Thien vs. the Super Dust Deputy

[bleedinblue]

It's what he calls the medium, with 4 inch inlets/outlets.

[bleedinblue]

This is what I came up with, I finished it a few weeks ago and have used it a little bit.

I think it was a mistake not going with the SDD.  This other cyclone seems to clog too much near the bottom, where the bulk of the chips should fall into the collection bin.  The bottom of this one is 4", I *think* the SDD is 5".  That extra inch would make a big difference I think.  I'm not sure what I can do to help this.

I also need to do a check for leaks.  Even now that I know there are no clogs, suction seems to be down from when I first got it out together.  I think maybe a leak developed.

At the end of the day I have around $650 invested in this thing I think.  I'd have been better off buying an off the shelf package from Grizzly or Penn State.  

[Just Bob]

39 minutes ago, bleedinblue said:

At the end of the day I have around $650 invested in this thing I think.  I'd have been better off buying an off the shelf package from Grizzly or Penn State

And that is the rub with these DCs.  I bought mine about 10yrs ago when I was in a small 1 car garage and did not have the space for anything bigger/better.  Over the years I have tried just about every mod known to man, always resisting buying something better.  I would hate to figure out the money/time I have in what started as a $149.00 purchase.  As it stands now it works pretty well but that is after adding a SDD and changing the impeller and exhausting outside.  Now I am just waiting for the thing just give up the ghost....

[Coop]

@bleedinblue, are you getting any dust/chips in the plastic bag? If so, what ratio do you think to the fiber drum? 

[bleedinblue]

2 minutes ago, K Cooper said:

@bleedinblue, are you getting any dust/chips in the plastic bag? If so, what ratio do you think to the fiber drum? 

Definitely quite a bit in the bag, but I think most, if not all, happened when the cyclone was clogged.  It's probably a 80/20 split, which isn't good at all, but I think it separates well when not clogged.  

[Coop]

Does your filter attach using turnbuckles? The reason for asking, mine does and they were bending the metal on whatever it is you call it, that it rests on, and did not provide a tight seal. Someone on here, and I need to find him to thank him, discovered that it needs a tight seal to work correctly. I removed mine (turnbuckles/eye hooks), and have a ratchet strap across the top of the filter down to the, again, whatever you call the green resting place, and the seal is better and I get less residue in the plastic bag, thus less gets to the filter. 

[bleedinblue]

3 minutes ago, K Cooper said:

Does your filter attach using turnbuckles? The reason for asking, mine does and they were bending the metal on whatever it is you call it, that it rests on, and did not provide a tight seal. Someone on here, and I need to find him to thank him, discovered that it needs a tight seal to work correctly. I removed mine (turnbuckles/eye hooks), and have a ratchet strap across the top of the filter down to the, again, whatever you call the green resting place, and the seal is better and I get less residue in the plastic bag, thus less gets to the filter. 

Yup, I used the supplied turnbuckles.  I'll throw a strap over it for sure, thanks for the tip.

[bleedinblue]

I found a plastic bag and strip of paper that was blocking the top of the cyclone at the inlet for the motor.  Clearly the cause of the drop in suction.  It wasn't easy to clear but once I did the suction is back up.  

[bleedinblue]

11 minutes ago, WoodNDust said:

That looks like a descent cyclone from the picture.  How did this end up working out for you?  Do you recommend this cyclone?

It works pretty well, but I'd suggest the Super Dust Deputy instead.  I get very good separation with this cyclone, however the bottom is only 4".  The SDD is 5".  Mine tends to clog fairly easily with heavy use and I think the extra inch in diameter would help prevent that.

[bleedinblue]

I bet his big cyclone would work fantastic if you have room for it.

[Eric.]

Sorry I didn't chime in on this thread earlier, Frank.  I have an almost identical system to yours - minus the filter because I vent outside.  I use the SDD on probably the same Griz DC unit you have and it does a great job...never clogs.  (The entire system is inferior for fine dust collection but that's a separate issue.)  Wish I could have urged you to buy the SDD to possibly save you some grief.  I imagine the physics of the unit you bought are fairly similar to the SDD, but I do think the 5" inlet and outlet are probably preferable.

If there's any way you can vent outside, I highly recommend that.  Not only does it make cleanup and maintenance much easier, it also increases efficiency pretty significantly, especially during times that your filter is due for a cleaning...which is basically always.

[bleedinblue]

No worries.   At the end of the day this is just a bandaid solution anyway until we either move and I get my shop out of the basement, or I con the wife into letting me get a real DC.

This cyclone has actually worked very well since my first clog issues.  Id still have chose the SDD,  but this is perfectly workable.

Exhausting outside isn't an option unfortunately.  There are just too many obstacles to overcome to make that happen.