Swarf Magnet for the milling table slots and other small areas.

[jjr2001]

Oh, I like that Cyclone. I could use that in my shop...I use a combination now of the swarf magnets and the vacuum. There always seems to be a certain amount of stuff that the magnet won't pickup so both methods work. That cyclone seems like a great idea. Easier to find the small drill bits that get sucked up in the shop vac.

Cheers, JR

[tonyfoale]

Oh, I like that Cyclone. I could use that in my shop...I use a combination now of the swarf magnets and the vacuum. There always seems to be a certain amount of stuff that the magnet won't pickup so both methods work. That cyclone seems like a great idea. Easier to find the small drill bits that get sucked up in the shop vac.

Cheers, JR

Most of my swarf is aluminium so magnets are of little use to me. Although If I drop a drill bit or similar and can't find it I wave a stick with a magnet on the end under the lathe cabinet and I am always surprised at how much non-magnetic swarf gets caught up in the steel bits.

[olderdan]

Great idea Tony, it would be nice to separate the dust from the swarf but I never thought of a DIY version of a cyclone, I will have to look into that.
Thanks for posting.

[jjr2001]

Check this one out. Here are the plans to make one!

Homemade Cyclone Dust Collector - HomemadeTools.net

[tonyfoale]

Check this one out. Here are the plans to make one!

Homemade Cyclone Dust Collector - HomemadeTools.net

i would suggest that one is too small unless you produce very little mess. Little, if any, more work would be involved to make a larger one. There are heaps of examples on the net if you search. Some are made out of plastic traffic cones, others are all wood and some are made by rolling metal cones from sheet.
Mine was made from stuff that I had laying around and which involved minimum work. A metal water bucket and a few bits of chipboard. I mentioned that I had another one which I use with a smaller vac for the bead blaster, but that has the same size bucket. If the bucket is too small then you will get remixing of the debris which will transfer to the vac. My larger one produces so much suction that it pulls the gloves in and holds them stiff making it very hard to manipulate your hands, hence the need for the small one.

Click thumbnail for full size
Here is the bead blast vac and cyclone. A plastic flower pot was used as the cyclone. The parallel upward extension is to reduce the velocity of outward moving air, this allows for a bit more debris/air separation in that area.

[jjr2001]

Good point Tony, I have an extra 5 gallon HDPE container that is taller than the standard 5 gallon paint bucket.
Nice tapered sides with plenty of space for chips.

Cheers, JR

[tonyfoale]

Good point Tony, I have an extra 5 gallon HDPE container that is taller than the standard 5 gallon paint bucket.
Nice tapered sides with plenty of space for chips.

Cheers, JR

That sounds ideal. Height is good.

[DIYer]

Thanks jjr2001! We've added your Swarf Magnet to our Cleaning category,
as well as to your builder page: jjr2001's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Swarf Magnet by jjr2001

tags: magnet

[DIYer]

Thanks tonyfoale! We've added your Grinder Cover to our Grinding category,
as well as to your builder page: tonyfoale's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Grinder Cover by tonyfoale

tags: grinder, shop-vac, cleaner

[DIYer]

Thanks tonyfoale! We've added your Cyclone Dust Collector to our Cleaning category,
as well as to your builder page: tonyfoale's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Cyclone Dust Collector by tonyfoale

tags: shop-vac, dust collection