Contractor saw dust collection


bleedinblue

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Thinking about dust collectors has sent me into the Bill Pentz rabbit hole, believing I'm poisoning my family, and examining my biggest dust creators.

My TS is one of the first Ridgid produced.  It's a typical contractor saw and it's a fairly decent saw, but of course it has zero features for dust collection.

I know people have built dust shrouds and enclosures for the base, so that's a possibility.  My real question though, is how effective these shop built add-ons are.  It doesn't seem to me like anything I build, even if using a sizable dust collector, will be sufficient to capture the bulk of the dust.

Anyone build anything for their contractor saw that actually worked well?  I could upgrade my TS to a hybrid Grizzly or something similar, but it would probably mean selling my Domino for it.

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I had a Ridgid TS2424. There was a plastic funnel that mounted to the base and had a 2 1/2" fitting for the Shopvac. It got some dust and debris, but the design of the saw with the motor mounted out in space, left much open area for dust and wood chips to escape. Without sealing off most open areas, I don't think you will get good results.......

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Thinking about dust collectors has sent me into the Bill Pentz rabbit hole, believing I'm poisoning my family, and examining my biggest dust creators.

My TS is one of the first Ridgid produced.  It's a typical contractor saw and it's a fairly decent saw, but of course it has zero features for dust collection.

I know people have built dust shrouds and enclosures for the base, so that's a possibility.  My real question though, is how effective these shop built add-ons are.  It doesn't seem to me like anything I build, even if using a sizable dust collector, will be sufficient to capture the bulk of the dust.

Anyone build anything for their contractor saw that actually worked well?  I could upgrade my TS to a hybrid Grizzly or something similar, but it would probably mean selling my Domino for it.

FWW mag had a good article about TS dust collection improvements. They took a hybrid saw, dispensed with the plastic shroud underneath the blade and enclosed the base and motor as one.

I don't have the issue handy but you may find something on their site.

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As I feared, I think the only safe solution is to upgrade the saw.  I had hoped my next saw would be a Sawstop, but since Eric is talking me into a DC system about 5X what I expected to spend, that's not happening, even with selling the Domino, lol.

Can anyone speak to the dust collection of the Griz 0715P? (Model number off memory)

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If you have the nice DC that Eric is talking about, the 715 does a really nice job with DC.  I have a less than desirable DC system right now so, I have to open the bin on the 715 every couple months and pull out a large pile..  My situation will soon be fixed tho.

I have no regrets with my 715!

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What DC do you currently have? I didn't find my contractor saw lacking below the blade. I had a 6" port about 3-4" below the blade. Running 1000ish CFM to that location left zero dust below the blade. Too bad I didn't have above the blade collection back then. My cabinet saw has a 6" port about 18-20" from the blade, but it also leaves zero dust below the blade. My point is you need to move air. I have a 3hp cyclone with 7" spiral duct, and I hate to say that is the minimum for decent to good dust collection. I had the modded 1.5hp collector, and it just didn't move the necessary air. I know it sucks starting out, but if you are in a basement you need to make dust mitigation a very high priority. Good dust collector, efficient ductwork, air cleaner, and clean air. Between the dust and the VOCs off finishes, it's nothing to take lightly in a living space. 

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Got the green light from the wife for the 0715 and she even said to keep the Domino, and as luck would have it, the 715 is out of stock at the Missouri location.  Figures. 

Any other comparable saws that I should look at while I wait for them to get back in stock?  I can't think of any other hybrid/cabinet saws for under a grand.  A riving knife is a must have.

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Does the grizzly have a blade shroud below the table? If so, it will be an improvement with the shopvac over your current contractor saw; however, the grizzly 715 with no DC is going to suck just slightly less than the contractor saw with no DC. You are going about this the wrong way. Your dust collection sucks, because of your non-existent collector. You can have the OF2200, 150/5, TS55, and whatever other festool goodie and they all have poor DC without an extractor.

 

$925 is a lot of money to improperly spend. If you think the 715 is a much better performing saw than what you currently have, then that's one thing. If you think the 715 will solve all your dust problems, then I think you are dead wrong. I would consider dedicating those funds to DC, or rethink your workflow and go the all festool route with an ambient air cleaner. I work in a basement, and the thought of having to stop when I have kids has crossed my mind more than once. Heck, I feel immense guilt at times when I think about how much I exposed myself and my fiancé to for the 8 months I had poor DC with a shopvac and modded 1.5hp DC with wynn and thein baffle. If I could spend $5-6,000 and magically make my basement 100% dust free, then I would send back my PM209hh and Laguna LT20 right this second to go back to a crappy 14" jet and dewalt 735. That is my 2 cents though. DC in a basement shouldn't be 3rd, 4th or 5th on the priority list.

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Don't get me wrong, an upgraded TS isn't meant to solve my dust issues or stand in place of a dust collector.  It's more to prepare for a dust collector, which I will add soon.

The 715 will be an overall upgrade, bigger motor, better fence, a riving knife, etc.

Perhaps TIODS can say if there is a shroud in the 715.

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I have a sawstop 3hp saw hooked up to a harbor freight dc. Below the blade there is no dust. I have zero above the blade dust collection so above the blade I get lots of dust. I am 100% certain this will be true with any dust collector I care to install so long as I don't install an overarm shroud.  Keep in mind your new saw will have a similar problem and budget accordingly.

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2 hours ago, Pwk5017 said:

 however, the grizzly 715 with no DC is going to suck just slightly less than the contractor saw with no DC. You are going about this the wrong way. Your dust collection sucks, because of your non-existent collector.

Frankly, they all suck just as bad without DC!

No shroud below the blade.

I'm currently running a Grizzly 1 1/2 HP DC with a less that optimum hose run.  It's just temporary as I'll be ordering new DC soon.

Either wait for the back order or keep looking for a different saw.  I will say that there's probably a reason it's on back order.  I bought it instead of a PM and had the money for the PM.  Never regretted the purchase. 

If you have to sell everything and mortgage your first born to get the Sawstop, something's wrong! 

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17 hours ago, TIODS said:

  I will say that there's probably a reason it's on back order.  I bought it instead of a PM and had the money for the PM.  Never regretted the purchase.

No doubt.  I can't find anything similar for under $1000.  I'm worried about the blade alignment issues, but as long as that's not a problem the saw will do me just fine.

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5 hours ago, bleedinblue said:

No doubt.  I can't find anything similar for under $1000.  I'm worried about the blade alignment issues, but as long as that's not a problem the saw will do me just fine.

Mine was spot on when I brought it in the shop!

There was one person here that bought one that had some issues with something on the saw that I don't recall.

 

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5 hours ago, TIODS said:

Mine was spot on when I brought it in the shop!

There was one person here that bought one that had some issues with something on the saw that I don't recall.

 

The only real problem I've read anyone having was the back of the blade shifting when being raised or lowered.  Jay Bates, and a handful of other reviewers, had to return their saws due to it.  Everyone else praises it's accuracy out of the box.

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I have one local so, that makes things a little easier for me to pick up and return..  I had an issue with them when I upgraded my fence as they were out of stock and didn't know when it would be available.  They found one in another show room, had it packaged and sent to me free of charge and gave me a "display model" discount..  Took a few extra days but, they went the extra distance to keep me happy.

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They ship too quickly!  Most of my order is on the UPS truck for delivery today, and the freight says "estimated delivery (today)" but they haven't called to schedule.  I'm gone from 10 AM - 930 PM.  The babysitter will be here, but I don't want the saw to sit at the curb until 10, then have to wrestle to get the saw through the yard and in the basement in the dark.

Very impressive shipping times though!

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1 hour ago, bleedinblue said:

They ship too quickly!  Most of my order is on the UPS truck for delivery today, and the freight says "estimated delivery (today)" but they haven't called to schedule.  I'm gone from 10 AM - 930 PM.  The babysitter will be here, but I don't want the saw to sit at the curb until 10, then have to wrestle to get the saw through the yard and in the basement in the dark.

Very impressive shipping times though!

Honestly Grizzly's shipping is what permanently turned me off to them.  Most folks have had a good experience with Grizzly customer service but mine was horrendous.  Their shipper (SAIA) missed 3 delivery windows, each time I took a half day off work and they either showed up an hour before or an hour after their window.  I was somewhat sympathetic because I lived in a dense urban area and the last 5 miles from the highway can be an hour drive.    They sent it back to the factory and grizzly tried to charge me for a re-delivery fee.  Even after I explained the situation they said it was my fault for not being there. Eventually they agreed to redeliver but it was far more painful than it should have been.  

They were such a PITA about it I decided to never do business with them again.  I hope your experience is better.  UPS is easier to deal with than a freight shipper like SAIA.  

 

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Not that anyone but me was concerned, but I got a call from them this afternoon.  They wanted to deliver it tomorrow, but I'm off on Monday and can be home to deal with it.  The mobile base and circuit breaker were delivered.  

I gotta say, I made this order at like 11 pm on Tuesday, part of it was delivered Thursday and they were ready to deliver the saw on Friday.  That's Amazon prime speed. 

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2 hours ago, bleedinblue said:

Not that anyone but me was concerned, but I got a call from them this afternoon.  They wanted to deliver it tomorrow, but I'm off on Monday and can be home to deal with it.  The mobile base and circuit breaker were delivered.  

I gotta say, I made this order at like 11 pm on Tuesday, part of it was delivered Thursday and they were ready to deliver the saw on Friday.  That's Amazon prime speed. 

It had to go all of what 300 miles? not trying to down play it but if they can't get that in a few days I'll loose faith in UPS.

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The scheduled delivery time for today was between 11-4.  They rolled up at 1120, and the guy even pushed it into the garage for me.  Zero damage, too.  Not too shabby.

Now getting the saw off the pallet (with the wooden platform still attached), then strapped to an undersized dolly and rolled through the yard to the basement, a HUGE PITA.  I actually lost it and "gently" laid it on its side when trying to walk it off the pallet.  It definitely would have been a good time to call a friend, but one of the reasons I like woodworking is because I like being alone.  Whatever, I got it done.

The Shop Fox mobile base was a pain too.  I'm not thrilled with the design, but it's done.  A foot operated base would have been much nicer.

Hopefully I get time tomorrow to finish the setup.  Then I gotta rebuild my outfeed table and a sled or four.

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