Vacuum work holding table

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

Looking for some information. I have a thin aluminum part .125 thick. 13" X 18" laser cut blank. Specs call out 2 5/16" drill holes. 1 slotted hole 1" X 2" through. I have an order for 400 pcs. and this will repeat.
I have been looking at some vacuum tables to hold the blank for machining. Has anyone out there used these? What is a good one to look at buying? Anything I should avoid?

crossthread · May 30, 2019

I personalty would not go to the trouble and expense of a vacuum table for something like this. If all you are doing is drilling holes and cutting a slot, you don't have to worry much about height. Find something flat and glue it down temporarily. There are a lot of things that you could use to stick it down that will release it with either heat or solvent.

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

crossthread said:
I personalty would not go to the trouble and expense of a vacuum table for something like this. If all you are doing is drilling holes and cutting a slot, you don't have to worry much about height. Find something flat and glue it down temporarily. There are a lot of things that you could use to stick it down that will release it with either heat or solvent.

I have to do 400 at a time. this method may slow down part loading and unloading.
Sorry I forgot to mention quantities.

g-coder05 · May 30, 2019

I have about 30 of these and love em. The kit comes with the vacuum chuck, 1 universal vacuum plate, 2 blank plates for custom parts plates plenty of o-ring material, and an E-stop sensor for your machine in case of loss of air.

Vacmagic(R) VM300 | Mitee-Bite Products LLC.

crossthread · May 30, 2019

Aha....400 of them. Get a good vacuum table.

AARONT · May 30, 2019

Any reason you can't laser cut the holes and slot?

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

AARONT said:
Any reason you can't laser cut the holes and slot?

Customer is calling the shots and supplying the material.

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

crossthread said:
Aha....400 of them. Get a good vacuum table.

YES. But what's a good one? brand name, manufacturer?

g-coder05 · May 30, 2019

If this is a reoccurring order you could make a cheap aluminum vacuum chuck with the profile and just use a Gast ventury pump. I tend to see a lot of these floating around shops. Just plug in your shop air and hit the go button.

Vacuum Generators

OR, If your slow and feeling ambitious I have the model and part files for a table like the Vacmagic. Some variations but same concept.

Delw · May 30, 2019

gear cutter said:
Looking for some information. I have a thin aluminum part .125 thick. 13" X 18" laser cut blank. Specs call out 2 5/16" drill holes. 1 slotted hole 1" X 2" through. I have an order for 400 pcs. and this will repeat.
I have been looking at some vacuum tables to hold the blank for machining. Has anyone out there used these? What is a good one to look at buying? Anything I should avoid?

Are you cutting the outside profile also? If not you will need to put some pin holes to locate your parts.
either way make your own. save your money and buy a good vaccum pump.
I havent seen one premade vacuum table I could use yet.

we do a ton of vacuum work here

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

Delw said:
Are you cutting the outside profile also? If not you will need to put some pin holes to locate your parts.
either way make your own. save your money and buy a good vaccum pump.
I havent seen one premade vacuum table I could use yet.

we do a ton of vacuum work here

I'm not machining the outside profile. what vacuum pump do you use?

gear cutter · May 30, 2019

g-coder05 said:
If this is a reoccurring order you could make a cheap aluminum vacuum chuck with the profile and just use a Gast ventury pump. I tend to see a lot of these floating around shops. Just plug in your shop air and hit the go button.

Vacuum Generators

OR, If your slow and feeling ambitious I have the model and part files for a table like the Vacmagic. Some variations but same concept.

I'm definitely not slow, but I don't know much about vacuum. I have another job that I think a vacuum table would work well for too.

g-coder05 · May 30, 2019

gear cutter said:
I'm definitely not slow, but I don't know much about vacuum. I have another job that I think a vacuum table would work well for too.

PM me your email and I will send you the model for a universal vacuum system that does not use a pump, only your shop supplied air.

Delw · May 30, 2019

gear cutter said:
I'm not machining the outside profile. what vacuum pump do you use?

bunch of years ago, my customer told me to get a gast Rotary vane vacumm pump from MSC they cost like 1500 bucks. also told me to look on craigslist.
little did I know I got a damn goo deal( I knew nothing about vaccum pumps)got a leybold d16bcs with all kinds of weird attachments/options on it.
came out of a commercial shop.

found out that druglabs *illegal and legal ones use them also so make sure if you buy used you get maintenance done on it. as you dont want to get sick from what ever someone else was using it for.

the useing your compressor ones suck only because they run air,. they work and will get you by but I wont use them.
I got a new one here if you want to buy it. you can try it and if it works for you pay me for it, if it doesnt send it back no problems, I made the same deal with another guy. he ended up getting a real vacuum pump off Craigslist so he sent it back to me. it will cost you less than half of a new one if you want it.
this is the one I have you can try out mcmaster carr part number is 9997K27

mine rotary vane will collapse air lines so we have to use semi rigid tubing with push in connector, I get everything from mc mastercarr including the cord stock( I use 2 types for different reasons.

heres a good thread on vaccum fixtures and pumps. lots of guys use different stuff.
https://www.practicalmachinist.com/...-vacuum-fixture-361501/?highlight=vaccum+pump

I can guarantee you this, if you do any type of plate work you will save a ton of time and headaches using a vacuum fixture. parts will be incredibly flat and parallel finish is fantastic and no bow in the parts either

Delw

mTeryk · May 31, 2019

Just another idea, I get that vacuum plates are cool but for three holes and no outside profile on a .125" aluminum part, I'd be looking at 4-6 Destacos on a fixture plate.

Teryk

Winterfalke · May 31, 2019

I had several VacMagic units, and I do recommend them. I disassembled mine and recut the top and middle pieces, because it was a couple of thou off from corner to corner, but I did everything on that fixture. I cut my own grid plate for one offs, and made a vice fixture so I didn't have to disturb the Vac fixture to use the vice. The Vacmagic units are nice because they are tolerant of coolant injestion, and only need an air line to run. I preferred to cut one side and the profile, then drop it in a close fitting pocket, you could hold it securely by .010. But for raw stock, they have a system where the grid plate has tapped holes that you can screw down these spring steel hold fingers, to keep teh part from sliding.
YouTube

number 2 · May 31, 2019

To add to the Destacos idea, stack them say 8 high or even 10 if it will work.

gear cutter · May 31, 2019

Delw said:
bunch of years ago, my customer told me to get a gast Rotary vane vacumm pump from MSC they cost like 1500 bucks. also told me to look on craigslist.
little did I know I got a damn goo deal( I knew nothing about vaccum pumps)got a leybold d16bcs with all kinds of weird attachments/options on it.
came out of a commercial shop.

found out that druglabs *illegal and legal ones use them also so make sure if you buy used you get maintenance done on it. as you dont want to get sick from what ever someone else was using it for.

the useing your compressor ones suck only because they run air,. they work and will get you by but I wont use them.
I got a new one here if you want to buy it. you can try it and if it works for you pay me for it, if it doesnt send it back no problems, I made the same deal with another guy. he ended up getting a real vacuum pump off Craigslist so he sent it back to me. it will cost you less than half of a new one if you want it.
this is the one I have you can try out mcmaster carr part number is 9997K27

mine rotary vane will collapse air lines so we have to use semi rigid tubing with push in connector, I get everything from mc mastercarr including the cord stock( I use 2 types for different reasons.

heres a good thread on vaccum fixtures and pumps. lots of guys use different stuff.
https://www.practicalmachinist.com/...-vacuum-fixture-361501/?highlight=vaccum+pump

I can guarantee you this, if you do any type of plate work you will save a ton of time and headaches using a vacuum fixture. parts will be incredibly flat and parallel finish is fantastic and no bow in the parts either

Delw

Do I need some kind of filter to keep coolant and chips out of the vacuum pump? Would that reduce my vacuum? Is there a specific filter for this?

Mtndew · May 31, 2019

We have a couple of these and for the price they really can't be beat.
Pierson Workholding – Innovate Your Production with better Workholding

Delw · May 31, 2019

gear cutter said:
Do I need some kind of filter to keep coolant and chips out of the vacuum pump? Would that reduce my vacuum? Is there a specific filter for this?

Yes with a vaccum pump. we use water filters ( no filter just the canisters from home depot or lows.)
mines set up like this.

pump ---> one water filter housing with filter -----> one water filter housing with no filter -----> 25 gal air tank -------> one water filter housing with no filter -----> ball valves with air lines going to machines.

They say you dont need a filter with the compressed air ones. there is good info in the link I posted above from various people who use vaccum systems

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