Mini Dust Collection Separator Reviews

3.6 Rating 8 Reviews

About Woodcraft:

Woodcraft Supply, LLC is one of the nation's oldest and largest suppliers of quality woodworking tools and supplies. You'll find Woodcraft stores in more than 70 major metropolitan areas across the U.S.; and Woodcraft annually distributes 1.5 million catalogs featuring more than 10,000 items to all 50 states and 117 foreign countries. The Woodcraft catalog is a standard among woodworkers as the most complete offering of first rate products for woodworking available anywhere. Woodcraft also publishes six issues of Woodcraft Magazine annually.

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Phone:

800-535-4486

Location:

1177 Rosemar Rd,
Parkersburg
West Virginia
26105

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“I've had my Wood River Cyclone separator for several years. Works great and is very simple to use. Just get a 32 gallon metal trash can, hood up the piping and away you go. Just emptied 32 gallons of sawdust last night. :)”

Helpful Report

Posted 11 months ago

DY From MURFREESBORO

Verified Reviewer

“Writing this review after using this product for many years now, so I have plenty of experience with how this separator lid operates. I use this separator with a shop vac and a 5 gallon bucket attached (with rope) on a cart, so that I can roll it around my garage. This is a very inexpensive solution, so it requires some operator "know-how". From reading the older reviews, I am both surprised and dismayed by the operator errors; as such, I feel obligated to refute some of the issues cited: 1) Yes, you need a coupling to fit your 2.5" shop vac hose or other 2.5" fitting to the separator lid's 2.5" fitting. A coupling is not a fitting, it is larger than the fitting so that it "couples" two fittings together. Your shop vac hose also has a coupling, but it's on the other end of the hose so that "fits" into your shop vac. 2) Yes, it stops collecting chips when the bucket is full! To solve this issue, a) turn off the shop vac, b) remove the bucket, b) empty the bucket (somewhere other than your shop floor), c) reconnect the bucket, and d) turn on the shop vac. 3) Yes, the lid will pop off if you connect it to a blower. It is designed to be connected to a suction device, like a shop vac. If this is a pretty severe issue for you, try tying the lid down with a bit of rope and a proper knot. Actually, this is how I keep my bucket with lid on my roll-around cart; it works with my planer and jointer. 4) If bucket is not collecting any chips and the shop vac is collecting everything, then you have connected the shop vac to the port with the elbow. The shop vac should connect to the port with no elbow. 5) If the bucket is collecting some, but not most, of the chips, then the elbow (where the chips exit into the bucket) needs to be turned so that the chips hit the side of the bucket first, slowing them down and making them fall into the bottom. If the elbow is pointed right at the inlet port to the shop vac, then the suction from your shop vac can grab the chips before they can slow down. These issues are not the fault of an inexpensive tool, they are the fault of an inexperienced operator who aught to know better. But now you know, and knowledge is power!”

5 Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

“I bought this separator many years ago and have loved the performance since day one. I bought a hose and fitting kit and it has work flawlessly. I only wish I could find a clear plastic bucket.”

3 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

“Can't review it 'til I buy it!”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

HE From Omaha

Verified Reviewer

“I bought one of these recently because it was on sale and cost considerably less than "real" cyclone separators. IT WAS A BIG MISTAKE. Once this collector is full, all of the wood chips and sawdust flow into my shop-vac, filling both until there is no suction at all. I regret wasting my money; I wish I had waited until I could have purchased a better dust collector. Not what I expect from Woodcraft!”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

JR From BROOKLYN

Verified Reviewer

“This works great when used with a vacuum. Features I love - low profile, so it's easy to fit under a table, and I do like that it useful that it does snap tight as that makes it easier to empty (in this instance, the vacuum creates a seal and the top stays in place). However, there is one instance in which this is pretty severe issue - when connected to a tool with a blower. I tried to connect it to a Dewalt planar and the top simply flew off the 5 gallon bucket. Even with a couple strong bungee cords, it wouldn't stay in place. Wish there was were latches on the side that could be optionally engaged snapped onto the bucket to keep this from happening. That would make this far more versatile. Otherwise, nice cyclone at an excellent price point.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

FP From SAN JOSE

Verified Reviewer

“I appreciate Wood River's effort to bring truly affordable dust separation to market. The promise is interesting - try out dust separation for $27 and a 5-gallon bucket you probably already have. The problem is that the inlet and outlet ports require you to use couplers to mate with the vacuum hoses. However, it doesn't say this ANYWHERE, and if you don't know this, you will spend a lot of time cursing the lack of standardization in vacuum hoses until you realize what the problem is. Then you either have to go back out to get couplings or make do with tape, which always breaks. I really don't understand this - when you buy a shopvac, the hose diameter is slightly different so they fit together. The shopvac manufacturer doesn't make you go out and buy adapters! So why doesn't this lid, in the name of affordability, do the same thing? So, Wood River, here's my advice. Make the fittings work with standard hoses WITHOUT needing additional adapters. This is a "gateway drug" to bigger and better dust collection systems, so make the first experience painless!”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“After reading all the reviews I was a little hesitant. I picked it up because for about the same price of the collector I got free shipping. The connections are not standard size to have a shop vac hose hook up to it easily. I have run about 10 gallons of saw dust from a sander and a table saw and have not had to empty or clean the filter in my shop vac. I turned the elbow piece in the bucket towards the side so it immediately slows down all the particles as they come into the bucket.”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago