WEN 1500 CFM 16 Amp 5-Micron Woodworking Dust Collector with 50 Gal. Collection Bag and Mobile Base

I have a small shop in my garage that I use for occasional projects and bought this thing so I wouldn’t have to keep emptying the vacuum every 15 minutes. I carefully read each review and checked out many other brands before I decided that this was the machine for me. Shipping wasn’t too bad as far as the wait goes, however, the shipping company sure beat the heck out of the box. I was worried that some of the hardware would be missing because there was obvious holes in the box. I got lucky and everything was included. Setting this up was very easy, especially if you can follow directions. I wish they would have included a little more detail to the bolts used in specific locations, but after laying everything out, it took most of the guesswork out of it. I already had a 20amp NEMA receptacle that was dedicated specifically to a 40 gallon Air Compressor so I didn’t have to run a new dedicated circuit for this dust collector. I have the receptacle on a dedicated circuit that uses a 20a breaker in my panel. The instructions state to put it on a 25a breaker, but that would entail running 10 guage wire to the receptacle if following code. The 20a circuit I ran uses 12 guage Romex and according to the instructions, the 25a circuit breaker is to allow for a higher inrush current at motor start up. I do not trip my 20a breaker at all and after the machine starts running I believe it only runs at around 15amps. I have not tried starting it with both dust ports open. I read a review where the writer stated that by keeping one of the ports closed, helps with keeping the inrush current lower. I don’t know if that’s true or not but I only have my collector hooked up to one machine at a time and I keep the other port sealed with the cap that comes with the machine. Another reviewer stated they have problems with the factory casters that come on the machine. I went and bought new larger casters with lock tabs but I couldn’t find any that would line up with the factory holes already drilled in the base, so I didn’t use them. The factory casters work perfectly fine for me. The directions specifically state that when moving the assembly to utilize the grab handle that you install. By using the handle, I find that the machine moves around easily in my garage. The machine doesn’t wander on it’s own as the weight of it seems to keep it in one place. A little bit of advice on the handle installation: the instructions call for it being installed darn near last, but if you do this, it’s a pain in the butt to get to the nuts as the dust collector bag is already installed. Before I installed the bag, I put the handle on and it was a lot easier. I also used some duct tape on the filter bag to keep it in place in the overhead bracket.As far as performance on this thing goes, I couldn’t be happier. My father owns a different brand one and his only filters fine dust and doesn’t do anything for the larger particles thrown off by a planer or jointer. I have been working on some hardwood Ash for trim in my family room that I bought a bunch of from a local sawmill in rough sawn. This thing doesn’t leak dust, nor does it have a problem sucking everything out of the machine you’re using it on. It’s quieter than my vacuum. Installing the collection bag isn’t as difficult as some say, especially if you use the built in clips on the housing that keep it in place while you attach the band clamp. After hearing me rave about it, my Dad is buying one for his shop. I bought two extra collection bags which you can find on the manufacturer’s website by searching for the part number of the bag which is listed in the instruction manual.Bottom line up front, this machine exceeded my expectations, has plenty of power and there’s nothing I’d change about it.

Economical suction unit for dust.

It’s just what my small shop needed! I’m glad I went with the 2 hp model. I don’t think the 1 hp would have been strong enough. I actually installed a 30 amp breaker because I couldn’t find a 25. I ran a dedicated wire and have had no issues with breaker tripping. Assembly was easy enough, except a couple of steps made you go back and undo the previous assembly. There’s something to be said for reading the instructions all the way through first.

This dust collector really can pull a lot of air efficiently. It comes with a paired Y inlet to allow the option of semi-permanent installation and hookup to multiple saw and/or sanding stations. It does not come with any adapters to reduce hose size nor accessories like blast gates. Assembly instructions are a little inaccurate but can be figured out. The main consideration for use is that it has a NEMA 5-20R plug (one of the vertical prongs is horizontal) which requires a 20A outlet. You can purchase plug adapters or utilize a dedicated circuit if need be. My main complaint though is limited mobility of the unit. It has four small casters that are all freely mobile; this means they can spin contrary to one another making movement in small spaces difficult. Overall a minor complaint though. Otherwise it does its job well.

I purchased the WEN 3403 Dust Collector several months ago and put it through the paces with my table saw, 16-32 drum sander and band saw. It performed well with plenty of suction with the 1,500 CFM motor. I would of given it five stars but I had several issues; first, the instructions are poor – after assembly the wheels had problems moving and I noticed they were not fully turning and hitting the bolt. This was easily remedied by turning the bolts around and placing the nut on the top of the base. Second, I had some minor dust blow out when using my drum sander for fine sanding – upgrading to a smaller micron upper bag (3 or 4 Microns) would solve this. Finally, I had a hard time finding a replacement 50-gallon lower bag as WEN does not make one. Standard and heavy-duty trash bags are too wimpy. Luckily I found a Powertec 70002 clear dust collection bags are sturdy and fit well. They are 20″ by 43″ and made of a heavy duty plastic. Defiantly a keeper once the bugs are worked out.

Yes but I want to Change it over to 220 and I don’t think I can there’s not enough wires in there I’m very disappointed about that

I am not a great DIY so it took me the better part of two days to put it together. One delay was there were not enough nuts and bolts shipped so had to into town to get some.If there was anything in the description about it requiring a 25 amp outlet I missed it until I got the collector. Since it was over the holidays finding an electrician was a lost cause. Finally got it powered up yesterday but havent had time to really try it out.WEN’s troubleshooting line is closed on Sat and Sun but still no answer to my email.

I’ve been looking for a dust collection without breaking the bank, and I’m glad I found this one. This is my first Wen product to buy. This has exceeded my expatations. Assembly was not hard for me, it took me about an hour to put together. The only thing negative I can say about the product, is that it did not come with the 4″ hose to suck up the dust with. It does require a lot of amps on start up

Quieter than expected, does an excellent job. Would highly recommend. Assembly was easy.

This was very easy to assemble and I haven’t had any issues with the size of the casters as others have mentioned the only problem I had was the hose had been flattened out, customer service sent out a new one in a couple of days and after ripping one board on the table saw and seeing the amount of saw dust in the bag and not on the floor I wish I would of done this sooner.