Enclosing all the "holes" in the BT3100 Cabinet

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  • ElRay70K70H
    Handtools only
    • Jan 2022
    • 3

    Enclosing all the "holes" in the BT3100 Cabinet

    Getting back into woodworking, and I remember seeing an article (I'm assuming on the old BT3Central site) where somebody enclosed almost all the "holes" in the saw's cabinet. IIRC, it had the "articulated dust port" cover and new plywood sides that basically only allowed air to come in the side where the motor is. I remember a picture of a small piece of plywood suctioned to the screen on the motor side. I can't find the article in the archives. Anybody else remember/saved it?

    If the write-up is indeed lost, are there any considerations other than "Don't block-off too much and allow the motor to overheat."?
  • LCHIEN
    Internet Fact Checker
    • Dec 2002
    • 20914
    • Katy, TX, USA.
    • BT3000 vintage 1999

    #2
    I think that post or article is still around.

    But I don't agree with it. You need places for the volume of air to get in that you are pulling with a dust collector. If you make a vacuum or dust collector pull on a nearly sealed box, nearly no air will flow.

    You want maximum flow of air by the dust producing spots to pick up and carry the dust away.

    Look at post #12 in this thread at the attached PDF file https://www.sawdustzone.org/filedata...6&d=1612542200
    https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...ures-reposting
    Loring in Katy, TX USA
    If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
    BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

    Comment

    • leehljp
      Just me
      • Dec 2002
      • 8429
      • Tunica, MS
      • BT3000/3100

      #3
      Welcome ElRay. You have a good memory of our past posts. Please join in the conversations. With your memory of this, I know you probably have a wealth of knowledge and information that could be helpful to us and others. Please tell us how this, or a variation of this works for you.
      Hank Lee

      Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

      Comment

      • twistsol
        Veteran Member
        • Dec 2002
        • 2893
        • Cottage Grove, MN, USA.
        • Ridgid R4512, 2x ShopSmith Mark V 520, 1951 Shopsmith 10ER

        #4
        Could this be the thread?

        This is the place to ask questions about the Ryobi BT3 series table saws. Please limit the posts to this topic only.
        Chr's
        __________
        An ethical man knows the right thing to do.
        A moral man does it.

        Comment

        • Jim Frye
          Veteran Member
          • Dec 2002
          • 1051
          • Maumee, OH, USA.
          • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

          #5
          I authored two articles concerning closing up the BT3K cabinet. My saw has been "closed" since 2000 with no ill effects. However, it is not totally closed. There is still some openings for air to be drawn in by the dust collection system. Everything else was sealed off with duct tape and still is. The front tilt quadrant is open and the various throat plates allow airflow also. I also attached 2" diameter disks of silicone sealant all over the interior of the sheet metal cabinet to quell vibration noise. One could also use Dynamat like material applied to the interior to do the same thing.

          https://www.sawdustzone.org/articles...3000-table-saw

          https://www.sawdustzone.org/articles...pan-for-bt3000
          Last edited by Jim Frye; 01-02-2022, 11:53 AM. Reason: Typos
          Jim Frye
          The Nut in the Cellar.
          ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

          Comment

          • dbhost
            Slow and steady
            • Apr 2008
            • 9209
            • League City, Texas
            • Ryobi BT3100

            #6
            Just IMHO, Mine uses the belly pan, zero clearance throat plates, and a Shark Guard with a 2.5" port, and in use offers a dust free experience as long as I remember to turn ON the dust collector. Yeah I have been dump about that from time to time...
            Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.

            Comment

            • Jim Frye
              Veteran Member
              • Dec 2002
              • 1051
              • Maumee, OH, USA.
              • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

              #7
              I forgot to add that I'm using a ShopVac (195 cfm) connected to the BT3000's dust collection port. The clean out port at the bottom of the belly pan fits a 1 1/2" vac hose and is plugged with a 35 mm film canister.
              Jim Frye
              The Nut in the Cellar.
              ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

              Comment

              • dbhost
                Slow and steady
                • Apr 2008
                • 9209
                • League City, Texas
                • Ryobi BT3100

                #8
                Originally posted by Jim Frye
                I forgot to add that I'm using a ShopVac (195 cfm) connected to the BT3000's dust collection port. The clean out port at the bottom of the belly pan fits a 1 1/2" vac hose and is plugged with a 35 mm film canister.
                Just FWIW, I haven't ever seen a belly pan with a small shop vac port. How well does that work?
                Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.

                Comment

                • Jim Frye
                  Veteran Member
                  • Dec 2002
                  • 1051
                  • Maumee, OH, USA.
                  • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

                  #9
                  The belly pan vac port is used to clear out what collects down there. I hook the shopvac hose to it and use a stick to sweep chips to the port. Crude, but it works for the couple of times a year when clean out becomes necessary.
                  Jim Frye
                  The Nut in the Cellar.
                  ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

                  Comment

                  • capncarl
                    Veteran Member
                    • Jan 2007
                    • 3564
                    • Leesburg Georgia USA
                    • SawStop CTS

                    #10
                    A drawback to this saw is the universal motor trapped inside with all the dust. I would think that a better way to collect dust from inside the cabinets would be to fasten a shop vac hose near the blade rather than plugging all the cabinet holes. Combined with the shark guard it should be a clean running machine.

                    Comment

                    • Jim Frye
                      Veteran Member
                      • Dec 2002
                      • 1051
                      • Maumee, OH, USA.
                      • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

                      #11
                      The BT3Ks have a shrouded blade and the vac port is part of the shroud. Hence the articulated vac port cover so the hose can move with the port while closing off the rest of the slot the port slides in. Checked the motor on my 1993 BT3000 last year and almost no dust inside the motor.
                      Last edited by Jim Frye; 01-02-2022, 08:58 PM.
                      Jim Frye
                      The Nut in the Cellar.
                      ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

                      Comment

                      • ElRay70K70H
                        Handtools only
                        • Jan 2022
                        • 3

                        #12
                        Thanks all. Things are coming back. The kids are older and I'm starting to get shop time again. Everything I've done since the BT3Central days has been done with the miter and framing saws. With the exception of 13 cuts when we did the stairs (scary I can actually count an exact number) ... unless tile saws count as table saws.

                        I just found this: https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...lution?t=29578 Which merges LCHEIN's (Loring?) Belly pan with a shroud over the back port.

                        I think going this route, with blocking off the cabinet openings on the side away from the motor, should give me what I'm looking for. With the dust collector connected, the openings on the same side as the motor should allow enough airflow to keep the motor cool enough.
                        Last edited by ElRay70K70H; 03-18-2022, 11:22 AM.

                        Comment


                        • dbhost

                          dbhost
                          commented
                          Editing a comment
                          You not only want to keep the motor cool enough to not melt etc... but you also want fresh air to replace the dusty air being sucked out of the cabinet by the shop vac / dust collector. . I am considering the baffle thing that goes on the back and articulates to the blade angle, redoing my belly pan for a better slope and 2.5" port, sort of like I think @JimFrye made, sorry if I got that wrong Jim... but basically a belly pan / ramp kind of rig, with a 2.5" port. I need to source up a 2.5" blast gate to shut it off though. The purpose to that is just to clean out the base when it does get junked up. Leave the side slots and front open as those are the directions the air is coming from, Think that you want open where th air is coming from, and closed except the ports where it is going to. particularly the blade guard / shark guard, and the shroud port at the back...

                          Best of luck, and keep sharing!
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