Bosch AirSweep 3931A

I have been using this Bosch vac for a month or so and am very please with it. I have used it for drywall sanding and light woodworking projects. It is very quiet (well as much as a shop vac can be) and the… Power Broker feature is great when you need to dial down the suction when using a sander. I am using the bags with it and recommend using them. I have NO DUST escaping sanding drywall and the vac's main filters are staying clean. They also make for mess free, hassle free emptying.

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I bought the Bosch because I noticed that regular shop vacuums allow fine particles to escape via the output vents. Definately not good for the lungs or the refinishing project on the bench. The Bosch… works as advertised. In spite of it's weight (47#) and size, it is easy to move around the shop. My shop is a garage and space is a premium, so being able to navigate amongst the stationary tools is very nice. It is quieter than the "Home Depot" type shop vacuums, and as stated, much cleaner. I also purchased the tool set, and I have had no problems with the tools fitting the hose provided with the vacuum. They also work well. I have not yet tried hooking the hose to portable tools, but I suspect that the flexible hose will work better than the hosed supplied with other units. For my lungs sake, it was a great investment.

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I already own a fairly uber cyclone dust collector, but that collector is really designed for high volume, low suction applications (where a relatively large space needs dust control like a planer or… cabinet saw). However there are plenty of applications where you need high suction and relatively low volume of air such as most hand sanding applications. I use this vacuum for just that as well as for my miter saw and sometime my router table. I already own a shop vac, but the noise can make things quite unpleasant. I deliberated on this vacuum for quite awhile due to it's cost and I compared it to festool and fein competing products. I am glad I bought it. It maintains good suction and the noise level is very bearable. As a result, I tend to use it more often, especially when sanding and I don't yack lung biscuits out the next day because I am breathing cleaner air in my shop. I feel confident it will pay for itsself with the related health benefits down the road.

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I bought this as the best pick between the Fein turbo III & the Festool 33 vac. I have a commercial woodshop and needed it mainly for pick up from tools as well as general clean up. I had the Fein turbo II… for 10 yrs before it gave up and can definitely reccomend it, But I was looking for larger capacity (less frequent emptying), so it was between the Fein III and the Bosch. The Festool is very nice too but seemed overpriced and awkward to empty if you don't use the bags (which are pricy, as are all their accessorys). So the Bosch was it, it's made from a softer plastic than the other two but functions very well, the filter shaker really works, and the power broker functions like the variable speed control on the festool. the hose could be longer but it does come with a rubber end that fits the Festool domino outlet perfectly. No tools but they are available seperately from any of the manufacturers, I am using the old Fein hose and tools with this vac.

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This unit does what many shop vacuums fail to do, pick up dust and wood shavings without getting clogged every few seconds. It is also quiet enough that I do not need ear plugs just to clean up around my… shop. I am a hobbiest woodworker, and this vacuum allows me to have enough dust collection that I can avoid a dedicated dust collector, thus saving the space needed for such a large unit, and allowing me to avoid adding piping to my little wood shop. It has the capacity and power to pick up the mess directly from my planer, saws and sanders leaving little to be cleaned up after I have finished my work for the day. It is pricey, but good tools are rarely cheap. Think about what you want a shop vacuum to do, if you can get by with a loud and jam prone unit, go ahead and save the money, but if you want a unit that can help you keep the mess down, allow you to hear what is happening around you, and not force you to stop every few minutes to clear the hose, then this vacuum is worth a good look. Four stars is due to its lack of any attachments, which forces you to buy them seperately.

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