[Mischief]

I am wondering, do people who don't use power carving use dust collectors? I have been getting "stuffy nose" lately but don't know if its the pregnancy thing or just the coming of spring.
I see 2 designs for homemade dust collector from the WCI Collector's set and have been thinking I should make one if that is the case.
But before I start I was just wondering if any of you non power carvers have dust collectors too. Do whittlers create dangerous wood dust of some form too?

[Bobla76]

I may cut a block of wood to a rough size or to an outline to get rid of the waste. Also I have found that during the finishing process certain parts of the carving "may" get some "light" sanding. all in all it's surprising just how much dust we breathe in.
Bobla76

[A Willburger]

I have a room in the basement were I carve and I use a large dust collector because I have a belt sander and band saw. I don't use the dust collector when I'm hand sanding my carving but I do wear a mask and suck up the wood dust with a shop vac. When I lived in an apartment I went on the balcony to sand. If you don't sand or your carvings I don't see the need to have a dust collector.
Andy

[Jim-Iowa]

I think if your working with a knife and chisels you won't need a dust collector. Since wood dust is bad for ones health one should take precautions.
However sanding does generate a lot of dust. Jo and I do work a lot with Western Red Cedar and she uses many exotic wood varieties in her Intarsia projects which can be caustic, so we had to take some steps to control dust. There are some simple home remides that you can use that are relatively inexpensive. While I have a small dust collector in my shop and a couple shop vacs. The shop vacs are a relatively inexpensive way to control dust, their biggest disadvantage is "noise". They can be put in an insulated box to muffle them(plenty big so it won't overheat) or I have seen improvised mufflers for the outlet side that help. I also have a cheap Box Fan with a furnace filter bungee corded to the intake side, it will help a lot and cost about $20.
I have a friend who even took a cardboard box duct taped in and wired up two computer fans with a filter over them to use his dremel in the back bedroom.

[Bonnot]

I have a dust collector hooked up to my power tools in the shop. I do not power carve but if I did I most certenly would use a dust collector. I do not use a dust collector for carving with hand tools and do not see the need. By in large the particals are far too large to be a hazard.

John

[Bobla76]

To Jim-Iowa
I have been doing work with various types of cedar also lately and I've noticed that the dust from cedar kicks up my allergies worse than bass or pine. Does it bother you that way?
But heck it's all fun!

[Jim-Iowa]

Originally Posted by Bobla76

To Jim-Iowa
I have been doing work with various types of cedar also lately and I've noticed that the dust from cedar kicks up my allergies worse than bass or pine. Does it bother you that way?
But heck it's all fun!

Yes it plugs up my sinus cavities. Even more so since last July I almost kicked,with what they diagnosed as Idiopathic(means they have no clue what caused it ) Conjestive Heart Failure. I am much better now and while I still take medications and watch my diet, I am told my heart is back to normal.
Jo is into Intarsia and we shaped all the small parts with a flexshaft Dremel and a 1 X72 Belt Grinder. I like working Cedar, it works easily, and smells good. It's a little hard to work with a knife because it splits easily but machines nicely. You have to watch your grain closely to not bust off details. It also finishes up nicely with natural finishes(it's just plain pretty in my opinion).
While I have a shop full of pine scrap(from other projects), I don't like carving construction grade scraps. The hard /soft transitions make it hard to carve.
I have machine carved Poplar and while it can be done it Fuzzes badly.
Basswood is far better for knife work but only available from specialty suppliers.
I work about 10 minutes from the Woodsmith Store ("Toy Store" They publish the Woodsmith magazine )in Des Moines and can get it there. However Since they have the finest of every tool you could imagine, I try to stay out of there. "My Wants List" can peg out my Credit limit in 2.5 seconds!

[Bobla76]

to Jim-Iowa
Love your sense of humor! I know what you mean about that type of store. The managers tend to complain about me drooling over everything-afraid of rust I guess. Take care of that ticker. I would like to keep good folks like you around for a long while.

[Just Carving]

A simple way to determine if your carving is affecting you--pick up a dust mask that would be sufficient to wear while sanding wood. If you continue to have problems, than it isn't the wood carving. If you stop having problems, then you need to determine what is bothering you, i.e. wood--which one, or is it something else, i.e. allergens such as grass, trees, dust, dust mites, mold, cats, dogs. Another thing to keep in mind is allergies are cumulative. If you have several slight allergies, and they are all active at the same time, then you will react accordingly as if you have one bad allergy. Your body will react to allergies just as if you have a virus in your body--the immune system is trying to get rid of or neutralize the offending agent(s) just like it does with a cold--hence, runny nose, teary eyes, itchy throat, cough, etc.

A dust mask is probably the cheapest and quickest way to help yourself. It's a nuisance, sometimes uncomfortable, but I find after wearing it a bit, you forget that you have it on. I don't not buy the white ones that you see in the hardware store, paint stores, etc. I use the same ones that emergency care providers use. The filtering is greater so I will get less fine dust coming in, and the fit is a little better. Also, they're effective against mold and pollen. Initally, that's why I bought them--doing yard work, cutting the grass, etc. They're a little more expensive but they're worth it.

I forget the name of it but there is a mask that carvers wear. It's effective, washable/reusable, and comfortable. It believe it's got "bee" in it's name Maybe somebody can fill the rest of the info. in.

Bob L

[jae]

A simple solution I have used is a bathroom exhaust fan with a 5 gallon shop vac filter on it. Not much noise or power drain. Should add that I wear a half face resperator as well, but only when actually running saws or carving. Leave the bath fan running at all times as their is always dust about that gets sturred up as you move around.

Hope this helps


jae