DC1BXL

[Bill in PA]

After reading all the posts about dust collection methods I've decided to spring for a DC. I'm leaning toward the DC1BXL-CF from Penn State Industries. The DC1B-XL was rated a best buy in an article I found through this forum, and this model seems to be an improvement with a .5 micron filter cartridge. Plus, I live less than an hour away - save shipping! I'd appreciate any input about this system.

Bill

[LCHIEN]

that'll be a good, no-fuss system.

Ther'll be some who say you can get more bang for the buck by buying the parts from different places and putting them together but for an all-in-one stop solution
that gets you the advantages of canister that would be a good solution given PSI's reputation.

[monte]

If you bought the HF 2hp unit for $149 and then added the Wynn filter conversion for $82 you'd be a little less. But as Loring stated this is all you need and a one stop solution. PSI has a very good reputation.

[mr.g]

I have the Penn State DC1BXL-1M, it's the same dust collector except it uses the 1 micron felt bags on top and bottom, instead of the filter cartridge. I really like mine, I've had it almost a year and for what I use if for it works great. My shop is also my garage, and in Minnesota I need to get both cars inside during the winter. Therefore I needed something that was small and portable, but also powerful enough to do the job.
I use it for my table saw, a Sears Professional 10" job site (model #21830) and router table. I don't own a jointer or planer yet but hope to add one or both of these in the next year. From what I read and researched about the DC1BXL it should be able to handle any of these tools within reason.
I think you'll really like it if you decide to go with it.

[Tundra_Man]

Slight thread hi-jack but not too bad and any answers may help Bill with his decision as well.

I've been trying to decide between the DC1BXL-1M with the canister, or for roughly the same money going with the DC2V2 without the cannister. I'm not sure which I want more; the increased filtering of the smaller unit or the increased air flow of the larger one.

I'd probably risk the HF unit Monte mentioned above if we had one locally, but if I got one of the occasional lemons it'd be quite the hassle to arrange shipping for the return. I think my odds are a little better with the Penn State units.

Any opinions on which way would be better for me to go?

[mr.g]

As I stated earlier I have the DC1BXL-1M and use it on one machine at a time, moving it around as I need it. I don't have it hooked up to a dust collection system using blast gates and pipes, etc. I also don't anticipate putting one in any time soon, so for my needs it's a good fit.
If I was going to set up a dust collection system with the blast gates, pipes, and everything then I would definitely consider the larger DC2V2 system. It can be used as a mobile system also, but seems to have the extra power you'd need for a permanent type set up.
One nice thing about both of these units is that they come pretty much "ready to go" right out of the box with some minor assembly. I did not have any problems putting mine together and the only additional items I had to purchase was a 4" hose clamp and a 2-1/2" adapter to fit my table saw and router table outlets.

[LarryG]

quote:Originally posted by Tundra_Man

I'd probably risk the HF unit Monte mentioned above if we had one locally, but if I got one of the occasional lemons it'd be quite the hassle to arrange shipping for the return. I think my odds are a little better with the Penn State units.

Your biggest risk will be shipping damage. That should be apparent before you open the box, in which case you can just refuse delivery, which should minimize the hassle.

I don't think magazine reviews mean very much when it comes to DC systems. Designing one of these things ain't rocket science. Basically there are three things to consider: the size of the impeller, the HP of the motor, and the porosity of the bags. The best buy is the unit that gives you the biggest impeller and the most HP with the best bags for the least money. Brand names mean little or nothing. Like a lot of other Chinese tools, many of these things come out of the same factory. One of the Penn State units is pretty obviously IDENTICAL to the HF except for the motor, and IIRC one of the JET models is, too. The CFM ratings don't mean anything, either ... they'll all grossly exaggerated.

Of all the powered machinery that HF sells, their 2HP DC is the item that would worry me the least, and by a large margin.

There is some attraction to one stop shopping, but IMO $270 is way too much money for a 1HP unit. The 2HP HF is $169 now (unless you can use a 10% off coupon) and Wynn's top-of-the-line filter kit (which bolts straight on) is $118. That's $287, meaning that $17 more gets you a 2HP unit and what is likely the best filter in the business. To me that'd be a no-brainer.

[monte]

If you wait a few weeks the HF DC should be back to $149.00 again.

[LCHIEN]

Once you get it together you think its not that hard
but I had one of the first Grizz canisters attached to the
HF 2HP DC and there were assembly and parts ID problems to work thru.
I Spent a fair amount of time getting specs on fit to make sure that the canister fit right. I then spend a whole evening poring over plastic dust bag specs and prices from four or five places to get the proper fit and thickness and best price. So there was research and finally three vendors and assembly mysteries involved in my DC - I can see where someone might want the all-in-one solution.

Its easier now, Wynn has a kit. Jet,
Griz and PSI all have ready to go machines. The 20" ring machines with canisters are all near $400-450, so the 1 HP PSI canister is the cheapest ready-to-go unit that has the advantages of the cansiter.

[mr.g]

I'll second the no fuss issue if you go with the Penn State, and I think for Bill it would be worth the drive over to the showroom. Though they may look similar, I don't think that they all come from the exact same factory as I double checked mine last night and it was made in Taiwan (not China) and the dust bags are made in USA.

When I got my DC1BXL it arrived in two boxes, one box was the dust collector and the other was the 1 micron felt filter bags, band clamps, and free 8' hose. It took all of 15 minutes to set up the whole unit. Screwed the fours casters to the bottom of the stand, turned it over attached the motor mounting pole, then placed the motor/fan assembly on top and bolted that down. Then it was simply a matter of attaching the filter bags and hooking up the 4" hose. The instructions were in English and easy to understand, not something I have heard good things about from most Harbor Freight products.

The only extra things I had to buy were two 4" hose clamps and a 2-1/2 inch adapter for the hose to fit the dust outlet on my table saw and router table. Came to about $5 from Rockler when they were having one of their sales, which I believe they have going on now for Dust Collection accessories.

[monte]

quote:Originally posted by mr.g

I'll second the no fuss issue if you go with the Penn State, and I think for Bill it would be worth the drive over to the showroom. Though they may look similar, I don't think that they all come from the exact same factory as I double checked mine last night and it was made in Taiwan (not China) and the dust bags are made in USA.

When I got my DC1BXL it arrived in two boxes, one box was the dust collector and the other was the 1 micron felt filter bags, band clamps, and free 8' hose. It took all of 15 minutes to set up the whole unit. Screwed the fours casters to the bottom of the stand, turned it over attached the motor mounting pole, then placed the motor/fan assembly on top and bolted that down. Then it was simply a matter of attaching the filter bags and hooking up the 4" hose. The instructions were in English and easy to understand, not something I have heard good things about from most Harbor Freight products.

The only extra things I had to buy were two 4" hose clamps and a 2-1/2 inch adapter for the hose to fit the dust outlet on my table saw and router table. Came to about $5 from Rockler when they were having one of their sales, which I believe they have going on now for Dust Collection accessories.

Took me about the same amount of time to set up my HF 2hp unit. Whe I recieved my Wymm's conversion it only took about 5 minutes to install and I was back in business.

HTH

[Bill in PA]

I've pretty much decided on the DC1BXL-CF, although the DC2V2 is on sale too, for $290. There's a HF less than an hour away too, so I'll take a ride over next week (I'll be going to Shippensburg tomorrow for a few days. A new granchild will be arriving tomorrow or Friday .) and compare the units if possible. I do like the .5 micron filter on the PSI unit though. I like the "out-of-the-box" feature too.

My shop is small, 9'x20', and like Mark, I need a DC that is easy to move around, not a permanent setup, to be used on one tool at a time.

Thanks for the response.

[mccrorey]

I have a Jet 650CK (1HP, cartridge) in a half-garage shop but I don't move the DC around. I have a 4" hose about 8 feet long that stays attached to the DC, and the other end is clamped to piece of PVC tube that fits female fittings on my BT3100, planer and jointer. They all live fairly close to the DC, so I just switch the hose from one machine to the other. The BT has two 2-1/2 inch hoses (top and bottom) merged to a 4" connector.

I couldn't resist playing around with blast gates and S&D pipe, so there is a short run of 4" pipe behind my other tools (all on one wall), with a 4" run to a floor sweep, 2-1/2" hose to the miter saw, and a longer 2-1/2" hose that I can hook to the bandsaw, drill press or scroll saw. The main 4" pipe run is only about 6 feet.

The Jet 1HP, from my local Woodcraft, was a little higher than the DC-1BXL cartridge unit plus shipping, but it was a close call between the Penn State, or the Jet, or just getting the HF cartridge conversion setup and dealing with the larger size and high current draw. According to the Wood mag article, the Jet developed noticeably better CFM numbers when a low-resistance bag was added. I would expect a similar increase with a cartridge filter. The Penn State impeller is apparently optimized for the higher air resistance of the standard bag, and the CFM's didn't rise much at all with the lower resistance bag. The HF draws about twice the current so I would expect a lot more CFM's and static pressure (bigger bag and more filter area, too).

[mr.g]

Bill,
Did you buy a dust collector system yet? And if so what did you end up going with? Just curious to hear what you got and how you like it. I find the number of people who post their experiences/opinions on tools that they use here very helpful in making future tool purchasing decisions. So please let us know.
Thanks!

[messmaker]

I just returned a Delta AP400 system and am looking at both The PSI systems as well as the HF system. What is the difference in price of a good upper bag versus the cartrige system ?