Dust Cover for Performax 16-32 Drum Sander

[Rich Aldrich]

I just purchased a used Performax 16-32 drum sander. It has the small 2-1/2” port. I did some searching for an replacement hood with the 4” dust port but it and quite a few other components are discontinued. Any thoughts on where to go from here?
I am learning how to use Solidworks so I am going to make a 3d model and see what it would cost to 3D print the cover.

[Steve Eure]

Have you reached out to Jet? They bought the Performax sanders from the original owners, who in turn started SuperMax. I would check with either of those two first. You may find something close that matches or can be modified. If you are just wanting to change out the port to something like a 4", you could cut out the smaller 2 1/2" port, enlarge the hole, and attach a 4" port and use something like JB Weld or some other bonding agent to attach. You can find all sorts of ports at places like Grizzly, Rockler, Woodcraft, etc. You may even find what you need at Amazon. They seem to have everything.

[Jim Becker]

I agree with Steve...check with Jet first but if you've already done that, rather than printing a whole cover, remove the existing smaller port and fasten on a new one with the larger diameter. And yes you could 3D print that to make for a better interface between the new port and the existing hood.

[Rich Aldrich]

Thanks guys. I haven't contacted Jet, but I plan to on Monday. Previous experience with Jet has not been good, so I try to avoid it. I hadn't thought about contacting Supermax, but I will do that too. From there, I will look into modifying the existing cover. I don't want to mess up the cover if I don't have a back up plan.

[Thomas Wilson]

I have the original Performax 16-32 also. A strong vacuum like Ridgid 6.5 HP works surprisingly well on the 2 1/2 port. To collect airborn dust that escapes, I use a big dust hood on a stand connected to a dust collector. I use the same hood on stand for other sanding and cutting where the tool has less than stellar dust collection.

[John K Jordan]

You also might see if you can find the 22-44 cover and cut it down/adapt it for your sander. It has a 4” port. I use mine with a Clearvue cyclone and the collection is quite good.

However, it should not be difficult to cut a hole and make a 4” port from pvc pipe. I made a 6” connector this way for my DC bin. You can even heat and shape pvc.

[Richard Coers]

Are you certain a 4" will do a better job? The air velocity will drop dramatically going to a larger diameter. I'd do a cardboard mockup to test it before cutting up a hood.

[Rich Aldrich]

Are you certain a 4" will do a better job? The air velocity will drop dramatically going to a larger diameter. I'd do a cardboard mockup to test it before cutting up a hood.

I think it will. I have a clearvue cyclone, so it will be going from 4" at the sander to 6" right away to the cyclone ducting. It is an acceleration at the point of entry that tends to draw the dust with the air - get the air moving. One risk is to actually get it so high that you would lift the work piece if it isn't under the hold downs or the drum.

For now, I have been using a craftsman 6 hp vacuum. It does OK - maybe I would be better off using a dust deputy ahead of the vacuum. Probably the filter is going to plug fast. I just acquired the sander, so I am still experimenting.

At work we are looking at putting in processing equipment for dry lumber. The saw manufacturers recommend dropping one duct diameter size at the equipment to accelerate the air to capture the fine dust - get the air moving towards the duct. They want 6000 CFM at the point of entering the duct, once it is captured, the air speed can be reduced to 4200 to 4500 CFM.

[Rich Aldrich]

I have the original Performax 16-32 also. A strong vacuum like Ridgid 6.5 HP works surprisingly well on the 2 1/2 port. To collect airborn dust that escapes, I use a big dust hood on a stand connected to a dust collector. I use the same hood on stand for other sanding and cutting where the tool has less than stellar dust collection.

It doesn't do as good a job as I would like with my craftsman 6 hp, but maybe my expectations are too high. I would also like to connect it to my clearvue cyclone. However, I could live with using a dust deputy with the vacuum. I use the vacuum for the compound miter saw. It does OK - not great.

[Rich Aldrich]

You also might see if you can find the 22-44 cover and cut it down/adapt it for your sander. It has a 4” port. I use mine with a Clearvue cyclone and the collection is quite good.

However, it should not be difficult to cut a hole and make a 4” port from pvc pipe. I made a 6” connector this way for my DC bin. You can even heat and shape pvc.

John, I have a clearvue that I would like to connect it to. I should check into the cover for the 22-44 - dimensionally and see how I could modify it to fit. I did find an older thread where one of the members (I dont recall who it was) made a hood out of wood. That seemed to look good and he was happy with it. I have modified PVC - made a 6" to 5" and 4" wye - it was a link on Bill Penz website.

[John K Jordan]

John, I have a clearvue that I would like to connect it to. I should check into the cover for the 22-44 - dimensionally and see how I could modify it to fit. I did find an older thread where one of the members (I dont recall who it was) made a hood out of wood. That seemed to look good and he was happy with it. I have modified PVC - made a 6" to 5" and 4" wye - it was a link on Bill Penz website.

The cover on mine is 24" long, 6.5" deep, and 1.75" high at each end, sloping upwards to about 3" in the center where there is a single 4" port. The cross section is trapazoidal. The cover has 3" pinned hinge at either end at the back and has a latch in the center at the front.

I didn't take a picture but mine is this model (I found this picture on the internet):

468717

JKJ