The dust collector line to our Powermatic 66 isn't pulling quite enough. It does not have a cover over the motor or on the front - do you know where we can buy them?

Also thinking of putting some kind of in-line booster in the (4"?) duct, likely about 4 ft from the saw where the duct turns vertical to go up to the ceiling. Any suggestions on a unit to get?

Thank you for your help!

Eric Smith
Woodsmiths
eric@woodsmiths.biz

I’m my experience, seal the saw up first, then see if it warrants more suction. eBay has tons of parts. I put a magnetic cover over the bevel opening, and stuffed the cast iron ribs in the top around the cabinet base. You will be surprised how much that helps.

I agree with Matt, try making an enclosure and sealing everything up. Make sure all the joints on your pipe are also sealed up.
What kind of dust collector do you have, you could also make the run a little larger.
The other option is if you have a portable collector you can move it closer.
After that you need a bigger collector. Sad but true.

Tight as you can. We run 5” to all of the machines. Only switch to 4” hose at the machine if that is what it takes. 4” pipe will be the limiting variable if you use it.

I’ve never seen a booster, If it’s that big of a problem buy a 1hp and put it next to it. You will save money by not running piping & buying a booster.

As others have noted your enclosure is your current limiting factor. You don’t know how much suction is necessary until you fix it.

What does sealing up the saw do except for limit air flow? Which to me, seems like the exact opposite of what you would want?

A tablesaw really needs a 6" connection. I've got one 66 left and I've been meaning to whack a bigger hole in the back of it to make it a 6".

Depends on how many elbows and flex hose you have on that 4" line, but I suspect you have about half the air flow you really need. Resize the line before you look for that magical booster fan. I sure wouldn't want a fan motor in the line coming away from a saw. It sure won't last long.

Sealing up the holes will direct the suction or airflow to the point/area you want it, in this case, the throat plate opening. Having the motor cover and access door off just lets the suction be dissipated in area you don’t want it. Another good idea is to let a small opening near the bottom of the access door so air moves across the bottom of the saw, pulling any dust that falls there. I have a 6” pipe into my 90’s Unisaw, with the angled panel in the bottom to direct dust to it. Works pretty good, and I put over blade collection on as well. When I have to cut MDF, there is little dust that escapes.

Dust collection on my cabinet saws is crappy mostly due to how they are made or not made inside. I had made a motor cover and had done more and it was better but not great.

I forgot to hook up the hose one day on the small slider and looking behind the dust had shot out six feet or more. On that saw dust collection is well thought out and built into the design.

The reality is tablesaws need above the table collection from an overhead guard/vaccum hood. You want to make the box tighter because the saws get a ton of air thru the adjustment handles. & the duct is effectively try to suck dust out of a big box.

I don't think there is a way to win that battle. I would use a magnetic cover to seal the blade tilt arc so it is not blowing chips into your shoes. Other than that it is a losing battle.

Cabinet saws with a hose connection more than a foot away from the blade are bound to have poor dust collection. A motor cover helps, but tighten up the enclosure all you want, a large part of the dust winds up on the cabinet floor Contrast the typical European slider with a dust chute as part of the trunnion, in line with the bulk of the dust stream coming off the blade.

I used to have a Unisaw which had just enough room to screw a sheet-metal chute to the trunnion and a 2 1/2" hose running out through the cabinet side to a 4" dc drop. Despite the obvious mismatch in hose/duct size it was quite effective coupled with an overhead pickup. I had to clean out the cabinet only at several month intervals.