Trend air respirator

[treesner]

Anyone using the trend air or trend air pro respirator? Any other good options other than the super expensive 3m made for industrial use

The headphones don't look good on those so I'm thinking I'll get behind the ear style ear protection

 

[rst]

I had bought the Trend Air probably 20 years ago after my eyes became sensitive to dust.  It worked well for me but I really only use it anymore when doing a lot of sliding saw cuts.  The Festool sanders made wearing it unnecessary.  Amazingly, the original batteries still work.

 

[Dick Mahany]

I've had the Trend Pro for ~8 years.  I use it extensively when wood turning or milling MDF.  It works excellent for particles, but doesn't filter any type of fumes or vapors like the 3M units do.  I have rebuilt one of my two battery packs during this time.  The battery charger is not a "smart" charger and can degrade battery life if batteries are left in the charger for a prolonged time (I believe Trend recommends not exceeding 14 hrs).  I found a simple inexpensive smart charger that was recommended over on the Sawmill Creek forum and have never had battery problems again.  Other folks put their charger on a timer which would also work.  The batteries are expensive from Trend, however they cost less than $15 to rebuild if you have a soldering iron.

Some users are not comfortable with the weight of the unit however it is a non-issue for me and it works so well that I use it often.

[attachimg=1] [attachimg=2] [attachimg=3]

 

[Canoescapes]

I bought the trend pro respirator several years ago when I was having trouble from time to time with sinus infections -- often after long sanding projects.  I did not own any Festool sanders at the time.  I have a beard and thought perhaps the throw-away dust masks I was using were not providing sufficient protection from airborne sanding dust.  Also, my glasses constantly fogged up, even with vented dust masks.  Since the purchase, I have not had any sinus infections, and my visor (and glasses) do not fog up.  I find that the positive air flow in the mask keeps my face relatively cool.  I now use Festool sanders, so the respirator is perhaps overkill, but I wear it anyway.  As great as the Festool dust collection is on their sanders, I find that small amounts of dust still escape when the sanders overlap board edges.  I also use the on-board hearing protection.  The ear muffs are admittedly a bit awkward, but they work for me.

 

[treesner]

I've had the Trend Pro for ~8 years.  I use it extensively when wood turning or milling MDF.  It works excellent for particles, but doesn't filter any type of fumes or vapors like the 3M units do.  I have rebuilt one of my two battery packs during this time.  The battery charger is not a "smart" charger and can degrade battery life if batteries are left in the charger for a prolonged time (I believe Trend recommends not exceeding 14 hrs).  I found a simple inexpensive smart charger that was recommended over on the Sawmill Creek forum and have never had battery problems again.  Other folks put their charger on a timer which would also work.  The batteries are expensive from Trend, however they cost less than $15 to rebuild if you have a soldering iron.

Some users are not comfortable with the weight of the unit however it is a non-issue for me and it works so well that I use it often.

[attachimg=1] [attachimg=2] [attachimg=3]

Thanks for the info. Disappointing that it doesn't filter fumes as well since I work with resin occasionly. I'll have to get a smart charger. Do you think buying a second battery is worth having on hand?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Dick Mahany]

[/quote]

Thanks for the info. Disappointing that it doesn't filter fumes as well since I work with resin occasionly. I'll have to get a smart charger. Do you think buying a second battery is worth having on hand?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
[/quote]

I bought a second battery when I initially got the Trend.  It is definitely a good idea.  Even though the batteries will last for many hours, they always seemed to run down at the most inopportune time.  A quick swap of the battery and I was off and running again. 

The reason I mentioned the lack of vapor filtering is that one time I was using CA glue as a pen finish at the lathe.  That nice cool air  blowing through the helmet immediately filled it with CA fumes and I couldn't get that off my head fast enough as I danced uncontrollably !

 

[treesner]

Thanks for the info. Disappointing that it doesn't filter fumes as well since I work with resin occasionly. I'll have to get a smart charger. Do you think buying a second battery is worth having on hand?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
[/quote]

I bought a second battery when I initially got the Trend.  It is definitely a good idea.  Even though the batteries will last for many hours, they always seemed to run down at the most inopportune time.  A quick swap of the battery and I was off and running again. 

The reason I mentioned the lack of vapor filtering is that one time I was using CA glue as a pen finish at the lathe.  That nice cool air  blowing through the helmet immediately filled it with CA fumes and I couldn't get that off my head fast enough as I danced uncontrollably !
[/quote]

ah i see.
could you link to the smart charger on amazon? I'm not seeing one that has that small round female extension that goes into the face mask charger

 

[Dick Mahany]

Thanks for the info. Disappointing that it doesn't filter fumes as well since I work with resin occasionly. I'll have to get a smart charger. Do you think buying a second battery is worth having on hand?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I bought a second battery when I initially got the Trend.  It is definitely a good idea.  Even though the batteries will last for many hours, they always seemed to run down at the most inopportune time.  A quick swap of the battery and I was off and running again. 

The reason I mentioned the lack of vapor filtering is that one time I was using CA glue as a pen finish at the lathe.  That nice cool air  blowing through the helmet immediately filled it with CA fumes and I couldn't get that off my head fast enough as I danced uncontrollably !
[/quote]

ah i see.
could you link to the smart charger on amazon? I'm not seeing one that has that small round female extension that goes into the face mask charger
[/quote]

The female connector came from the original Trend charger.  I decided to get rid of the Trend charger in favor of the smart charger, so I cut a length of the original wire with the connector on it and soldered it to the bare output leads of the Tynergy charger.  Just be sure to check the polarity of the connector before cutting it off the Trend unit.
[attachimg=1]

 

[wptski]

The female connector came from the original Trend charger.  I decided to get rid of the Trend charger in favor of the smart charger, so I cut a length of the original wire with the connector on it and soldered it to the bare output leads of the Tynergy charger.  Just be sure to check the polarity of the connector before cutting it off the Trend unit.
[attachimg=1]

Looks like a Tamiya connector but strangely longer than normal.

 

[grbmds]

I have used the Trend Airshield Pro for several years. It does a great job of keeping any dust that escapes my collector, vac, or air cleaner from getting into my lungs. It's never been certified for HEPA and wish it was, but then the filters would be more expensive. I recently took up wood turning and it works well, both as a shield (although I believe it is not certified for impacts) and dust filter. I don't find the battery life a problem but I generally don't wear it for more than several hours at a time in the shop. I understood that the charger was upgraded a year or two ago to a smart charger, but can't verify that online. As long as you don't charge the battery for excessive periods of time (was told to limit it to 6 or so hours), the battery seems to be OK over a long period and multiple recharges.