Can i bring this tool in?

Space and infrastructure
1

Hey all, I just joined vhs and I’ve got a very specific thing I need to accomplish which involves special tooling.

I’m looking to edge sand polycarbonate parts with a drill press spindle sander setup (with a vacuum port that works quite well)

I have the whole setup (shown), as well as a small 5 horse shop vac that pulls nicely. I’m wondering if y’all would be down with me bringing this in and setting it up in the dusty room.

I’m happy to give that room some TLC and I’m even considering doing some maintenance on the sandblaster to get a better seal etc. since that would also be handy. And of course, this would be a communal tool. It has a bearing which is super useful for pattern sanding and can be setup to thickness sand quite accurately.

Let me know what you think!

Thanks! :smiling_face:

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2

Resin printing and casting are done in this room, along with spray painting. Painted items are left in the paint and mess room to dry.

I’m not sure it’s a good idea have a tool that creates a lot of dust in this room.

It might be better used in the wood shop, which already has a dust collection system.

VHS has air quality issues, and adding more dust creating tools to the main space could make things harder to manage.

The paint and mess room is managed by a committee which you’re welcome to join. Check the #paintandmessroom channel on Slack.

The sandblaster belongs to VHS. Maintenance would be welcomed. Perhaps check with committee first to discuss any modifications or upgrades.

3

Gotcha, i assumed that the paint/resin room had good extraction, but it sounds like the woodshop is a better fit.

I am surprised by how well the shroud on this tool catches dust with a standard shop vac, so I’m pretty confident that using it in conjunction with the shop extraction would be quite mess free.

How is this decision ultimately made? Is there a specific process of approval for bringing this tool in, or do I just need to see sufficient informal buy-in?

4

Is this just a drill press with a spindle attached to it for sanding purposes? We already We already have 2 drill presses and a spindle sander. Can a jig or modification to our existing tools be made to meet your specific use case? Also a shop vac is also currently on loan from @MichaelG So it may not be necessary to bring yours in.

Where in the woodshop would this be left? Bench space (space in general is a premium) so any brought in really needs to be of a good use to all members?

Is this tool intended as a donation? on loan?

Also like the paint and mess room committee there is a woodshop committee to manage the woodshop. You and any member is welcome to join and participate in the discussion.

2 Likes
5

Hey Ron, great to have you at VHS. Thanks for that offer. It’s good to post about it here so the membership can discuss it. Are you on slack yet? That’s also a great place to chat to other members about things like this and it’s very active. If not, to get a slack invite login to membership.vanhack.ca and scroll down to the get involved section and request an invite. There is a woodworking channel and various committee channels are also on there.

6

Thanks for the warm welcome! I am discussing it with folks on slack as we speak. Sounds like i can probably setup on the woodshop drill press.

1 Like
7

That’s great! Looking forward to seeing your projects.