Setting up a Clearvue

[mreza Salav]

Everyone is missing the big point here.

You had this for a year before setting it up? I buy a bottle of glue and open it up within ten minutes after it gets delivered.

Well I had moved (temporarily) to Chicago for one year and was away (thousands of kms) from my shop. Have picked up a few tools (including this Clearvue) while down there and now
am setting them up one at a time (first was the J/P combo). Still have a few other goodies that are in boxes waiting to take them out!!

[Jim O'Dell]

Don't feel bad. I had my Clear Vue for about 15 months IIRC before I set it up. Of course, I didn't have the shop finished, nor did I have electrical run and operational either. I tend to buy things I know I need and want when I have the money and they are on a good price. Bought the bandsaw at the same time as the cyclone...neither got plugged in or used for a considerable amount of time. Jim.

[McKay Sleight]

I am impressed with the quality of the ClearVu, but if you have conventional spiral ducting, the ClearVu does not hook up to your runs. Their 6" is actually 6.25.

[mreza Salav]

I have (almost) finished the duct work; will post pictures soon.

McKay: what I did was (as can be seen in the photos above) to use a small section of green PVC pipes (that fits fine into the ClearVue intake) and then that would nicely accepts
standard 6" galvanized duct.

One other thing I was pleasantly surprised was: I have put a plastic bag into my bin with the edge of the bag sandwiched between the lid I have made and the bin.
I see people use all sorts of "bag grippers" or methods to hold the bag in the bin. I had guessed that if your system is air tight (at least in the bin section) you don't need anything
to hold the bag down in the bin. It appears my bin is tight enough since after several test runs the bag has not moved at all and all the dust is falling down nicely into the bag/bin!!
So my efforts of building a bin has paid off!

[mreza Salav]

Did all the duct work. Decided to finish the job by adding a bin-full sensor but this last leg got delayed due to being very busy lately.
I just finished adding the sensor with the hope that it will warn on time me before I create a mess at filters when the bin is full.
The system is quite simple:
- a $2 LED flash light
- a $12 light sensor from BORG with a delay of about 30 seconds
- A small AC/DC adapter to power the LED lights.
- A red light that will light up when the light to sensor is blocked for more than 30 seconds.

The whole system is powered up from the 120v leg that also powers (using R/C) the coils of the relay for the cyclone.
There is activated using the main switch that I simply turn off before leaving the shop. I got some ideas from the users on this form on similar setups.
The pictures should explain the rest. I should add that the outlet you see is split, the one that the light is plugged into is activated only if the sensor doesn't get light.
A simple yet valuable upgrade I think.

cyc13.jpgcyc14.jpgcyc15.jpgcyc16.jpg

[Mike Cruz]

That's great mreza. I thought about doing one of these, then wondered why I need one since we can see through ours (ClearVues). I could really understand it if you had an opaque cyclone body! But do we really need them?

[daniel lane]

Don't feel bad. I had my Clear Vue for about 15 months IIRC before I set it up. Of course, I didn't have the shop finished, nor did I have electrical run and operational either. I tend to buy things I know I need and want when I have the money and they are on a good price. Bought the bandsaw at the same time as the cyclone...neither got plugged in or used for a considerable amount of time. Jim.

I don't think I have the record, but I've got a CV1800 still in the original boxes in the garage. Bought it in early '07, IIRC, to mount in a basement shop. Then I took a new job and moved to CA, where I've moved 3 times (apt, rental house, rental house) and there are very few basement shops. It would be nice to put up, especially since I can see how much it would help when using the planer or jointer, but I can't build a closet in a rental garage! I've some ideas and plans to build a freestanding pallet-mounted box that would fit in the current garage, but I haven't had time to really pursue it. Between that and a move toward neander tendencies, I'm actually starting to debate putting it up for sale. Would that make it NOS Clearvue?


daniel

[Mike Cruz]

Daniel, I recently bought my ClearVue from a guy in Alabama who bought it around when you did. He never put it together, either. Honestly, I woulnd't want to put this thing up, then take it back down for a move...

[Carol Reed]

Interesting. Daniel. I am in the market for some kind of DC. If you are serious, I'd like to stop by and look at it. I am in the Las Vegas area but am on my way through your neck of the woods today and this coming Thursday. Going to a conference in Malibu. I can be reached at carol.j.reed@gmal.com or at 928-978-2300. Phone is probably be better as I am leaving in an hour.

[Mike Cruz]

Best of luck to you both!

[Mike Cruz]

I'd also REPORT you, Daniel, for placing a stealth ad in another thread, but you are a contributer anyway...

[daniel lane]

I'd also REPORT you, Daniel, for placing a stealth ad in another thread, but you are a contributer anyway...

Eeek! That wasn't my intention, Mike - I was really just expressing a low level of resignation about not being able to use the thing, but now I'm being forced to actually consider such action. Darn you for calling my bluff, Carol!

BTW, I will contact you, Carol, but if for some reason anyone else wants to talk about my CV, please PM - I did not intend nor do I want to hijack the thread!



daniel

[mreza Salav]

That's great mreza. I thought about doing one of these, then wondered why I need one since we can see through ours (ClearVues). I could really understand it if you had an opaque cyclone body! But do we really need them?

If you don't enclose it in a closet yes, but with mine I don't see anything happening inside that closet!

[Mike Cruz]

Hehe, Daniel, I was playing with you. I've mentioned, as a side note, that I was going to have to "get rid of something" without any intention of it being an ad before, too. No worries. Again, best of luck with whatever happens.

[Jeff Monson]

Hehe, Daniel, I was playing with you.

Looks like a little karma there Mike, thats why your clearvue came damaged you know. You should be nicer to people .