Bosch Corner Sander + Bosch 35mm 5-Meter Vacuum Hose Mismatch

[Ken Kortge]

I recently bought a Bosch 1249VSK Corner-Detail Sander. It has a port out the back to connect to a hose ... so I bought the Bosch VAC005 35mm 5 meter vacuum hose to use with it and other Bosch vacuum accessories I purchased for my Bosch router and jig saw. Boschtools.com says the two work together.

When the hose arrived it really didn't appear to be sized to mate with the sander. I was marginally able to force the rubber hose tip over the sander's rear port, but it felt like I was forcing a square peg through a round hole.

Looking at the hose end it looks like the hose is intended to fit inside a a larger port rather than over the outside of a smaller port.

The sander's port is 30.5-30.8 mm outside diameter (flared slightly). The smaller end of the VAC005 vacuum hose is 35.3 mm outside diameter. The wider end of the hose is 57.8 mm outside diameter. Measured using a digital caliper.

Its confusing. I don't find any vacuum hose accessory with a 30mm size listed. What am I not understanding? Should I have bought something else to connect to the sander?

[Greg R Bradley]

The Bosch VAC005 hose has a tool end fitting that matches the small Festool hose end, same as Festool's small 27mm hoses. It fits inside mid sized tool ports and over small ones, like your detail sander. It also stretches over the small ribbed Festool fittings including the oval ones for the really small tools. Once on those tools you can hang small sanders by the vacuum hose.

I seem to recall that it is quite a stretch to get it over that sander port on a new hose end. Bosch's hose is much cheaper than Festool's so you get much poorer rubber that is really stiff.

Bosch is a recent convert to dust extraction and does a poor job of it. Don't worry. If they make something work on dust extraction, they will change it soon.

I forgot to add that Boschtools.com has lots of misleading info on what fits what. I've learned to try it in person as my local tool supplier has nearly 2000 sq. ft. dedicated to Bosch.

[Tom Henderson2]

When I first bought some Festool stuff, I had the same impression -- very hard to get the doggone hose onto the tool.

After a few uses, either I've gotten stronger, I've gotten used to it, or the hose has gotten softer.

Most likely I've just gotten used to it -- and you will too.

My $0.02...

-Tom in SoCal

[Ken Kortge]

Thanks so much for the quick input.

I'm hoping that I am closer to figuring this out ...

Yesterday I ordered a few Bosch adapters from Amazon.com and in one of the post-ordering views the Bosch VX120 (a little black adapter with a a red regulator) below was listed as "24/35 mm". I measured the inside diameter of the sander port and it measures about 25 mm. Hmmm.

I am hoping the the VX120 simply goes between the tool and the VAC005 hose. I'll let you know when it arrives.

Yeah, I'm sure the Festool's system works together better, but I'm just a poor man ... from a poor family ... easy come easy go. ;-)

[Greg R Bradley]

The 35mm on the Bosch is the hose diameter, not the tool end fitting. I would hope any adapters are referencing the size of the fittings. That could get very confusing since there are straight & tapered fittings, inside and outside fittings, and the ribbed fitting that work so well once you get the hose on. Any adapter at the tool is best avoided as they can kink. Once it kinks, the vacuum shortens the hose quickly and it jerks your tool and possibly your entire body. This can damage your work or even knock you off a ladder.

This 3/4" hose works well for really small tools: http://www.amazon.com/Mirka-91100-4-...ZVPT8AEKJ5P2NX

Edited to add:
I thought about this a bit more and I'm fairly sure your Bosch detail sander and my Bosch detail mini belt sander are very similar including the port size for dust collection. My recollection is that the hose you have fits but goes on with a fair amount of effort. Once on, the 35mm hose is pretty large compared to the size of the tool. Even the Festool 27mm hose seems too big for the small tool and gets in the way. I ended up with a small hose like the Mirka hose above permanently attached to the tool with silicone sealer and heatshrink tubing.