Suzhou Labelong Packaging Machinery CO.,LTD
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easy diy vacuum former
by：Labelong Packaging Machinery
2020-04-11
I always wanted to make a vacuum molding machine when I made my latest robot (Click Here)
I finally have a reason.
I need to make a shell or top for my bot and I don\'t want to mess up with fiberglass and all the grinding and sanding.
So this is my guide on how to build a simple vacuum cleaner with something you can buy locally.
I added some videos below.
Please vote for me if you like my project.
These are the supplies I use to make me.
You can of course build your house with whatever you have on hand.
I\'m not going to do a lot of measurements for this because you can adjust everything to your liking.
And it\'s very simple to build.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
I start by cutting my 1x3 board and making the frame first. I pre-
Drill holes at both ends so that the wood does not crack.
I ran two screws on each end.
Then I drilled holes in the bottom of the frame and screwed the plywood to fill all the internal edges.
I then drilled a 1/4 hole in the front to connect to the vacuum later.
Then I cut a nail plate and put it on the top of the frame.
I marked about every 3 holes and then pulled the nail plate back and pre-
All these marked holes are drilled on the frame.
Then I fill in the entire top of the frame, put the nail plate back below and screw it to the top of the frame.
The cauldron did crush some, but it was easy to wipe it off.
Once this drys, you will have a good sealed box except where the nail holes are.
To finish the base, I took some 1X2 and attached it around the nail plate to make sure it was flush with the nail plate and not cover the vacuum hole in front.
I connected this with a screw through the surface of the board.
Then I used the weather to peel off the line at the top of 1x2.
I used silicone because I knew it would be hot.
You need this strap to make sure the vacuum is well sealed to provide good forming details.
I used the tape.
It\'s time to build a frame that will melt your material.
I used 1x2 and put them on the side and screwed them together to make a frame.
You have to build two of these frameworks.
Then I clip the two frames together (not shown)
1/4 holes were drilled on All 4 sides, I drilled 3 on the long side and 2 on the short side.
As you can see in 3rd images, this is a frame with only drilling holes.
The fourth picture shows the other 1/4 bolts sticking to it, and the last one shows them together with no material in the middle.
My heater box is very low tech and you can make yours as you like, but mine will definitely do the job.
I used a big carton, big enough to put my heater inside, and I lined the inside of the box with aluminum foil to prevent it from burning.
My heating source uses a garage-style quartz heater.
I had to disable the \"hint\" Switch and The overheat switch in order for it to work.
I put the heater on the back of it and put the box on it.
I had to cut off one of the flip covers of the box on one side so the heater could reach out because it was too big to fit.
You have to play with the height of the box because you don\'t want it to be too close to your plastic and melt too fast, but you don\'t want it to be too far away and never get hot.
The last picture you can see is that I just took a board that was placed around and put aluminum foil on one side as the cover.
I don\'t know if this is necessary.
I have used Lexan, ABS and polystyrene and they all work well.
However, Lexan is more difficult to melt.
In the first photo, you can see that I cut the polystyrene to fit the 1/4 bolts in the frame of the material I made.
The next picture shows placing the washers and nuts on the frame, and the two halves crush the material between them.
In the next picture you can see the mold I made and I want to make a plastic case with it.
You have to make sure that it is placed on your nail plate and does not stand out.
I molded my part on some thin boards and lifted it up a little to let the air flow under the part and suck the plastic down.
I then put the vacuum hose into the front of the base and now ready to start forming.
The last photo is the last one after the trim.
I don\'t have any photos of the material I actually formed, but you can watch my video at the beginning.
But I will take you through the steps here.
Turn on the heater first and let it warm up for a while.
Then place your material in the frame at the top of the box.
I then cover the lid on it, but you may not do this step.
The plastic will start to twist, which will last about 15-
According to your heater, about 20 minutes.
The material will then begin to sag in the center.
When the edges and corners are soft and elastic, you know when the material is ready.
Sometimes I use a hot gun to speed up the heating in the corner.
When your material is ready, open your vacuum, grab the material frame on the side, pick it up, break it on your mold, make sure it is stuck by lim along with the skystrip, push hard down so the weather strip will seal and let the vacuum magic.
Keep the plastic cool for about a minute.
After cooling, turn off the vacuum, pull the mold out of the plastic, and then form the vacuum mold.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
If you like this, please vote for me.
I finally have a reason.
I need to make a shell or top for my bot and I don\'t want to mess up with fiberglass and all the grinding and sanding.
So this is my guide on how to build a simple vacuum cleaner with something you can buy locally.
I added some videos below.
Please vote for me if you like my project.
These are the supplies I use to make me.
You can of course build your house with whatever you have on hand.
I\'m not going to do a lot of measurements for this because you can adjust everything to your liking.
And it\'s very simple to build.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
I start by cutting my 1x3 board and making the frame first. I pre-
Drill holes at both ends so that the wood does not crack.
I ran two screws on each end.
Then I drilled holes in the bottom of the frame and screwed the plywood to fill all the internal edges.
I then drilled a 1/4 hole in the front to connect to the vacuum later.
Then I cut a nail plate and put it on the top of the frame.
I marked about every 3 holes and then pulled the nail plate back and pre-
All these marked holes are drilled on the frame.
Then I fill in the entire top of the frame, put the nail plate back below and screw it to the top of the frame.
The cauldron did crush some, but it was easy to wipe it off.
Once this drys, you will have a good sealed box except where the nail holes are.
To finish the base, I took some 1X2 and attached it around the nail plate to make sure it was flush with the nail plate and not cover the vacuum hole in front.
I connected this with a screw through the surface of the board.
Then I used the weather to peel off the line at the top of 1x2.
I used silicone because I knew it would be hot.
You need this strap to make sure the vacuum is well sealed to provide good forming details.
I used the tape.
It\'s time to build a frame that will melt your material.
I used 1x2 and put them on the side and screwed them together to make a frame.
You have to build two of these frameworks.
Then I clip the two frames together (not shown)
1/4 holes were drilled on All 4 sides, I drilled 3 on the long side and 2 on the short side.
As you can see in 3rd images, this is a frame with only drilling holes.
The fourth picture shows the other 1/4 bolts sticking to it, and the last one shows them together with no material in the middle.
My heater box is very low tech and you can make yours as you like, but mine will definitely do the job.
I used a big carton, big enough to put my heater inside, and I lined the inside of the box with aluminum foil to prevent it from burning.
My heating source uses a garage-style quartz heater.
I had to disable the \"hint\" Switch and The overheat switch in order for it to work.
I put the heater on the back of it and put the box on it.
I had to cut off one of the flip covers of the box on one side so the heater could reach out because it was too big to fit.
You have to play with the height of the box because you don\'t want it to be too close to your plastic and melt too fast, but you don\'t want it to be too far away and never get hot.
The last picture you can see is that I just took a board that was placed around and put aluminum foil on one side as the cover.
I don\'t know if this is necessary.
I have used Lexan, ABS and polystyrene and they all work well.
However, Lexan is more difficult to melt.
In the first photo, you can see that I cut the polystyrene to fit the 1/4 bolts in the frame of the material I made.
The next picture shows placing the washers and nuts on the frame, and the two halves crush the material between them.
In the next picture you can see the mold I made and I want to make a plastic case with it.
You have to make sure that it is placed on your nail plate and does not stand out.
I molded my part on some thin boards and lifted it up a little to let the air flow under the part and suck the plastic down.
I then put the vacuum hose into the front of the base and now ready to start forming.
The last photo is the last one after the trim.
I don\'t have any photos of the material I actually formed, but you can watch my video at the beginning.
But I will take you through the steps here.
Turn on the heater first and let it warm up for a while.
Then place your material in the frame at the top of the box.
I then cover the lid on it, but you may not do this step.
The plastic will start to twist, which will last about 15-
According to your heater, about 20 minutes.
The material will then begin to sag in the center.
When the edges and corners are soft and elastic, you know when the material is ready.
Sometimes I use a hot gun to speed up the heating in the corner.
When your material is ready, open your vacuum, grab the material frame on the side, pick it up, break it on your mold, make sure it is stuck by lim along with the skystrip, push hard down so the weather strip will seal and let the vacuum magic.
Keep the plastic cool for about a minute.
After cooling, turn off the vacuum, pull the mold out of the plastic, and then form the vacuum mold.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
If you like this, please vote for me.
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