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Your SS can be a downdraft sanding table
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 12:15 pm
by mindpilot
Yet another function I discovered my SS can perform!
I replaced the throat plate with the dust extractor fixture for the drum sander and cut a piece of Contact brand non-slip shelf covering to fit the table. (It is the basically the same stuff as the router mats, but about a tenth of the price.) Connect the dust extractor and volia! a nice way to control the dust when hand-sanding plus it gives you a flat surface that won't mar your piece.
Sanding Table Great Idea
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 2:48 pm
by fjimp
Mindpilot,
Thanks for a terrific idea. I can't wait to try it. fjimp:D
Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 7:14 pm
by john
Having just recently joined the forum, I am going through all of the previous posts and find this very interesting. I have been thinking about making a downdraft box for hand sanding but I think I will try this first. Maybe it will save me the trouble.
Thanks for the tip.
John
Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 9:51 pm
by charlese
mindpilot wrote:Yet another function I discovered my SS can perform!
I replaced the throat plate with the dust extractor fixture for the drum sander
Great Idea!!! Is the dust extractor fixture for the drum sander different than the lower saw guard?
Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 12:27 am
by paulmcohen
Yes, it is a throat plate with a hole in it and a connection to a shop vacuum.
Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 8:41 pm
by john
I just tried this today and found it worked quite well considering the small hole that is causing the downdraft. Besides picking up dust as you sand, running the piece (if it small enough) over the hole cleans off the piece quite nicely. If I had one suggestion it would be to support the main table with the fixed extension table and tubes connecting them to reduce pressure on the main table. I didn't do this but will the next time as I tend to apply a lot of pressure to my sanding block.
If nothing else, this trial really showed the benefit of a downdraft system to reduce sawdust as you sand.
John
Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 9:05 pm
by charlese
paulmcohen wrote:Yes, it is a throat plate with a hole in it and a connection to a shop vacuum.
Thanks! I mis-read your "Thread Starter". When you said "the dust collector attachment for the drum sander" - - my mind stopped working at the word attachment. So I immediately thought of the "Disk Sander Dust Chute. Since this part is intended only for models earlier than 505"s - I wondered how it fit on your 520. Duhh!!
O.K. now I will try this sanding dust collection idea with my "Drum Sander Table Insert".
Thank you for your very good inovation, and for passing it along!!:)