Sawdust Guard for Belt Sander!

Well i finally decided to get up and make one, because it has been on my priority list, which clearly isn't short, for years now. And i'm so glad i did.

It can be very infuriating when you have just swept up your whole workshop so it's pristinely clean, (not that a workshop necessarily needs to be, but it helps:D), then go and sand something only to ruin your work in a matter of seconds. So, i decided to make a very simple sawdust guard, to go around the front/back/top of my belt + disc sander

-a few sheets of cardboard... i used a skinny box about 1 metre high, and didn't use the whole thing...

-Scissors

-Hot glue gun, or another glue similar

-Duct tape, or masking tape... duct's better though.

-Pencil/pen/vivid

-Tape measure

-Box cutter

-and of course a sanding machine...:D

-Get your cardboard box and cut the tape keeping it together to flatten it, then measure the cardboard and mark it with lines of where to cut.

-I used three pieces of cardboard for the main sides. The measurements were: 1) 400x500mm (2x this) and 2)200x500. I also used various other pieces of cardboard for the top, and supports for the sides and corners. I didn't measure these, just guessed the sizes.

-So for the larger pieces of cardboard i used a scroll saw to cut, because it is cuts cardboard very fast and easily... but you can use any other type of cutting machine, or even just scissors or a box cutter will do the trick.

-Then, i cut about 4 strips of cardboard the same height as the sides and about 10cm wide, to support the sides, as in order to get the right sizes of cardboard from the box i had to cut where the box originally had a corner fold, making them not stand up strong and straight on their own.

-about the cardboard for the top, I decided to leave them till after the sides are glued up, so you can have a better gauge of what size you will want them.

-For this step you will need all the pieces of cardboard you have already cut.

-Take the two largest pieces of cardboard, and hot glue them together down the long side. Hold them together until the glue is dry. You can use duct tape to help hold them together if you wish, but it is not a necessity.

-Now get one or two of the smaller strips you have cut, draw a line directly down the centre and score it with the box cutter-make sure it doesn't go right through, just enough so you can bend it on the cut.

-Hot glue one of these onto the inner side of the larger pieces of cardboard, and the other on the outer. You may want to also use duct tape along their sides to keep them strong-i did this because i didn't have many hot glue sticks.

-Once all the glue is dry, take another one of the small strips and hot glue it down onto the centre of one of the larger pieces of cardboard - this side will go behind the machine. You can tape this down too.

-Time now for the smaller piece of side cardboard-take this, and glue it on about a 45 degree angle, coming inwards, to the larger piece of cardboard that ISN'T going behind the machine. E.g. not the one mentioned in the previous step.

-Still not finished with that piece- get the last two skinny strips and do the same as earlier with the big bits- draw a line down the centre, then score it with the box cutter. Glue these on the inner and outer sides of the larger piece and the 200mm piece you glued in the previous step, making sure it stays on the 45 degree angle. Tape these down too.

you've finished the sides! they should look somewhat like in the pictures above... and if you're having trouble on some of the steps please refer to the pictures- i tried to take enough to help you understand.

-Take your remaining cardboard pieces, line them up with the already completed larger sides (you can cut one for a roof over the skinny side if you want, but probably won't need to), and draw a line where you need to cut to bring them down to the right size. Preferably choose two pieces with bends in them, so you don't need to make one, as they will need to fit snugly over the top of the sides. Make sure you cut them big enough so they can be securely glued to the back of the side guards, and fold over the top enough.

-Cut these, and then glue them so part of them is on the side, on the outer part, and the rest folds over the top on an upward angle. You can tape these to the side too.

-Now hold the two rooftop pieces and bend them over to where you want them to be, and then draw a line where they overlap on one of them and cut the outer part of that line off.

-Now they should fit together on to top, except for the corner of one, which will be sticking out. Bend this over, either with your hands or score a line, where the other rooftop meets it underneath. bend this over and outline its shape onto the other piece, then hot glue inside this outline. Stick the other piece down onto it.

-You roof is now complete!!...

-All you need to do now is mark on the bottom of one side piece where the cord sticks out from the machine.

-Get some scissors or the box cutter, and cut out a nook in the bottom, as shown in the picture. The guard should now sit flat on your bench, without the cord pushing it up.

Now you've got you sawdust guard, no more of that sweeping up!!

Thanks for reading, and i trust you find this useful!! ...and bear in mind it can also be used for just belt or just disc sanders, though the dimensions may need to be different, or any other kind of machine you need it for!!:D