Shopsmith Forums

Quick question, I picked up a DC 3300 for $50 yesterday .. it's in mint condition, question I have is about the two inlet ports beside the hose inlet. Are they both supposed to have stoppers in them when it's operating? I was pretty sure when I bought it that both had stoppers in them but now I only have one...
Thanks

oscarthefuzz wrote:Quick question, I picked up a DC 3300 for $50 yesterday .. it's in mint condition, question I have is about the two inlet ports beside the hose inlet. Are they both supposed to have stoppers in them when it's operating? I was pretty sure when I bought it that both had stoppers in them but now I only have one...
Thanks

That's a terrific buy. Take your savings and invest in the 42 inch filter hood, which will get you to 1 micron filtration, which is better for your lungs and will reduce the amount of dust you will see around the shop after using the DC3300.

To answer your question, all three inlet ports are meant to be (can be) used as hose inlets. This allows the use of multiple hoses at the same time. If only using a single hose, the "stoppers" are designed to close off the inlets not in use. The DC3300 should have two such "stoppers." If you are missing one, it isn't a big deal as some have reported more efficient air flow and better dust collection by deliberately leaving one of the "stoppers" out while using a single hose. I don't see how this can be since it would seem that it would reduce the air flow through the hose, but I do not understand the physics of dust collection. If you need the part I think you need both part no 514824 (2.5 inch plug) ($4.36) and part no 514928 (reducer cap) ($1.29).

Yeha I tihnk you're right on the money there anyway, that was what i thought but it was stilling pulling pretty good without the second stopper .. I'll probably just turn one if I can't find it..
thanks for the info

oscarthefuzz wrote:Quick question, I picked up a DC 3300 for $50 yesterday .. it's in mint condition, question I have is about the two inlet ports beside the hose inlet. Are they both supposed to have stoppers in them when it's operating? I was pretty sure when I bought it that both had stoppers in them but now I only have one...
Thanks

Yep....should have 2. Mine does, at least. Just got thru giving it a workout with the thickness planer...

I run with one stopper, a hose to the Mark V and a 2nd hose to either the belt sander or the router table. Since the belt sander and router table lines do not have blast gates, I effectively run with only one stopper.

I purchased three dust gates from Shopsmith. I always have one gate fully open and a second 1/2 to 3/4 open. The DC3300 pulls much better with this arrangement. I second the suggestion to purchase the 1 Micron bag. These two changes increase the effectiveness of the machine greatly. Jim

fjimp wrote:I purchased three dust gates from Shopsmith. I always have one gate fully open and a second 1/2 to 3/4 open. The DC3300 pulls much better with this arrangement. I second the suggestion to purchase the 1 Micron bag. These two changes increase the effectiveness of the machine greatly. Jim

You are working in a closed shop, Jim. I understand the claim of better performance in that environment. What advantage would the 1 Micron Bag have over the others if it was sitting in an open garage door like in my shop.

I hardly ever work in the shop with the door closed. Thus, I would describe my shop as being open air.

dusty wrote:You are working in a closed shop, Jim. I understand the claim of better performance in that environment. What advantage would the 1 Micron Bag have over the others if it was sitting in an open garage door like in my shop.

I hardly ever work in the shop with the door closed. Thus, I would describe my shop as being open air.

You are correct Dusty I have no means of comparison. I have used the dust collector only in a closed shop. The only comment I can offer is two fold. Both offered from a person who suffers from Asthma. First I began with the short bag. I always felt it did a poor job of collecting or pulling dust into the lower collection bag. Secondly airborne dust in my CLOSED shop area left a lot to be desired. As soon as we switched to the larger bag it seemed that the amount of matter collected increased dramatically. Both sawdust and airborne matter diminished. I have always wondered if someone given the appropriate means of measurement in a controlled manner might prove what we found visually. The other comment I would offer was a recent experience when I backed the truck to my garage door and slid full sheets of plywood onto my cutting table to reduce the full sheets to manageable sizes for a box assembly. I was sick for days after breathing all of that sawdust for less than an hour without dust collection. I figured with the big door open sawdust would not be an issue. Next time I will roll the dust collector into the garage. Oh I hated the clean up from that mess. The airborne dust hung around and settled on our cars well into the next day. Jim

1 Micron bag would be nice of course .. so would an intermediate collector but ordering stuff from Shopsmith to Canada is a no go so it will have to wait a while and check some local places. I also operate an open shop but had no dust collection at all really so it's a definite improvement!

Incidentally I found the other stopper but can anyone explain the science behind why one inlet being left open would increase the air flow?? I don't get it...