Cutting large mdf sheets

[ziggy1979]

Guys thanks again for your replies.

I think m with the bosch on the cirular saws as i can get a rail for 20£ and its got more power at the same price than the same sized DeWalt and Makita. (its corded not battery powered).

On the dust extraction front - is the numatic capable of being conected to power tools and to what extent can i expect dust reduction by doing so? I've seen the Earlex in Screwfix. Is it any good? It just seems a lot cheaper than anything else I've seen and you know how you usually get what you pay for ... ?

Ideally I would want virtually no dust to remain when i use a router, circular saw, etc. Is this feasible with Numatics, Karcher, Earlex or not really?

Thanks again guys!

 

[Symptoms]

ziggy - you wrote "... virtually no dust to remain". Not possible unless you're using top quality dust extraction system, not something that's essentially a vacuum cleaner. These cheapo solutions are fine for DIY. Check-out www.axminster.co.uk for extractor adapters, etc., for vacuum cleaners.

 

[ziggy1979]

Hi Symptoms

We have a Henry that we use around the house. If I bought a stepped hose reducer (http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Axminster-Stepped-Hose-Reducer-208855.htm) and used this to connect the router, circ saw, table saw etc to Henry, what could I expect in terms of dust reduction?

ALso, is there a "better Henry" that I could buy that would reduce the amount of dust further?

With regards to "dust extractors", whats the least i would need to spend to see a significant difference to what Henry + Stepped Hose Reducer would achieve?

Thanks a lot (again) for all your help!!

 

[xerxes]

The Henry is too small, I think, for use as a tool dust extractor. I find one of its much larger Numatic brothers good for workshop use. For working around the house with portable tools I use a Fein Dustex with power take off. I see they've gone up in price: they used to be very good value.

Because of the large capacity, they get heavy when full. The top handle (on the model I have, anyway) is smooth on top and an open grid underneath, just where your hand is supporting the weight. The bags and filters are a bit expensive. Otherwise, I've found it excellent.

 

[Symptoms]

ziggy - give your Henry a go and seen how he performs; my experience with his bigger twin bro (NRV200 - same rating) is good. Get plenty of dust bags, these are cheap enough if bought in 10 packs and regularly beat the filter clean and swap the bag (don't wait 'till they're full!).

Effective dust extraction involves take-off points on things like guards & shrouds which is why you'll get limited collection on a hand-held circular saw (it tends to throw dust/chipping off the blade into the guard and then the stuff is sucked out). However, you can't effectively collect the dust/chippings at the point of cutting 'cos these will chucked sideways and some of this will become airbourne. In my experience routers are easier to deal with as the action tends to be in a tighter location, and if the correct dust collector/spout is fitted, vacuum cleaner extraction works well. Some routers are supplied with these collectors/spouts, others aren't. These things clip in place; I have an ELU177E and had to buy mine, also it doesn't clip-in but is held by a couple of screws. So if you're going to get a router make sure it has one of these.

 

[ziggy1979]

Xerxes, Symptoms thanks again.

I have a DeWalt router (little one which i think brought the extraction bit) so will try with Henry and see how that goes. If its working well, should I expect some, a fair bit or most of the dust to get collected?

My Jigsaw and table saw also have dust extraction tubes. Will these suffer from the same issues as the circular saw that you described, Symptoms, or will /should these perfrom any better than the circular saw?

Oh I also have a Makita palm sander which makes a mess! Are dust extractors generally useful with these and, if so, can I expect Henry to reduce the dust here too?

Thanks again guys!

Lets hope Henry does the job (it'll save me a great few pennies!!!)