Thread: Homemade Vacuum Chamber- recommendations for products

back to the matter at hand, did you use a brake bleeder type vacuum pump?

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Rain??? it's freakin 103 degs down here.

Yikes... we still haven't made it outta the 70's yet in fact it is 54 right now back back in a few and will load some pics

This is a very interesting project! I'm looking forward to see how it goes!

Jar = Valsic 1 1/2 quart $3.42 with Pickels
Daly's = $16 per Qt x 2
Fittings & Washers = $8.69
Silicon Sealer = $4.49
Pump Kit $24.99

Feeling of success when it worked, and didn't implode like so many people warned about = Priceless

















Tricks I have learned already,
Slowly bring the pressure down about 5 in/hg at a time let the foam up occur and then bring it down again
After 1 hr release the pressure, and then let the wood sink lower, and drop the pressure again
I have it holding at 25 in/hg and it has held there today for over 4 hours so far
Do NOT let the sealer touch the fitting inside the jar it will wreck your pump if it gets sucked in
You can create a double "Boiler" type set up and keep things really safe if you can get the right size glassware ie: a smaller jar of finish inside a larger jar that holds the Vacuum


The first batch of Burls

Thats a great thing,can you wgt a pce before and after? might be interesting.
Do you see any evidence of water in the mix? or was the wood dry beforehand.
This is great stuff,thanks.

that wood looks amazing Glen!

Bottom line: This is freakin' cool.

No one best be complaining for a lack of photography here, Glen.

Awesome set-up and nice results!

So far the hardest parts were finding the right jar
Finding and adapting the fittings
and Resisting the urge to keep testing the wood every couple of hours to see how it is drying


BTW This is NOT my idea, I just simply adapted it specifically for my usage

Hi Glen,

Once upon a time I took a class in electron microscopy, and we embedded our specimens in a resin that set when baked. Don't remember the temperature, but I don't think it would harm wood. We kept a range of resin solutions--10% resin, 90% solvent (acetone, I think, or absolutely dry ethanol), then 20% resin, and so on. It was really time consuming, time in each bath before moving on, but we got subcellular impregnation.

I have no idea what the stuff cost or where you get it, but it was tough and transparent when it set. There's got to be a microscopist among us. Anyone? Anyone?

Where did you get your pump and vacuum gage? With a little extra hassle you can put another container in series to catch any fluid and protect your pump.

Cool setup.