Vacuum table from old vaccum cleaner and cloths dryer element.

The table I made was a double box unit one side contained a dryer element that I had removed and restrung hanging the element onto the porcelain insulators l also recovered from the dryer heating coil.

The many holes I drilled into the vacuum platform were much smaller than the ones shown in the attached video.

The other side of the box was the vacuum chamber, once the sheet of plastic is hot enough to form it will slump now is the time to swing the clamping device holding the plastic over the the vacuum side which now also has the pattern placed onto the platform you wish to copy.

This is a great way to make copies of moulds that you already own or make custom moulds for soap and chocolate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5cvZ0kUBn0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NZSJsaNapY

Ha he, my neighbour and I talk about this stuff a lot.
Our fence is just the perfect height.......

He actually has made a vacuum former, and used it. There were some teething problems.
Getting a constant heat supply with no hotspots was a problem.
I countered with the idea of using a sheet of borosilicate (sp?) Glass from a flat top stove to spread out the heat.
The other problem was vacuum, he was using a small vacuum pump, yep, I see a vacuum cleaner works... That was part of our discussions.. Like, "would it work?".
Or, "would it pull, stretch and suck a hole thru the plastic?"

I have a proper vacuum pump for him to try out one day. But it looks like its not needed now.
We were thinking of using pressure on the top side of the mold too.

I have a feeling he intended to make realistic army gear for movie production, realistic guns with actual kickback using gas bottles, and infared LED for timing the sound.

But then he got a 3D printer for Christmas and between that and a film project he's doing.. So little time.
Its great to talk with him, a retired NZ Vietnam vet, school teacher, scrap metal worker...
This will come up in conversation. Thanks alloy, /e