shop vac advice

[Cabinet Monkey]

DeWalt has a unit at Costco, and I assume other clubs, that’s pretty good for $90. 

If you want a tool triggered and quiet dust extractor , look at Karcher and Nilfisk. Expensive , but a lot less than Festool & Fein.

[Stwood_]

Still have my 35yo 20g (barrel type) ShopVac, still sucking, on it's second motor. Doubtful I'll ever find another speciality motor for it again if need be.
Also still have my 15? yo Fein II.
If I was shopping for one again I'd be inclined to look into the roll around Sears vacs.

Currently having a sale on these.--------> https://www.sears.com/craftsman-8-gallon...917608000P

[Kansas City Fireslayer]

I have a Fein and will never go back to a cheapy. Too loud and too dirty. I use mine with the ROS and other dc port hand tools. No regrets.

[R Clark]

KC Fireslayer: "I have a Fein and will never go back to a cheapy. Too loud and too dirty. I use mine with the ROS and other dc port hand tools. No regrets."

I can understand that view. I'm finally coming around to the view that I need to add dust control to my sanding devices; control beyond the existing small canisters on the hand-held Sanders.

I think my Ridgid vac is more of a "macro" tool, vice the "micro" or precision tool that Fein or Festool provide in their dust extraction setups. Hope that makes sense.

[Cabinet Monkey]

I have a Fein and will never go back to a cheapy.  Too loud and too dirty.  I use mine with the ROS and other dc port hand tools.  No regrets.

While little cn be done about the noise of cheap vacs, the filtration can be remedied.

One only need buy suitable dust bags and an upgraded filter like Gore's cleanstream.  Both are made for just about every kind of shopvac out there.

https://www.gore.com/products/cleanstrea...um-filters

[Kansas City Fireslayer]

I’ve owned a few big Rigid’s and used them primarily in high volume construction environments. You get a lot of suction and capacity for the money—no doubt. They have their place for sure. But in the shop for woodworking or even vacuuming my truck, I grab the Fein. Same goes for doing trim work when DC is needed.

[kurt18947]

Only downside of the Fein, besides its high price, is that the hoses fit nothing but Fein's over priced accessories. Find a better vacuum or find a way to adapt the Fein hose to everything else you need to attach it to. Otherwise, I absolutely love my little orange vacuum.

You can (or at least could) get rubber step adapters for Fein hoses. Cut it to the size you need. Here it is. I didn't pay anywhere near $30 for mine. There may be a non-Fein adapter. I think I got mine at Woodcraft, I seem to remember $4-$5 a few years ago.

https://www.amazon.com/Fein-31322772002-...hi&sr=1-10

[KC]

I ended up buying a 9 gallon DeWalt at Lowes.  Quieter than my Ridgid.  Great suck, doesn't blow dust (yet).  The hose could be longer and feels 'cheap', but works as advertised.  Bag it came with tore easily at the 'connection' when I installed it, which pretty well defeats the the purpose.  My only other comment is that if you're a little short on smarts (like me apparently!) and put the 'lid' on backwards, the blower port is facing the wrong direction.  I used it for a week and just now figured that out.  

[Handplanesandmore]

While little cn be done about the noise of cheap vacs, the filtration can be remedied.

One only need buy suitable dust bags and an upgraded filter like Gore's cleanstream.  Both are made for just about every kind of shopvac out there.

https://www.gore.com/products/cleanstrea...um-filters

This is the approach I've gone for after realizing that my festool CT was still too noisy to use without hearing protection. What was the point of paying three times the price of a Ridgid or Shopvac if you still had to wear earmuffs?

For the airplane-like Ridgid, you can build a box to house it, and youtube has various sound-proofing ways to do it.

Simon

[Tapper]

I think serious woodworkers need to get serious about their dust collection so that what happened to Norm doesn't happen to us.

Lost track of Norm; can you elaborate, please?

Thanks,

Doug