Nordfab Questions

[Mike Heidrick]

Who has this ductwork? Do you like it? Would you buy it again?

Where is the best place to buy it from and have it shipped from??

Anyone bought it from Oneida or Grizzly? What are the shipping costs for this stuff?

Started putting my piece list together and it gets expensive real fast. May have to buy it in waves to afford it.

[Steve Roxberg]

I'm looking into it as well, but will probably end up with normal spiral from Spiral MFG, they have some pretty good prices.

Nordfab is not cheap.

[Jacob Dahn]

I recently stumbled across a large production shop selling out in my area. He was selling Nordfab at 1/3 of new. I picked up enough to finally get my cylone up and running. At 1/3 or new it was worth every penny. Easy to install and will be a litteral snap to move if I rearrange my shop, which is bound to happen. The cost of new is fairly prohibitive.

I would have to say the stuff is very nice. Easy to assemble very smooth on the inside of the pipe. I do get some air leakage at the joints. I think Nordfab sells gaskets. I will be looking into that as I need two more fittings to complete the system.

If you are going to set up your shop and don't plan on moving it, spiral is way more cost effective. The beauty of nordfab is that it can be easily reconfigured.

The guy I bought mine from said he had a fire once in his ductwork, the fireman had to chop into his spiral all over to make sure it was actually put out, that was the reason he went to nordfab. Since most home shops aren't running 18"+ mains and 25+ machines I don't really see it as an issue.

Good luck with your decision, Just for comparison, I have 7 drops running about 55 linear feet (not including the 5' drop to each machine. New cost would have been a little over 3k without shipping or tax.

Jake

[Joe Jensen]

I struggled with the "which pipe" question for a long time and I ended up going with the snaplock pipe from Oneida. Now that I have used this pipe, I can't really see the need for Nordfab in a home shop. I don't anticipate clogging a pipe, and that's really the only time I'd need Nordfab. I've moved some machines since I initially installed, and it wasn't really that bad to disassemble and move things around. Plus, with tin snips I was able to shorten a couple of pipes. With Nordfab I'd have had to order new sections, or weld my own rings or something.

I'd just say that if you are going with 7" or smaller pipe, I think the heavier guage snap lock pipe (not HVAC) is fine. Having said that, I do have one 4 foot piece of HVAC pipe that I used in a pinch intending to swap later. Since it' hasn't given me any problems, I'll just keep it in place...joe

[Jim Becker]

I doubt I would use Nordfab or the similar products from Grizzly, etc., for a whole duct work system, but the quick disconnect capability is wonderful for drops, combo machines and so forth. I have two drops in my shop now with this kind of setup (Grizzly as it happens) and am planning to retrofit the drop for my J/P combo with this system as soon as I can decide on the best way to deal with the 120mm to 5" issue as very short reducers are hard to find.

[Steven Wilson]

I use Nordfab adapters on all of my machines (raw end to QF), Nordfab ends on my hoses (allows you to quickly reconfigure hoses, I like to use short hoses and make larger lengths when needed), and Nordfab terminators at my blast gates. The rest of the DC is fairly standard fare (snaplock, adjustable elboes, etc). The Nordfab is great for a European combination machine because you reconfigure things fairly often. I probably wouldn't go with Nordfab for my main tubing unless I had a 7 1/2 HP or larger DC unit (the Norfab stuff is heavy guage which you would need for higher CFM).

[Mike Heidrick]

My cyclone is a Delta 5hp. Not as much concerned about the gauge of the Nordfab but rather my indecision of tool placement and potential 2nd building (for the tractors and welders). I really like the convienence and adjustability.

Is the Grizzly Industrial ductwork exactly the same as Nordfab?

I think I want to take a trip and go to Grizzly. I bet that would be FUN!!!

[Jim Becker]

Mike, I don't know if the Griz stuff is "exactly like Nordfab", but the components I bought are very nice...they really fit the bill for what I wanted which was sturdy quick disconnects that seal completely. The first few uses of the clamp, it was a bit tight, but now with use, the clamp is great. I do plan on retrofitting my J/P, as I stated, with similar fittings.

Rearranging snap-lock isn't all that hard, BTW, as long as you just use heavy foil tape for most of the non-load-bearing joints. Those with pop rivets can be easily drilled out for reconfiguration. Some of my duct work dates back to 2000 and has been re-arranged several times.

[J.R. Rutter]

I have a production shop full of Nordfab - 14" through 4". It is great stuff. We have done major reconfigurations twice now. For air tight joints, I do a quick wrap of masking tape under the clamp - the blue stuff is fine.

For new, I would call Nordfab to get the name of a local dealer. Mine sells components for less than Grizzly. And from what I have seen and used, Grizzly = Nordfab.

I found a good amount used, and got the rest new. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[Ben Abate]

Hi guys,

I have a shop full of Nordfab and it is excellent. I have had other but when I did a major over haul of my shop 4 years ago I went with Nordfab and have like it very much. I have also refigured my shop a few times since because of additions to the shop. This stuff make it easy and it is industrial strength pipe. I can't imagine better quality. It is so well built and moves the dust and what have you very well. I bought mine from a guy in Beaver Falls Pa. The company is Borland Machine Inc. I believe. They were very nice and the best price I could find. This is what they told me, the product comes out of N.C. so it doesn't matter who you buy if from. It is shipped from the manufacture to you and not to the retailer. So I bought mine from them because of that reason. They saved me a good bit of money. I believe the owners name was Kevin Borland, Bolland. Anyway they are in Beaver Falls Pa.

Hope this helps

[Chris Padilla]

...as soon as I can decide on the best way to deal with the 120mm to 5" issue as very short reducers are hard to find.

Your buddies at Oneida will make one for you. :) Or, you can "roll your own" if so inclined. Oneida shipped me out a 120mm (4.7") to 6" reducer but I don't recall what I paid...I'm sure it wasn't cheap. Maybe $30?

[Steven Wilson]

Yeah Chris I had a bunch of Minimax to 5" adapters made. The size difference isn't enough to have them priced as a reducer. You just need to be very specific when you order them (i.e. 120mm ID RAW to 5" QF machine adapter)

[Sam Blasco]

Very happy with my Norfab stuff, have a bunch of it. I have moved or rearranged my shop twice, and I'm moving again, this weekend, and was smiling again that I had spent the extra on the Norfab.

Jim, I'll email you with a great, and inexpensive solution to your 120mm issue. Fernco fitting, part number 1056-44. Snugs up nicely on the ports, better seal than anything I have bought over the years, a 5" hose fits nicely outside of it, and it is a real quick disconnect.

[Jim Becker]

Your buddies at Oneida will make one for you. :) Or, you can "roll your own" if so inclined. Oneida shipped me out a 120mm (4.7") to 6" reducer but I don't recall what I paid...I'm sure it wasn't cheap. Maybe $30?
Chris, I'm already using an Oneida 120mm-5" reducer. The issue is the "fit" to the MM hoods. Many turns of duct tape have sufficed, but I'm using the shop more now and want to move to a more efficient disconnect that doesn't threaten to crack my hoods. Sam has passed on to me an example of how the Fernco would work and it's very attractive for my J/P situation over the current reducer which IMHO is better for a more "permanent" connection.