I have this over-arm system, too. Seems a little odd but i flipped the blade dust shroud (the bit you move up and down) to have the intake at the front of the blade. Slightly less visibility but 90% of the dust from a tablesaw blade is thrown to the front so you catch more of the dust I found.
Peter Kelly precisely what Jake has observed. Another fellow commented and said that he was able to flip it around, we’ll be experimenting with that idea.
Thanks Rob, I have been considering getting one of those for a couple of years now. You might have just sold me. Love your short little videos on things like this. Always nice to hear the opinion from someone who is an experienced wood worker on products.
Could you put a piece of plexiglass that fits along the left side of shroud and goes to surface of the table but doesn’t interfere with the board on narrow cuts , this might prevent so much dust blowing out? Jack in Idaho
Thanks Rob. I’m looking for a solution for those cuts like you made at the end of the video. I have the same saw with good CFM below the blade, but make a lot edge cuts and have not found any good solutions. Clicked on this video in hopes of solving that problem. Any advice appreciated.
Search for a video my "hooked on wood" showing his custom insert plate. I did the same thing with my table saw before seeing his video and saw a dramatic improvement. Basically you want to enclose your saw as much as possible so you can direct the intake airflow to your insert plate. Problem is with a zero clearance insert you choke the airflow so you want to cut slots to the left side of blade and try and match the surface area of your opening to the surface area of your dust collection hose. I use a magnetic sheet on the front side of the large opening for blade angle adjustment. When I'm doing cuts on large panels where the holes will be covered I'll open this area up to improve airflow in the cabinet. On edge cuts or cross cuts with the miter gauge I leave it closed and watch everything just get sucked into the cabinet. It's a beautiful thing.
How about adding a brush system similar to a boot on a CNC machine for dust collection if that would allowed to stop and trap some of the dust from exiting on an edge cut...? Greg
Rob, I was a member of the 82nd Airborne and am wondering about the 101st Screaming Eagle Patch and SAPPER shoulder tab - were you in the US Army? Like your videos.
Hi Grant, thank you for serving! I am not a Vet but we run a program called the Purple Heart Project. 6 times a year we host 6 combat wounded Vets and treat them to a 6 day hand tool woodworking workshop. We cover all expenses and send each Vet home with $2k+ worth of tools to get them set up at home. www.robcosman.com for more info.
This, now SawStop, unit needs a modification to correct that problem. The original SS "cheap" dust arm has two pieces of polycarbonate on the sides that "swing" independently. In the situation demonstrated, the left arm would drop down and cover the left side. This, in turn, would dramatically increase suction through the open space in the front, allowing the arm to catch most of the dust, as demonstrated in the first through cut. Also, the original SS arm is designed to take advantage of the air flow created by the blade and direct dust into the hood. Even with the rear hose disconnected, the original design would capture most of the dust. I'm a bit shocked SS hasn't redesigned this unit to take advantage of the excellent engineering of their original overarm unit...which is still available. With the hood redesigned, this unit would be far superior due to the increased air flow. Even turning the hood around 180 degrees (with some adjustments to increase visibility) would help a lot. I almost bought this unit but delayed because I'd have to redesign it.
A possible reason it wasn't re-designed was cost and profits. Most companies just build products, regardless of how they perform, to be purchased and than left to the consumer to figure out the shortcomings. SS just rebranding and making it available makes them huge dollars. The average Joe doesn't want to have to obtain an engineering degree to design a overhead dust collector. After years of researching this , they are all WORTHLESS for their intended purpose.
i find the split arms to be problematic, I think a better solution would be a dust boot/brushes of some kind. one side of my sawstop guard exploded when it didn't come down properly, and I'm sure i'm not the only one that had this happen. good thing i was wearing a full facemask at the time! in thinking about it (i'm planning to make my own overarm and use a shark guard) I will probably epoxy a couple magnets on so that I can attach a long brush on one side when i need it, and pop it off when i don't.
I’ve had this guard on my saw for years, wouldn’t be without it. For those shaving type cuts that you demonstrate throwing a ton of dust, if you lean something against the guard on the side opposite the fence (like a piece of plywood a few inches wide) it’ll keep it all that dust from shooting sideways and it all gets sucked up. An extra step but worth it
I've wanted this for my sawstop, but it appears that the mount is incompatible with the router dust bucket I have underneath the extension wing (not to mention being in the way of operating the router from the right side of the saw). Have you seen any similar products that are designed for the left side of the table? Or do you think it would be difficult to modify this product to attach it to the left side of my saw?
@@RobCosmanWoodworking There are a number of people on youtube who made DIY solutions that just bring this down from the ceiling. That may be what I have to do as I also have stuff that I use on the right side (cabinets) that will not let me route it that direction.
For some reason Excalibur does not make or sell this product anymore. Unfortunately, SawStop has the only other good one on the market for double or triple the cost. Looks like I will be making my own one of these days. Until that day comes, let the dust fly!
I have the same saw, so do you experience dust buildup in the cabinet. I have about an inch of dust after a small cabinet build. Running a 2 HP older delta with no other tools on it approx. 12' away.
interesting setup, looks like to me you could add some plastic broom/ brush strip trim around the edge of the head to catch a bunch of that escaping saw dust and its wouldn't cost much or take much time to try it
@@say-dq1th it’s actually just ok. Even with a 1200 scfm dedicated to just the arm, it misses a lot because it kicks a lot of dust toward you. I definitely wouldn’t buy it again. Thanks
FYI, these over arm dust collector/guard are still available but not under the Excalibur name. There are 2 options available , Saw Stop for $653 cdn or Centurion for $449 cdn. From what I can see (and I have the Centurion) they are all identical nut for nut bolt for bolt, including the Excalibur. Only difference between the Saw Stop and Centurion is the latter has red metal around the plexy and a different sticker, and sticker price.
@@jonhenning7138 I got it through amazon which are now not available. Looks like they are available at Normand (model 12210). Also the KING-XL-1014 looks to be the identical unit but in yellow, available at Atlas tools and Machinery.
En España, lo primero que se hace es desmontar todo lo que molesta.....😂😂 Una pregunta, porqué en esa parte del mundo no se usan las máquinas para sacar escuadras?, Felder, Format4, Otto Martín..... es curioso que casi todo el mundo use las mesas de corte como la tuya. Gracias por compartir conocimientos.👌
Creo que está confundiendo a los trabajadores de la madera con pasatiempos con la manufactura para ganarse la vida / trabajadores de la madera del tipo de dinero y lo que el carpintero "hobby" puede pagar. Benos dias.
@@alexfrancis2941 If you are talking about the extra piece that goes around the blade in the cabinet(the extra little flap), I did look and I *believe* it's only for the ICS table saw. I have the PCS and couldn't find it.
Drew B www.sawstop.ca/table-saws/by-model/floating-overarm-dust-collection-guard not sure exactly where to buy it, but you should be able to find it through SawStop
Hey Rob - kept meaning to ask you when I was there in Oct... the 4” floating overarm duct collection shroud I purchased with my SawStop looks identical in every way except color.. I looked really closely at yours and couldn’t see a difference. Could it be they are made by the same manufacturer? Either way, pretty happy with mine - seems to perform the same.
sigh: my identical sawstop overarm dust collector does not have any instructions. would you point the camera at the way it mounts to the table saw there, and make a few suggestions about how to mount it ?
@@RobCosmanWoodworking Well I guess you can take the low road but I must admit I would not have expected that from someone of you caliber....after that being said I'm sure there are many professionals that absolutely agree that ever hobbyists woodworker should not only turn the saw off but make sure the blade comes to a complete stop before making any adjustments to there saw....but like I said you can take the low road on this.
Not sure why so many are giving this thing accolades when Rob obviously pointed out it does a terrible job at trimming; it's as though it doesn't collect dust at all. $400 for only 50% effectiveness, no way.
I have this over-arm system, too. Seems a little odd but i flipped the blade dust shroud (the bit you move up and down) to have the intake at the front of the blade. Slightly less visibility but 90% of the dust from a tablesaw blade is thrown to the front so you catch more of the dust I found.
Any chance that someone could post a picture of exactly how you were able to reverse the dust shroud?
You are right the dust is thrown towards the front and all of these are stupidly designed to suck for the back. Pathetic design.
Stick some bristles draught excluders around the edge
I have felt for some time that the dust should be collected in front of the blade & not behind
Peter Kelly precisely what Jake has observed. Another fellow commented and said that he was able to flip it around, we’ll be experimenting with that idea.
Thanks Rob, I have been considering getting one of those for a couple of years now. You might have just sold me. Love your short little videos on things like this. Always nice to hear the opinion from someone who is an experienced wood worker on products.
Could you put a piece of plexiglass that fits along the left side of shroud and goes to surface of the table but doesn’t interfere with the board on narrow cuts , this might prevent so much dust blowing out? Jack in Idaho
Thanks Rob. I’m looking for a solution for those cuts like you made at the end of the video. I have the same saw with good CFM below the blade, but make a lot edge cuts and have not found any good solutions. Clicked on this video in hopes of solving that problem. Any advice appreciated.
maybe add a piece of plexi on the outside that touches the table on those type of cuts. That would close down the vacuum leaks and might work.
Search for a video my "hooked on wood" showing his custom insert plate. I did the same thing with my table saw before seeing his video and saw a dramatic improvement. Basically you want to enclose your saw as much as possible so you can direct the intake airflow to your insert plate. Problem is with a zero clearance insert you choke the airflow so you want to cut slots to the left side of blade and try and match the surface area of your opening to the surface area of your dust collection hose. I use a magnetic sheet on the front side of the large opening for blade angle adjustment. When I'm doing cuts on large panels where the holes will be covered I'll open this area up to improve airflow in the cabinet. On edge cuts or cross cuts with the miter gauge I leave it closed and watch everything just get sucked into the cabinet. It's a beautiful thing.
How about adding a brush system similar to a boot on a CNC machine for dust collection if that would allowed to stop and trap some of the dust from exiting on an edge cut...? Greg
Rob, I was a member of the 82nd Airborne and am wondering about the 101st Screaming Eagle Patch and SAPPER shoulder tab - were you in the US Army? Like your videos.
Hi Grant, thank you for serving! I am not a Vet but we run a program called the Purple Heart Project. 6 times a year we host 6 combat wounded Vets and treat them to a 6 day hand tool woodworking workshop. We cover all expenses and send each Vet home with $2k+ worth of tools to get them set up at home. www.robcosman.com for more info.
Excellent video and process
Thank you for sharing
This, now SawStop, unit needs a modification to correct that problem. The original SS "cheap" dust arm has two pieces of polycarbonate on the sides that "swing" independently. In the situation demonstrated, the left arm would drop down and cover the left side. This, in turn, would dramatically increase suction through the open space in the front, allowing the arm to catch most of the dust, as demonstrated in the first through cut. Also, the original SS arm is designed to take advantage of the air flow created by the blade and direct dust into the hood. Even with the rear hose disconnected, the original design would capture most of the dust. I'm a bit shocked SS hasn't redesigned this unit to take advantage of the excellent engineering of their original overarm unit...which is still available. With the hood redesigned, this unit would be far superior due to the increased air flow. Even turning the hood around 180 degrees (with some adjustments to increase visibility) would help a lot. I almost bought this unit but delayed because I'd have to redesign it.
A possible reason it wasn't re-designed was cost and profits. Most companies just build products, regardless of how they perform, to be purchased and than left to the consumer to figure out the shortcomings. SS just rebranding and making it available makes them huge dollars. The average Joe doesn't want to have to obtain an engineering degree to design a overhead dust collector. After years of researching this , they are all WORTHLESS for their intended purpose.
i find the split arms to be problematic, I think a better solution would be a dust boot/brushes of some kind. one side of my sawstop guard exploded when it didn't come down properly, and I'm sure i'm not the only one that had this happen. good thing i was wearing a full facemask at the time!
in thinking about it (i'm planning to make my own overarm and use a shark guard) I will probably epoxy a couple magnets on so that I can attach a long brush on one side when i need it, and pop it off when i don't.
In that opening shot I thought you had a giant growth on your cheek! Lol nice video, just got the saw stop with the same dust collector
Same!
I’ve had this guard on my saw for years, wouldn’t be without it. For those shaving type cuts that you demonstrate throwing a ton of dust, if you lean something against the guard on the side opposite the fence (like a piece of plywood a few inches wide) it’ll keep it all that dust from shooting sideways and it all gets sucked up. An extra step but worth it
got zero dust collected on the last cut 😂
What's up Rob, love the videos man.
I've wanted this for my sawstop, but it appears that the mount is incompatible with the router dust bucket I have underneath the extension wing (not to mention being in the way of operating the router from the right side of the saw). Have you seen any similar products that are designed for the left side of the table? Or do you think it would be difficult to modify this product to attach it to the left side of my saw?
Wes Brown you wouldn’t want it to mount to the left side as that would be very limiting to your cutting abilities.
@@RobCosmanWoodworking There are a number of people on youtube who made DIY solutions that just bring this down from the ceiling. That may be what I have to do as I also have stuff that I use on the right side (cabinets) that will not let me route it that direction.
Is this better than the sawstop or just $100+ cheaper.
Anyone know if this is better or just cheaper then the Harvey version.
For some reason Excalibur does not make or sell this product anymore. Unfortunately, SawStop has the only other good one on the market for double or triple the cost. Looks like I will be making my own one of these days. Until that day comes, let the dust fly!
adding brushtape to it would make it even more effective
I have the same saw, so do you experience dust buildup in the cabinet. I have about an inch of dust after a small cabinet build. Running a 2 HP older delta with no other tools on it approx. 12' away.
interesting setup, looks like to me you could add some plastic broom/ brush strip trim around the edge of the head to catch a bunch of that escaping saw dust and its wouldn't cost much or take much time to try it
hi, can you tell me where can buy this Excalibur product？
thanks so much
Does anyone know where I can get one of the inserts he pointed out inside his saw to aid dust collection
Your microphone looks like a mole man. Black speaker cover avail?
Picking up my new sawstop today with their version of this. Thanks for the vid.
@Eric x. How do you like the Saw Stop version? I hear mixed reviews
@@say-dq1th it’s actually just ok. Even with a 1200 scfm dedicated to just the arm, it misses a lot because it kicks a lot of dust toward you. I definitely wouldn’t buy it again. Thanks
Maybe you can adapt a design like this one here: ua-cam.com/video/TkYoLxlHAD0/v-deo.html
If it is not collecting dust all the time from that part of the saw than it isn’t worth the money buying it.
Rob, I like your videos on shop stuff informative!👍🏻
Ammed Ismail gotta keep you coming back for more!!
Thank you so much for this video!
This is identical to the one sawstop makes... color change is it lol. Works amazing though.
It looks like it sucks,I really like your bandsaw
dust collection though.It was a gamechanger
for me
FYI, these over arm dust collector/guard are still available but not under the Excalibur name. There are 2 options available , Saw Stop for $653 cdn or Centurion for $449 cdn. From what I can see (and I have the Centurion) they are all identical nut for nut bolt for bolt, including the Excalibur. Only difference between the Saw Stop and Centurion is the latter has red metal around the plexy and a different sticker, and sticker price.
Hi, where did you purchase the Centurion one? Thanks
@@jonhenning7138 I got it through amazon which are now not available. Looks like they are available at Normand (model 12210). Also the KING-XL-1014 looks to be the identical unit but in yellow, available at Atlas tools and Machinery.
Great video Rob.
Got one and love it . Had it for approx. 4 years 👍👍👍
En España, lo primero que se hace es desmontar todo lo que molesta.....😂😂
Una pregunta, porqué en esa parte del mundo no se usan las máquinas para sacar escuadras?, Felder, Format4, Otto Martín..... es curioso que casi todo el mundo use las mesas de corte como la tuya.
Gracias por compartir conocimientos.👌
Creo que está confundiendo a los trabajadores de la madera con pasatiempos con la manufactura para ganarse la vida / trabajadores de la madera del tipo de dinero y lo que el carpintero "hobby" puede pagar. Benos dias.
I didn't know Sawstop sold a piece for the blade shroud. Thanks for the video.
SimpleCove www.sawstop.ca/saw-options/dust-collection/
Their other system wouldn’t suck dust bunnies off an air vent.
Did you find the part Rob is talking about? I just looked at the website and couldn't figure it out
@@alexfrancis2941 If you are talking about the extra piece that goes around the blade in the cabinet(the extra little flap), I did look and I *believe* it's only for the ICS table saw. I have the PCS and couldn't find it.
@@Simplecove gotcha, thanks. I too have a PCS and didnt see anything about it
Call them and ask, I got mine a few years ago.
Where do I find one. I've looked all over and can't find one.
SawStop sells them now.
King Canada now distributes Excalibur products. General International is out of business.
heard that on the weekend though I had somewhat expected it.
do you have a link on where they sell it? I dont see it on the site I found ...
Drew B www.sawstop.ca/table-saws/by-model/floating-overarm-dust-collection-guard not sure exactly where to buy it, but you should be able to find it through SawStop
Hey Rob - kept meaning to ask you when I was there in Oct... the 4” floating overarm duct collection shroud I purchased with my SawStop looks identical in every way except color.. I looked really closely at yours and couldn’t see a difference. Could it be they are made by the same manufacturer? Either way, pretty happy with mine - seems to perform the same.
Thomas Fugate I’m pretty sure SawStop purchased Excalibur, because I can’t find any differences between the two.
@@RobCosmanWoodworking Thanks Rob.
sigh: my identical sawstop overarm dust collector does not have any instructions.
would you point the camera at the way it mounts to the table saw there, and make a few suggestions about how to mount it ?
Didn’t General go out of business?
Yes they did, King Canada is now selling excalibur
Should we adjust it while the saw is running? Good job teach!
Dont be afraid of your saw. If you are not confident to do a simple operation like that you probably need to re think your choice of hobby.
@@RobCosmanWoodworking Well I guess you can take the low road but I must admit I would not have expected that from someone of you caliber....after that being said I'm sure there are many professionals that absolutely agree that ever hobbyists woodworker should not only turn the saw off but make sure the blade comes to a complete stop before making any adjustments to there saw....but like I said you can take the low road on this.
Scott I read your original post to be very sarcastic, was I wrong?
Not sure why so many are giving this thing accolades when Rob obviously pointed out it does a terrible job at trimming; it's as though it doesn't collect dust at all. $400 for only 50% effectiveness, no way.