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Make a Plastic Vacuum Molder using parts around the house.
NOTE--This article was originally posted at SheekGeek. This is my first tutorial or instructable.
Plastic vacuum formers are an important part of prototyping. If you need a nice plastic robot body, or custom case for a project you are doing, get your tools, 'cause this one's easy to build and fun to play with.
The vacuum former uses a simple concept. They use the power of a vacuum to suck gooey plastic sheets very tightly around an object you place in them, making a 3D copy of pretty much what ever you want.
Plastic vacuum formers are usually big, expensive machines; however we don't always need to make huge pieces for our projects, so these machines would be pointless to have, or at least that's what I tell myself so I won't want one ;)
Our molder will have a good size for most projects that you probably deal with. If you get confused or just want to see what I am talking about, watch this short clip showing the video of a vacuum form I made.
NOTE--This article was originally posted at SheekGeek. This is my first tutorial or instructable.
Plastic vacuum formers are an important part of prototyping. If you need a nice plastic robot body, or custom case for a project you are doing, get your tools, 'cause this one's easy to build and fun to play with.
The vacuum former uses a simple concept. They use the power of a vacuum to suck gooey plastic sheets very tightly around an object you place in them, making a 3D copy of pretty much what ever you want.
Plastic vacuum formers are usually big, expensive machines; however we don't always need to make huge pieces for our projects, so these machines would be pointless to have, or at least that's what I tell myself so I won't want one ;)
Our molder will have a good size for most projects that you probably deal with. If you get confused or just want to see what I am talking about, watch this short clip showing the video of a vacuum form I made.
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Signing UpStep 1Gather the Pieces
The main parts to this machine are:
-A top; which is the place that the object to be copied is put and the magic happens. This has holes drilled in it so the suction is about the same over the whole surface.
-A hollow cavity, like a strong, airtight box. This is to get the same approximate suction on all parts of the top
-A vacuum cleaner (shop vacs are a pretty good choice because they have a lot of suction, but a normal vacuum cleaner will work too.) This is the source of the suction.
-Two frames to hold sheets of plastic. This can be two picture frames, or something made of Popsicle sticks.
The first plastic molder I made was a test run of what I wanted, but it worked so great, that I usually use it for all the small parts I make. I will first tell you how to make one of these, you don't have to build it, but it will show the concepts of how and why the machine works. The bigger machine is described later in this article.
Parts list for very small plastic molder:
1 - Plastic peanut butter jar or similar. (Don't use glass, you'll need to cut it some.)
1 -2 liter coke bottle or similar.
1 - Home vacuum cleaner, or similar.
A few sheets of saran wrap.
Some good tape, like electrical tape or duct tape.
Tools needed:
-- A good sharp cutting knife or razor (be careful don't cut yourself!)
--An electric drill with a small drill bit, a Dremel works nice with the standard 1/8 inch drill bit.
Ok, got it all? Let's start.
-A top; which is the place that the object to be copied is put and the magic happens. This has holes drilled in it so the suction is about the same over the whole surface.
-A hollow cavity, like a strong, airtight box. This is to get the same approximate suction on all parts of the top
-A vacuum cleaner (shop vacs are a pretty good choice because they have a lot of suction, but a normal vacuum cleaner will work too.) This is the source of the suction.
-Two frames to hold sheets of plastic. This can be two picture frames, or something made of Popsicle sticks.
The first plastic molder I made was a test run of what I wanted, but it worked so great, that I usually use it for all the small parts I make. I will first tell you how to make one of these, you don't have to build it, but it will show the concepts of how and why the machine works. The bigger machine is described later in this article.
Parts list for very small plastic molder:
1 - Plastic peanut butter jar or similar. (Don't use glass, you'll need to cut it some.)
1 -2 liter coke bottle or similar.
1 - Home vacuum cleaner, or similar.
A few sheets of saran wrap.
Some good tape, like electrical tape or duct tape.
Tools needed:
-- A good sharp cutting knife or razor (be careful don't cut yourself!)
--An electric drill with a small drill bit, a Dremel works nice with the standard 1/8 inch drill bit.
Ok, got it all? Let's start.
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I don't what they use to add the coloring... not sure if it would cause any problems. Anyways, just a suggestion because they're cheap and easy to find. The attached image shows what I'm referring too. They're 0.2" thick: 1. Flexible Cutting Board 2 Pack (12" x 18") - $3.99 on webstaurantstore.
2. MIU Flexible Cutting Board, Set of 5 (11"x15") - $9.99 on Amazon.
I was also thinking of laminating sheets, but I think they'd be too thin and stretch to the point of tearing. I'll let you know the results I get if I try either of them. Great Instructions though, thanks!
to make things a little easier for the heat source, I got one of those portable bbq stoves. I then hung it upside down above my frame unit and fixed a sheet of aluminium just below that with a 2cm gap from the stove and a 2mm space from where my clips and frame is.
Finally clamp my sheet up top, turn on heat source. heats up aluminium and with the small gap it heats up most of the plastic.
and your good to go, I've made things up to 70cmW x 70cmL x 30cmH with this setup... though the oven could be replaced with anything its all i had and i had the welder rented the day before for something else anyway.
You can use any kind of frame for this though, Dollar store picture frames are another idea I had.
Goog luck!
Cheers, feel like making a huge one.
Chris
ShapeLock plastic pellets you melt with hot water only can be used easily for most things like this, however- you need to have it definitely ON the item you want to copy or add to before melting with hot water,. Otherwise, working with it after will leave you with bumpy products you must try harder to make look good. So there are times you'd probably want to use a thin plastic sheet instead. Many things can be done with though, & it's strong. Can also be used for emergencies. I love it. * See ShapeLock.com. Gotta try this way on Instructables though, sounds really fun!
Probably not advisable, since they contains 2 (or more) layers of different plastics with different melting points.
The inner layer melts at a much lower temperature than the outer, so that the inner layer sticks to the paper being laminated, while the outer layer is unaffected by the heat.