• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Making pick guards

#21
Ostie said:
Blast it with compressed air.
Click to expand...
Along similar lines, I put in an outdoor power outlet next to the back landing, so I can roll my tools outside and make sawdust without having to chase particles, and vacuum up every square inch of the basement. When I'm done with a particular machine, I blow everything off with a rechargeable electric leaf blower, then roll it back indoors.

That outlet has been the best addition to our basement in years. :D
 
#22
Beej said:
Yes, if you find a way that works, please tell us! :D The only way I've found to reduce it is to cut the pickguard out with a jigsaw and file off the edges by hand. Way less mess than router but takes way longer, is less repeatable/replicable and depends on one's skill with hand tools. I just clean it up the best I can and vacuum up repeatedly afterwards. :woot:
Click to expand...

Yes, the annoying problem of the clingy particles is directly related to the cutting speed of your tools. Making a pickguard with a hand-powered coping saw and files is much less mess than using a bandsaw and routers. The velocity of the spinning metal and wooshing air is what builds up the static electricity.

I've thought about that for my permanent dedicated pickguard-making bench. Maybe set up a special little bandsaw, geared down to a real slow blade speed? And adapt a small drill press to work like a pin router; a router bit in the chuck, but spinning at 500 rpm rather than 21K rpm. Maybe that would make the mess more manageable?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Beej
#25
T_Bone_TL said:
Use metal duct, or add grounding wires to plastic ducts. First works better, second is cheaper.
Click to expand...

Having had both DC duct setups, I'm not so sure "grounding" PVC does much. I had bare copper wire both inside and outside of PVC pipe, and at various times still had sawdust or chips standing on edge, or hanging off the bottom along the outside of the pipes.

Same room, same tools, never any static with metal duct.
 
#28
SixtyCycleHum said:
It's a pain in the A, but rigging up an air compressor might be the ticket, and maybe rigging up a way that most of the particles are blasted into a nearby trash can or something. Or at least, away from the immediate working area into a pile you can sweep up later
Click to expand...
Or it can be as simple as using a compressed air can like the ones they sell at Office Max for cleaning computer keyboards.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SixtyCycleHum
#29
have you ever seen bubble boy.. make a bubble curtain and put on a plastic rain coat on cause plastic don't stick to plastic.. also check out anti static packing sheets. plus shop vac.. and compressed air work too..
 
#33
If you're going to be cutting plastic with a relatively high speed cutter (chop saw, band saw, router, etc), there's going to be clingy chips and dust everywhere for a long time. There's no way to eliminate it. All you can do is reduce it and a dust collection system seems the simplest and most effective. I like the suggestion of more air volume and less air speed. I also like the idea of metal/conductive ducting that's grounded.
I don't like the idea of cutting plastic with a router outside and having it all over the yard and in the grass. How do you clean that up? The birds don't eat it and it doesn't just disintegrate.
I also don't recommend blowing off all your equip with an air compressor. Sure, the tool is cleaned off, but where did it all go? All over everywhere else.
I don't cut a lot of plastic, but when I do, it's on a chop saw. I just put a barrier behind the saw to keep the savings from flying everywhere and then I just do my best to clean up with the shop vac when I'm done. Same with cutting aluminium.
If I just needed to cut plastic with a router one time, I'd find or make an enclosed space to contain the mess and then just clean it all up with a shop vac as best I could.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Don Summers and Plain Old Barry
#34
RichterScale said:
If you're going to be cutting plastic with a relatively high speed cutter (chop saw, band saw, router, etc), there's going to be clingy chips and dust everywhere for a long time. There's no way to eliminate it. All you can do is reduce it and a dust collection system seems the simplest and most effective. I like the suggestion of more air volume and less air speed. I also like the idea of metal/conductive ducting that's grounded.
I don't like the idea of cutting plastic with a router outside and having it all over the yard and in the grass. How do you clean that up? The birds don't eat it and it doesn't just disintegrate.
I also don't recommend blowing off all your equip with an air compressor. Sure, the tool is cleaned off, but where did it all go? All over everywhere else.
I don't cut a lot of plastic, but when I do, it's on a chop saw. I just put a barrier behind the saw to keep the savings from flying everywhere and then I just do my best to clean up with the shop vac when I'm done. Same with cutting aluminium.
If I just needed to cut plastic with a router one time, I'd find or make an enclosed space to contain the mess and then just clean it all up with a shop vac as best I could.
Click to expand...

Yes, I completely agree. That's about all you can do. Contain the particles within a closed area. Minimize the static charge buildup to reduce the particles sticking to things. Sweep up what you can with a non-plastic brush. Vacuum up the remainder of the particles with a low velocity, high volume suction system.

The guys who were suggesting blowing it with compressed air....were you joking? That's the worst thing you can do.

Another factor: If you look at the vinyl particles under a magnifier, they are small curls with sharp hooks. So they will also tend to mechanically cling onto surfaces with texture, in addition to the static electricity. You'll see that when you try to brush them off your T-shirt. They are hard to brush off. Maybe the best thing for the walls surrounding a pickguard cutting operation is smooth wood or paper? Like masonite or white illustration board? Or would smooth sheet metal be better?

A crazier thought would be to do the cutting operations in a cloud of water mist or vapor. Fill the enclosure with fog. The plastic particles would be caught in the water vapor, fall down into a slurry tray in the bottom, and be separated in a screen filter. That would probably work. Of course, all the machines and tooling would have to be water proof.

Maybe the solution is to build the operation into something like a sandblasting cabinet? A closed sheet metal cabinet with a window and the big rubber gloves. An expanded metal floor inside and a big sheet metal cone in the bottom. The particles stick on the walls of the cabinet for a while until the static electricity bleeds off, then they fall down into the bucket underneath.
 
#35
Bruce Johnson said:
Maybe the best thing for the walls surrounding a pickguard cutting operation is smooth wood or paper? Like masonite or white illustration board? Or would smooth sheet metal be better?
Click to expand...
Maybe go the other way and cover the walls with cheesecloth drapes. Once they're full of debris you can wash them or throw them out, and the permanent walls stay clean.
 
#36
ardgedee said:
Maybe go the other way and cover the walls with cheesecloth drapes. Once they're full of debris you can wash them or throw them out, and the permanent walls stay clean.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's an interesting idea, too. Make the walls as removable panels that are deliberately sticky. Let the particles build up on them. Now and then, take the panel over to a trash can and brush it off. Or vacuum it. That could work.
 
#37
I was thinking of adding a humidifier to the space. I think it would help.
But then I realized you'd be speeding up oxidization on any machinery or equipment.
I like the sandblasting rig idea. That would actually be relatively simple to build. And you wouldn't need attached gloves necessarily. You could have a rubber membrane around the holes that fit tightly around your arms. Or maybe none? Maybe the suction from a vacuum or dust collector would keep too many particles from flying out.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back