This is a Tien cutter (after the name of the inventor, Phil Thien), whipped up from a 20-liter bucket.
The advantage of the Tien separator is that, unlike a traditional cyclone separator, it does not require significant structural height and will take up very little vertical space. The air in it moves on a flat surface from the edge to the center. It works with the same efficiency as a cyclone separator (if not better), does not take up space, and can be assembled literally from cheap scrap materials in 45-90 minutes.
Dust collection system.
Dust collection system before connecting the cutter
Bucket.
Cut out part of a 20 liter bucket.
Circles.
Use part of a bucket to draw circles on a piece of wood. You will need three of these circles. One circle will go inside the top of the bucket, another circle will go inside the bottom, and another will go outside the bottom.
Cut it out.
Use a router and router compass to cut out the circles. A jigsaw is also suitable for this.
Circles.
The circle on the left will be placed on the outside of the bottom of the cut out bucket.A groove was cut into it with a router so that it could be placed on the top of another whole 20-liter bucket. The circle on the right will be set inside the top of the bucket.
Outside below.
Attach the outer lower part using self-tapping screws and silicone.
Pipe.
Cut a piece of PVC pipe and round it so that it fits snugly against the side of the cut bucket.
Hole in the bucket.
Cut a hole in the bucket to match the diameter of the piece of PVC pipe.
Support.
Cut a piece of wood to support the pipe. Attach the pipe to a piece of wood and the wood to the cut out bucket.
Process with a file.
Use a file to file the hole in the side of the bucket so that the pipe fits into it easily and unhindered. Use silicone to seal the hole.
Inside, top view.
Cut a hole in the top of the circle for the top inner piece. Cut a piece of wood that will stand over the hole and hold the dust collector pipe and glue in place.
PVC
At the bottom of the top inner circle, use silicone to seal the PVC pipe that will go into the cut out bucket.
Let's close.
Screw the upper inner circle to the top of the bucket with self-tapping screws, and then coat it with silicone.
Inside below.
Divide the inner bottom circle into three parts. Saw off three centimeters from the outside of the resulting two thirds. Screw the circle onto the screws inside the bottom of the bucket.
Base.
Make a wooden base on wheels to make handling the collection system easier.
Bag.
Attach the bag and filter to the base.
Support.
Make a support to hold the motor.
Exhaust motor.
Attach the motor to the support, bag and filter.
Dust bucket.
Apply window seal around the top edge of the dust bucket.Use glue or epoxy resin for this.
Cutter.
Attach the cutter to the motor with pipes.
Collecting dust.
Lift the cutter and place a bucket under it to collect dust. The weight of the cutter and the pressure of compressed air from the pipe will seal the bucket themselves.
That's all, actually. Your cutter is ready for use. The incredible simplicity and reliability of the design, which you can see for yourself by looking at the process of its assembly, make it an excellent alternative to a conventional cyclone separator.
Original article in English
