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Looking into building a downdraft table.
What would be the top of choice?
I’ve seen ppl make them from pegboard....
but wanted to see if there was a better option.
Thanks


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I used pegboard. It works very well.

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It will probably be alright.

Depends on your dust collector. Mine is an Oneida Dust Gorilla with a 7" inlet and my downdraft table is right next to the collector. I used pegboard too but there was not enough airflow through the 1/4" holes so I drilled the holes out to 3/8" which works great. The pegboard sits on top of 1/2" plywood for strength.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Dust collector is a

Jet DC-1200VX-CK1 Dust Collector 2HP

So pegboard is the consensus ... possibly drilling out the holes. Thanks guys


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On the 2sand.com blog there are some good plans for one of these that I used to make one. Here's the link, https://2sand.com/product_images/upload ... nPlans.pdf. I used 1/2" baltic ply instead of the 3/4". It's still heavy since I put it up on the workbench instead of a dedicated base.

I went back and looked at some of my build photos and turns out I did not use pegboard but rather just skinned it with 1/4" Masonite which I had left over. I just laid out a grid and drilled it, didn't take long. I also remember that I chamfered the holes.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I was never able to get really satisfactory results with my homemade table with pegboard connected to the dust collector.

About 10 years ago I bought a Sand Pro M series commercial unit and it was money very well spent. With clean filters it’s a fookin hurricane. I have made attachments that allow some routing and neck shaping procedures to be done on it and it sucks most everything in quite well.

We work in a very toxic environment. If you are serious about this craft and plan to do it for a long time buying the best possible dust collection and air filtering equipment is really important. I skimped early on and it was a mistake.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Here's a shot while I was building mine. It's all about airflow and getting the CFM through the table and to the dust collector. Obviously the dust collector must be a capable unit for it to work. My Dust Gorilla is just to the left of the photo. The downdraft table top is about 24" x 36". I modeled mine after a commercial unit.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Piggybacking off of this: I think one of the things we tend to underestimate to our detriment, whether it is for dust collection or a spray booth, is the size of the fans/impellers/motors needed for the task. More power is more expensive, so we look for ways to do it for less. In general, we would all be healthier if we thought in larger (and, unfortunately, more expensive) terms when it comes to moving air that has harmful crap in it. Just my observation from the hobbyist bleachers.

Here is a link and some pics of a downdraft table that I built back in '09. I used a shelf from one of the plastic storage shelf packages that you can find at Lowe's or Home Depot. It worked well and I had no problems with it. The plastic had a hard surface and material would slip if you didn't use a small piece of foam immediately under your material to act as a friction agent. The table worked so well that my son talked me out of it when I began to back down and is now using it in his cabinet shop.

viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=23946

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Peter

I used pegboard. It worked much better after I chamfered to holes. It’s not magic, but it catches a lot of dust.

Nice. That is exact how my commercial Sand Pro works. Bet it works great.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Here’s my take on it.

It’s handy if the holes are large enough to collect routing spoil as well as sanding dust. I think mine are 3/8” chased by an 1/8” round-over. It also does a descent job of work holding during sanding operations.

Best, M

I really like that idea (looking at the binding jig mounted there too!)
And nice collection of colt routers:)


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Yeah, hate changing bits... Set it and forgot it.

M

Nice setup.

At the old shop, the body sanding bench had long slots, not holes. Prolly about 3/8” wide. The top was made of sturdy mdf I’m guessing at least 3/4”, not something flimsy like pegboard...pulled a lot of air, you needed to be mindful of what you put on the bench. ‘Cause if it made it through the slots, it was gone baby gone.

I love looking at pictures of other peoples' shops. Is that paneled wainscoting on the walls? Nicer than my house. :^) I remember the motorized sanding disk from another thread. Very nice design. And are those willow switches up there near the ceiling? Basket making? Rustic inlays? Inquiring minds want to know. :^)

Yes, it’s very poorly executed wainscoting. It took 5 tubes of caulk and 3 coats of paint to make it look somewhat presentable. The guy we bought the house from had “HGTV poisoning” and no skill to back it up. He was going for English Pub. There was a kegerator when we first moved in. Everything about the finishes are terrible and will be stripped back to the studs if we decide to repurpose the space. That said, it is perfect for a shop!

As for the “Spirit broom” (don’t really know what else to call it), I was given to me by a client who saw it and thought of me . They are a return customer so unfortunately I’ve got to hang onto it until one of us dies...

Cheers, M

I mean, I’d be thrilled if my shop looked like that...

Don’t get me wrong, Ed, it’s a great space and I feel very fortunate to have it. Going to work down there is a real pleasure!

Oh yeah. I have a house like that. The previous owner thought he could do all kinds of cool stuff, like make built-in bookcases and cabinets (you start with a bunch of crooked 2x4s and some 1/2" sheathing plywood and lots and lots and lots of 23 gauge pins for your new pinner...), wiring (just wire-nut those suckers together and use a couple rolls of electrical tape 'cause you're going to plaster over that hole in the wall and nobody will see it anyway), plumbing (compression fittings are cool inside walls, right? Just make sure you crank 'em down really, really hard). The realtor told me he had moved out of the state and started his own business as a house inspector. Aye aye aye.

Hahaha!

I am a retired general contractor who specialized in historic restoration (Victorian-period of significance). I’ve pretty much seen it all!

Got started today

Still need to make the box underneath and walls and such but it’s a good start ... I think


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It looks like you should have made the box and hooked up the vacuum before you drilled the holes!

Michael your shop is so clean . when can I move in?