I'm not sure if there is a low budget alternative to a god air system, but this is one of those things that nobody should neglect. There are scores of reasons that Bladesmiths could leave this world early for, but I would put two at the very top of the list- 1. Not protecting our lungs and 2. Not gloving up when using solvents and chemicals. Sure I am have almost caught myself on fire, and have bled all over the shop, but those are just the little things that keep life interesting. The real life changers are test results that you get decades later that tell you how stupid you were when you were 25 with what you carelessly exposed your body to thinking it was not problem; then it is too late and quite irreversible.

The best thing I ever did to myself was install a serious air system that pulls as much dust as possible out if the shop, and even then some still gets by. I also have shelves of chemicals and solvents on which I keep a box of the inexpensive nitrile gloves, not only am I keeping toxins out of my organs, my hands aren't all stained and covered in epoxies or cements.

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I'm not sure if there is a low budget alternative to a god air system, but this is one of those things that nobody should neglect. There are scores of reasons that Bladesmiths could leave this world early for, but I would put two at the very top of the list- 1. Not protecting our lungs and 2. Not gloving up when using solvents and chemicals. Sure I am have almost caught myself on fire, and have bled all over the shop, but those are just the little things that keep life interesting. The real life changers are test results that you get decades later that tell you how stupid you were when you were 25 with what you carelessly exposed your body to thinking it was not problem; then it is too late and quite irreversible.

The best thing I ever did to myself was install a serious air system that pulls as much dust as possible out if the shop, and even then some still gets by. I also have shelves of chemicals and solvents on which I keep a box of the inexpensive nitrile gloves, not only am I keeping toxins out of my organs, my hands aren't all stained and covered in epoxies or cements.

I agree completely, and at this phase I'm doing what I can. I always wear a respirator and I wear nitrile gloves as well when I'm working with solvents, the exception being the oils I rub on my blades to keep them from rusting. Is there anything you have under your grinder to help catch everything that runs off of your belts? I guess I'm looking for something better than a bucket of water right now.

Thanks again,

Travis<><

Travis,

I'll second what Kevin said. What I've done in my shop (besides wearing a respirator and gloves when appropriate) isn't a complete solution but it helps. First, I have my spark bucket on a crate raising it as close to my grinder as I can get it. This way I try to catch as much of the larger metal particles as I can when I grind. Of the ones it misses, the heavy ones will settle out around the work area and can be cleaned up with a shop vacuum. In an effort to capture the lighter particles that don't settle out right away, I purchased a Rikon #63-110 dust extractor. It is a small (12 gallon) portable unit, and I have it on a small furniture dolly so I can move it to other tools, such as my bandsaw. I use 0.5 micron filters so it will capture at least some of the dust down to that size. I can't say how efficient it is, but there is less dust in my shop since I got it, and I have to clean the filter periodically, so I know it helps.

When I work on handles I replace the spark bucket under my grinder with a cardboard box. I cut a hole near one corner at the bottom to insert the end of my shop vacuum hose. When I am sanding wood, I have the dust extractor next to my grinder and also the shop vacuum pulling air down into the box below it. I can typically see a pile of larger sawdust particles in the bottom of the box and I know both the dust extractor and vacuum are pulling at least some of the smaller dust particles from the air. Note that when running my grinder, shop vacuum, and dust extractor, good ear protection is desirable!

I purchased the dust extractor for cleanliness reasons as well as health reasons. The larger particles, I believe greater than 10 microns, will settle out of the air within minutes. The ones in the 0.5 - 10 um range can stay suspended in the air for hours so that was the reason for going with a 0.5 micron filter rather than a 2 um filter. Those particles are the ones that will settle out as dust all over everything, and also the ones you'd be breathing long after shutting down your grinder.

Thanks,

Dave

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I agree completely, and at this phase I'm doing what I can. I always wear a respirator and I wear nitrile gloves as well when I'm working with solvents, the exception being the oils I rub on my blades to keep them from rusting. Is there anything you have under your grinder to help catch everything that runs off of your belts? I guess I'm looking for something better than a bucket of water right now.

Thanks again,

Travis<><

Here is an image of two of my dust catchers, placed with my air system routed into the back of them. This catches the larger particles in the basin and pulls the lighter particles out of the shop. There is a special enclosure for the buffer, because the particles off it are typically all much finer. But, more importantly, when not in use the buffer hood is closed to keep any other dust off from my wheels. What is the point of having a wheel loaded with 2000X polishing compound when it is covered daily with a 200x dust? The enclosure also traps any objects the buffer may grab and keep them from coming back at me.

One note about dust collection systems with filtration- please be aware of the fire hazard presented by this. I regularly get little smoldering burns in my metal bins if I grind steel after I worked handle materials. I can't tell you the number of people I have heard horror stories from who had a fire in an air system filter bag. I am sure there are certain distances that will reduce the risk of a spark surviving to the bag, but for me it is not a matter of if, but a matter of when. My exhaust does not go to a bag in my shop but is ejected into an all metal cyclone separator, or just out the back of my shop.

Also, on the health aspects of what we breath. While most heavy metals can have very negative effects on our lungs, they are rather tame compered to the real evil of the handle materials we work with. If you protect yourself with the steel, be very protective of handle materials. From natural to synthetics, that dust is really bad, and I would take steel dust over most of it anytime.