MY DUST SYSTEM... VERY EFFICIENT

[cncworld]

Hi all... I am new to ShopBot, but not to the cnc world.... Years ago, with my first desktop cnc system I retofitted a dust collection boot that worked well with a shopvac. With most machining it is very efficient. ShopBot however presented new challenges, I did finally come with with a design that was easy to install, using existing thread holes (see pictures).

Russ

[cncworld]

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[phil_o]

Interesting, what is the shoe made of?

[cncworld]

Hi Phil..... it is a poly type of material, like nylon.... Easy to machine, and very durable, I also use it to make signs, the last picture shows it being cut. You also may notice, unlike the ShopBot, the shoe doesn't ride up and down with the z axis movement. It is adjusted to the top of the material, it will in most cases pick up most of the dust/debris......

[phil_o]

Then the shoe is rigid. Is there a flexible material such as a brush or soft plastic on the underside? If there are clamps holding down the material, how does the shoe ride over the clamp?

[cncworld]

Hi again.... there are no brushes of any type, brushes leak air, therefore making the dust collection inefficient. One sets the vacuum shoe just above the material. As far as "clamps", I do not use them. I use either double-sided tape or a hold-down vacuum system (I will post this at another time) to hold the material in place. I know this is different than what you have seen, but I used this type of system for many years and it works very well. Also one can use the shoe to ride on top of the material being cut to act as an anti-vibration while cutting, if chooses to do so.

[rb99]

I really like the way you made it...really nice work. I like the way the hose is attached as well as the height adjusted. Well done.

Is the material foam injected PVC?

If one was cutting small intricate pieces, my experience tells me a piece might get caught on the foot and break off? Not so much of a concern with 2d if you vacuum can hold all the little cut pieces.

I would like to make my holder as nice as yours but use a brush arrangement as well. I would also like the foot to be clear so I can see what is happening through it. Do you have an extra one for sale? I would like the height mechanism and the hose clamp and a piece for a model so I could cut it out of plexi or lexan. Please email me if you are interested rbouchard at storm.ca (at to @)

Cheers,

RB

[cncworld]

Thanks..... When I received my Shopbot, the dust shoe that was provided didn't pickup as well as I would have liked. It also required a bigger dust collection system than what I wanted to invest in.

Before the Shopbot, I used a desktop cnc manufactured by Crafter and Sons, this is when I made my first dust pickup shoe. The dust-shoe has replaceable top and bottom inserts to protect it from damage or to use different attachments, such as a brush and different skid plates.

The dust-shoe for the Shopbot was much harder to design, due to the way I had to attach it to the machine (only could use one side of the "Z" axis). But after a week of design work, I finally had the solution. One only needs a heavy duty shopvac, which provides more than enought vacuum for this type of design.

The shoe is made of "Colorcore" material, which is a thermopoly plastic, or nyon. Easy to machine, and durable. The metal brackets are made of aluminum. As far as small pieces getting loose while cutting, one can set the shoe above the work piece being cut and still get good dust pickup. The shoe assemble is flexiable enough if material being cut would get lodged and this is one of the reasons for the replaceable top and bottom rings.

[mjindustry]

Man I wish I were talented enough to make something like this!