Full view of setup |
Closeup of polishing "cabinet" with exhaust port |
Making your own (cheap) polisher
(click any picture for a larger view)
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Full view of setup |
Closeup of polishing "cabinet" with exhaust port |
Here's what I did.
I got a grinder for $29.99 at Costco (1/2HP, 3450 RPM, 6" bench grinder).
I removed the grinding wheel (with its guards) on 1 side and replaced it with a tapered mandrel (available from Rio, Metalliferous, 47th St. Jewelry Supply, and others). Then I purchased a $19.99 shop vac and an extra air filter for it.
I took an old 4-drawer nightstand and bolted the grinder to the top of it (perfect height for use while sitting, and each drawer holds its own set of compound, buffs, and finger protectors, which makes it even easier to avoid picking up the wrong one!). The cannister of the shop vac sits behind the table on a cinder block, which raises it to the perfect height. The shop vac's hose goes to the 5" wide t-shaped tool that came with it, which I drilled 2 holes into and bolted to the top of the nightstand just behind and below where the tapered mandrel is.
Now comes the creative part. I use a cardboard box that is just the right size as the "cabinet" for my homemade dust collector. This let me cut out the perfect shape for that 5" hose tool and for the side to allow the mandrel to pass through. I cut a piece of old window screen about 1" larger on all sides than the hose tool, to keep pieces from getting sucked in to the vac. The window screen is duct-taped securely to the opening in the box. Once I got it all perfectly configured, I covered the inside of the box with duct tape, providing a sturdier surface and one that is easier to clean, then screwed the box down to the nightstand. When I need to replace the box, it's pretty simple to do so, but you'd be surprised how sturdy the configuration is and how long a single box lasts. The one shown in the picture has been going for about 6 months and hardly shows any wear or non-removable dirt (your mileage may vary, of course).
The draw from the shop vac is significant and sufficiently powerful to handle the vast majority of the dust from polishing. (Even when I'm using a "real" polisher with a "real" dust collector, by the way, I use a clear face shield which also acts as a dust deflector and flying-object protector.) I clean the screen as it gets clogged by lint and dust, just as you would with a real dust collector cabinet.
So I figure with a little elbow grease and ingenuity, my entire polishing setup cost me about $55 - 60 total, and I still have access to 1 grinder wheel on the polisher. I simply couldn't afford a professional dust collector cabinet (a couple of hundred!) at the time I put mine together, and it's worked beautifully for me... so I don't see any need to change it at this point.
Karen Goeller
www.nolimitations.com - Handcrafted and Unique Artisan Jewelry