Back in Feb of this year I noticed my cyclone was not capturing as much as it should. This was the inside of the Camvac.
The fault was traced to the wooden lid having bowed and letting in a lot of air. I bodged a repair by doubling the number of fasteners that held it down and 9 months and this full bin later. That is a 200l barrel.
This is the inside of the Camvac today
Sorry I did not take an image of the cloth filter. Rest assured that there was no visible dust clinging to the cloth filter as per 7 months ago.
As well as the visible shavings I use it a lot for catching the dust while sanding on the lathe. I am a happy bunny. Every workshop should have one. Shame Chems does not seem to be making them any more.
So lessoned learnt. Make sure that no air can get into the the system below the level of the cyclone or it will not work properly.