Thread: Stabilizing brush blank project

Originally Posted by MikeB52

It's all good. :... snip....*
For the positive pressure pot, not sure pressure vessel will work or not. Need to do some more research, and scrounging in the metal bin at work..
Then research some watery viscosity stabilizer options. I read cactus juice is the bar to measure against, but that isn't available locally that I know of. Resins are too thick IMO, and most other 2 part chemical mixes are as well. Maybe diluted urethane type products might work...
Lots to consider still.

Consider use of a paint pressure pot???
~Richard

I'm a hvac guy. The vacuum pump shown is made to remove atmospheric air and to boil off water in a mechanical cooling system. Robinair are a standard in the hvac industry. an aluminum pressure cooker will never implode nor will it cast out shards of anything. It will leak in air if you don't close the valve on the vacuum port and that's it.the vacuum pull is ever so slight on these tools, my may not even have enough negative pressure to preform the task you want it to. Your going to have a challenge to drop the pressures to one atmosphere. Be sure to change the oil after each use. The oil hold air/water is only good for one use. And, get the size of oil bottle that is enough to fill the pump. Any thing left over in a bottle of oil will absorb atmospheric moisture. It's very hydrophilic.

Thought I'd post here, hope you don't mind Mike. By the way Mike, Your new avatar suites you perfectly. This is how I invision you in your work shop.

I reworked my stabilizing unit this morning. It had been pulling -27 inHg which really is pretty good but I could hear it pulling air around my fittings. I don't know why, but when I initially put it together I used CA to seal up the threads. That was a fail, so this time I did it properly and used teflon tape and things are working very, very well now. I'm pulling slightly above -29 inHg which is superb.

I also want to ask you guys, my pump heats up quite a lot while running. Within a half hour it is pretty hot to the touch. Generally it takes a few hours to draw out all the air and by that time I'm nervous my pump might decide to over heat and quit. What are your thoughts on this guys? The last thing I want to do is drop $100-200 on a new pump.

Good suggestion on the avatar switch, Mike found a pretty appropriate image, lol. Makes me want to fire up the Jacobs ladder when I'm down in the shop now.

T tape, 1 and 1/2 wraps, that's the ticket Andrew. Great vac pull you've achieved now..

My pressure pot arrives next week finally, as well as my first set of blacksmith tongs for another fledgling project down the road. So will be playing with chemicals in May. Have a pressure cooker for my vac chamber and a proper pressure pot for pressurization of molds.
Going to try some blanks, as well as molded brush and scale designs hopefully.
Maybe put some of Outbacks glitter to good use finally as well..

Originally Posted by HARRYWALLY

I also want to ask you guys, my pump heats up quite a lot while running. Within a half hour it is pretty hot to the touch. Generally it takes a few hours to draw out all the air and by that time I'm nervous my pump might decide to over heat and quit. What are your thoughts on this guys? The last thing I want to do is drop $100-200 on a new pump.

If your oil is good, may be normal. Lots of work with little airflow pulling that kind of vacuum. Are your heat sink fins clear?
Once I fire up mine I will let you know the heat affect on it for comparison..

Who knows how good the oil is that they send with these pumps. Maybe I'll steal some Monarch compressor oil from work and swap it out. Heat sink fins??? Those are the fins that disperse the heat around the outside???

Yup, around the motor end. Can't tell from your pic if there's a fan on the end of yours. Screen clean and airflow good across the motor and pump will ensure the heats dissipated effectively..
I'm getting some Bosch 100 vac oil for mine next week, by the liter as it's as water absorbing as brake fluid it seems.
Then getting some acrylite and stuff week after hopefully.

Very cool Mike. Can't wait to see what you do with it.