Making a Vacuform Box

I made this vacuform box last weekend. I was thinking I might take the engine housings and vacuform them to make it easier to attach the underside engine and the wings.


Vacuforming is a process using vacuum  pressure to mold an object. You need a mold, a vacuum and the plastic material.
This is not new to me, many years ago I made plastic housing for rock polishing machines that my father had invented but that's  another story.


Anyway, I took a piece of 1x4 and some 1/4 inch plywood and made this 6x9 inch box. I didn't have any pegboard so I marked and drilled out 161 holes. Yes, it took a while but it was well worth it. After cutting out a 2 1/4 in hole for the shopvac, I gave it a test and lo and behold it worked! There doesn't seem to be any leaks around the sides and it really holds down whatever you put on it. Next up is making the frame to hold the plastic. Our old toaster oven is being retired so once I get that, I'll be able to use it to melt the plastic for the molding process.






Once I get it all working I'll post some photos of my progress. Stay tuned.

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