E-foam Sprayed Bandsaw
by Phil Colson
Woodturner
Note: click any picture to see a larger version.
I really don't like cleaning up my shop; it takes me away from turning. I dislike it so much, I have let shavings pile up under my feet until I was a good four inches taller.
I had vowed to myself that today was the day to clean up. It was going along fine until I opened the bottom door to the bandsaw. Starting to vacuum the dust from the nooks and crannies behind the wheel, a real pain in the A. What could I do to solve this problem?
Years ago I had installed a 4" dust port in the lower bandsaw door, but it never really worked that well. I had tried to close off the air gaps around the bandsaw to control the vacuum air flow, which didn't work. It would be great if I could reduce the physical space within the lower chamber, but how?
My first idea was to cut a piece of thin metal to cover the area behind the wheel. I could attach it with magnets, but what if it vibrated loose and destroyed the wheel and blade? Bad idea. I needed to fill the space behind the wheel. I thought through several scenarios until spray foam insulation came to me. Why not? I could take the blade and the lower wheel off and fill the cavity. The wheel wouldn't budge, so I sprayed the foam behind the wheel with the wheel still attached. The foam expanded more than I expected and stuck to the wheel. I turned the saw on but it wouldn't break loose. I used a serrated knife from the kitchen, don't tell my wife, to remove just enough foam so the wheel could turn.
I hooked the vacuum to the door and cut several bowl blanks and then turned the saw off and looked inside. No accumulation of dust! It really worked. Now I'm thinking about the rest of the mess, who knows how I will solve those problems.
PS. Check out "
Chainsaw faceting with Aaron Hammer
" on Youtube. A problem solver after my own heart.
Phil can be reached directly via email at
woodturnerphil@gmail.com
.
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