I don't think you can vacuum form that part in one piece, because the top is wider than the bottom "neck" (like a lightbulb), so you'd have no way to get it off the master buck template unless you made some crazy multi-part negative master buck. They were very likely blow-molded instead.

@@mwjscn they were blow molded and i will simply cut the buck up and take it out and any scratches i make will be filled with clear resin

​@@wetbredloafIf you made a two-piece negative buck down the middle with drilled holes on the sides that lead to chambers/holes in the bottom you may be able to pull a vacuum on it. Basically just skip the conventional platen and make a two piece mold that contains your vacuum chamber and hookups with a sealing surface on the top where the "neck" is.

@@mwjscn making a negative is much more complicated can just cut it thin then break it off

@@mwjscn or i will dissolve the abs with acetone and the bubble will be left behind

Sure

@@mwjscn disculpa amigo pero no pude traducir tu respuesta de hace un momento me podrías responder con la traducción a español por favor gracias

@@EdwinCutipa Funcionará bien

@@mwjscn gracias.....

@@elijahandreventurina6130 That's up to you. More tank volume results in a higher volume of vacuum available, thus when the two volumes are combined (trapped atmospheric air under the plastic and in the platen and your vacuum charge) the result is deeper on the vacuum side. If you have holding or definition issues you may want more vacuum.

@@mwjscn Thank you for the reply, my issues currently are after the vacuum charge is exhausted the sheet will try to go back to its original form. Resulting to round space in the edges.

@@elijahandreventurina6130 Start by checking for leaks. Vacuum leaks are pretty noisy, usually it sounds like whistling or wooshing air. Helps to have someone else. Or you can use something that generates smoke/fog to see where it's being sucked in from. You can just mount a sheet of plastic in your frames (which should also be gasketed on the inside, at least on the bottom facing the plastic, I use thin neoprene foam) and hit the vacuum with it on the platen to search and test without wasting material. Otherwise, you may not have enough vacuum to overpower the atmosphere trapped in the system and may need more/larger tanks.

@@mwjscn Thanks you very much, will try do them later

@@AltcoinIgnition Extruded

One other person did suggest it, however in practice I addressed the issue by simply making the bucks 1/2" taller than I needed them to be which allows me to trim away any imperfections around the base. If I have future bucks that need consideration deeper than that, I may try it. If you have particularly good results with that technique, let me know!

Puedes usar cualquiera de los dos.

@@mwjscn y que me aconsejas resistencias electrica o calefones a gas para el calentamiento del plastico?

@@EdwinCutipa No he probado los calentadores de gas, pero he tenido buena suerte con los eléctricos.

@@mwjscn a ya ya pero el consumo es elevado o lo normal? Porque donde vivo la red es de 220 volt

@@mwjscn para el vacío puedo usar tubos de pvc o metalicos?

1500 watts each. More info on the document in the description.

My guess is your temperature was too high.

Check description.

Thanks for quick response buddy. Just saw it

Can you please advise on what vacuume system (pump’s power, and air tank capacity) you would recommend for a larger unit which effective surface is 30x96-inch ?

@@mohammadhajigholizadeh6176 That size is outside my expertise. I'd suggest using the combined gas law equation and finding the volume of trapped air (air under the plastic, in platen chamber, and all tubing after your valve towards the platen) and plugging in a result of at least -10inHg remaining when your vacuum volume is mixed with your atmospheric volume. If you solve for the vacuum volume with those known variables, you should be able to figure out how much vacuum you need. If you have a good vacuum pump, I'd plug in a vacuum-side holding pressure of -25inHg into the formula.

Appreciate it!

It seems like they updated the model that I have to this 1,500 unit. Honestly, I can't tell the difference from the outside - looks exactly like mine. www.amazon.com/Comfort-CZQTV5M-Ceiling-Mounted-Included/dp/B07YBH9XVG/ I find that a lot of commenters are from different areas of the world, but that link should work in the US. If you're outside the US, I'm less familiar on what may be available. You may try looking in the second-hand market for larger quartz heaters or provided you have the space you could even use an electric kitchen oven provided you weren't going to use it for food.

There's definitely a more elegant way, feel free to improve on your implementation. I didn't have a drill press and tap set in the apartment back then, so this was my easiest workaround at the time.

You definitely wouldn't want anything weaker than what's in the video, but the vacuum pump strength basically determines how long you'll wait for the tanks to empty of air.

Thanks for the kind comment!

No, the vacuum pump is not powerful enough by itself.

OK thanks so much I will try to get the setup you got

I picked it up from a local plastic supplier that stocks Vivak. It comes in 48" x 99" sheets.

Probably polycarbonate for impact resistance (road debris) with a layer of clear coat to prevent UV oxidation.

@@mwjscn have you played around with doing anything like that before?

@@coryhart2637 Nope, but plenty have commented asking about the same thing so there may be other content sources out there with more info from people who have tried.

I've seen it used to recover car dashes with vinyl, but that's outside my scale (and needs).

3.5

Only thing that really matters for vacuum forming is exceeding the glass transition temperature, so look at the spec sheet for whatever material type and brand you end up using. I don't believe the different PET types have much variance in their heating requirements so they should all be fairly easy to use.

With the correct heater, sure. Get the datasheet for your material and make sure you can exceed the glass transition temperature listed.

thanks!@@mwjscn

@@mwjscn I tried it and it works :)... now how do you get such a nice finish on your wooden molds to get the plastic so transparent? Do you use any sealer?

@@FreClimbs Sand the wood mold, then use sand-able primer to fill in your sanding scratches and finish with 600 grit or above.

thanks!@@mwjscn

You may be able to add gasket material on the bottom of your 12x12 frame (that would still have to retain the exterior dimensions of the larger frame for the same platen) to block off flow, provided you were able to sufficiently shield said gasket against your heater during that process. The most reliable way would just to have two set ups and swap the vacuum system between them.

@@mwjscn thanks!

My 1/4hp vacuum pump is 3 CFM and works fine for what I do but your mileage may vary.

@@mwjscn thank you again. I’ll go ahead and try it. 👌🏼

Sixty thousandths of an inch. You'd see it written like .060". I wouldn't blame you for not knowing about if you're not in the United States.

There's a link in the description that gives you a page with the brand and part number to look for. Make sure to use a respirator and be in a well ventilated space.

(Pressure1 * Volume1) + (Pressure2 * Volume2) = (Pressure3 * Volume3). Where Pressure1 is atmospheric pressure and Volume1 is the air trapped under the plastic, inside the platen chamber (if applicable), and in any hoses. Pressure2 being your vacuum level and Volume2 being the size of your vacuum charge. Pressure3 is the resultant vacuum force once both volumes are combined, and you want this resultant force to still be well within vacuum, likely around -10inHg to -15inHg. Volume3 will just be your combined volumes (Volume 1 + Volume 2), even though technically Volume3 will be slightly less since the plastic will wrap around the buck and therefore reduce the volume - it gives a close enough mathematical approximation to educate our needs. Example (30inHg * 2) + (-25inHg * 10) = (P3 * 12). P3 = -15.83inHg, which means 10 gallons of vacuum charge at -25inHg would be more than sufficient. You can use the same formula with Si units if you desire.