Vacuum Forming Table!

[Cody]

Yes! Why? Because I can! Pictures are sure to follow in a few days if I don't get horribly distracted!

Well that pretty much says it all. I figure I can make one for free or nearly free with all the scrap wood and stuff we have lying around. Not that I have any grand plans on what to do with it, but I am sure I will come up with something.

For all of you that know what a vacuum forming table is, should it ever be complete you are welcome to use it. If you don't know what it is...well you should because they are awesome.

[Nick]

I have thought in the past that one of those would be awesome to play with. Very interested in how yours turns out.

What have you done so far?

[Cody]

Not much really. Mostly I am still in the planning stage. I did make one yesterday with the help of Kolby out of a cardboard box, a piece of pegboard, and some duct tape hooked up to our shop vac. It was amusing enough to convince us we should make a new one. At the moment I'm thinking I will make it 2x2 feet as that should be big enough for most things a person would want to make.

[Nick]

What do you use when making molds and for the formed material?

[Cody]

From what I understand, the object you are making a mold of can be made of anything that won't melt if it comes in contact with hot plastic. Clay and sculpting foam are two things I have seen. As for the actual mold, there are quite a few different plastics that you can use. I'm hoping I can find something cheap and local to use. Polystyrene is a cheap plastic that is good for vacuum forming...so the internet claims. It also claims you can get a 40" by 72" sheet for like $7. Of course that is for the really really thin stuff. Anyways we will see what happens.

[zourtney]

Sweet. That's awesome. Pictures!

Maybe I can try to make a moulded version of my in-pocket knife do-dad....though that wouldn't require much moulding as it would cutting, so, um never mind. Interested in seeing what you come up with though

[Brad]

Nice! I really wanted to make one of these things awhile ago but didn't have the right materials at the time (shop-vac, wood-cutting tools etc...) And now that I do have those things, I don't have time... ah life...

I'd really like to see pictures as soon as you start building it. If it works well, maybe next time I do my next crazy project I can come over and use it? That'd be pretty cool. Hopefully you'll be able to find a good semi-local plastic dealer.

[Cody]

The box is partially constructed now! I ran into a few problems as always but was able to improvise adequate solutions...

In any case, I'll probably post some pictures tomorrow once I've finished with what I'm doing. I do have one issue though. I can't decide if I should put the thing to connect the shop vac hose on the bottom or the side. Most hefty vacuum form boxes I see have the vacuum connecting to the bottom, however you can buy cheaper and smaller ones with the hose attaching to the side. Is there going to be any difference in suction? Suggestions?

[Cody]

Well I uploaded some 22 pictures or something like that. Here is the link hopefully...

http://randomland.net/node/164

Obviously it isn't done yet, but it is coming along!

[Nick]

Nice!

[Cody]

The table is now functional. It is by no means finished, but it works. In fact I used it today to make a mold of a pair of pliers! The plastic I used was nowhere near ideal so the results were predictably poor...

Speaking of plastic, Kolby and I ordered some today from an online store called U.S Plastic Corp. There prices seemed decent and their shipping wasn't outrageous. So hopefully early next week I should get that and the true fun shall begin! Or something like that.

[zourtney]

Sweet. Have any pictures?

[Cody]

Nothing too great but I did upload 5 pictures if you care to take a look at them. You can see we packed clay into the mold just for fun and it worked well enough for a first attempt.

http://randomland.net/node/164

[Cody]

Another update for anyone who is interested in this project. I got my plastic today and went about vacuum forming everything in sight to get the hang of it. And I am getting the hang of it. I've uploaded some more pictures to my gallery as well as a movie on YouTube!

Pictures
http://randomland.net/node/164

Movie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD-x9UnSmac

[Brad]

Pretty cool! Got any projects or other cool uses planned for it yet?