Vacuum Press

[GerardHickey]

Does anyone know wher i could hire a vacuum press from? The pieces I need to press are maily small (24" x 18").
I live in South Yorkshire.
Many thanks.

 

[ArferMo]

Can't help with hire, but suggest a cheap Chinese vacuum pump from eBay, or a used eBay pump of better quality, and a lash-up polythene bag may be just as cheap as any potential hire fees.
I've just made some vacuum pucks for clamping and am realising just how useful having a vacuum pump on hand is.

 

[GerardHickey]

Can't help with hire, but suggest a cheap Chinese vacuum pump from eBay, or a used eBay pump of better quality, and a lash-up polythene bag may be just as cheap as any potential hire fees.
I've just made some vacuum pucks for clamping and am realising just how useful having a vacuum pump on hand is.

What things would i need to build one?

 

[ArferMo]

Ah spoon feeding eh? What were you expecting to get if you hired one?
1 vacuum pump
2 polyurethane tubing to connect bag, 6mm probably enough for flat work
3 pneumatic connector to pump with push fitting for tube.
4 Vacuum bag. People use vinyl, polyurethane professionally and polythene for one off jobs.
5. Battens for clamping the bag shut and bluetac to fiddle a connection from tube to bag.

Suggest you look on YouTube. If you are veneering also consider hot animal glue, (Pearl or Scotch glue) and veneering hammer. Small quantities it is quite easy. I veneered a 4'x3' folding bookcase, both sides, once by hand.

 

[TheTiddles]

There are other methods depending on the shape of those pieces, what are you making?
Aidan

 

[Droogs]

have a really good root around here . You'll thank me later

 

[Joshjosh]

For flat panels I use vacuum storage bags with a hand pump, the bags are really cheap and have more than enough pressure to veneer flat panels.
Some doors I did last week in these cheap bags

 

[Droogs]

I use the vacuum bags meant for clothes and quilts that places like B&M sell if I've run out of decent stuff. work fine and I also use a lidle food vacuum sealer and their bags for small stuff

 

[Yojevol]

For a 24 x 18 job it's marginal whether I would bother to get my vac kit out. For a single item I would probably make a sandwich with a couple MDF boards and clamp around the edges. I'd also put in a panel of thick carpet underlay to even out the pressure and to form a barrier to avoid gluing the workpiece to the MDF. I'm also fortunate to have a 56lb wieght which could be used to apply pressure to the middle of the sandwich. In the absence of such a weight a cawl, a curved piece of timber clamped to the edges so as to apply pressure to the centre of the panel could be used.
If I had a number of such panels to do I would get the vac kit out and do them as a batch.
Brian

 

[recipio]

Ditto . My shed is so small I hesitate to get the vacuum bag out as it needs a large flat surface. For smallish items I use a home made veneer style press. For slighter larger items ( such as 24 x 18 ) I use two pieces of blockboard ( remember that ! ) which is the most rigid panel board of all IMO. Those large welders clamps will reach into the middle.The yoga mat rolls sold everywhere are ideal for distributing the pressure and they have one silvered side which will not adhere to the blockboard from glue squeeze out. If anyone knows a manufacturer of proper small metal veneer presses please let me know.

 

[Sundial Colin]

Does anyone know wher i could hire a vacuum press from? The pieces I need to press are maily small (24" x 18").
I live in South Yorkshire.
Many thanks.

I used to use a large fertiliser polythene bag with a tyre valve fixed on with a good vacuum pump in secondary schools in the 70’s before we bought a proper Harefield bag. A cautionary note. PVA didn’t dry in the bag - we had to use synthetic resin - Cascamite or equivalent.