HF dust collector

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  • kramer katt
    Established Member
    • Aug 2004
    • 375
    • SO CAL, USA
    • BT3100 and Craftsman 100
    #1

    HF dust collector

    Your opinions please
    I have found a 2hp HF dust collector for sale very cheap
    the catch is that the motor doesn't work.
    I have not been able to get seller to diagnose so it might be wiring or switch but if I assume
    the motor is bad what is the changes of repairing this import motor
    I checked HF replacement cost and this makes kills the deal but I don't mind using my time
    to work on the motor if its fixable
    Has anyone tried to repair one of the import cheap motors?
    kk
    Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler
    --Albert Einstein
    Tags: None
    • LCHIEN
      Super Moderator
      • Dec 2002
      • 22003
      • Katy, TX, USA.
      • BT3000 vintage 1999
      #2
      Originally posted by kramer katt
      Your opinions please
      I have found a 2hp HF dust collector for sale very cheap
      the catch is that the motor doesn't work.
      I have not been able to get seller to diagnose so it might be wiring or switch but if I assume
      the motor is bad what is the changes of repairing this import motor
      I checked HF replacement cost and this makes kills the deal but I don't mind using my time
      to work on the motor if its fixable
      Has anyone tried to repair one of the import cheap motors?
      kk
      Two common problems with the HF DC that have been reported are:
      1. Power switch goes bad
      2. Centrifugal switch for starting capacitor gets sticky and won't allow the motor to start

      If you have those a new switch or a cleaning and lube will work for very little money. Otherwise... new motor most likely.
      Unlike a TS or power tool, it's hard to overload an burnout a properly sized motor on a blower-type application- the load is limited by the pull on the impellor which is fixed by its size.
      You could take a chance if you are handy electrically.

      Remember these HF 2HP DC go on sale often for between 150 and 200 bucks. But if he has upgraded the crappy Original 30-micron leaky bags then that's something you would have to do with a new one.
      Last edited by LCHIEN; 03-22-2009, 04:46 PM.
      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

        • Rich P
          Established Member
          • Apr 2003
          • 390
          • Foresthill, CA, USA.
          • Powermatic 66 (1966 vintage)
          #3
          I have had two units. On the first one the motor went out. Took it back and got a replacement. Then the motor went out on that one. Turned out to be the bad switch problem. Replaced the switch (here is that thread) and all has been well ever since.

          If you open up the switch box you may be able to tell visually if it is the switch. On mine the partially melted plastic was clearly visible. As I recall the standard HF DC switch controlled both hot and neutral. You could try taping the connectors or jumping them together, plug it in and see what happens.

          I've also had the switch on my HF drill press fail but in that case it got stuck in the "on" position.

          Loring's point about the bags is absolutely spot on. You should forget about it unless you are willing to spend some more bucks on a filter. A stock HF unit should more properly be called a "dust pump" and will soon coat your entire shop in fine dust.
          Last edited by Rich P; 03-22-2009, 05:15 PM.
          Don't ever ask a barber if you need a haircut.

            Comment

            • Relative
              Established Member
              • Mar 2007
              • 109
              • Garden Grove, CA
              • Ridgid R4512
              #4
              Originally posted by Rich P
              A stock HF unit should more properly be called a "dust pump" and will soon coat your entire shop in fine dust.
              Then stick it outside the shop - otherwise, even with a better bag, you would still be putting something in the air inside the shop - then you would need another air filter for that - then you would need to worry about what is getting past that filter. Never-ending cycle.

              Mike
              Veterans are people who, at one point in their life, wrote a blank check payable to the United States of America, for an amount up to and including their life.

                Comment

                • master53yoda
                  Established Member
                  • Oct 2008
                  • 456
                  • Spokane Washington
                  • bt 3000 2 of them and a shopsmith ( but not for the tablesaw part)
                  #5
                  The motor failure points are burnt windings which will be visible with the end bell off as will the centrifugal switch for the start capacitor. I don't use the on off switch on my motor so I wired past it at the outset and switch it with a 20 amp wall switch. 110 VAC equipment does not need nor should have the neutral switched.

                  The other failure point on most China manufactured equipment is bearings.

                  DCs are for the removal of large dust and not for fine dust control. That is the roll of a high volume filtered blower assembly. You can't control sanding dust and fines generated from other tools with a DC, that is not their purpose nor the intent of their design.

                  When we fool ourselves into thinking we have resolved the problem by placing canisters on the DC we have not stopped the larger amount of airborne dust. This requires the high volume air filter assembly. I feel that the money is better spent to build or buy the high volume air filter rather then doing a patch that only does the air coming off the DC. The DC canisters look good on paper but that doesn't even look at the amount that the DC doesn't get in the first place.
                  Last edited by master53yoda; 03-22-2009, 09:37 PM.
                  Art

                  If you don't want to know, Don't ask

                  If I could come back as anyone one in history, It would be the man I could have been and wasn't....

                    Comment

                    • LCHIEN
                      Super Moderator
                      • Dec 2002
                      • 22003
                      • Katy, TX, USA.
                      • BT3000 vintage 1999
                      #6
                      well, i do have an air filter/cleaner hanging from my ceiling, too.
                      Capture as much as you can with the DC, keep it in the DC with a fine micron filter, and then try and get the rest with an air cleaner.
                      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

                        • master53yoda
                          Established Member
                          • Oct 2008
                          • 456
                          • Spokane Washington
                          • bt 3000 2 of them and a shopsmith ( but not for the tablesaw part)
                          #7
                          If you already have the fines filter and have extra money then putting the cartridge filter on is not a bad idea.

                          Putting it on before the fines filter is purchased is what I was getting at about miss spending use of limited funds for those that have missed the real need for the fines filter. I have not seen anywhere near as much discussion about fines filtration and sanding tables as I have seen about the canisters here, maybe I have missed that everyone that is spending the money on the canisters already has the fine dust filtration installed.

                          The canisters are a great way to limit the fines distribution from the DC. But more fines control will be had for the money with a fines filtration system that runs all the time then the canisters can provide. As a sanding table with proper air flow would be the next thing for dust control if much sanding is being done in the shop.

                          Just my 2 cents worth.
                          Art

                          If you don't want to know, Don't ask

                          If I could come back as anyone one in history, It would be the man I could have been and wasn't....

                            Comment

                            • kramer katt
                              Established Member
                              • Aug 2004
                              • 375
                              • SO CAL, USA
                              • BT3100 and Craftsman 100
                              #8
                              dust control

                              thanks for all the feedback on the motor and dust control in general
                              The seller was asking $45 for the whole dc, so it would have left $ to upgrade. Deal is gone now.
                              I have a motorless SECO dust collector that originally had a 3HP 220v motor. Replacements are pricey that what had me looking at the HF dc.
                              Actually I already have a 1 mic felt bag I got from a Rocker sale. I know it is not as good as a canister but the shop here is a two car garage with the doors usually open. Operator wears a mask for those operations generating fine dust.
                              I will do more research on the "whole shop" type air filter. I seem to remember some postings of some ho-made units but remember their effectiveness was questionable to some.
                              kk
                              Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler
                              --Albert Einstein

                                Comment

                                • BobSch
                                  Veteran Member
                                  • Aug 2004
                                  • 4385
                                  • Minneapolis, MN, USA.
                                  • BT3100
                                  #9
                                  Originally posted by kramer katt
                                  I have a motorless SECO dust collector that originally had a 3HP 220v motor. Replacements are pricey that what had me looking at the HF dc.
                                  kk
                                  You might try the Surplus Center http://www.surpluscenter.com/electri...tname=electric

                                  They usually have good prices on motors.
                                  Bob

                                  Bad decisions make good stories.

                                    Comment

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