Recommendation? Best Place to Buy a PAPR (probably a Versaflo)

M

Moses_3

Joined
Feb 27, 2008
Messages
1,096
Hi All,

I have been reading through the forum and have become convinced that the Versaflo is the right respirator for me. As we know, they are bananas expensive on their own, but thanks to Stacy and others, I know you can buy them piecemeal from eBay for a fair bit less. I just wanted to ask if anyone knows of a better place than eBay to buy a Versaflo and its accessories, suggestions?

Right now I am thinking an M-206 headset connected to... I need to learn which is the most affordable fan, battery, and filter combo to go with.

Thanks for your time!
 
I pieced mine together from ebay...got some good pricing that way and I could pick out exactly what I wanted. You could try mac bid for one if you're patient, or maybe Facebook marketplace
 
REK Knives said:
I pieced mine together from ebay...got some good pricing that way and I could pick out exactly what I wanted. You could try mac bid for one if you're patient, or maybe Facebook marketplace
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Thanks! I saw in another thread you are getting 2 years out of a filter and it handles both fumes and particulate, that is amazing! What filter do you use?
 
Moses_3 said:
Thanks! I saw in another thread you are getting 2 years out of a filter and it handles both fumes and particulate, that is amazing! What filter do you use?
Click to expand...
yep, probably the main thing that has helped in that is that I use the pre-filter with it and blow it out every so often. helps a ton! I use the TR-6530N filter which seemed to be rated for the most things (acid gas, organic vapor, particulates).
 
REK Knives said:
yep, probably the main thing that has helped in that is that I use the pre-filter with it and blow it out every so often. helps a ton! I use the TR-6530N filter which seemed to be rated for the most things (acid gas, organic vapor, particulates).
Click to expand...
Thanks. Good to know. I realize I have been looking at the TR-300 fan units and they are particulate only... good enough for grinding metal and wood, probably not great for micarta and carbon fibre.
 
Moses_3 said:
Thanks. Good to know. I realize I have been looking at the TR-300 fan units and they are particulate only... good enough for grinding metal and wood, probably not great for micarta and carbon fibre.
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Yeah I made the error initially of buying one of those until I realized what you just stated lol. Then I sold it and upgraded!
 
3M Versaflow and its cousins are super.

Ebay is your friend. People sell the helmets/hoods when they need a new blower because the batteries died. They sell stupid cheap sometimes. You can get a new hose for not much and add a blower or change the whole system to a central air supply. It isn't hard to get a hood/helmet for $75, a hose for $30 and a blower for $50. Look for large diameter CPAP hoses for your umbilical.

You can often find a filtered blower that has no batteries for almost nothing. We don't need the portability of a body mounted battery unit in the shop. A little electrical ability and you can make a DC power source to supply the unit. It may be a lithium battery pack or a transformer. The unit can be on the bench or a shelf near the grinder. Be aware that the filters are expensive and organic vapor filters have a shelf life. That is a big reason to bringing in fresh air from outside for free. Read on.....

If you make or buy a filtered air supply, you can pipe it to the shop from outside (or a dust free place in the shop) with PVC pipe and attach the hose to the "umbilical port". Put multiple ports in the shop as needed and put a PVC cap on them. Just pop off the cap and hook up your hose. Putting a PVC coupling on the end of the hose makes hook-up simple.
The air supply can be a commercial blower like the ones made for a paint booth (look in eBay) or one you make yourself with a sufficient size blower fan and some good filters. If you place the blower outside the grinding area it will be quieter as well as supply clean air. This setup also allows multiple people to work in the shop at the same time by plugging in to a port.

If you weld, keep a lookout in eBay for the Speedglas air cooled welder's helmet with a hose. Hooking up one to your air supply can make welding in the summer much more pleasant. A full system costs thousands, but you can often make a franken-hood for a couple hundred.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
3M Versaflow and its cousins are super.

Ebay is your friend. People sell the helmets/hoods when they need a new blower because the batteries died. They sell stupid cheap sometimes. You can get a new hose for not much and add a blower or change the whole system to a central air supply. It isn't hard to get a hood/helmet for $75, a hose for $30 and a blower for $50. Look for large diameter CPAP hoses for your umbilical.

You can often find a filtered blower that has no batteries for almost nothing. We don't need the portability of a body mounted battery unit in the shop. A little electrical ability and you can make a DC power source to supply the unit. It may be a lithium battery pack or a transformer. The unit can be on the bench or a shelf near the grinder. Be aware that the filters are expensive and organic vapor filters have a shelf life. That is a big reason to bringing in fresh air from outside for free. Read on.....

If you make or buy a filtered air supply, you can pipe it to the shop from outside (or a dust free place in the shop) with PVC pipe and attach the hose to the "umbilical port". Put multiple ports in the shop as needed and put a PVC cap on them. Just pop off the cap and hook up your hose. Putting a PVC coupling on the end of the hose makes hook-up simple.
The air supply can be a commercial blower like the ones made for a paint booth (look in eBay) or one you make yourself with a sufficient size blower fan and some good filters. If you place the blower outside the grinding area it will be quieter as well as supply clean air. This setup also allows multiple people to work in the shop at the same time by plugging in to a port.

If you weld, keep a lookout in eBay for the Speedglas air cooled welder's helmet with a hose. Hooking up one to your air supply can make welding in the summer much more pleasant. A full system costs thousands, but you can often make a franken-hood for a couple hundred.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the detailed reply. I love the idea of bringing air in from a dust-free place. Do you have any pictures of a set up like this that you have done? I would really like to know more. This direct air idea seems like something I could just hook into the back of a Versaflo helmet.
Thanks!
 
Thanks for checking Moses.
I have been swamped working on the new sprinkler system and well. I really want to have the piping done and the trenches covered by Thursday when I am hosting the family and friends for a 4th BBQ.
Got the new well all set up and the sprinkles out by the shop running like a golf course. Now I'm connecting the old system to the new system. It has been in the upper 90's every day. I got the 25-foot trench done (by hand) today and will lay the new pipes tomorrow as soon as the rain stops. Not bad for an old guy pushin' 75. Tomorrow I'll run everything to the greenhouse where I am putting in a new manifold and control system for the sprinklers.
Right now, we are having a torrential thunderstorm. Could rain 2" this evening. Luckily, the 16" deep trench is down to the sand layer and will drain fast.

After the 4th I'll get in the shop and take photographs. I'll diagram how these systems work and give some sources for parts as well.

Bump this thread again if I don't get something up by Monday the 8th.sprinlkler trench.jpg
 
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Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Thanks for checking Moses.
I have been swamped working on the new sprinkler system and well. I really want to have it done and the trenches covered by Thursday when I am hosting the family and friends for a 4th BBQ.
Got the new well all set up and the sprinkles out by the shop running like a golf course. Now I'm connecting the old system to the new system. It has been in the upper 90's every day. I got the trench done (by hand) today and will lay the new pipes tomorrow as soon as the rain stops. Not bad for an old guy pushin' 75.
Right now, we are having a torrential thunderstorm. Could rain 2" this evening. Luckily, the trench is down to the sand layer and will drain fast.

After the 4th I'll get in the shop and take photographs. I'll diagram how these systems work and give some sources for parts as well.

Bump this thread again if I don't get something up by Monday the 8th.View attachment 2603581
Click to expand...

Were I a resentful man, I would be very envious of your vitality carrying into your mid-70s, Stacy! But, I am not like that, and instead applaud that your well being and energy have persisted. It is wonderful that those plans you made for retirement can actually be achieved. Happy 4th! Have a great party!
 
Thanks Mike. Happy 4th to you and yours, and a steady return to health for you.

Envy/Greed is vinegar to life. It sours your life and your outlook on the good things that befall others. These people are likely to die alone and unhappy with no friends and few that will miss them.
Gratefulness/Thankfulness is sugar to life. It sweetens things that happen to you as well as making you happy about good things that happen to others.
These people die happy and content for the life they lived and are celebrated by those who knew them.

The real kicker is that envy consumes all your time and kills most of the joys that you could have had. Gratefulness makes time go by smoothly and frees you to enjoy whatever life has to offer.
 
Stacy, thank you very much! I hope that all of the irrigation goes very well and you have a great BBQ. I think you can safely change "not bad" to "pretty darn good" I hope to have that vitality when I get there.
Thanks again!
 
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