# Dust Collection and a Compound Miter Saw



## oldhudson49 (Feb 6, 2017)

My shop is pretty small so my older compound miter saw is mounted to a flip-top mobile work station. (There's a lunch box planer on the other side.) It had a dust collecting bag, that works, but dust is always wildly created when I use the saw.

I'm looking for ideas that would allow me to capture lots more dust but be small, light weight and portable. I'm using a box fan with a furnace filter sitting on a B&D Workmate now. 

Thanks for reading.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

let the saw throw the sawdust into a large retangular plastic storage bin laid on it's side...
hook your vac to the bin..
store the bin as a tool cover...


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Stick's idea works if there's enough, fast air flow to pull the sawdust into the bin. However, if you have a sliding miter, the way you do the cut also makes a difference. First, pull the saw across the workpiece toward you. Make a shallow cut, then push the saw away to complete the cut. This creates a channel that helps direct the sawdust toward the sollector. As the gullets come out of the wood, they throw the sawdust out, and the first shallow cut guides much of it toward the back. Made a difference for me.


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

I like Sticks idea , and am wondering if cardboard taped together in a square funnel looking configuration hooked up to shop vac would work . It would be something you could clamp on your bench and easily remove as needed . You would have a split hose , one hose going to the connection where your dust bag connects up , and one on the end of the funnel to catch the other stray dust that gets missed . 
Use 1/4" - 1/2" MDF if you want to make it more heavy duty. Your basically building a shroud to catch the particles


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## tomp913 (Mar 7, 2014)

I have the hood sold by Rockler - and it's a good start. Someone posted a video of a gentleman speed-making cabinets, I think for an RV maybe, and his miter saw had a slotted clear plastic curtain towards the front of the table that the carriage passed through - guessing that was to catch the blowback. So, maybe a combination of the hood, curtain and extended shroud would be the way to go - but that's starting to take up a lot of space so you have to be able to break it down and store it when the saw isn't in use if you're like me and don't have the space to leave it set up all the time.

The curtain in the video only had the one opening for the carriage, I had the idea that one made of the ribbons of plastic like you see on loading docks may be more effective - or more adaptable to angled cuts anyway as the path of the carriage would change. But a PITA to check that the cut line is aligned with the blade.........


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## oldhudson49 (Feb 6, 2017)

tomp913 said:


> I have the hood sold by Rockler - and it's a good start. Someone posted a video of a gentleman speed-making cabinets, I think for an RV maybe, and his miter saw had a slotted clear plastic curtain towards the front of the table that the carriage passed through - guessing that was to catch the blowback. So, maybe a combination of the hood, curtain and extended shroud would be the way to go - but that's starting to take up a lot of space so you have to be able to break it down and store it when the saw isn't in use if you're like me and don't have the space to leave it set up all the time.
> 
> The curtain in the video only had the one opening for the carriage, I had the idea that one made of the ribbons of plastic like you see on loading docks may be more effective - or more adaptable to angled cuts anyway as the path of the carriage would change. But a PITA to check that the cut line is aligned with the blade.........




That looks like a doable idea that shouldn't 'break the bank'. How is the hood supported? And do you move it in some way for 45° cuts? TIA


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## tomp913 (Mar 7, 2014)

@oldhudson49

There is a flange on the bottom of the frame that gets clamped to my Workmate - kind of crude at the moment but I wanted somewhere to start before tweaking. I cut a lot of 22-1/2° miters on the saw and shade the hood so that the outboard end of the saw is lined up with the 4" hole - side curtains would probably help. I have a short piece of flex hose hooked up where the dust bag is supposed to go, feeding into the 4" hole, but I read where someone recommended hooking that up to a shop vac to get better suction - at this point, I don't want to drill a hole in the plastic hood. I also saw something recently where the poster had a flap attached to the gap in the fence to help feed the sawdust towards the hood - that may be something to try as I was wondering if the fence on the saw was blocking smooth flow to the hood.

I haven't used the saw much lately but looking to start another batch of turtles soon so may go back working on the hood - although with the good weather right now, I'd just take the saw outside and not worry about the dust.


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## Bushwhacker (Jun 16, 2009)

Stick486 said:


> let the saw throw the sawdust into a large retangular plastic storage bin laid on it's side...
> hook your vac to the bin..
> store the bin as a tool cover...


Heck of an idea Stick. I have several old plastic trash cans that the garbage guys refuse to pick up.
I have a box fan with a furnace filter on it that blows most of the fine stuff out the garage doors.
David


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## westnwaz (May 18, 2017)

oldhudson49 said:


> My shop is pretty small so my older compound miter saw is mounted to a flip-top mobile work station. (There's a lunch box planer on the other side.) It had a dust collecting bag, that works, but dust is always wildly created when I use the saw.
> 
> I'm looking for ideas that would allow me to capture lots more dust but be small, light weight and portable. I'm using a box fan with a furnace filter sitting on a B&D Workmate now.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


I had a mitre saw and tried all sorts of hoods and curtains to catch the chips and dust. None worked well so I got rid of the mitre saw and just use my table saw connected to a 2HP portable dust extraction system and a number of sleds. If you continue to use your mitre saw I recommend you connect a wet/dry shop vac to a Thien separator (google it and make your own) and connect to whatever hood arrangement works for you. All hail the Thien separator, probably the most useful and efficient tool in my shop! Enjoy.


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

DesertRatTom said:


> Stick's idea works if there's enough, fast air flow to pull the sawdust into the bin. However, if you have a sliding miter, the way you do the cut also makes a difference. First, pull the saw across the workpiece toward you. Make a shallow cut, then push the saw away to complete the cut. This creates a channel that helps direct the sawdust toward the sollector. As the gullets come out of the wood, they throw the sawdust out, and the first shallow cut guides much of it toward the back. Made a difference for me.


I'd never heard of this, Tom. Thanks, I'll try it. Also, I keep a lightweight 16 inch pedastal fan running behind me, slightly to one side, to help keep air moving toward the intake of the dust collector. Since I'm working in a basement with an 8 foot ceiling, I shortened the tubing that connects the fan to the base and mounted it upside down on the ceiling. That keeps the air blowing down and into the saw area. But a lightweight floor fan would probably still help a lot.


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## ScottyDBQ (Jul 5, 2008)

Nice set-up Tom. I think I'll be trying it. Thanks for posting.


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

*Correction*



chessnut2 said:


> I'd never heard of this, Tom. Thanks, I'll try it. Also, I keep a lightweight 16 inch pedastal fan running behind me, slightly to one side, to help keep air moving toward the intake of the dust collector. Since I'm working in a basement with an 8 foot ceiling, I shortened the tubing that connects the fan to the base and mounted it upside down on the ceiling. That keeps the air blowing down and into the saw area. But a lightweight floor fan would probably still help a lot.


I realized I had made a mistake. The fan is a 12", not 16". That's why I have head clearance walking under it. I neglected to mention that I built a plywood hood that surrounds the saw at the top and sides (which have cutouts for my longer boards to protrude), and a dust port inside the hood at the bottom rear. That helped immensely. I also attached a 1 1/4" drain elbow to the end of the built-in dust chute of the saw, and it helps to direct the dust down toward the dust port. I'm not where I can take a picture, but you get the idea.


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

Wood Magazine July 2017 page 6 mentioned an old plan for a RAS one. Dunno if that could be useful because you'd probably have to have it further back. Free plan on their website: Radial-arm Saw Dust Collector | WOOD Magazine


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## oldhudson49 (Feb 6, 2017)

TenGees said:


> Wood Magazine July 2017 page 6 mentioned an old plan for a RAS one. Dunno if that could be useful because you'd probably have to have it further back. Free plan on their website: Radial-arm Saw Dust Collector | WOOD Magazine


The little article is what got me think about this issue again. Thanks for pointing it out, I could have missed it.


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## hawkeye10 (Jul 28, 2015)

oldhudson49 said:


> My shop is pretty small so my older compound miter saw is mounted to a flip-top mobile work station. (There's a lunch box planer on the other side.) It had a dust collecting bag, that works, but dust is always wildly created when I use the saw.
> 
> I'm looking for ideas that would allow me to capture lots more dust but be small, light weight and portable. I'm using a box fan with a furnace filter sitting on a B&D Workmate now.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


Berry this is what I have come up with. I use both a shop vac and a 1.5 HP dust collector. Also you will see in the picture a piece of carpet hanging from the top. This helps in keeping the fine dust from coming back out the front.



















I have since routed the black hose out the back.


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## Daniel80 (Jan 21, 2017)

Hi,

Just my two cents...

I have had same issues with my miter saw. I first built a box but discarded it since I had no sufficient air volume and it was pretty bulky in my small shop.

Here is my solution:



I have two shop vacs connected to each hose and the result is quite satisfying...

I know this is a purly individual solution for my type of saw, but maybe it helps somehow...


Greets
Daniel


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