vac press part1

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stankern
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vac press part1

Post by stankern »

I have been gluing and machining trying to build a vac press,
bit of trouble getting the vinyl but it will come ,the vinyl will
be held in the maple frame
and the frame will be clamped or latched
to the mdf table with an oring for a seal.(between the fram end the table)

Have a small 1/3 hp vac pump to connect up
The frame is also hinged so you can open it and place your veneer and the panel
you are veneering to


part 1 building a vac pres
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explain.jpg
done3.jpg
done.jpg

John Murphy
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Re: vac press part1

Post by John Murphy »

what are you using to heat the material?

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mtylerfl
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Re: vac press part1

Post by mtylerfl »

John Murphy wrote:what are you using to heat the material?
I'm curious about that, too. Yesterday, my wife bought a new electric griddle and gave me orders to toss out the old one (which still works but the non-stick surface is scratched up). Instead of tossing it in the bin, I "hid" it in my garage thinking it might be useful as a heat source for a small vacuform rig!
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Re: vac press part1

Post by Carrie V »

We use a big old Pizza.

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ssflyer
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Re: vac press part1

Post by ssflyer »

I think this is a vacuum press, not a vacuum forming jig - used to apply veneers, etc. No heat required! 8)
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Re: vac press part1

Post by mtylerfl »

ssflyer wrote:I think this is a vacuum press, not a vacuum forming jig - used to apply veneers, etc. No heat required! 8)
Oh. :)
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ssflyer
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Re: vac press part1

Post by ssflyer »

BTW, WidgetWorks sells small VacuumForming tables very reasonably, but he uses your kitchen oven for heat!! :shock:
I'd probably go with a cheap quartz heater - the radiant type that heats things, not air...

Sorry to the OP, for getting off topic - Your press looks like a great idea!
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Re: vac press part1

Post by stankern »

guess i explained that all wrong,as said above this is for gluing veneer to a panel,use this instead of a large press or many clamps
Its becoming a bit of a challenge as today i machined out the groove for the oring between the frame and the table and it has to be exact and its a large piece to flip
and because the mdf was not dressed or surfaced with the cnc there was some differences in the depth of the groove cut ,so i ended up chinning the table on the cnc table
attempting to manually adjust the depth difference ,think i got it close
I now need to paint all the mdf cuts as vac can pass in mdf the oil paint should act as a sealer,then i will also laquer the frame and it will get sealed up too even though
its maple i would like to get the best seal i can .
I am still having issues finding the heavy vinyl,southwester ontario just does not seem to have this ( i need 36x57 in piece)
But i am hoping that when i am done the vinyl will appear

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Re: vac press part1

Post by PaulRowntree »

What about a shower curtain?
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fretsman68
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Re: vac press part1

Post by fretsman68 »

stankern wrote: I am still having issues finding the heavy vinyl,southwester ontario just does not seem to have this ( i need 36x57 in piece)
But i am hoping that when i am done the vinyl will appear
Have a you tried a fabric store? They have heavy vinyl available here in a store called Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores.

You can even shop online, although I don't know if all materials are available.

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Re: vac press part1

Post by mikeacg »

Basically the idea for the sheeting is to trap air. I like the shower curtain idea or even a good thickness of poly (the local lumberyard carries some pretty heavy stuff. You could put tape where it meets the corner of your panel if you are worried about poking a hole. A lot of the machines I have seen used something that looked more like a rubber sheeting. How about a membrane like they use in roofing? Do you have any builders or roofers up there that you could talk to?
I would love to have one of these units in my shop! You could build it into a table so you wouldn't have to give up floor space...

Ron,

I saw a small vacuum forming video and they used a heat press (like I have for making Tshirts) to heat up the plastic.

Mike :D

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Re: vac press part1

Post by ssflyer »

Another thought might be an upholstery shop - as in the plastic sheet for convertible windows. Pretty heavy duty stuff, and should last forever. Just a thought...

@Mike - interesting way to heat the plastic! :D
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Re: vac press part1

Post by mikeacg »

Ron,

Good idea about the upholstery shops. When I was running the embroidery division for Upholstery One, most of our windows/tops came in a kit form but we had a large back stock of vinyl rolls and pieces. We also had a morgue of stuff above the office with old product. Might even find a piece for a reasonable price like something the shop got stuck with or a color they will never use again. Not sure how airtight it is though. Probably need to run some tests.

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Re: vac press part1

Post by Hermie »

I made a vacuum press a few years ago as I had some odd shaped parts to veneer, I had the same problem, until one day my mom came over and I mentioned it, she suggested the fabric store (she was a seamstress) they had some nice heavy vinyl by the meter (not cheap) but it was exactly what I needed and I still use it for the odd project.

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Re: vac press part2

Post by stankern »



I am working away and the end is close,i will be ready to assemble tomorow.
No vinyl yet but there are a buch of good ideas here but i may try vapour barrier plastic 6 ml for now till i find the right stuff
Ran some tests today and all is good,this is going to work well,another add on to my small vac pump


And thanks to everyone for vinyl plastic ideas,the shower curtain might be worth looking at
and fabric suppliers
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