This is the
final photo just to show you what the Downdrafter does. It collects the nasty sawdust that
is ejected from your sliding compound miter saw. The hood is yellow but, in fact, it is
designed to work with all miter saws. The picture shows my first sawing with this setup.
It "swallowed" about 90% of the MDF dust and probably can do even better if I
alter the Hitachi's outlet.
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To the left is the
product shot taken from the website for The Downdrafter. [http://www.downdrafter.com/]. The unit costs $299.
It seemed expensive, but I guess the question is, what is the price for clean lungs or
worse, what is the potential cost of dust laden airways? The little insert picture is of a
dust collector I just bought from Woodcraft. I intend to mount it under the miter saw
station and have it suck the sawdust through the Downdrafter.
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Here is my present
miter saw station. The saw's table is level with the bench counter on the left. The bench
has a 6' fence with an adjustable stop that is very useful.
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Presently, the saw's
internal dust collection bag works pretty well. But, even then a lot of dust gets shot
both to the back wall and into the air. MDF and particle board are particularly bad dust
creators. I hate to be crude, but you know it doesn't work when you cough up brown
stuff.
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Here is the
present chop saw bench. It is made of 4" X 4" and very solid. The top
("A") is 3/4" ply — doubled up. The bench is fastened with lag screws
to the back wall studs and to the bench to the left. The Hitachi saw is bolted to the
table once adjusted to the fence.
Underneath ("B"), I would like to add one or two trays that will
hold the miscellaneous cutoffs and have the trays on full extension slides. Yes, I do save
cutoffs. I hate to put even the smaller ones in the trash. Frequently I find myself going
into the scrap pile for wood or MDF that can be used for jigs or backer boards.
I can't do anything until I have the Downdrafter installed. Then I can
measure some of the clearances more exactly.
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I have dismounted the
CMS and moved it to the other side of the shop. It rests of the Festool MFT worktop. You
can see the size of the yellow hood. It is large, but if it catches the dust, I will
install it on the old bench, but I want to find out two measurements: 1) how wide a
station do I need and 2) how deep must it be.
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I start the assembly
process by reading the instructions. They are brief. I tried to follow them step-by-step
and found that I thought I was doing the steps right, but about 4 times had to disassemble
and try again. It may have been a "bad hair" day for me.
I won't show all the false attempts but try to just show the basic steps as I
finally did them.
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First, I assemble the
airflow chamber. As you will see, all the parts to this system, other than the hood, are
made of rugged steel. That will help the yellow hood roll back and forth with the
CMS without sagging. It is a good thing.
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I am completing the assembly
of one of the two trolleys. The airflow chamber that I just assembled will be inserted in
the trolley and the other half of the trolley will be added.
The numbers "1" and "2" are the steel tracks that bolt to
the underside of the box frame. You can see that I am using an Allen wrench to get the
bolt into position. It takes a bit of dexterity to ease the bolt through the channel. It
works, but is tight. The lock nut has to be from the arrow's direction. If reversed, the
trolley won't trolley — how do you think I found that out?
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I have in my hand the
completed assembly. It is heavy and will certainly stand the test of time. By the way,
this side is facing away from the CMS and dust ejection. My guess is that dust getting in
here will be minimal. A good burst of shop air will probably be all that it takes. I plan
not to lubricate the wheels and bearings. They are dry now and travel very little. Oil or
grease will just catch dust.
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The instructions say that
the top of the unit should be 1 1/2" below the back edge of the bench to which it
will be mounted.
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I had thought I would mount
the saw on the Festool MFT but since the mount includes screwing to the back of the stand,
I have switched my plan and will use this shop cabinet for the trial installation. It is
30" wide, but it will work for the test, I think.
I am using an adjustable square that I have added the 1 1/2" to. The
Downdrafter assembly is heavy, so I am temporarily mounting this ledger board.
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The kit includes four large
1" screws. I am pre-drilling for them and then using a nut driver to secure them. The
unit has many holes to use and more screws can be added, but I think the four give
adequate security.
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The end is near. I am
tightening the last of 4 bolts to secure the airflow outlet. The arrows point to two large
keys that are molded into the black piece.
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I am
attaching the 4" hose that is included. It is a heavy duty one that will take the
little back and forth action well. At this point, I am just using a quick connect.
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You can see those keyways better here.
They are large and have a great grip on the hood.
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Yep, that is the same picture that I used
at the top of this story. The dust flow is about 90% into the hood. The flow is from two
sources: 1) from the blade directly through the fence and 2) from the chute where the dust
bag was fastened. If I can extend that chute by an inch or so, I think I will be
able to get close to 100% of the dust captured.
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Now that I have
positioned the saw so that it "fits" the Downdrafter well and can swing both
directions fully, I can take measurements. I will need 26" from the front side of
fence to the back wall and 30 inches from right to left. The 52" back assembly will
have to be replaced. Thankfully the manufacture also has a 30" section. I think that
will be perfect. I also estimate that it will take me about 8 minutes to install it. After
3 hours of making every possible wrong move, I am now an expert.
As to how I feel about the Downdrafter. I like it. It may seem hard to spend
$300* on any "accessory", but our health is priceless.
* This price includes free shipping in U.S.
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