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Thread: Vacuum system finished.

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Spokane, Washington
    Posts
    4,021

    Vacuum system finished.

    I finally finished assembling my vacuum chuck system, but was disappointed to find that it only pulls just under 22" HG. I partially disassembled it an connected the gauge directly to the the input hose, and it didn't change. It's the familiar Gast 0523 from Surplus. It did suffer a fall of about two feet when it got knocked off of it's perch quite some time ago, doesn't rattle or anything, but bent one of the mounting feet a bit. Does anyone here know what is involved in a rebuild? I haven't tried it yet, don't know how much vac is really needed for our purposes, but I'd like to use it for veneering too.
    Anyway, here are some pics of the system. I borrowed both from Steve and from Christopher Hartley. I decided to make a cabinet that would give me some additional storage space, and figured I might as well make full use of it by hanging tools on the outside.




    The back doesn't go down all the way to the bottom, ends a little above the pump, and there is a cutout on the left side as well, to aid in air circulation, and allow access for blowing out the motor now and then to clear sawdust.

    I came up with a cheap and easy way to make the racks, using a 1 1/16" Forstner bit, which left a very slight gap around the 1 3/64 od pvc pipe. I was afraid that if I used screws to fasten the tubes in place, sooner or later I would hit one with a tool and damage an edge. So to deal with the slight amount of slack, I took the drilled pice to the bandsaw, and sliced it in half lengthwise. The dabbed a bit of epoxy in each of the depressions, laid the pipes in, and screwed the pieces back together. They now fit tight, and I don't think they will go anywhere. Each rack is held on the cart by three screws, and the whole arrangement seems quite solid. Most of the tools stored in the rack are easily identified by their handles, so not being able to see the business end is not a problem. The center cut is pretty ragged, probably should have changed bandsaw blades before making the cut, but I was thinking more of utility than beauty for these.

    And here it is in place, with the final electrical connections made. I haven't filled up the shelves yet, still deciding what will go where. The cabinet shouldn't get hit with too many shavings in this position.


    Dan
    Last edited by Dan Forman; 01-31-2011 at 10:31 PM.
    Eternity is an awfully long time, especially toward the end.

    -Woody Allen-

    Critiques on works posted are always welcome

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Carlyle IL
    Posts
    2,183
    dan, I can't see the attachments
    Vortex! What Vortex?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Colorado
    Posts
    116
    Can't see the attachments but to answer your question:

    I haven't tried it yet, don't know how much vac is really needed for our purposes, but I'd like to use it for veneering too.

    I finished the bottom yesterday on a 22" platter with my 10" diameter vac chuck and held it at 4" of mecury so I wouldn't suck in the bottom. Had it up to 600 rpm and it worked fine. I can only pull 22" here at 5000 feet so your probably losing a little at your elevation in Spokane.

  4. #4
    If it dropped, it's possible the one or more of the vanes are stuck and not moving freely. Have you taken the front plate off and inspected that the vanes are ok? It's just 4 bolts, no washers or gaskets, so it takes only a minute or two to check it out.
    Lathes: Nova DVR XP, Delta 46-460, Jet 1014vsi; Bader III 2"x72" belt grinder; Triton 2.25 router; CMT Industrio table; Jointech fence; SC planer; Dewalt miter; Delta 14" bandsaw; Festool TS55, MFT/3, CT22, ETS150/3, OF1400, PSB300EQ, CXS; Hegner Scrollsaw; JJ-6CS jointer; Grizzly 1023s cabinetsaw, Jet 17" drill press; Rigid OSS; 9" SandFlee; 3M AirStream & Breathe Easy PAPRs

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Dallas, TX
    Posts
    137
    as Alan said, it is just 4 bolts. While you have the front plate off check the clearance between the rotor and the ring at the top. It should be less than .005". There are two bolts that hold the ring. You can loosen them and adjust the clearance.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Spokane, Washington
    Posts
    4,021
    Took it apart and everything seems to be in order, good tight clearance and the vanes all move. It's a deceptively simple mechanism, I had no idea how it worked before seeing it, in fact, when I saw the two collapsed vanes, I thought that was the problem, until I advanced it and saw that they slide back and forth. Curious, mine has six bolts holding the front plate, not four, and they were pretty corroded. I have them soaking in Kroil, and a plastic bag over the front end to keep dust out until morning. The inside of the cylinder seemed to be smooth and in good shape.

    Dan
    Eternity is an awfully long time, especially toward the end.

    -Woody Allen-

    Critiques on works posted are always welcome

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Orleans, Cape Cod, Ma.
    Posts
    758
    Dan, a nice looking, functional rig. I created a vac system more than a year ago, using Steves' ideas and other sources. It works fine, and draws only 22-23 HG. It has been enough for all that I have put on my Nova 1624. I have been up to 1000 rpm a couple of times, but usually 684 rpm. And I have cracked/collapsed a couple of bottoms. There are many, many places for tiny leaks to occur that add up to 2-4 HG, and the spindle to chuck can be one easily overlooked. I would suggest that 22HG is adequate but we'll see what others chime in with....

    By the way, I think that having the vac system on a wheeled cart is the cat's meow.

  8. #8
    Dan, on my Holdfast, I can pull about 24", and that seems to be plenty for everything I have done. The big factor is the amount of surface area on which the vacuum is effecting. With the 10" chuck that Doug Wolf is using, he will have a lot more holding power than would I with a 3" chuck - even with the same amount of vacuum.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Purcellville, Virginia
    Posts
    279
    Dan,

    You have built a very nice rig for your storage and vacuum system. I have pretty much the same system, except for the cart. I have found that anything over 15" HG holds well and anything over 20" holds very well. The max I have seen on my system is 26" HG. Like John, said, the chuck area is very important.

    I have to ask about the cinder blocks on your head stock. What are they doing there?

    Dale
    The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Spring City, TN
    Posts
    1,537
    Dan, first try another gauge. Second take the pump back apart and use some electronics cleaner and try again. 3rd you can buy those vains from several places, Gast and Grainger being an example. 4th live with it since you don't really need over 17 to 20".

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Blairsville GA
    Posts
    2,105
    Echo the comments on anything over 20" likely fine. I have similar (522 series though) and it holds about same, 22" Hg on a good day. The only thing you need any concern on will be the smaller stuff, where your area pulled gets smaller. On larger diameter pieces, 3" and up...I think you've got plenty of oomph there. Remember, use the tailstock as long as you can and make only very light cuts when using the vacuum chuck only.
    Also...I like using a healthy dose of masking tape holding a piece to the vac chuck. This adds additional sealing to porous woods and provides a little safety margin. In fact...I've had some pieces so porous or with inclusions...I used the soft interface of my chuck with tape only...no vacuum, to make final cleanup on bottom.

    Your setup looks great...I wish now I had done something similar, besides a single use cabinet...may have to change.

    One last question...do you turn with the concrete blocks on the headstock for vibration reduction, or are they just there temporary like. Never seen that done before.
    Laugh at least once daily, even if at yourself!

  12. #12
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Washington's Coast
    Posts
    1,767
    Looks like a nice setup, Dan. Mine will pull 26/27" but I rarely run it over 20--have sucked the bottom out of a couple bowls using more.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Pine Island Minnesota
    Posts
    123
    You might want to unscrew the hose nipples (intake and outlet) out of the housing and make sure that they are not partially blocked. That was what was wrong with mine. Let us know how it turns out. looks like a great up though. Cool lathe too.
    Duff



    Rember: Experience is what you get just after needed it.

  14. #14
    There are a couple of things to check.

    If you plug the input next to the gauge (remove the hose going to the lathe), does the vacuum increase? If so, you have a leak at the headstock somewhere. If it does not, a leak maybe elsewhere (at connections to the filters, etc.). This is all assuming that there is a leak.

    But what if there's no leak? Josh is right... it might be the gauge that's off. Trying another gauge might be give a different reading.

    There's an old saying "A man with a watch always knows the time... a man with two watches is never sure"
    Lathes: Nova DVR XP, Delta 46-460, Jet 1014vsi; Bader III 2"x72" belt grinder; Triton 2.25 router; CMT Industrio table; Jointech fence; SC planer; Dewalt miter; Delta 14" bandsaw; Festool TS55, MFT/3, CT22, ETS150/3, OF1400, PSB300EQ, CXS; Hegner Scrollsaw; JJ-6CS jointer; Grizzly 1023s cabinetsaw, Jet 17" drill press; Rigid OSS; 9" SandFlee; 3M AirStream & Breathe Easy PAPRs

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Harvey, Michigan
    Posts
    20,801
    Dan - congrats on getting your system up and running! My vac system can only pull about 23 hg but I have never used more than 20 on any project. You may be able to replace the vanes in your pump - but if you only use a max of 20 hg - is it really needed at this point in time?
    Steve

    “You never know what you got til it's gone!”
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