Is a downdraft table useful with a sander that has good dust collection?

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I have a small mobile table that I’m going to make into a mobile sanding station to carry my sandpaper and sanders.
I thought about making a downdraft table for the top but I can’t decide if it’s worth it. Granted it’s not too difficult to make but I was curious what the general opinion of having a downdraft table is.

[Jamie Buxton]

My take is that downdraft tables have limited utility. Modern sanders hooked to a dust extractor do a great job of collecting dust. Well, they do when you're sanding flat workpieces. If you happen to be sanding curved objects, their dust collection isn't as great. Say you are sanding a whole production run of objects that look like a human leg bone -- no flat surfaces at all. The best way to sand it is to hold one end in your hand, rest the other end on a bench, and hold the sander with your other hand. You sand by twisting and turning the workpiece and the sander, changing your grip often. A downdraft table could be useful for this task.

[Jim Matthews]

It can't hurt. Make certain you have good access to clean the interior. Otherwise, you're transporting sawdust at every move.

[Larry Frank]

It depends on the capability of your dust collector.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I made this portable one, the top panels are Powertec, $46 from Amazon.

I hooked it up to my DC with a 4" port. I sanded about 75, large'ish flat pieces, rails and stiles, made of Basswood, for a current Plantation shutter build.

There was a lot of sawdust inside the box in the corners. I'm guessing about 25% of what actually entered, but didn't get sucked up by my DC. I had next to nothing outside of the box.

I was using a Festool ETSC sander connected to a CT-26 vacuum. The sander DC gets about 90% of the dust at the source.

[Jim Becker]

I believe there is utility in having a downdraft setup even when there's good dust extraction on the tool, such as with Festool and others. There will always be some dust that escapes the tool. Further, nobody is "immune" from hand-sanding in some situations so there's benefit from that, too. I used the Powertech panels like Chris shows in his photos in my own recently constructed down-draft setup that's incorporated into my auxiliary bench. When not in use, the panels are removed and either a flat insert is put in the table or a flat insert with my pocket screw jig incorporated is in place if I need that function.

[David Zaret]

i'm with jim. i use a downdraft even with exceptional sanders and extraction... primarily because not only am i using machines, but i also use sanding blocks, and an air hose to blow off dust. the downdraft catches dust form those two.

[johnny means]

Sander dust collection is great at catching the dust that it catches. A downdraft is great for catching what it doesn't.

[Eric Arnsdorff]

Thanks all! Great points and experience!
I'll spend a little extra time and money to make the top of my sanding cart a downdraft.
For some crazy reason my wife keeps wanting me to make furniture and cabinetry and such with all my tools. But I'm gonna sneak this one in!