Hi folks, another quick update .......
As I'm in and out the workshop constantly, in fact, I'll probably work throughout the night now As with everyone else, I'm just dying to see what the result will be. Will these vacuum formed parts fit the OE headlight retainer as I originally designed it to do ? :*
I'm at a very delicate stage at the moment. Knowing where to drill these vent holes ......... wish Vince was around right now ( TiggerTT ) ........ he'd know where to place them as he's done this before. Anyway, this is all a learning process for me, I'm just trying to imagine how suction would work ....... so what I've done is, I've worked out that I need at least 7 vent holes for the given area that I want the vacuum to be effective, just enough to pull ( or draw ) the plastic into that deep crevice.
So with my spring-bows I marked out equal distances between the holes, which gives me a 20mm gap between vent holes. If 7 vent holes aren't enough on my first vacuum test, I'll have a perfect centre to add more holes >>
Even marking out the placement of the holes is nerve-racking, one slip, and it all goes pear-shaped ! >>
I've decided that I'll be using a 1.5mm drill bit for the holes, should I need more suction, like the plastic hasn't quite formed correctly in the area, I'll just drill larger holes. So there'll be a little testing to do to see what comes out best >>
Having said that, the question is, would a larger hole create a greater vacuum ? ......... I think not.
Probably best to have more small holes than less larger ones :*
Edge of the seat stuff my friends !
The following day ........
I trust you all had a nice sleep !? I: As for me, I spent all night drilling some damn holes !
This procedure isn't to be confused with drilling a few holes in a simple material like wood. It's thwart with danger ! I can't even bare to think of what could go wrong here, but it's obvious to say that if it does go wrong ........ my new resin tooling plugs would be seriously damaged. So I've decided to write this up as a procedure for future reference.
First thing I had to do was to fix that bubble on the OffSide tooling plug. After grinding the bubble down you can see that an air pocket would of been disastrous, particularly if it had been elsewhere. Luckily for me it wasn't on the inside corner edge. I also think that by having a big hole on the plug' wall would probably cause a weakness there, so I just filled the hole with body filler ....... worked out fine. I then sanded the entire base down flat >>
I then plucked up the courage to begin drilling the tooling plugs. I do own precision drills and drill presses, but I decided to do it 'free hand' >>
As the drill bits are only 1.5mm in diameter, they're only 25mm in length, this is the reason why I chose to make the tooling plugs with a wall thickness of 20mm ....... so I wouldn't have to 'back-drill', which brings on a whole new set of problems. Doing it this way I could drill all the way through >>
When drilling anything, it's a good idea to use a pilot drill, here I'm using a 0.5mm drill bit and a watchmakers hand drill. It's crucial to get that hole at the correct angle as you wouldn't want to catch that corner edge on the inside, as that happens to be the thickest part of the tooling plug. After I'd got the first one correct, I simply placed a 1mm drill bit in the hole, as a guide for the correct angle for the following holes >>
Here you can see the 'guide drill bits' exiting on the inside of the tooling plug >>
Once I'd got all seven vent holes correct on the NearSide tooling plug, I just used a template to mark out the vent holes for the OffSide tooling plug >>
And I used the previous tooling plug as a guide for the angle of the vent holes for the next one. So far everything looks to be straight forward enough, but you certainly can't rush this. Choosing to drill by hand is definitely recommended, as you tend to get more of a feel for it, it's so easy for the tiny drill bit to start 'binding', so if you don't clean off the resin from the drill's flutes, it will get stuck and it'll snap >>
Phew ! ....... I'm glad that's over, went without a hitch T: And once all the holes had been drilled, I gave the plugs a final polish >>
Seven 1.5mm vent holes with 20mm equal spacing ......... I hope that should be enough to draw in that 3mm ABS I'm going to use to make these parts.
If not, I'll simply drill some more 1.5mm vent holes in between those. But we'll see how I get on with the testing >>
Has all this been worth it ? ....... yes, without a doubt T: Because to have good parts that lead to a quality assembled product, you must first have good moulds and good tooling plugs >>
A good tooling plug isn't just about it's form or shape, it's also down to the quality of the finish. The smoother the tooling plug, the less chance of it creating issues when trying to demould your vacuum formed part. I know I sound like a seasoned veteran here, a pro that's been doing this for years ....... but to me, all this is pretty obvious. And we'll all see if I'm correct mighty soon I: >>
Here's an example of the offset of the headlights, that'll give the quad headlight system the 'cats eyes' look.
Actually, that's not a bad name is it !? ........ T4 Quad Cat Eye's T: >>
Now we're ready for vacuum forming >>
Hope you all enjoyed today's update ........ the next one will definitely answer all our questions, and I can't wait to see the outcome.
TURK
As I'm in and out the workshop constantly, in fact, I'll probably work throughout the night now As with everyone else, I'm just dying to see what the result will be. Will these vacuum formed parts fit the OE headlight retainer as I originally designed it to do ? :*
I'm at a very delicate stage at the moment. Knowing where to drill these vent holes ......... wish Vince was around right now ( TiggerTT ) ........ he'd know where to place them as he's done this before. Anyway, this is all a learning process for me, I'm just trying to imagine how suction would work ....... so what I've done is, I've worked out that I need at least 7 vent holes for the given area that I want the vacuum to be effective, just enough to pull ( or draw ) the plastic into that deep crevice.
So with my spring-bows I marked out equal distances between the holes, which gives me a 20mm gap between vent holes. If 7 vent holes aren't enough on my first vacuum test, I'll have a perfect centre to add more holes >>
Even marking out the placement of the holes is nerve-racking, one slip, and it all goes pear-shaped ! >>
I've decided that I'll be using a 1.5mm drill bit for the holes, should I need more suction, like the plastic hasn't quite formed correctly in the area, I'll just drill larger holes. So there'll be a little testing to do to see what comes out best >>
Having said that, the question is, would a larger hole create a greater vacuum ? ......... I think not.
Probably best to have more small holes than less larger ones :*
Edge of the seat stuff my friends !
The following day ........
I trust you all had a nice sleep !? I: As for me, I spent all night drilling some damn holes !
This procedure isn't to be confused with drilling a few holes in a simple material like wood. It's thwart with danger ! I can't even bare to think of what could go wrong here, but it's obvious to say that if it does go wrong ........ my new resin tooling plugs would be seriously damaged. So I've decided to write this up as a procedure for future reference.
First thing I had to do was to fix that bubble on the OffSide tooling plug. After grinding the bubble down you can see that an air pocket would of been disastrous, particularly if it had been elsewhere. Luckily for me it wasn't on the inside corner edge. I also think that by having a big hole on the plug' wall would probably cause a weakness there, so I just filled the hole with body filler ....... worked out fine. I then sanded the entire base down flat >>
I then plucked up the courage to begin drilling the tooling plugs. I do own precision drills and drill presses, but I decided to do it 'free hand' >>
As the drill bits are only 1.5mm in diameter, they're only 25mm in length, this is the reason why I chose to make the tooling plugs with a wall thickness of 20mm ....... so I wouldn't have to 'back-drill', which brings on a whole new set of problems. Doing it this way I could drill all the way through >>
When drilling anything, it's a good idea to use a pilot drill, here I'm using a 0.5mm drill bit and a watchmakers hand drill. It's crucial to get that hole at the correct angle as you wouldn't want to catch that corner edge on the inside, as that happens to be the thickest part of the tooling plug. After I'd got the first one correct, I simply placed a 1mm drill bit in the hole, as a guide for the correct angle for the following holes >>
Here you can see the 'guide drill bits' exiting on the inside of the tooling plug >>
Once I'd got all seven vent holes correct on the NearSide tooling plug, I just used a template to mark out the vent holes for the OffSide tooling plug >>
And I used the previous tooling plug as a guide for the angle of the vent holes for the next one. So far everything looks to be straight forward enough, but you certainly can't rush this. Choosing to drill by hand is definitely recommended, as you tend to get more of a feel for it, it's so easy for the tiny drill bit to start 'binding', so if you don't clean off the resin from the drill's flutes, it will get stuck and it'll snap >>
Phew ! ....... I'm glad that's over, went without a hitch T: And once all the holes had been drilled, I gave the plugs a final polish >>
Seven 1.5mm vent holes with 20mm equal spacing ......... I hope that should be enough to draw in that 3mm ABS I'm going to use to make these parts.
If not, I'll simply drill some more 1.5mm vent holes in between those. But we'll see how I get on with the testing >>
Has all this been worth it ? ....... yes, without a doubt T: Because to have good parts that lead to a quality assembled product, you must first have good moulds and good tooling plugs >>
A good tooling plug isn't just about it's form or shape, it's also down to the quality of the finish. The smoother the tooling plug, the less chance of it creating issues when trying to demould your vacuum formed part. I know I sound like a seasoned veteran here, a pro that's been doing this for years ....... but to me, all this is pretty obvious. And we'll all see if I'm correct mighty soon I: >>
Here's an example of the offset of the headlights, that'll give the quad headlight system the 'cats eyes' look.
Actually, that's not a bad name is it !? ........ T4 Quad Cat Eye's T: >>
Now we're ready for vacuum forming >>
Hope you all enjoyed today's update ........ the next one will definitely answer all our questions, and I can't wait to see the outcome.
TURK
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