Blast Gate

[Brian Harnett]

A simple blast gate I made up for my dust collection system The gate slide has sandblasting mask on the suction side so it seals really well when closed.

http://i.imgur.com/tdjR9N1.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/7RBiMPS.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/nP6NvnH.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/rzdJR4B.jpg

[Doug Haffner]

Nicely done!

[shilala]

Very nice.
I need a new blast gate, I melted one with my patio heater. It only melted a little, but it still wasn't my most shining moment.

[Kyle Stapleton]

What is the white part on it for?

[Brian Harnett]

Kyle, The white on the gate is sandblasting mask its a thin rubber sheet with adhesive on one side it creates a gasket seal when closed, as more tools got added to my system leakage becomes an issue especially with my planer.

This gate seals far better than any sheet metal or plastic gate I have previously used.

[shilala]

Brian, I think Kyle meant the white tab behind the stick, screwed on the end of the blast gate. Looks kind of like a flag or indicator tab?

[Brian Harnett]

Brian, I think Kyle meant the white tab behind the stick, screwed on the end of the blast gate. Looks kind of like a flag or indicator tab?

Thats a latch so it does not get sucked closed.

[Bob Eustace]

Brian it is good particularly the mask seal idea (brilliant!) but it is not self clearing. You could have a bash at putting a big hole in the blade and letting it exit out the currently sealed end when closed??? I rather like some experiments Gary did years ago using motorhome Valterra sewerage valves but these dont self clear either but they do have a seal each side and they are under ten bucks. Have you tried a helix head on the planer to make the shavings more easily suckable? Made a huge difference for us.

http://youtu.be/iXJhTz-Jc7c

[bleeth]

If you have a supplier of Valterra 2" Valves in the US for under 10 bucks I want to know them!!

[Brian Harnett]

Bob I was not sure when I designed the gate if the mask would seal enough to go with that type of design, so far the gates have not had clearance issues when closed.

I do not use a helix head, a lot of the material I use is milled by me on private property and all kinds of interesting things can be found in my slabs its cheaper to resharpen or replace blades than a dozen inserts.

[Brady Watson]

If you have a supplier of Valterra 2" Valves in the US for under 10 bucks I want to know them!!

I've got 8 of them I'll make a deal on. 2" Valterra PVC. Brand New. PM if interested.

Here's 8 of them actuated like the screenshot Bob posted: Dual Pump Vac System (http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/showthread.php?t=18356)

Brian - nice work as always. It's nice when you can make something for your own shop rather than watching it go out the door all the time. ;)

-B

[Bob Eustace]

You got me Dave! Yes they have gone up. Early last year we got a 3" and 11/2" for $16.00 as motorhome replacements. But you're right, the cheapest Camco 3" is $10.47 but nowhere near as good as Valterra. A reall bummer they dont make 4" in this style as there would be about zero leakage. But I reckon Brian is on the right track trying to reduce leakage as you tend to keep adding more ports each year. A similar seal system to Valterra could well work using wood valves. In our own system I ended up with Garry type pneumatic cylinders working the standard plastic gates via $10 240 volt solenoid valves linked to the starter. The idea stopped blast gates not being open when the machine idle. Bit tricky on planers though as you need to allow time to clear (not clever enough to make a Dana electronic delay!)

http://www.amazon.com/Camco-39513-RV-Waste-Valve/dp/B000EDUTQ8/ref=pd_sbs_auto_2

[Brian Harnett]

Bob if you put a flow control valve on the cylinder the close rate will slow and should give enough time for clean out.

[Bob Eustace]

Brian, I have never tried that and will give it a bash. Thanks.