual wheel deisel F350 to pick up the cyclone at the warehouse. It will do the job with out a hitch, but the load could just as easily be carried by an minivan pulling a small U-Haul trailer.

I might add, there are several posts from very satisfied Grizzly owners with motors that have never been touch - many of them with over 10 years of service. Is the Baldor better? Maybe, but how long does a motor have to last before it's as good as a Baldor. Personally I think 10 years is enough. Your mileage may vary. And yes, I'm a happy Grizzly owner. Flame suit on - have at it gang! :cool:
Keith,
I think you'll find the flame suit is not needed here. That's why I like it here so much.

I don't have too much opinion as far as which machine to get as far as specs. MMy opinion is that if you can drive to Grizzly then that is a big plus. Just in case you get a stinker you can get somewhat local support. I feel that even with high quality machines there is nothing that compares to being able to discuss problems face to face. JMHO
Good luck.
John

[Phil Winn]

Jim--check PMs..
Phil

[Keith Foster]

Keith,
I think you'll find the flame suit is not needed here. That's why I like it here so much.I will admit that has been my experience here as well. And a big part of just one of the reasons I check in here everyday. :) Nice crowd, easy to work room. :p