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DIY Vacuum Pallet for M&R

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Gilligan:
It's probably stronger, just doesn't move the volume.

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mimosatexas:
If you're making a true table vs just a pallet, I have a few suggestions that save time, money, and headaches. 

First, buy a sheet of 1" thick mdf for your surface, cut it in half or whatever dimensions you are planning to use and glue the two pieces together.  This will give you a really flat and really strong base to work with.  Then use a router with around a 1/4 or 3/8 bit and route out your chamber into the surface directly.  Just do a big long line that S's back and forth 1 inch apart across the whole vacuum bed.  When you finish that, just come back and route a few channels perpendicular to those to connect everything efficiently.  See attached.

For the actual printing surface, glue a piece of peg board directly to the mdf, making sure the holes line up with your routed channels.  Then epoxy the plexi directly to that.  Be liberal with the epoxy so nothing bubbles or detaches with use.  Then grab the smallest drill bit you can find and drill your holes.  Just aim for the center of each hole in the peg board.  No measuring and no need to be perfect.  Use a little tape around the edges just in case there are gaps in your glue anywhere.  I made a 3x5 surface this way and it was awesome while I needed it, but have since upgraded to clamshell presses and a much larger one armed bandit.

mimosatexas:

--- Quote from: Gilligan on July 21, 2016, 12:28:56 PM ---It's probably stronger, just doesn't move the volume.

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--- End quote ---

this.  You need to be more concerned with the speed it sucks out the air, and not exactly how close to a true vacuum you can get.  A shop vac can move a lot of air fast but is actually pretty weak when it comes to holding vacuum.

Frog:
Myself, I hate shop vacuums for the noise they produce, though they are usually the cheaper option.
Bad enough for an exposure unit, but on and off for possibly hours during a printing run would be more than I could handle without ear plugs.

mimosatexas:
That is a major downside, but ear plugs are a quick and easy "fix".  I'm not sure I know of an option that is fast enough for production and quiet, regardless of price.

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