Vacuum clamps work!

[tbellemare]

I have been meaning to show my vacuum clamping capabilities for a long time but got kind of constricted for space. That made it difficult.

I have some bigger digs now for my operation/shop so I thought I'd share a little of what vacuum clamping can do. I have a Schmalz vacuum clamp and pump set up on an MFT/3 with a piece of acrylic clamped to the table in these images. The vacuum "Multi-Clamp" is sticking itself to the piece of acrylic using a vacuum clamping mechanism underneath the base.

I also have a foot switch/valve in the circuit to the part of the "Multi-Clamp" that actually holds the work piece. The foot switch/valve allows the user to release or reengage the vacuum holding the work piece while having both hands free for safety/comfort.

In this first image, I attached a remnant left by the previous tenant, who made furniture. It's 3/4" plywood that is 9" wide x 8' long with a piece of 2x4 at the extended end. I think the downward bow in the plywood speaks for itself...

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I then took a piece of poplar that was leftover from my skylight vault project and stuck it to the clamp. It is 2-3/8" x 3/4" x 6'. I saw something somewhere that made me think a full can of beer PLUS a C 15 would be appropriate to demonstrate the effectiveness of the clamp. I include a couple of angles to make it clear where everything is relative to the clamp.

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In this final image, I show the set up on the table:

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Tom

 

[Kev]

Did you precariously balance the C15 instead of a Dewalt for the same reason that magicians only saw beautiful women in half?

[eek] [big grin]

 

[tbellemare]

Maybe...

It wasn't actually all that precarious. It was just a somewhat well known weight.

Tom

 

[BMH]

Impressive. Checked prices that is around 1,800 dollars ? . If festool come under 1400 dollars it would look like a bargain

 

[copcarcollector]

It was just a somewhat well known weight.

A beer yes, a drill yes - but at the same time...??!! 

Thanks for showing this Tom. The whole idea seems really useful.

 

[Kev]

It's pretty sad how I actually "need" a vacuum clamping system now. I blame people like Tom [embarassed]

 

[tbellemare]

Impressive. Checked prices that is around 1,800 dollars ? . If festool come under 1400 dollars it would look like a bargain

If I get time tomorrow, I'll show how to knock several hundred dollars off that...

Tom

 

[NHSP759]

I know the C drill can take the fall but to risk a beer? Man, I think I need one now!!

 

[tbellemare]

I know the C drill can take the fall but to risk a beer? Man, I think I need one now!!

Shop safety is VERY high on my list, Chris!

I used a can and I didn't open it... Glass can be very hazardous, as can be open beers.

Tom

 

[RKA]

Very cool!  Thanks for posting!

 

[NHSP759]

Thank God Tom! It's cool calm thinking like that that saves beer!!

 

[tjbnwi]

I hate beer.

Tom

 

[Bhend18]

but we can't get the vac-sys in the US  [sad]

 

[Kev]

but we can't get the vac-sys in the US  [sad]

The one Tom is showing isn't Festool.

 

[tbellemare]

I was going to hook up my Robinair A/C evacuating vacuum pump and repeat the experiment but I can't find the fittings after my recent move. It actually has more vacuum potential than the cute little German pump you can see on the MFT and costs about $800 less.

However, it is heavier, bulkier, and requires oil. The one shown above needs no oil.

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Tom

 

[RKA]

That would be awesome if it works!  Is there such a thing as too much vacuum with these clamps?

I've got a nearly new evac pump collecting dust after a mini split install. Would love to repurpose it for this!  And the net cost ends up being much more bearable. Hurry up, find that pump!

 

[tbellemare]

I guarantee it works. I just misplaced the Imperial-to-metric fitting that I used to connect the pump, which I have next to the MFT.

And no, you can't have too much vacuum. The more powerful your vacuum source, the better, because you can run multiple suction plates in tandem.

You can also use the pump for vacuum bagging.

Tom

 

[RKA]

What kind of adapter was it?  Did you just run the 1/2" vac hose off the tree on the pump, put the adapter on the other end of the hose and straight into the base of the vac clamp?  Never considered daisy chaining these mostly because of cost, but that's good to know if one were to need it!

 

[tbellemare]

I'll make it work and show it. The equipment is German and the quick-connect fittings are different so I had to kluge it.

Tom

 

[Rick Christopherson]

I was going to hook up my Robinair A/C evacuating vacuum pump and repeat the experiment but I can't find the fittings after my recent move. It actually has more vacuum potential than the cute little German pump you can see on the MFT and costs about $800 less.

However, it is heavier, bulkier, and requires oil. The one shown above needs no oil.

This is an evacuation pump for air conditioning systems. It achieves its nearly perfect vacuum by using oil around the rotary vanes. As a result, they do have a tendency to mist some oil from the outlet, especially when no vacuum load is present on the inlet.

They are much less expensive simply due to the volume of them sold. Nearly every AC technician in the country has one. So they are sold in very high volumes. It's not uncommon to find these for less than $200.

As a vacuum pump they will work very, very well. However, you will probably want to address the possibility of oil misting into a woodshop environment.