Dust/Chip Control...CNC Dust Enclosures

[Too_Many_Tools]

How have you handled dust and chip control with a DIY CNC router table?

Pictures of what you used and how you implemented it would be appreciated.

Thanks

TMT

[yukonho]

Here was my solution. Keeps the noise way down too.
Colin

[automizer]

thats really nice, do you have a hole that you can plug a shop vac in to? Or do you let it fill with dust and suck it all up once its all done? Nice little bench top by the way.

[yukonho]

I just let it run and vacuum it out after. There is LOTS of room for chips and dust to accumulate without getting in the way of the moving table. When I cut something really nasty like MDF or carbon fibre, I just let it sit for a few minutes to let the dust settle before I open it up.
Colin

[Walt@SGS.Inc]

Hey Too Many,
How about one of them central vacuum cleaners mounted in another room?
You could hook it up to the little woman's house and maybe you could get
some monies from the house budget..... Just thinking how to reduce the cost.
Regards Walt.
Piped in to the enclosure and running would help to clear the air.

[Too_Many_Tools]

Thanks for the responses so far.

I am surprised that more responses have not been made....every CNC machine makes chips and dust....so how is it handled?

TMT

[Hack]

I am using a little more conventional setup to help control dust. I purchased a mount for my Porter Cable 7518 router from K2CNC and it included a dust skirt and vacuum hook up. I attached my 600 cfm dust collector. It does an ok job. The dust skirt from K2CNC is only attached to 3 of the 4 sides with the 4th side shipped loose. They leave it up to you to figure out how to mount it. Once that is added, I think it will be much better.

Still is better than nothing.

Dan

[CNCRob]

My solution is almost like Hack's. It works pretty well. I am thinking of building a enclosure for my machine also. I was thinking of building one kinda like the one that was on K2's website, I cant seem to find it now( anyone know where it's at?). Here are a couple of photos of what I have now.

[automizer]

the dust skirt seems to be the most popular part for the job but I am not a fan I have used this on a few machines and dose a very poor job I do not have a machine I can tinker with yet to try my own ideas but I am wondering if there are any other ideas out there. I like the fully enclosed look but that just dosn't work for bigger machines

[ger21]

Originally Posted by automizer the dust skirt seems to be the most popular part for the job but I am not a fan I have used this on a few machines and dose a very poor job I do not have a machine I can tinker with yet to try my own ideas but I am wondering if there are any other ideas out there. I like the fully enclosed look but that just dosn't work for bigger machines

The dust skirts on our 10HP routers at work work very well. Provided that the brushes are long enough to reach the worksurface and totally enclose the cut. And you use at least a 1000 cfm dust collector. A small vacuum line like Rob's using just can't pull enough volume to be really effective, although I'm sure it's a LOT better than nothing at all. On our machine, even with long tools that keep the brushes off the work, the fine dust still gets picked up, and the larger chips fall to the floor. None, or very minimal airborne dust. But even a large dust collector won't get all the dust packed into the cut.

[CNCRob]

I think as Gerry pointed out the key is to try to keep the brushes touching the work. I made mine so that I could interchange serveral different length brushes depending on the lenth of the bit and thinkness of the material or depth of the cut. But I don't think anything will control dust as good as an enclosure.

[Too_Many_Tools]

Originally Posted by Too_Many_Tools How have you handled dust and chip control with a DIY CNC router table? Pictures of what you used and how you implemented it would be appreciated. Thanks TMT

Again thanks for the responses...so far.

Come guys....everyone is building CNC routers and no one is posting their enclosure pictures?

What do you do with the dust? Stand there and holding a vaccumm while the machine runs? LOL

In all seriousness...does anyone have a link to some good commercial enclosures for ideas....or a discussions of the different methods of building an enclosure.

Thanks

TMT