Self-described Router Lady Carol Reed, in her Router Joinery Workshop
book, describes a vacuum system of holding down work for routing. The
idea was totally new to me and one I would like to try. Does anyone have
any experience with it?
Basically, it is a motor and vacuum pump, which, by way of a tube and a
wooden plate, holds down your work without anything getting in the way
of it. My problem is that while aquiring washing machine type motors is
not a problem, the vacuum pump is not common and not exactly cheap for
this application, and this is not a typical garage sale item. Any idea
on where to find used ones, please, and thanks.
(Not incidentally, anyone on my end of the learning curve, before not
after the bell, should look at the book. It is wonderfully intuitive for
a novice, much better, in this regard, than those of her mentor, Pat
Warner, whose books and cd I also own.)
If anyone can provide details on how to do this, I would like to see
it. I've heard of this before, using refrigerator compressors.
Apparently, the compressor is eventually destroyed, since you are
running without the lubricating refrigerant, but the useful life is
still worthwhile. Do you just give the compressor a spin and solder
an appropriate fitting to the side that sucks?
"BurlaT3" <[email protected]> wrote:
>The most interesting vacuum pump I've seen was made from an antique
>compressor. The Old man that did it said it was just a matter of
>"plumbing", and that he had done it first to power an old milking rig that
>died on his farm when he was broke. He said he later made some changes to
>make it work for his shop. (it was used for hold down on pattern cutting
>not vacuum pressing veneers)
You can get inexpensive vacuum pumps on ebay.
I took a pump and used a discarded helium tank, the kind you can get a
any store to fill balloons with. This is my tank. Make your jigs to the
shape you want. Drill a hold in the middle and screw a male air line
connector into it. Get some closed cell 1/8" thick insulation tape like
you would use for a door or window and put the around the outside edge
on the pattern. I use a coiled plastic airline suspended over the router
table. I also have a cut off valve at the end of the airline. When I
finish routing I turn the valve and the cuts off the vacuum and I remove
the pattern and change out the wood to do it all over again. I call this
part of my "poor man's CNC router techniques". I have many more tricks I
use in place of a CNC.
Eric Morehouse
ELM Woodworks, LLC
The most interesting vacuum pump I've seen was made from an antique
compressor. The Old man that did it said it was just a matter of
"plumbing", and that he had done it first to power an old milking rig that
died on his farm when he was broke. He said he later made some changes to
make it work for his shop. (it was used for hold down on pattern cutting
not vacuum pressing veneers)
"Lawrence Rottersman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Self-described Router Lady Carol Reed, in her Router Joinery Workshop
> book, describes a vacuum system of holding down work for routing. The
> idea was totally new to me and one I would like to try. Does anyone have
> any experience with it?
>
> Basically, it is a motor and vacuum pump, which, by way of a tube and a
> wooden plate, holds down your work without anything getting in the way
> of it. My problem is that while aquiring washing machine type motors is
> not a problem, the vacuum pump is not common and not exactly cheap for
> this application, and this is not a typical garage sale item. Any idea
> on where to find used ones, please, and thanks.
>
> (Not incidentally, anyone on my end of the learning curve, before not
> after the bell, should look at the book. It is wonderfully intuitive for
> a novice, much better, in this regard, than those of her mentor, Pat
> Warner, whose books and cd I also own.)
Lawrence Rottersman wrote:
> Self-described Router Lady Carol Reed, in her Router Joinery Workshop
> book, describes a vacuum system of holding down work for routing. The
> idea was totally new to me and one I would like to try. Does anyone
> have any experience with it?
>
> Basically, it is a motor and vacuum pump, which, by way of a tube and
> a wooden plate, holds down your work without anything getting in the
> way of it. My problem is that while aquiring washing machine type
> motors is not a problem, the vacuum pump is not common and not
> exactly cheap for this application, and this is not a typical garage
> sale item. Any idea on where to find used ones, please, and thanks.
>
do a search on regenerative blower or vortex blower on ebay. They can be
used as a blower or a vacuum.
You guys are terrific; best thanks to all of you for your help. Not only
do I have clues, but trails as well.
In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> You can get inexpensive vacuum pumps on ebay.
> I took a pump and used a discarded helium tank, the kind you can get a
> any store to fill balloons with. This is my tank. Make your jigs to the
> shape you want. Drill a hold in the middle and screw a male air line
> connector into it. Get some closed cell 1/8" thick insulation tape like
> you would use for a door or window and put the around the outside edge
> on the pattern. I use a coiled plastic airline suspended over the router
> table. I also have a cut off valve at the end of the airline. When I
> finish routing I turn the valve and the cuts off the vacuum and I remove
> the pattern and change out the wood to do it all over again. I call this
> part of my "poor man's CNC router techniques". I have many more tricks I
> use in place of a CNC.
>
> Eric Morehouse
> ELM Woodworks, LLC
>
>
also, you can get a vacuum jig that will use shop air to create the vacuum. Key
in any vacuum system is a jig that is made to hold your sample and maintain a
vacuum. It can be as simple as a piece of wood with gasket material and a hole
for the vacuum hose attachment. Please remember that a router's force on a
piece of wood can be great...you must make your vacuum jig to withstand that
force.
Take a look at
www.joewoodworker.com
He is helpful and sells some nice stuff. I mounted one of his pumps on a 10
gallon tank and I use it all the time....
--
dbchamber at hotmail spam dot com
Remove the spam to reach me
"Bob S." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Lawrence,
>
> Take a look over in the rec.crafts.woodturning group. There's a fella
there
> that is usually selling vacuum pumps that may suit your needs at
reasonable
> cost. Sorry I don't recall his name but if you make a post there or
Google,
> I'm sure it will pop-up.
>
> Bob S.
>
>