Dust-free routing: Oneida's award winning router hood
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"What is the dirtiest, dustiest tool in your shop?" Oneida Air Systems asked woodworkers. The overwhelming answer: portable routers. That's why the company built its Visionary Award-winning universal dust-free router hood.
 
The universal dust-free router hood captures nearly all of the dust, chips, and shavings produced by portable routers - allowing for a virtually dust-free routing experience.
 
Made from clear polycarbonate - the same material used in industrial safety glasses - the highly durable dust-free router hood features a universal base plate, as well as both an upper dust dome and lower chip cover, which combine to fully encapsulate the router bit. The dome and chip cover freely rotate as the router moves - capturing dust from above and below the routed edge simultaneously.
 
The dust-free router hood fits almost any fixed-base and plunge routers, says Oneida.
 
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Without requiring tools, the lower chip cover removes quickly for inner plunge work and can be replaced by the included shallow cover for tighter edge work. It also includes a quick-release hose connection port for simple storage. The hood will accommodate up to 2-1/8-in.-dia. edge-profiling bits and up to 1-1/4-in. plunge style bits.
 
“The fact that the router was causing such a significant pain point for our customers ignited a firm resolve within our company to clean up the dust-laden routing process once and for all," said Oneida founder and owner, Robert Witter.
 
Oneida Air Systems picked up a prestigious Visionary Award for its router hood at the recent AWFS Fair in Las Vegas. 
 
 
“On behalf of our entire company...I thank the Association of Woodworking & Furnishing Suppliers for this award," said Witter. "Our pride in this achievement is second only to our excitement that we’ve once again created a product that has been so well embraced by the woodworking community.”
 
The Universal Dust-Free Router Hood is designed to work with most fixed-base and plunge style routers from major brands including Black & Decker, Bosch, Craftsman, DeWALT, Hitachi, Makita, Porter-Cable, Ridgid, Rockwell, Ryobi and more. The router hood sells for just $29.99.

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About the author
Robert Dalheim

Robert Dalheim is an editor at the Woodworking Network. Along with publishing online news articles, he writes feature stories for the FDMC print publication. He can be reached at [email protected].