I Need a Chip Seperator

[Lance Norris]

As the title says... I need a chip seperator. I have looked at Phil Thiens' design and havent ruled that out yet, but then found this on Ebay:



eBay Link #270208091598

Has anybody bought one of these and have any comments?

[alex grams]

Looks interesting, but if i were to get that i would just prefer to hook the blower right on it and then discharge to a canister filter. It looks redundant to have the cyclone then to a DC.

Do you anticipate putting this between the machine and your current DC, or buying a fan to put on to this?

A cheaper alternative for a chip collector is a trash can and the trash can lid separator, which will run about 50$ maybe, then you can add a second stage plate below the normal lid which will help add some more efficiency to the chip collector.

[Prashun Patel]

What kind of dc are you using on the outtake?

[Prashun Patel]

A cheaper alternative for a chip collector is a trash can and the trash can lid separator, which will run about 50$ maybe, then you can add a second stage plate below the normal lid which will help add some more efficiency to the chip collector.

i.e., Phil Thien's design.

[Lance Norris]

I have a Grizzly 2hp canister, G0548, and want to put a chip seperator between my DC and my 15" stationary planer. I like Phils' design, but wonder how I will seal around the lid, and I am having trouble finding a steel trash can. I guess if I go with Phils design, I could use a plastic can, and when not in use, I could use a blast gate so the can isnt under constant vacuum, and possibly collapse.

[Randy Davidson]

I'm using a heavy duty plastic can I got at the Borg and have not had a problem with it collapsing and no leakage around the seal. Does a really good job of separating the chips and dust.

[Lance Norris]

Randy... are you using a shop-made or one of the Woodworking supplier made lids? Also what, if any, seal did you use?

[Dennis Hatchett]

Has anybody bought one of these and have any comments?

Yes, I bought one and it is really built well. Seems are hand made and very good craftsmanship. I wish I could tell you how it works but I haven't finished hooking it up yet. I can tell you that it is a bargain at this price.

I bought the larger version to hook up to a 3 hp dc impeller and motor that I scrounged a while back and I expect to be into a cyclone system for about 300 dollars before running the pipe. I live next to a pasture so I'll just vent the dust outside.

[Bob Rufener]

I built a chip seperator using a barrel I got from a place that does powder coating paint. Price was $0.00. It seals well with a clamp that goes over the lid and the top of the barrel. I put on a couple of plumbing els that fit my pipe and put a baffle between the intake and outtake parts. It does a reasonable job of collecting chips.

[Mark Engel]

I have seen and been considering one of those units.

Here is his web site. It looks like he is selling them for $169.00 instead of $189.00 on the website.

http://www.cycloneseparator.com/5026/index.html

[Lance Norris]

Mark... thanks for the link. That just paid for my shipping :D

[Harold Piper]

Lance,

I think it was Wood Magazine that had plans for making a chip seperater using a 60 gallen drum a few years back. I made one and really like it.

I will see if I can find the plans and get back to you.3

Harold

[Jack Porter]

Lance,
I j st finished building the cyclone in wood magazine, one day to construct and materials cost less than 100 bucks. You can remove your blower from the DC and mount it directly on the cyclone. Venting outside will increase its performance by reducing resistance through the filter bags, especially if clogged.

[Harold Piper]

Lance,

I found the plans for the chip separator, it was in ShopNotes #55. If you don't have this copy send me your maling adress by private message and I will make copys and send them to you.

[Dennis Meek]

Lance

I have that seperator and it works great! The seperator I have has a 4" inlet and a 6" outlet. I had the Craftsman DC that I took the motor and blower housing off of and mounted it on the wall above the seperator. On the blower housing I took off the 2 4" intakes, then used a chisel to remove the inlet ring and that gave me a larger opening. I put an adapter on it to give me a full 6" inlet which I connected to the seperator and blower housing.

I then mounted the seperator to a 55 gallon drum. I then replaced the upper bag with a canister filter. When in use I get no dust or chips in the lower bag. The seperator removes over 99% of the dust and all of the chips. I have not had to empty the lower bag yet but have filled the 55 gallon drum about 10 times. Every time I empty the drum I blow out the canister filter but there is very little dust in it.

I have it connected to 4" pvc that is connected to an 8" Jointer, table saw, lathe and assorted others as I need them.

[Al Garay]

Dennis,

I am very interested in this cyclone. Can you provide pictures?
Rough idea of the costs?

thanks,

Al

[Randy Davidson]

Randy... are you using a shop-made or one of the Woodworking supplier made lids? Also what, if any, seal did you use?


Lance, I bought mine through Rockler or Woodcraft (don't remember which). Just has a simple foam seal that holds down when the DC is on. Don't put a trash bag in the can like some doofus did on the first run:(

[Gary Ratajczak]

Hello all - I looked into the cyclone from E-Bay as well. The guy that makes them is only aout 25 minutes from me.

Last I researched, they would make a great "chip" collector. There is not a neutral vane, and the cone is a little short for optimum (To Bill P. standards) separation. With that said, I have seen one work at a local show, and it did a terrific job on the chips.

One of the posts above mentioned venting outside - that would be the best option for this unit. If you did go to filters, I believe you would be cleaning a little more than other cyclones. Watch out though on venting outside and loss of shop air (or pulling chimney exhaust back). Just a caution.

Gary R

[Dennis Meek]

Al

I'm at work now but will post a pic tonight when I get home.

Dennis

[Keith Beck]

Lance,

Another member on here, Andy Howard, bought the same separator and with some modifications, such as the addition of a neutral vane and changing the length of the intake pipe, he achieved some pretty good results. You can see his post here:

www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=22907 (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=22907)

If you were to add an air ramp, you could probably improve things even more.

I've been considering purchasing the same separator and adding my G1029Z blower to it along with a couple of Wynn filters. I've got some other projects I need to take care of first, however.

Keith

[Augusto Orosco]

I am following this thread with great interest. I understand that some of you are taking the blower off your DC and use it directly with the cyclone separator mentioned here. I like that idea, but I don't have a DC yet and would rather buy only the blower if I am to pursue it. Do any of you guys know where you can buy just the blower directly? I am restricted to 110v and one 15amp circuit would be dedicated to the cyclone. The more I look on the web for motors and fans, the more confused I become...

[Prashun Patel]

clearvue cyclones sells components to the kit.
Ebay