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www.TK560.com Vacuum Forming, Movie Prop, Sci-fi and GIjOE Forum
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2007 9:55 am Post subject: |
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I think it'd be a good idea to move the discussion of particular wiring mishaps off the gallery sticky thread. _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com |
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 9:29 am Post subject: Jr. Branham's Proto Form |
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Here are some pictures of Jr. Branham's Proto Form over-and-under machine, which he built according to Doug Walsh's plans.
(Jr.'s a new member who doesn't have a web site to host the pictures on.)
Here's most of the machine from the front:
Here's a side view, with the lift bar propped midway up:
And here's a close up of the rear pivot & levers when the lift bar is all the way up, clearing the front of the oven :
Really elegant design on Doug's part, and a very nice build by Jr. _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com |
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tubachris85x Master
Joined: 15 Jan 2007 Posts: 351 Location: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
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Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:13 pm Post subject: |
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Well, I guess I can finally add my machine to the thread. Not as elegant or "professional," but it works.
-tubachris _________________
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TK 109 Guru
Joined: 11 May 2007 Posts: 712 Location: Galena, Ohio
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 7:57 pm Post subject: |
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nice job on the machine, tubachris!
"you've taken your first small step into a larger world..."
you finally finished!
I'm waiting to see how the darktrooper armor goes... _________________ -Alex
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jegner Site Admin
Joined: 30 May 2003 Posts: 2144 Location: Texas, USA
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 8:28 pm Post subject: |
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Chris, you machine does look the business! Well done. Now, get to making those parts, and post some pics for us to see! We are all antsy to see more progress on your costume.
Dr. Crash, thats Doug Walsh, Protoform machine is nice. Wish the plans weren't $100 plus. Good, solid design, and the lifting arm is a nice bit of engineering. BTW, do you know if that is a 110V or 220V machine?
Jim |
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Jr Branham Novice
Joined: 09 Jun 2007 Posts: 28 Location: Georgia
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 11:39 pm Post subject: Proto form |
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Jim,
My machine is 220volts. The plans really are nice. Seems high, but, he put alot of thought into the machine. I don't have anything to compare it to, I do like my machine. I did some initial forming then burned up my pump. I just ordered one of the pumps Doug Walsh has on his website. I will post the results.
Jr. |
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tubachris85x Master
Joined: 15 Jan 2007 Posts: 351 Location: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
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Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 3:39 pm Post subject: |
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jegner wrote: | Chris, you machine does look the business! Well done. Now, get to making those parts, and post some pics for us to see! We are all antsy to see more progress on your costume.
Jim |
Thanks Jim, I may make some changes in the future once I get more into the casting phase after the molds are done, like actually make a mettal tubing frame, and do the hinged mechanizm so that I can move the heated sheet faster to reduce cooling down. Im also thinking about raising the platen surface to have the grid so I dont have to worry about a one hole source. The reason I didnt build a cart and its just on saw horses is because I will be moving up to tallahassee for college, and I want it to be portable. Once up there, I will make these upgrades.
Yes, I am very ancey to see it finished as well, and Im the one building it!
-tubachris _________________
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 10:49 am Post subject: Cheap multi-plastic-size vac forming (Instructable & mov |
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I wrote an instructable on how to make a good cheap vacuum former using your kitchen oven and vacuum cleaner. It's your basic board with a hole in it and weatherstrip gasket, but with mix-and-match-size frames made of aluminum window screen frame stuff, and gaskets on tape-down sheets for different sizes of plastic.
(That's not just to save plastic; you often get better results with plastic that's about the right size. Oversize plastic often leads to webbing, which you can fix by using risers, etc., but starting with about the right size and shape of plastic puts you ahead of the game.)
Here's a movie of the kitchen setup in action:
(EDIT: The YouTube version looks better, but I haven't figured out how to embed it here. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGBRiYhxRTM )
In the video, I use three guide rails to get the plastic down aligned right on the gasket. They're just 89-cent shelf supports clamped to the platen with spring clamps I had lying around. For small stuff, I like that better than a flip frame, because you can bring the plastic straight down.
The removable gasket shtik will work fine with a many-hole platen, too, as long as the tape-down sheet is big enough, and covers all the holes outside the gasketed area. _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com
Last edited by drcrash on Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:05 am; edited 1 time in total |
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TK 109 Guru
Joined: 11 May 2007 Posts: 712 Location: Galena, Ohio
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 10:59 am Post subject: |
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i like your signature quote at the end...
"Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? NOw, you can make your own."
SWEET!
what did you do for the mold, take a cast of geaorge lucas's face and cast that and plast and vacuum-form it?
thats face looks REALLY good, and it looks like george lucas's face.
It looks like i need to make a video for my machine!
i think i'll do that! _________________ -Alex
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thebluecanary Expert
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 123 Location: St. Louis, MO
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2007 8:55 am Post subject: |
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WOw that is very cool. I am going to have to try that with my crafting v-table I am making. I love the window screan idea. Hmmm I think a trip to Lowes is in order. Hehehe. |
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2007 7:22 am Post subject: evil twin |
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TK 109 wrote: |
what did you do for the mold, take a cast of geaorge lucas's face and cast that and plast and vacuum-form it?
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That's a life cast my wife did of my face, using alginate with a plaster bandage mother mold, and pouring water putty into that.
I had to google up a picture of George Lucas to see what you're talking about. Hmmm... I guess now people will start wondering why they never see both of us in the same room at the same time.
Quote: | thats face looks REALLY good, and it looks like george lucas's face. |
It's good to know we're so good-looking. _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com |
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2007 10:36 am Post subject: Proto Form demo |
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Here's a nice little video of a Proto Form in action.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9EgeknznRc
(The 2 x 2 sheet is overkill for the little part he's making---I'd use a tape-down gasket, a smaller frame, and guide rails for the little stuff---but it's nice to see the clamping and levers working.) _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com |
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jegner Site Admin
Joined: 30 May 2003 Posts: 2144 Location: Texas, USA
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Posted: Sat Jul 21, 2007 8:40 am Post subject: |
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Very cool!
Good to see a protoform machine in action. Nice!
Jim |
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deepstar Newbie
Joined: 11 Jul 2007 Posts: 20 Location: Leuven, Belgium
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2007 5:18 am Post subject: |
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Hi,
in regard to the protoform machine seen in the youtube movie: the mechanism to raise/lower the frame is controlled by a two-piece lever.
Jr. Branham's machine (as posted by drcrash above) also uses this system.
I was wondering why the lever consists of 2 pieces and not just one ? I'm considering creating something similar but using just a single piece as the lever, because it's easier to make. What are the advantages of a two-piece lever ?
kind regards
-- Steven
PS: I've constructed my vacuform machine frame, but the server hosting my website is down at the moment, so no pictures |
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drcrash Guru
Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Posts: 705 Location: Austin, Texas
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2007 5:53 am Post subject: two levers are better than one |
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deepstar wrote: |
I was wondering why the lever consists of 2 pieces and not just one ? I'm considering creating something similar but using just a single piece as the lever, because it's easier to make. What are the advantages of a two-piece lever ?
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The two-piece lever system acts like a long lever, folded up; that gives you a lot of throw (vertical range) without the levers sticking out in back of the machine.
Some of the mechanical geometric issues were discussed in the "An Idea for a Drop down Frame..." thread:
http://www.tk560.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=356
You could do it with a single lever on each side if you don't mind having to pull your machine away from the wall to use it, and/or having reduced throw.
EDIT 7/28/07:
Doh. I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote that last paragraph. A single lever doesn't work, because it constrains the motion to an arc. Two levers let the plastic move straight up and down. (I've explained that somewhere before, maybe in the thread I cited above.) With a single lever you'd need sliders where they attach to the plastic holding frame. Having two levers is easier and better all around... the rear pivot can move forward and backward, allowing the top pivot to move straight up and down.
BTW, one thing I didn't understand when I wrote the earlier stuff in the linked thread is that the ProtoForm has a bar between the two bottom levers, holding them parallel. (The bottom levers and the bar under the platen are welded together in a U shape.) I assume that's to ensure that the rear pivots stay level side-to-side, even if the force on the lift bar or the resistance from stretching the plastic is not centered. Combined with the similar rigid U-shape of the lift bar welded to the top levers, that ensures that the plastic stays level from side to side. Very nice.
(I think you could get by without that if your vertical slide mechanism constrains sideways slanting as, as well as front-to-back. Telescoping tubes or shafts with pairs of pillow blocks would do that, given enough vertical spread.) _________________ Paul (a.k.a. Dr. Crash)
Tired of buying cheap plastic crap? Now you can make your own! www.VacuumFormerPlans.com
Last edited by drcrash on Sat Jul 28, 2007 9:55 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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