Sawstop Overarm Dust Collection. My version.

[azmetro]

I went to price Sawstops new overarm dust collection system for their contractor saw and thought that it was overpriced at ~$200.00 so I decided to go to Home Depot and use 1-1/4" EMT conduit and pool/spa vacuum hose to make my own. The asthetics of the arm came out better than expected. Total cost was in the $35-$40 range. The over/under dust collection works remarkably well.

[Lawrence Brown]

Nice

[PaulMarcel]

Very nice, indeed.

So, early pics of the SS PCS had an arm like the one they now sell (but that was over a year ago before it came out). I thought it was cool and wanted to make one, but only thought of PVC. I dismissed the idea because I thought it would get in the way of the router table. Actually, the SawStop version would be in the way, but they don't plan on someone putting a router table there.

Did you make a quick-disconnect near the router table to make it easier to remove when needing the router? It wouldn't be in the way for all operations, but I could see it being a nuisance when running long molding.

Definitely steal this idea muahahaha (if I can detach it )

[azmetro]

Very nice, indeed.

So, early pics of the SS PCS had an arm like the one they now sell (but that was over a year ago before it came out). I thought it was cool and wanted to make one, but only thought of PVC. I dismissed the idea because I thought it would get in the way of the router table. Actually, the SawStop version would be in the way, but they don't plan on someone putting a router table there.

Did you make a quick-disconnect near the router table to make it easier to remove when needing the router? It wouldn't be in the way for all operations, but I could see it being a nuisance when running long molding.

Definitely steal this idea muahahaha (if I can detach it )

I almost went with PVC conduit but did not like the way it looked plus I wanted to paint it gloss black to match the SS frame.

As far as the quick disconnects go I did indeed put in the lower one(arrow in pics) in to easily remove the system if I need to use a dado blade, router, through cuts etc.... I simply loosen 2 screws on the coupler and slide the upper assembly out and put it under the saw. The upper coupler is never removed however I did want to be able to break it down into small components if I ever move from this location. The middle coupler has the lower screws tightened fully and the upper ones snug just in case i needed to rotate it for whatever reason, that and I didn't feel like welding and grinding just for asthetics .

I figure I can probably use the router table with the arm intact about half the time but as you pointed out it would indeed be a nuissance if the ability to detach wasn't effortless.

I'm glad you found it useful, now I plan on imitating your dust box design!!!!

[PaulMarcel]

Thanks for the annotated pictures; that helps. I saw that coupler, but since I saw the screws, I wasn't sure how easily removed it would be. I'll have to go look for the couplers for that conduit. I walk by the conduit all the time at HD, but never installed it so I didn't pay much attention. Really like that design vs draping the hose I have over. It was a workaround one day that worked well enough I thought to improve it, but this is much better. I probably will get better collection, too, since the long hose I used is ribbed (yeah yeah... "for her pl...") and likely loses a lot of air.

Project for the weekend

[NYHump]

Nice flip table in the backround of pic #2, got plans?

[azmetro]

Nice flip table in the backround of pic #2, got plans?

No real plans just drew it up based off of many like it on the net. I used 4 sheets of 1/2" birch play for the table lined with maple and it contains a 1/2" thick steel rod(from Ace hardware) that is used to flip the table. I have it recessed into a Walnut "bearing" which is attached to maple strips which is screwed to the sides. I think the critical dimension is making sure the heights of the table to the top of the drawers is tall enough to allow for the flipping action of all the attached tools. I would be glad to take more detailed pictures if it helps. Here are a few that I found.

[jimmykx250]

Now that looks like a shop i could hang out in! Good use of space and nice saw!!!!

[Clay Baldwin]

What is the size of the conduit and do you get much sag in it over the blade? Do you think it would be rigid enough to maybe hold a Shark guard? I'm trying to get some type of blade guard and DC over the blade and this looks like a great idea for it. Thanks

[NYHump]

No real plans just drew it up based off of many like it on the net. I used 4 sheets of 1/2" birch play for the table lined with maple and it contains a 1/2" thick steel rod(from Ace hardware) that is used to flip the table. I have it recessed into a Walnut "bearing" which is attached to maple strips which is screwed to the sides. I think the critical dimension is making sure the heights of the table to the top of the drawers is tall enough to allow for the flipping action of all the attached tools. I would be glad to take more detailed pictures if it helps. Here are a few that I found.

Brian,

Outstanding!

This is exactly what I need! I have limited space and need to combine my planner and belt/disc sander into a flip like yours.

Did you double up the 1/2 birch for the sides and flip table? Dimensions would really help me to get started. I was looking at one on the WW forum, one guy had a 3 way flip but I'm not sure if I want to do that. This one really looks nice, any help you can give me would be appreciated.

Thanks,

NYHump

[azmetro]

Now that looks like a shop i could hang out in! Good use of space and nice saw!!!!

Thanks! I had to move the Chevelle to the girlfriends house though in order to get enough room to fit it all.........

[azmetro]

Brian,

Outstanding!

This is exactly what I need! I have limited space and need to combine my planner and belt/disc sander into a flip like yours.

Did you double up the 1/2 birch for the sides and flip table? Dimensions would really help me to get started. I was looking at one on the WW forum, one guy had a 3 way flip but I'm not sure if I want to do that. This one really looks nice, any help you can give me would be appreciated.

Thanks,

NYHump

The main case is 3/4" Baltic Birch with some cheapo HF locking casters for mobility. I edged the plywood with some cherry I had in the backyard. It was a first for me so as the pictures show, I have much to learn lol.

Case dimensions::

35" high(not including casters)

25.75" wide(including Cherry edging)

25" deep(including Cherry edging)

The drawers are 1/2" Baltic Birch with 1/4" drawer bottoms. I did not use any drawer stops so I can pull them out from either side. I attached walnut/cherry drawer fronts, again using what I had around la casa. I just made the drawers to fit in drawer spaces which were random.

Flip table was around 22"x22" of 3 pieces of baltic birch(thought it was 4 at first) with the middle piece cut to fit the 1/2" steel bar. I glued up the table and waxed the bar and sledged it through the 1/2"x1/2" hole centered in the table top. It took a bit of pounding the bar to get it through but the fit is tight which is what I wanted. I made the maple edge to fit the remainder space on the table top to leave a small gap on either side.

I used maple to help solidify the bar in the table and to have a good surface to screw threaded inserts into. It seems extremely stout as I stood on it no issue and im pushing 200lbs.

[azmetro]

What is the size of the conduit and do you get much sag in it over the blade? Do you think it would be rigid enough to maybe hold a Shark guard? I'm trying to get some type of blade guard and DC over the blade and this looks like a great idea for it. Thanks

It is the thinner walled EMT 1-1/4" conduit that has an outer diamter of 1.5". With all of the coupler's torqued it is very stable and has no sag in the arm what so ever. This is good as I was prepared to weld the 90deg bends to the straight pipes but did not need to do it as you can see.

I did limit the upper straight portion due to the fear that it may be too much weight for the coupled portions to keep straight as each coupler does induce a bit of play into the entire system.

Right now I have 2 5/16"x18 bolts holding the entire assembly to 1/4"x~2.5" angle iron that is part of the Sawstop T-Glide fence system. It works very well for the weight that is involved. I am not sure on the weight of the shark guard but if it needs to attach to the arm itself I would have designed it the same however would rethink the way it attaches as I wouldn't feel comfy with the tabs holding all the weight as it does now.

Hope this helps.

[Dyami Plotke]

I went to price Sawstops new overarm dust collection system for their contractor saw and thought that it was overpriced at ~$200.00 so I decided to go to Home Depot and use 1-1/4" EMT conduit and pool/spa vacuum hose to make my own. The asthetics of the arm came out better than expected. Total cost was in the $35-$40 range. The over/under dust collection works remarkably well.

Nice dust collection connection.

Do you find it collects as much as they say it does?

[azmetro]

Nice dust collection connection.

Do you find it collects as much as they say it does?

To me it works great without the top dust collection and greeaat with it. It is definately not worth the $200.00 SS is charging. But easily worth the $35-$45 I spent IMHO. I can say that after cutting 98 pieces of 48"x3" 3/4 MDF for a friend I was able to vacuum the residual dust on top of the table in about 4 seconds and below the table in about 6 seconds. Maybe enough dust to fill a 16oz cup. For a contractor saw I am extremely happy with all aspects of the machine... dust collection, accuracy, power.

By the way I am using a 610CFM portable dust collector and would expect better results with a bigger/better setup.

[Dyami Plotke]

Glad to hear it works like it's supposed to. I've got one on my " to buy" list, though it's probably 5ish years off.

[PaulMarcel]

So I went to Woodcraft today to get some DC fittings and noticed that they had the SawStop overarm DC attachment on their PCS. It's nice, rigid, etc. Unlike the pictures I saw of it online, the part of the arm that goes up was right at the end of the 30" fence whereas the pictures I saw it went much further out. If you have a router table in the extension wing, it would be in the way. Granted, if you had a hex wrench there, you could loosen the brackets and swing the arm down behind the saw very easily. So overall, it appears to be a pretty good accessory for the SawStop. I'm still gonna build Brian Q's version as it is cheaper and I think just as well built.

[Vic]

So I went to Woodcraft today to get some DC fittings and noticed that they had the SawStop overarm DC attachment on their PCS. It's nice, rigid, etc. Unlike the pictures I saw of it online, the part of the arm that goes up was right at the end of the 30" fence whereas the pictures I saw it went much further out. If you have a router table in the extension wing, it would be in the way. Granted, if you had a hex wrench there, you could loosen the brackets and swing the arm down behind the saw very easily. So overall, it appears to be a pretty good accessory for the SawStop. I'm still gonna build Brian Q's version as it is cheaper and I think just as well built.

Paul,

I have the same situation with my Excalibur overarm guard. It's why I haven't even considered installing my router lift in the side table.

[Danny Hellyar]

Brian,

Kudo's to you for your ingenuity. This is the best home made one I've ever seen. And I've been woodworking for well over 20 yrs. Thanks for sharing.

[kennyb@runnerduck.co]

That's very nice Brian, I believe I'll make one very similar.

What sort of blade guard are you using, I couldn't tell from the pictures.

Also I think a nice addition would be to add the ability to hook a vacuum line from the bend near the router to the router when the long tube is removed. I might add a gate at the bottom of the large vacuum line to route more vacuum to the router when used that way.

[PaulMarcel]

That's very nice Brian, I believe I'll make one very similar.

What sort of blad gard are you using, I couldn't tell from the pictures.

Also I think a nice addition would be to add the ability to hook a vacuum line from the bend near the router to the router when the long tube is removed. I might add a gate at the bottom of the large vacuum line to route more vacuum to the router when used that way.

I used Brian's design as inspiration for mine. I incorporated this DC line into the dust box for my router like you're talking about.

Lots of pictures and description here. I really love the setup. Get no dust unless I'm just trimming the outside edge of a board... if the cut is captured, it's pretty close to dust free.

[LarryG]

I found that the dust bag from my DeWALT miter saw fits snug on the dust collection blade guard. It's does the job and stays out of way. Spend $9 for the convenience of not having to swap between machines.

[John107]

Hi, I came across your ingenious idea for the sawstop over arm dust collection while doing a search. I'm using 1.5" flex water pipe but cannot find any elbows or pipe connectors foe the straight pipe. Can anyone help me?

Thanks,

John

[PaulMarcel]

The pipe is EMT and available in the electrical aisle of any big box store. The 90º curves are also available there. I used compression fittings to attach them together because I didn't want the screws sticking out of the regular connectors. If you look at my article about it (which includes a link to a video overview of the SawStop mods), you'll find the sizes of the parts and how the pivoting arm is done. Article here.

[John107]

Thanks for your response Paul. I checked yesterday at my Menards home center as well as The Home Depot and could not locate the connectors or elbows I needed for the black flex pipe that they sold. The black flex pipe was the only black pipe they sold. It was a little lighter than the grey electrical conduit they sell plus it was a little smaller in diameter on the the outside. I could find the pipe but then I couldn't find and connectors to fit that pipe that would work. Once you go with the black flex pipe which is mainly used for water connections, you then are stuck with using plumbing connections instead of electrical connections to join the pipe. Maybe I should have tried a plumbing supply house. I ended up going with the gray 1.5" electrical conduit which was just a little heavier and wider on the outside than the black pipe. I cemented the bottom straight pipe under the saw to the 90 degree elbow, I attached the other elbow to it but left the straight pipe on top of the saw without cementing it into the elbow so I can remove it if needed. The friction fit into the elbow appears to hold quite well. The 50mm Felder hose I placed around the 1.5" conduit fits well also. I just secured it with a keyed hose clamp. The other end fits great over the Felder blade guard that replaced my saw stop guard. All I had to do was unscrew the Sawstop guard from the riving knife and place the bolt from the Felder guard through the hole and tighten down. No extra parts needed. Lots of parts from the Sawstop guard left over though. I have now way of telling how you would put the sharp jagged edged splitter paws and springs all back together and reattach it to the guard again.

With having the Incra Fence system, I also had a very nice and easy way of mounting the PVC pipe underneath my saw. I purchased some 1.5' electrical conduit pipe holders. These are found in the electrical sections of the box stores and are used to attach the conduit to the walls. Since the Incra rails and fence are full of T-tracks, I just utilized the track underneath the back rail. I took the two T-nuts and bolts from the front and back rails that are used as stops on the left side of my table since I will never probably use the saw to the left of the blade anyway. I drilled the mounting hole on the conduit hanger a little larger so I could place my bolt through the hole. I then slid the T-nut with hanger down the track and tightened up. Bottom pipe is now mounted. Cemented the elbows connected dust collection pipe and done. I am now just waiting for my 4" to 2.5"dual port coupler to arrive to connect to the 4"port on saw and overarm hose to.

I did hook up the overarm hose to my shop vac for the time being and the suction is fantastic. With the felder blade guard, I can see better and the guard is a little narrower than the Sawstop so I can rip thinner strips with the guard still in place. Thank you everyone from WoodTalk Forum and SawMill Creek for sharing you ideas on the overarm dust collection. Please feel free to offer suggestions. I'm sure there is something I left out or didn't think of when I constructed this.

See photos below