Vacuum forming How-to

[sm403]

6:28 we all see that triforce... we now know the true power source of of his vacuum

[arialrave212851]

hey dude i got a question.im trying to make halo helmets i looked into vacuum forming them.is it a good idea?because i really dont like doing the pepakura but if i can do it once and vacuum forming it as many times as i need would be cool.plus what about plexiglass for the visor i seen some people do it but is it a good idea?basically i could use any info you can give me. thank you dude.

[12345RunescapeNerd]

if i had 1 dollar for every pixel in this video, i'd have 1 dollar

[dtr125er]

@12345RunescapeNerd cause i robbed the other 461 million dolla's fool!

[JohnThePecan]

If you put a draft or slight taper on the perimeter of the mold it will pop out easy. I also spray mold release on the mold. Also try mounting the molds to the platten on high volume runs. Very impressive engineering!!!

[JotaLegendOfficial]

Does this work with plexiglas, since I'm trying to make a visor, for a helmet

[JimE2]

Thats ABS plastic, around 0.125 inches thick. Unless you have a high-vacuum pump pulling 24 plus inches of mercury, you will have trouble forming detailed parts.

[Stepchild06]

does the size of the object affect thickness of the sheet around the mold by lots when you create the armor??

[JimE2]

@Stepchild06 The size x and y not so much, but the z axis does. That means the depth of draw effects the thickness of the final pulled plastic.

[avantgarde120]

Hi,is it possible to use acrylic or perspex instead?will it form the shape as good as using ABS?Any pros and cons on the process by using these two materials?Thanks!

[JimE2]

@avantgarde120 I have formed 0.125 acrylic but you don't get much detail that thick and it requires a long warming cycle, this can overheat the clear plastics. Also, the dust in the air will get on the parts, causing imperfections.

[28Jimbobf]

very informative cheers

[firetheposer]

just thought i might put this out there buy you can use your air compressor to make vacuum just as you can to make air pressure. you can also regulate it just like air pressure. i know this because i make custom sub boxes this way

[JimE2]

@firetheposer venturi adaptors for compressors do make a a vacuum but are too slow for what I was doing. I tried it but did not work for me.

[JimE2]

@firetheposer venturi adaptors for compressors do make a vacuum but are too slow for what I was doing. I tried it but did not work for me.

[glfwrvet69]

is there any way you can make a Optimus Prime Costume, and how much would you charge for it

[JimE2]

@glfwrvet69 Sorry, due to my schedule, I do have time to take on any new projects.

[DanOlooney]

any idea about big wheel wheels? awsome thanks

[friggydiggy81]

how do the multi-hole platens compare to the one large single hole?

[truexgunnerxchronica]

at the end, thats your armour? the white part? you just cut that out?

[MistahPenniman]

what kind of plastic sheet is that?........in other words what should i go down to home depot and ask for.

[lionOFjudah33]

Thanks a lot, awesome vid! Now I know how to make my Dead Space armor.

[Xxd3cayxX]

This is really cool. Where those parts for the Stormtrooper statue that was behind you in the beginning of this video? lol....

[barkuslives]

Thank you for this excellent primer on the process.

[aihlo]

that's sweet lookin

[DonaldShim]

I want to make a custom cup that will protect my groin from injury. It would have a hard part and flexible part. For the flexible part it must be made of a rubber/plastic kind of plastic that will flex when your legs bend together and not jab into your leg. Do they make plastic sheets that are sort of rubbery aka they will flex when formed into their final form that I can form using vacuum forming?

[madzikud02]

no but you could coat the edges with rubber grips which should help out

[frogaliscious]

I would love to hear more about how you assembled this.

[treborly]

how much are the sheets? how much do they weigh?

[Whitehorze]

For a stormtrooper costume like what he's making you can use the Bathroom plastic sheets that they sell at Menards or home depot. typicially about $30 for a 4'x8' sheet. You can find them cheaper by looking in the phonebook under plastic supplier.

[JimE2]

When we did this armor, we used .080 and .093 HIPS. ABS is what Whitehorze is referring to and usually come in 1/8th inch or .125 thickness. Smooth on one side with a haircell texture on the other many time. Thats great if you have the proper high-vac setup for pulling the slower to cool ABS. I've not seen 4x8 foot ABS for less than about $40 a sheet in my area.

[btucker1975]

@JimE2

[DRAGONIRONFIST]

@JimE2 how hard is it after its cooled down?

[Pujc]

WOW! Tök jó!

[canisfabico]

OMG! 0.o"

you are the real MacGyver....

i tried this before with a industrial oven and a vacuum bomb, and doesn't go so well

[JimE2]

Thanks! The vac form machine is the 4th one I made, before I got one that would do the job!

[englundisgod]

could you use it on a foam mold like great stuff canned foam or would it melt etc

[HornPer666]

Great video! Is it possible to mold a ABS form out of an original ABS piece, or will that harm the original piece?

[JimE2]

Thats tricky but doable, but you will need to reinforce the ABS part first, filled with plaster or the like. Then you are good for maybe 1 or two pulls before the heat starts to distort the original. IMHO

[76sagi]

great vid... you have a great table set up there.

the "taper" pieces are a great idea... well done.

[JimE2]

Thanks!

[ClamTaco]

Nice work Jim. Do you make to order ???

[StrangeBrew020]

What should be used for ventilation for something like this?

Great armor btw

[JimE2]

I work in a tool shed with the door open. HIPS is pretty safe to work with. ABS, not so much. PETG, dunno.

[StrangeBrew020]

thanks. i have some HIPS im gunna try.

[kptwitko1939]

What is a vacuum's power? More than 1300 W?

[fkiddle]

I want to make a parabolic mirror using acrylic with a mirror finish. Do you know of any constraints using this method?

[dialswiftjustice]

thanks for posting this, is there a tutorial for making the bucks (or positive molds)?

[greaserjoe]

can i vacuum form my original pieces? i think itll melt pretty much duplicate my armor and using my original pieces as molds

[DoriFord]

looking cool... would be nice, if i could apply it for bumpers and hoods... but that seems to be not that easy...

[JimE2]

I don't see why you could not. Just need to scale up the machine large enough for the parts you want to make. I'd bet that many bumpers are made of ABS now anyways.

[BORR2]

nice tutorial. the internet page was great thanks

[greaserjoe]

yea i cant find any plastic anywhere online and if there is its clear and blue..but do you sell the costumes? give me a message back if you do

[JimE2]

PETG is clear and vac forms well. Lexan or Acrylic also works good.

[MrFetters]

kydex also works and forms well at temperatures as low as 275 deg. F

[BATTLEDROID678]

heres my question were do you get the plastic?

[JimE2]

Professional Plastics, search for HIS or HIPS

[slimguy379]

what styrene you using? .080, .090 ? do yoou know of any other places to buy this polystyrene besides TAP plastics?

[lukareuben]

Try High-Impact-Polystyrene (HIPS)

[Swiftcheez]

its ABS

[BruGaleen]

It's Polystyrene plastic. it's the same material that plastic models are made of. I think you can get it at TAP Plastics.

[Scris101]

what type of plastic is it and where do i get it?

[JimE2]

Thats plastic is called High-Impact Poly Styrene or HIPS or HIS. I get it from Professional Plastics.

[eleisha92]

Thanks a lot for your great info, followed your instructions and built my own vac former.

it worked really well for 1st run ( see eleisha92 )but obviously have a lot to learn through trial and error.

starting work on trooper suit, i think the former was easy compared withmaking the templates.

You are the dude! thanks again.

[stracer159]

cool , i can now make my own rc shells .

[VacTrooper]

very informational, thanks!

[ItsDanielSun]

Cool some good advice there. Tr-1144 in the house Outpost42.

[treborly]

what if your making something with some what tight tolerances. Wont the foam contract slightly what the vacuum is turned on?

also, cant you just use plexi glass..."acrylic" from homedepot.

[JimE2]

Yes you can 'pull' acrylic. As for the tolerances, think of this process as a shell of the original.

[mcarturcorrea]

Excellent

[tuninglatinocom]

grat video !!

[Bretty135]

What is the music at the start?

[JimE2]

Something I cooked up in GarageBand.

[MrTreeclimber]

Great stuff, thanks for sharing! So you make custom storm troopers? They look great. What other uses are there of this machine?

[celshader]

All blister packaging is made this way as well as many products. Vacuum forming is a very common and cheap form of plastic manufacturing.

[shigalbigal]

you can make many forms not just mascs and storm troopers

[JimE2]

All sorts of things are made using vacuumforming. From TV dinner trays, to coolers, to car parts.

[vacuumformer]

By the way, the discussion forum on Jim's web site (tk560) is the best place on the web for information on DIY vacuum forming, whether you're into stormtrooping and costuming or not. There are also vacuum forming forums on the CNCzone and hobbymolding web sites.

[dakkenly]

WHY isn't this on your website? It was made much before this youtube one. Still, I'm glad to see you have a video.

[EyeOnTheTV]

yak yak yak. about 8 minutes of that was wasted on talking when the important parts did not get their justice.

[jorusfett]

Doesn't mention the uneven heating of these types of ovens. Standard ovens produce the most even heat.

If done right, you don't need pieces added to 'de-mold' after forming.

The vacuum on this setup wasn't the greatest either. Pull didn't last too long to really get the detail on all of the pieces.

[jumpinjax2]

Oven works great, thanks :)

[victoranthony7]

what is a herdiback 500?

[JimE2]

HardiBacker 500 is a cement board found in the tile area of a Lowes or Home Depot. Used mainly as a wet wall or floor backer.

[DarthSimian]

Fabuloso! Very informative

[Firefox13A]

Impressive. Most impressive.

[ediirwin]

Interesting, but could use a little editing of the repetitious parts.