Rotary Question

[RawhideArtist]

Okay all I have my new rotary tool and I am loving it but I have a question about rotary dust. I have only played with it a little and I am concerned that the dust may pose a problem? Does anyone have a recommendation or am I just being paranoid? Do the metal particles stay airborne? The one I have is the NSK that blows the particles away from the work surface. I just dont want to breathe them, should I just wear a dust mask, or should I invest in a cheap dust collector? I know Sam recommends rotary tools but have not seen any of his thoughts on the dust they put out?

 

[Old Gunsmith]

If you ae using any rotary tool or gringer/buffer you want dust collection. I have developed sinus problems over the years from dust, both wood and metal and I used a mask. What I have now is a couple of dust hoods from Foredom. One attaches to the front of the bench and sucks dust downward. It also has padded hand rests for working over it. Another one sits on the bench behind my small buffer with the wheels partially inside it. Both of these hook up to a shop vac or Foredoms dust colloctor. I have another one that has it's own filters that I use only for gold and silver work. What is neat about it is when the filter gets full, bag it and send it to Rio Grande and they will pay you for the metal that they recover from it. If you get any of these, buy from Foredom directly as there are a lot of Chinese knock offs for cheaper but the quality is not there plus no parts or customer service.

There are also a few plans on the net for building vacuum downdraft tables for dust collection.

One thing I have found in using rotary tools, is that the dust gets everywhere, even in places one would not expect and to be dealt with later. Also be sure that the tool throws or blows the debris away from you.

Hope this helps,

Dennis

 

[AllenClapp]

You have TWO issues with rotary tools. One is breathing the dust and the other is having the dust get on everything that you will later touch [in addition to your hands, sleeves, pants, etc. right now]. For the breathing issue, keep a mask handy. Store it outside up, so dust from other things will not settle inside it. Change to a new mask when you identify that grunge is building up on the outside. For the other issues, if you can do your grinding in front of an exhaust fan so that it draws particles away from you and your immediate work area, you can limit getting dust particles on yourself. If you have room, Chris Costa suggests getting a 20"x20" box fan, tape a HEPA filter to it, set it behind your grinding area, and let the fan take most of the dust away from you. You may even find you will not need a mask if the fan can be placed right. The issues are not limited to the dust from the metal being ground away. As your grinding tools wear away, you get some heavy metals in there as well. None of them are good for your lungs or ingestion. If room is available, some kind of exhaust fan system is a good addition to your grinding area.

 

[RawhideArtist]

Ok, thanks for the feedback. Def gonna get a dust mask and I found one of those fans used by nail techs for pulling nail dust with a filter I am going to set up directly behind my vice to see if that will pull the debris into the filter.