Dust collection

[Brandon Speaks]

Hey guys what do you all do for dust collection for power carving. I am setting up a dedicated bench for this in my garage so I have some options.

What I have done in the past is rig a shop vac to hold near the peice, but that is not terribly effective.

Are the bench top units any good?

Is a mobile floor model with a hood close better?

Could a small box with shop vac attachment mounted into the bench right below the surface work?

[Mark Yundt]

I used to do only power carvin at one time when I did decoys out of Tupelo.
I used a cheap 20" box fan and housed it in a plywood frame. A small 1"X 1" strip around the inside allowed me to sandwich 2 -20 " air filters between it and the fan. I then added a slanted top where I could position photo references and on each side added 2 swing arm lights.

Smaller versions could be made using those dual window fans or something similar. But this was all so dirt cheap and really effective . Occasionally remove the filters and blow them out.

Shop vacs aren't effective unless you're right in front of the nozzle. And many others seem to have drawbacks as well . I didn't want to sit there with a laptop type either as that gets in the way and is a nuisance.

To to really minimalize this you could just tape a couple of filters right on the fan. I've seen them under $20.00 and the filters are a couple of dollars. Sit it on the bench , turn it on and off you go.
And this is much quieter than having to listen to the whine of a shop vac . 5 minutes of that and I'd quit carving.

[terry mccammon]

Let me also suggest that you put a small fan behind you blowing past you toward the filter system.

[Mark Yundt]

No need to if something like this is used. On low speed all the dust is pulled away. On high ,, even using a Kutzall bit in a Foredom spinning like mad the sawdust rises about an inch and makes a 90 degree turn for the filter.
The draft getting pulled past you works terrific. Used this for years no problem or dust.

[terry mccammon]

Good to know, thanks.