Goodbye Festool? Oneida Dust Deputy Cyclones First Impressions

[@DaveDayCAE]

I have found the Festool "cyclone" (really, more a Thien baffle) to be my only Festool disappointment so far. Thien baffles restrict air flow by as much as 50%. I have ordered the Dust Deputy 2.5 Deluxe kit that has the 10 gallon metal barrel and will use it with my CT36 instead. I would love to hear the result of your response to medic0us concerning switching out the DD 2.5 with the original DD on the DD ultimate. Thanks.

[@garagedwellersww]

Agreed - I’m heavily bought into the Festool system, and the cyclone just doesn’t cut it. I’m glad to hear you got the 2.5 - it has been amazing! I’m going to be putting the 2.5 on top of the Ultimate for sure, and O wide just sent me their new low profile dust deputy to try - they claim it beats out similar Thein baffle designs, so excited to try and share!

[@DaveDayCAE]

@@garagedwellersww Well, my DD 2.5 Deluxe kit arrived and I hooked it up to my CT 36. The air flow was definitely improved with the DD 2.5. On the first go I continued to use the stock 27mm hose provided by Festool with their Thien baffle for between the Thien baffle and the CT 36.. Then I replaced that with the 2.5 inch hose that came with the DD 2.5 Deluxe kit and there was a massive improvement in air flow. I am now quite satisfied with the overall combination of the Oneida DD 2.5 Deluxe + the Festool CT 36. The Festool Thien baffle thingy will be retired except for those relatively rare occasions when I need to travel with an all Festool stack of vacuuming equipment, or perhaps I'll give someone a good deal on it. Haven't decided that yet. The DD 2.5 Deluxe kit rocks and I can see at least one more place for one in my shop.

[@tomdarga4411]

I’ve tried all of what you have. I think the ultimate dust deputy functions excellent force what it’s designed to do, yet function while sitting on a ct 36 is not good. It wobbles and it’s quite tall. The dustopper is equal in function to the festool separator as they’re both designed like a thein baffle. I have ultimately reverted back to the dustopper. My bag is about a year old and I doubt there’s a pints worth of dust/particles in it. Oneida actually refunded my whole purchase price and shipping because I wasn’t satisfied. They definitely get a 100% on customer service.

[@garagedwellersww]

Interesting! So is your dustopper stationary, or mobile with the vac for what you do? And agreed on customer service, Oneida is top notch.

[@MrSO625]

Great to see these comparisons, I purchased the Festool cyclone because of it size eventhough it does reduce suction. With regard to the sanders, according to Festool you need to turn the suction down, it would be nice to see if increasing the suction power helps collect more dust. As for other tools keeping the suction as high as possible should be the deciding factor. Thanks for the great video.

[@garagedwellersww]

Great point about turning down the vacuum suction for sanding. Since using the Festool cyclone at my bench, I have had to leave it all the way up to get the same pull that I got with a turned down suction with no separator. In the next couple months I will definitely play with the suction levels.

[@medic0us]

My suggestion: If you want the best succion, swap the small Dust deputy cyclone that comes with the ultimate setup for the 2.5 Dust deputy cyclone. Clan or change filter and bag in your Ct 36 and they will stay clean (filter) and empty (bag) for very very long time.

[@garagedwellersww]

Interesting idea - I’ll give it a shot.

[@kellyvcraig]

Every inch of hose you can dump ups the efficiency, as you noted. For that reason, I mounted my vac above the Deputy, mounted on a 20 gallon drum, after modifying the vac so the input was a tube terminating up near the top of the vac collection drum, and which comes through the bottom of the vac drum, from the Deputy. Of course, the stock input is plugged to force air intake to come only from the modification. Tipping is a non issue. More so because I put large wheels on the can and a wood handtruck handle. Three aluminum tubes support the vac above the Deputy and have Allthread through them, so you can actually lift the whole unit by any one of them. Of course, rare is the Festool vac owner who wants to modify his vac to accomplish this.

[@heystarfish100]

These cyclone dust separators comparisons should be focused on primarily measuring suction loss before and after their installation. They all seem to avoid the particulate from clogging the vacuum filter which was the intention purpose of my purchase. I have a large Oneida cyclone dust collector with a 6” hose that I attach to my big machines. I have a Festool CT33 that I use throughout their system of power tools I own. I also have a Ridgid 14 gallon 6.0 peak Hp NXT wet/dry vacuum that i purchased specifically for dust collection on my miter saw. I found this vacuum to be superior for this usage with its larger hose and strong suction. I did not want my filter to constantly be in need of service so I purchased the Dustopper and built a cart for installation above it. I also purchased a dust collection bag to be placed inside the vacuum and further reduce finer dust from accumulation on the pleated filter. Completing the outfit is a i-Socket auto switch to activate the vacuum while the saw is in use. I have been completely satisfied with this setup. The Oneida Dust Deputy models seem to have an advantage over the Dustopper with lower lossage of suction. I don’t know what the issue is with these Festool dust collectors as mine drops a lot of dust too when removing that large hose connection at the vacuum port.

[@garagedwellersww]

I’m going to do a deep dive comparison in a few months where I go into detail, compare hose sizes, and all that on all 4 of these. You are right - the hose size makes a BIG difference! I have run the 27mm, 37 mm, and larger hoses, and the bigger diameter definitely makes a difference.

[@kellyvcraig]

One cup of fines can make a HUGE difference in vac or even collector efficiency. When I bought my first cyclone, the steel Dust Deputy, about two decades ago, it was because I was using a tool called a Paint Shaver Pro. It would remove one square foot of paint from shakes, shingles and siding in about a minute. Without the pre-filter, I had to clean out the vac (filter) every five minutes. I made a water filter and it solved the problem, but left me with some nasty sludge to deal with. I gambled on the Dust Deputy and have been a convert ever since. One cup of, for example, sheet rock dust getting past the pre-filter knocks the vac efficiency down notably.

[@nsanerydah]

Gonna look at the DD2.5. If I can swap my generic 10gal metal sealable dust bin with it, I might go that route, otherwise use the clear bucket. For CT26, looking to see how this performs. Can’t wait to have a cleaner shop.

[@pd417]

You made a comment at the beginning of your video about the cost of regular shop vac bags vs Festool bags, saying Festool bags are more expensive. This is not exactly true. I have a 14 gal Ridgid shop vac, a two pack of bags from Home Depot costs $22.97 or $11.49 per bag. A five (5) pack of Festool bags for the CT26 is $46 or $9.20 per bag. Now other bags for other models may cost more, but for the CT26, you’re saving $2.29 per bag and getting three additional bags as opposed to two from Ridgid. I am by no means a die hard Festool user, but I do look closely at the cost of consumables before I pay a premium price for anything, especially a vacuum. In this case the upfront cost of the CT26 is steep, but in the long run, the cost of bags are considerably cheaper and even more so if you attach a cyclone separator.

[@garagedwellersww]

Nice. When I first bout one the bags were more expensive than what I was paying for my old vac, and I sort of extrapolated that to generalize. Good to know it is more cost effective. Running the separator is nice because I rarely have to replace bags.

[@NWGR]

Yeah the dustopper and festool cyclone trade efficiency for compact size, which explains the suction loss. The dd 2.5 is amazing.

[@garagedwellersww]

I have been really impressed so far. In two weeks it has sucked up what the dustopper was taking a month or more to do

[@carbonfe]

I'm currently using a Ridgid vacuum with a Dust Right separator from Rockler. I've been planning on moving to one of the dust collectors from Laguna. My long term plan is to get a large unit for my bigger machines and a small extractor (probably a Festool product) for benchtop tools. Looking forward to having a cleaner shop with those upgrades done.

[@garagedwellersww]

I would give Oneida a serious look. I have the V System, which is a bigger machine. The supercell in particular I have heard amazing things about - supposed to have some tech that is good for big and smaller tools. It’s worth giving them a call - they will go through your setup and make a recommendation for you. My brother has a rigid - he likes it a lot.

[@tonylawrence9157]

Top presentation in every way. I will again look carefully into all that you have presented, and into some of the very helpful comments, which followed. Thank you. Subscribed. Bloke from Aus.

[@garagedwellersww]

Thanks for checking it out, and thanks for subscribing!

[@kellyvcraig]

A TIP: That down draft table efficiency would improve 1,000% [give or take .1% ;) ] if it had sides, a back and a top. After I built mine, it dawned on me the air pulled into the table was being pulled in from everywhere, rather than JUST where I was sitting. I added four uprights (one at each corner) and draped some nylon I had sitting around over it. This forced all the air being pulled in to be limited to where I was sitting or standing. After I added the sides, back and top, I could hog wood off something using, for example, my Foredom and an aggressive, carbide bit and watch all the stuff pull straight back into the table, then do a curving 90 down into the table.

[@garagedwellersww]

It's actually not a downdraft table, although I would love to have one. It's just a big MFT table. The holes are for holddowns.

[@teofilstevenson]

I have the Oneida cyclone funnel, not the deluxe where the bucket lid is included. My plan was to make a custom lid to fit over the large Rubbermaid garbage can. It’s not worked well which is puzzling as I can see the waste action inside of the cyclone and it seems to be traveling down to the waste can, however 90% of it is collecting in the shop vac. I’ve worked on the lid to can seal but it’s still not working well. FYI I routered in an accurate fit groove into the plywood custom lid (it’s not just sitting atop the can) so I’m trying to supplement that seal. It’s still not working well. Frustrating!

[@garagedwellersww]

That is really frustrating. I used trash cans before too, and no matter what they just don’t seal well. Also, wood is porous so you lose some suction with the plywood top. You should check out an Oneida drum - the seal will be perfect. It’s one of those areas where I think it’s worth the extra money as the DIY route doesn’t hold up. My brother uses a super dust deputy, and he ultimately went with a drum for the same reason, couldn’t get a trash can to work.

[@dsdragoon]

The Dust Deputy Ultimate you have seems to be a new version of the Dust Deputy Ultimate compared to the one I own. The one you have seems to have a heaver dust bin, the dust bin bag hold down vacuum tube seem to have a larger diameter and the vacuum tube has different connecting connection points. I cannot find the Dust Deputy Ultimate you have on their website. Where can I buy the one you have?

[@garagedwellersww]

This is the one you’re looking for: amzn.to/3E40P4d

[@richardgauthier4596]

I Have the original 1 1/4 Dust Deputy with a metal top and metal container. It is hooked up to my Craftsman 1/2 round hang on the wall shop Vac. Even with 1 1/4 hose it does amazingly well. My only complaint is the small diameter cyclone input. It often clogs with larger chips of debris such as hand planer shavings. I also have the Festool shop vacuum and do like its portability working with the sander and track saw. The dust deputy seems to increase flow even when hooked up to the Festool Vac. I am considering a newer Dust deputy with larger hose simply for the clear container and larger hose reasons. I am considering the NEW low profile dust deputy. Thoughts??? BTW I am an Oneida fan from way back. My shop has a 3hp Dust Gorilla which I love!

[@garagedwellersww]

Big Oneida fan myself. You can’t go wrong with the newer model - big input, no clogs, and great air flow. I’m actually looking to try out the new low profile one myself - I’ll let you know once I get my hands on it 👍🏻

[@rickkinney1249]

real good video---buy an oneida brand and you know you will be getting the best for the money---i have 4 of their units in my shop and they do an absolute fantastic job (orig dd--dd2.5--black dust (plastic) and an old navy blue unit from about 20 yrs ago)

[@garagedwellersww]

Thanks for watching! I love Oneida!

[@dtbeach]

I’m curious about the clear tube on the dust deputy for the festool. Thanks for the information.

[@garagedwellersww]

Everuthing connects to the Festool vacs perfectly

[@JHRefinedCustomFurniture]

For someone that is looking to purchase a festool dust extractor and wants the oneida 2.5 dust deputy, what would you recommend buying to maximize suction? Which extractor and which dust deputy. Will be used mainly for sanding and track saw.

[@Troutdreams]

Been happy with my setup for past several years. I’m using the original small DD now called “Dust Deputy DIY Retrofit” that’s $40 through Amazon. The dust extractor is a Nilfisk Attix (roughly equivalent to a Festool). Running 13’ or so 27mm hose to sanders and 33mm hose to track saw and routers. In either case there is more than enough suction. has more than enough suction and in fact I usually open a port at the handle of my hose to let off some suction when sanding. Suggest getting the original DD (small $40 version) and mount it on a metal 5 gal paint bucket above your extractor. Run as large of diameter a hose as you can from extractor to DD then downsize the hose from DD to tool to 32mm or 27mm.

[@garagedwellersww]

So *most* (definitely not all) of the Festool dust extractors are equivalent in motor and CFM, what more matters is what you want feature wise. If you are more stationary and want size, the 26/36/48 are awesome. If you want mobility and smaller features, the MIDI is great. I have two 15's as well - they work great, and are small/the most affordable. The DD 2.5 is I think the best, although I have the ultimate and the lo pro as well. Both are great, but I think the DD 2.5 has the edge if the size/profile works for your space.

[@dougsteenhuis3700]

What knife is that that you used to open the box?

[@garagedwellersww]

Here's the link - has worked great for me. amzn.to/3GQ0YKi