Dewalt Mitre Saw Station


Assessment of Workstation

Removal of Old Dust Hood and Workstation

Workstation and Dust Collection Hood Setup

Workstation in Use



Assessment of  Workstation



The Dewalt is replacing a older Delta 12 inch chop saw. 

The hood and the dust collection options were optimized for the Delta. 
Here is the Delta in the old configuration.

The height of the Delta table matches the bench extensions.

The Delta fence aligns with two extension fences.

Left side...there was an extension on the left end of the Delta table.
This meant that the the saw was not centered in the workstation opening.
Here is the setup with the Delta removed...
The old Delta was removed from service due to a dust shroud decomposition.
It was then determined that this Delta miter saw model was discontinued...no there were no parts available.

The motor had been sounding badly during the breaking process... and it was time for new saw.


New  Miter Saw
Dewalt
DWS716
Double-Bevel, Compound, 12-Inch, 15-Amp

The Dewalt mitre saw has a dust port that is designed to capture dust in a "dust bag" .

The hose from the Festool CT22 hose fits perfectly into this port.
However, there was immediately a problem...the dust hood on the Dewalt feeds straight out the back and once it is coupled with Festool hose it runs out of room rapidly.
There is plenty of room to move the saw forward but even when it is all the way toward the back the fence of the saw sits out proud of the extension fences by an inch +
The new saw sits roughly one inch below the bench extensions.
For the CTD stage, I supported the unit with a 1 x 2 x 3 blocks.
And then checked the height of the table...it was 1/32 lower than the benchtop.
Considerations...
Remove everything (hood, saw platform) and start from scratch to fix these issues.
  • possibly remove the Festool DC from the equation
  • only rely on a reconfigured hood and the 4 inch DC
  • the gravity dust drop under the saw (5 inch)  could be reused
  • make the Dewalt fit centrally
  • make the table of the Dewalt match the height of the bench extensions...a skosh higher in fact...
  • make the Dewalt fences and extension fences align


Removal of Old Dust Hood

and Workstation

Pulled out the old hood...
Work surface and hood supports exposed...
The rectangular dust port at the rear was rigged...screwed to the rear of the work surface plate and to a scabbed ledge on the rear bench support.
...pulled it...size is 3.5 inches by 10 inches with 1 inch flanges
Area with all work surface supports pulled and most of the hood bracing removed.
From front bench supports to the rear support is 27 inches.
Front to the wall studs is 28.5 inches.
From side support to side support is 28.25 inches.

New work surface plate will need to be 3.5 inches below bench surfaces.
The saw table height is 3.5 inches, the width is 21.5 inches.
CTD phase...put in new support runs for the work surface plate...temporarily screwed old plate in...aligned the fences...shimmed for surfaces....
CTD is ready for use...will design the hood and dust collection later.


Workstation and

Dust Collection Hood Setup

Rather than start all over with a hood...I decided to use the shell of left, right, rear and upper panels...I carefully determined the swing needed to chop at the max 50° on both sides...there was sufficient room if I spread the sides outward a bit.
I healed the wounds in the roof of the shell with metal tape...and secured the hood to make it flush with the upper shelf at the top.
I put put  wooden framing in the lower side panels to secure the hood. This allowed outer panels to push out a bit as well as up.

Left edge
Right edge
In the back, I scabbed a ledge and secured the 3 x 10 metal register...taping the rear surface into the register.

The front edge will be secured to work station base plate.
Created a new work station plate for the chop saw...previous plate had sagged some over the years...so I added rear cross brace...it is  attached to the side braces in case they need to be adjusted.

The work station plate is 3/4 MDF with a red oak front edge that will help with sag plus keep the front edge from getting abused.
Installed plate, screwed down the vent at the back...it did not work like I wanted so I realigned the register lip to be lower than the plate...created slanted corner plates...

...added front triangle panels to close off the hood area...all crevices will be taped off.
Hood finished...
Adjusted saw for front/back, left right, fence alignment, support bench heights, etc. and secured it.
It is not permanently aligned yet but the
CTD phase  has begun...
After usage, final dust issue fixes will be made.


Workstation In Use

New blade, Amana Tool Industrial Series...MS12800-5/8
80 tooth for miter cutting.
Dewalt accessory hold down...works best from the front rather than over the fence...
Even better...MicroJig clamps fit into the base opening and work great.
Made a custom zero clearance insert out of 1/4 inch MDF...
Custom fit for the Amana blade...
I needed a hose that would attach to the outer diameter of the dust port...OD is 1.75 inches...having a 1.75 ID is not a typical dust collection hose size...not many choices
on Amazon I found an RV battery box vent hose.  It is much stiffer than a dust collection hose.
This hose flexed enough to use and it really only redirects the dust thrown through the port down into the dust collection hose...it does not have direct pull from the DC.
Right side view of the hose going into the dust collection port...
Left side view of the hose attached with a worm drive clamp.
At straight on 90° cut...the rigid structure of the hose provides too much friction when performing the chop action...I put in some strips of tape...UHMWPE (ultra high molecular weight) polyethylene...
the rub improved but may ultimately require a different hose.

 

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