I think one of the major reasons some woodworkers do not use dust extraction systems for particular tasks that should necessitate them is the difficulty they have in setting up or preparing the extraction system for the particular task at hand. In particular, trying to position a dust port in exactly the right position for it to be fully effective in removing as much harmful dust as possible at the source, before that dust gets airborne and more difficult to catch.

Enter the Dust Picker device. It allows you to position a dust port for a large dust collector right up near the dust creation source, thus helping to reduce the amount of airborne dust, ultimately reducing your exposure, and saving a lot of cleanup time.

The Dust Picker
The Dust Picker is a simple but effective dust collection accessory. It ships in a medium sized box unassembled. Assembly is straightforward. The assembly text in the printed manual is a bit difficult to understand, but the supplied assembly diagrams make it fairly simple to put everything together, which took about 10 minutes. It's basically just a matter of bolting everything together.

The round steel pipe that makes up most of the Dust Picker body appears to have a powder-coated black finish. The dust port itself is hardened plastic.

The Dust Picker is designed to hook up to a high volume, low pressure dust extraction system, as opposed to a low volume, high pressure system like your household vacuum. The 100mm (4") diameter connector will fit the standard sized hose that ships with most workshop extractor units. The other end of the dust port tapers out to a rectangular opening that measures 250mm x 110mm.

The advantage the Dust Picker has is that it is able to be positioned in just about any configuration. In fact, it can be adjusted in all three axes to position the dust hood in just about any position you need.

At the foot of the Dust Picker is a round fixing plate where three fasteners can be used to secure the Dust Picker to a solid surface, whether it be the ground, a wall or even a ceiling/roof (assuming it is fixed to a sturdy structural support). You can pretty much secure it as you see fit or as needed for your power tool or for workbench collection. Or, you could even attach a portable heavy base if you need it to be somewhat mobile, as I have chosen to do. This brings us to the practical question of "what can I use the Dust Picker with?"

Well, the simple answer is pretty much anything, or in any application where you need to collect dust from a source. When I first saw this device, I immediately pictured it as potentially handy for dust collection on the lathe. You can position the port right behind the cutting area, or below it, or even slightly to the side if possible. And for sanding on the lathe, positioning it slightly below the midline and to the rear of the spindle axis will catch a lot of the dust created during the sanding process. Another application could be on a router table when the fence is not being used. You can position the dust hood to hang upside down (if needed) from its mounting and hence, rest on top of the table fence up close to the cutter. In this application it works wonders when using cutters with guide bearings on it. Depending on your current router fence, it could also be possible to use it with a fence, assuming you can position the included port correctly, or make up and fit a round port to attach to your fence as needed. It is equally effective on the drill press, where you can remove much of the debris created by drilling tasks, particularly if hooked up to a 2HP or larger extractor.

For workbench applications like power sanding or even cleanup after a session of hand planing, the Dust Picker is up to the task. It works very well as a floor sweep type device for your workbench. Just sweep the debris into the port and away it goes... just make sure no screws or other hard waste or off-cuts go in too!

More examples where it can be useful are as a dust collection option for a miter saw, although you may need to fit a larger dust hood like the "big gulp" style hoods now available on the market to maximize the collection area. It shouldn't really take too much to make up numerous sized dust port fittings you can easily hook up to the Dust Picker.

I have positioned the hood underneath the table of my 14" bandsaw close up to the blade (see photos) and successfully collected much of the dust and debris created during re-sawing applications. You could even go as far to use it as overhead dust collection for a table saw, although I'd suspect you would have to do a little creative engineering to make it practical for this application, so that the Dust Picker arms do not impede the path of larger materials being cut.

Adjusting the Dust Picker in its various adjustment planes is simple. Large ergonomic knobs secure each moveable part, so releasing and securing a section for adjustment is a simple twist away. The secondary extension arm can also be rotated 180 degrees in an arc to fold back over the main support arm to save space. This is handy when space around your workbench or machinery is at a premium. The vertical post height can be adjusted from 700mm up to 1140mm. The fixed arm measures 720mm long, while the swing arm is also a telescoping arm capable of a range of 620 - 900mm.

Overall
The Dust Picker is both easy to use and very versatile. It can be used for most dust collection needs around the shop. It's ability to be adjusted to almost countless positions solves a lot of problems with dust collection issues around the shop, and takes a lot of frustration out of the problem of dust control. And when something takes little effort, compliance is usually much higher, meaning the woodworker is more likely to employ dust collection practices when it is not as troublesome to do so.

Priced at around AUD$85, the Dust Picker is reasonably priced in my opinion, based on the cost of dust extraction accessories in general, but the real value is in its versatility and flexibility. It is no longer a hassle to hook up effective dust extraction to a number of woodworking machines and for workbench tasks, and this, in my opinion, makes it worth every dollar, not to mention the time saved not having to clean up copious amounts of dust and debris from the workshop floor later.

Torquata DP-100 Photos
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Three bolts or large screws to secure the Dust Picker down.

The rigid join between the vertical post and horizontal arm.

180 degree pivot angle of the telescoping arm allows much more versatility and maneuverability.

The telescoping arm end with bracket to attach the dust port.

The tapered dust port with 100mm connection.

Here I have the Dust Picker configured so the port is sitting under my bandsaw table to collect dust.

Note how I can set the dust port pretty much right close to the blade and lower blade guides for maximum collection efficiency. This is a great solution for 14" generic bandsaw dust collection!

I deliberately set the Dust Picker up in front of the router table to show you how it can be arranged to position the port behind the cutter and still give you room to move to shape smaller pieces.

Not much dust will escape this!