NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1983, No. 43, $3.50 Making ... - Wood Tools

An n wer to breathing dust
I
Turning trOpiCal woods, fossihzed wal­ goggles. The helmet has several adjustru
tusks, soap tone and amber was a ments for proper fit. The battety pack
health hazard in my shop. olving the and pump are light and behind you, out
problem has been quite a challenge. of the way. The hum of the pump isn't
1m
My flrst step was to set up an exhaust a problem; after a couple of minutes it
sy t m built out of part from an old seems to go away. also wear a lab coat
-fmisher (a shoe repair bar). These now, so all dust is left in the shop.
machines are outdated in the hoe in­ In my opinion, here are the positive
dustry and can be picked up relatively aspects of the Airhat:
cheap: $100 to $200. They have a great -It provides total face protection, even
6-m. exhaust system built in. I canni­ If you wear a beard, and partial head
balIzed th one from our machine, and protection from "fly-off. "
hooked it up to a 1Y:;-HP motor and -There's no facial pressure or sweat as
6-in. tovepipe. ThIS handled most of with a respirator-and-goggle combina­
the du t from m lathe, but some left tion; it's actually cool and pleasantly
the force field, especially during power­ breezy inside.
sandmg 0 I experimented with a box, -I've had no fogging problem.
shown m tIle drawing, that totally en­ -It provides dust protection in shop
clo ed the headstock, the tool rest and areas that don't have exhaust.
the pIece, yet till allowed work on the -Talking is easier than in a dust mask.
piece. For most turning, the box, in -It doesn't interfere with large ear pro-
conjunCtion with the line-shaft exhaust tector or eyeglasses.
sy tern, worked. There are some draw­ -It's been easy to maintain and clean.
backs: however You need several sizes -You feel secure and healthy inside it.
for different scale work,
I
power · anding
is possible only awkwardly through the
top, vision I limited, and the setup
lows you
I
down. Also, for turning soaptone
(with ltS high asbestos content)
and fossilized walru tusk (which I'm
highly allergiC to), n ed d more
at
protect
on- .J could still
Ho
see small amounts
of dust escaping. The lathe box is close
to what need,
I
and I regard it as a
must, so I'm till trying 0 improve
San
it.
Meanwhile, sought advice hrough
the occupational safety program
Francisco eneral Pltal. For only
$15. a team of experts, both medical Dust-free and breezy inside his 3M Airhat,
Htmter turns a bowl in the dust­
and industrial, spent an evening di cusscollection
box drawn below.
mg my problem with me. Two weeks
later I receIved a package of safety information,
mcluding specs on the 3M Airhat,
mentioned in the article "Respiratory
Hazards" in FWW # 4l.
o be absolutely assured with this
system, you ha e to get a licensed industrial
safety engineer to come and test
the particulate content of your shop.
The co t of such a test was almost the
co of the $400 Airhat, so I took the
no allergic
reactlon hen "'orkmg walrus 'voty, I
would
T
be adequately protected against
other ubstance as well.
e Irhat include a protective
Lexan face shield. a beard collar, an air
I 100/ 10 hose, and a battety and fllter pump you
Lee Hov
// wear on your belt. In conjunCtlon with
my lathe box
all.
Tool
and exhaust system it
Flexible plastic hood
works great. I had no allergic reaction to
,'�w' '"e" ,"00
work through 1 !/2-in. slot.
walru tusk t I have found the system
a comfor able a a face shield, and
pr fer i t a dual-filter respirator and
Drawmg:
69
I chru ce, figuring t If had
��-�
Slots in bottom and headstock end allow box to be
repositioned for close work on various size stock.
Working materials like the ivory of this
41h-in. dia. bowl requires special attention
to dust collection.
Here are the negative aspects:
-It costs $400.
-Its batteries need to be charged for 12
to 16 hours after every 8 hours of operation.
You'll damage them if you "top
off ' the charge frequently. An
extra
battery can be ordered, but this still requires
orderly attention.
-It takes longer to put on and take off
than other respirators, and it's tough to
train yourself to use it all the time.
-You sound weird on the phone.
-Shop partners have a tough time taking
you seriously.
I highly recommend the Airhat in
conjunction with some form of shop exhaust
system. I've had no experience
in a totally dust-filled room using only
an Airhat. -W.H.
Plexiglas top,
hinged with tape
6-in. diameter
exhaust pipe
in box back
D'� 61&·
Q Q/: QArnlO
-8.t..Q. 1
rest
''''''00'
••• headstock plate :::::: plate
...... 00. plate
Front
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1 """,,'