Adam Savage's Vacuum Forming Machine
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- Adam wipes the dust off of his old large vacuum forming machine and uses it for an ongoing Apollo spacesuit project! Here's a primer on vacuum forming and how it's been used in special effects and prop-making. Adam's machine has a few quirks, so let's see how it performs!
Shot and edited by Joey Fameli
Music by Jinglepunks
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Jeremy Williams / jerware
Thanks for watching!
#AdamSavage #tools
Enjoying this tour of machines in Adam's shop? Here's his milling machine: ua-cam.com/video/3735B42v-wI/v-deo.html
Hey Adam, And The Tested Crew. I Watched The Video Of Your Scratch-Built Space Ship You Put Out Last Week. You Briefly Showcased Your Smaller Vacuum Former And That Sparked My Interest In The Whole Process. Which Brought Me Here To Watch This Video From A Few Years Ago And Left An Even More Profound Impression. So I Started Down The Rabbit Hole That Is UA-cam In Search Of Build Models For Vacuum Formers. Came Across A Few Devices That Looked Promising In Terms Of Build Quality, Ease Of Use, And Overall Effectiveness. But Ultimately The One You Showcased In This Video Seems To Hit All The Necessary Bullet Points And Then Some, With Features That I Couldn't Find In Anyone Else's Build. Mainly The Independent Heating Elements And The Mechanism To Raise/Lower You Medium Uniformly And Accurately. I Am Extremely Interested In Building My Own Model Now, Thanks To You. The Same Size As Your Larger Vacuum Former, The Model In This Video. In Fact I Would Love One That Is Exactly Like The One In This Video. I Was Wondering If You Had Any Type Of Schematics Posted/Uploaded Anywhere Accessible To The General Public. That Along With A List Of Building Materials Or A General Guide And Instructions For Assembly. If You Had The Entire Process Documented And Available To Anyone Who Wishes To Build It, I Would Be Astounded And Grateful. If They Are Not Available Already, Is There A Way You Could Make Them Available? I'm Sure There Is A Fair Amount Of People Who Would Be Interested In The Process, And Maybe Some Others Who Are Interested In Constructing A Vacuum Former Of Their Own.
Long Time Fan Of Yours, Adam. Since The First Season Of MythBusters. I'm Happy That You Continuously Share Your Work And Experience With Your Audience. You Provide A Great Service To Your Community. I Look Forward To Reading Your Book.
@@glorifiedg22
I don't want to be present when they read your will.
@@user-pn4ux9gx5m LoL. Why?
@@glorifiedg22 Joke. For the length of your comment. 😆
@@user-pn4ux9gx5m Lol. In That Case, If And When I Do Make A Will I'll Make Sure To Leave You Everything.
ADAM!!! Use a compressed air nozzle blowing in the edge to separate the piece from the back!!! It will pop right out! No hammering or messing around!
+Xplosion51 well he's obviously done better at life than you :)
+Xplosion51 It obviously did because you're on this planet.
+Xplosion51 I can tell.
+USWaterRockets Seconded!
Nighthawke70 I was shocked that Adam never learned this trick. It's great for demolding castings too!
more adam !
Definitely!!!!!
+Darren Devine
Also: More, Adam!
+Ivan Campos nah norm is good at vr
More Adam! Less Norm!
Darren Devine .. Africa HiTech? nice
Thank you for not including annoying background music in your videos.
+flaggerify I lvoe that Joey usually only resorts to that for the time lapse shots he does!
I'd also like to thank him for not including an annoying foreground noise called Norm in this video.
"I learned a bunch of things during this form"
BANG
"I learned that I think I got the plastic actually too warm"
BANG BANG BANG
+alosercalledsusie That is
BANG BANG BANG
really funny quote
Hi you do realise that what was stopping it popping of was the air not able to get in if you use a tube to blow air in next time
If the air can't get in, then how did it get out during the form?
"I learned that I need a tighter"
BANG BANG BANG
Too much heat and it will rip. Too little and it wont form enough.
Joey Fameli: From one editor/producer to another: This was some spectacular editing. I laughed at 5:00 or so with all of the jump cuts. Please include more creative editing like this in the future.
I used one of these plenty back in 1999-2000. Worked for a firm making metal detectors, I was in charge of producing the various body parts for the machines. Our vacuum former was slightly different to Adams, it seemed more advanced and easier to use, the metal frames and clamps ect were all operated by pushing and pulling large hand levers, was quite easy to use, but there was definitely a knack to getting all the settings right, and I sure was glad the firm was paying for all the sheets and sheets of various plastic!!!! It always took one or two sheets to get it set up right! Looking back, that was so unbelievably wasteful haha. When the parts were formed, I would take them to the band saw and rough them out. Great memories, was a good job, I enjoyed it a lot.
Thank you to Monika and Derrick Farrow of Protovale Oxford for being good bosses. Good times back then.
After trimming off the overhang, I find injecting compressed air between the buck and the part usually pops the part loose. For fine detail we often drill small holes in the edges and corners as suggested above and it makes a big difference. You can also inject air through these holes to help loosen the part.
4:10 These are the moments that make Adam a personal hero. Look at that enthusiasm.
Although I doubt he will see this. But Adam has one of my pieces hanging on his wall. So ADAM here's a few tips for next time you are working with a large buck and ABS. First off I often use a flattened air tube attached to my air sprayer. By sliding it down flat along the sides and throwing 120psi air it will release from the buck nicely.. Sometimes the glue in particleboard will stick to the ABS. You can also pop a tiny hole and use a sprayer with a rubber nozzle end to push pressurized air into the piece. This can actually pop the buck clean out of the piece in some cases.
Sadly I doubt you will see this being as busy as you are. But hopefully it will be helpful to someone .
"And that is my vacuformer." *Promptly shoves it back into a corner* :) love seeing it in action. Thanks for this look at fabrication.
Can we get a video supercut of a bunch of Adam's actual mistakes working in the shop? Both for laughs and so we know he's human.
+Charles Hanson the multi-toll holder comes to mind. Gets most of the way through the build & realizes he ruined it & starts over.
He is not a human
@@chance3611 You're correct. He's a Mythbuster
The mold has horrible webbing. He’s human alright
That would be a long video! He admits to making lots of mistakes. He just knows how to fix them.
I especially like that you show how even YOU have to struggle, sometimes, to get the amazing things you make to work right.
"I know just the tool!"
*pulls out small handheld fart machine*
that was actually very funny
I feel like every machine Adam breaks out is "A magnificent, BEAUTIFUL piece of machinery that works like a DREAM in VFX"
Thanks so much for this fantastic content, I can still have my daily dose of Adam even though Mythbusters has finished. Adam, I owe you a huge thank you, I started watching mythbusters when i was 7 and its because of that i started to get into engineering, I am now 16 and have started college and am truly thankful for your influence on my life! Best of Luck
Watching Adam Savage in the shop is like seeing myself do things at times - very human... though he's got WAY WAY more skill & experience. However his human approach and demeanor makes me feel like anything he's done I could tackle too. I really enjoy watching this guy do anything!
You should make the same over a Han Solo figurine, just for fun :D
+MrSerrrg88 or a Wolverine one ;)
+MrSerrrg88 I like your thinking!
Awesome idea!
+MrSerrrg88 I would think something with that degree of detail would be really hard to get a good copy of with a vacuum former. It might end up as just a vaguely humanoid blob
+Zelmel I guess the idea is not to get an accurate copy, but more like mimic the "Han Solo in Carbonite" look...
I have a small vacuum form machine we use at my shop... it has 2 tanks. The air gets vacuumed out of one tank and is pumped into the other. Once the vacuum is drawn and the piece has sufficiently cooled, it's just a matter of reversing the tanks and blowing some air into the the mold to release it. And yes, a rubber mallet is handy sometimes. Also spraying the mold with silicone lubricant can help. The biggest thing... try not to have ANY undercuts or you may find you'll never get the piece off - especially with thicker plastic.
man i wish adam was one of my shop school teachers back in the day :)
Great machines these. I used to work for a vacuum forming company as a tool maker (making the forms). You don't need the small frame you slip over the top. Just keep the pumps running, make sure there's sufficient holes in the form and let the vacuum do the work. Add more holes to problem areas after a test if necessary. To remove, rig up a compressor, let the plastic cool for a minute or so, then pulse air through the form using the vac hose via simple switching valve.
Oh, and you get better results on a warm form too ;)
I'm surprised Adam didn't blow air with a compressor between the ABS and the form to get it to pop off.
yeah me too.
That's what I was thinking too.
In hindsight, so was Adam!
Same thought, it would have just popped the form off like nothing.
Adam! I built that same vacuum former (probably from the same Protoform plans) that you have! Mine is red. LOVE IT! This is one of my favorite tools over the years. Still works!
They've done studies about Adam's vacuum forming machine y'know. 60% of the time it works, everytime.
i get the reference :3...
it's the anchorman right? 😗
+Ace Sul I gotta be honest, that smells like pure gasoline.
Ace Sul it be 99% if he knew what he was doing
OMG. I've only just come across these videos. Bloody fantastic! A natural and energetic presenter with some good video production and editing. Love it!
i need to make one of those
Same.
By the time you and your career is forgotten and irrelevant, you’ll have inspired multiple generations. You’ve inspired me....my daughters as well.
I bet if you drilled holes from the sharp inside edges at the top down to the bottom; you could get even better shaping
+3E yup, exactly why most home made ones are done with pegboard.
+MyBrothersMario He means through the buck positive -- the metal base of the former is already perforated. Having a channel(s) through the buck would mean after it seals to the sides of the mdf it can still get detail up high.
you could also use those holes to put compressed air through to remove the form off of the buck without slicing it
+frollard and if you channeled it a bit you might have access to blow air back through to help pop the cast off.
+aintnobitchms that's what I was thinking. even just a shot up the bottom edge of the draw.
Boy I wish I had all the great tools that Adam has! He can make almost anything!
Couldn't you drill a hole through the buck so that you could put a shop air blowgun on the hole and separate the pieces?
+John Ridley I was going to suggest the same, but without the hole, as you could do that by pulling out one of the sides. One approach or the other should work!
+John Ridley The buck is held in by friction, not suction.
That and a bit of draft angle would've helped
+Brian Ortiz doesnt look like much of a draft on there, there probably is some suction.
+Brian Ortiz maybe not suction, but adding 100psi to that square foot area of the inside of the top would remove the form in a real hurry.
Hi Adam. I've been a fan for quite sometime. It may have been mentioned already....too many comments to read through, but here's an idea on how to get the form off. When you pry the plastic from the mold, try to shoot compressed air into the small recess between the mold and the plastic. The pressure may be enough to separate the two. Just an idea I had while watching this cool, informative video.
The Vacuum Forming machine was my favourite part of school woodworking class. If the other machines were as fun to use as that thing, maybe I would have passed!
"This is a really touchy art form and I probably won't get it on the 1st try" *gets it in the 1st try*
That's because he's a baos.
My parents gave me a Mattel Vac-U-Form for my 11th birthday. Worked really well and I molded a lot of small things like boats and cars.
Could you have drilled a hole in the middle of the form and used air to blow it off ?
Also a couple of screws in the bottom that you could clamp in the vice to hold the form still
I was thinking just a small hole, 1/8" maybe, might mean a bigger hole drilled from the bottom (to get the length of drill), then the 1/8 to break through the top
i was thinking the same thing. Then I though about cutting the form into quarters and shimming between them. After forming, remove the shims and it should fall out. Although it would be really hard to hide the parting lines.
but then again, I like Adam said it isn't going to be seen so its appearance isn't a big deal.
Tested should be a tv show on Discovery. I'm sure there's an audience for Adam & co out there who love all this stuff.
@5:30 approximately "i need a tighter" tighter what!?
+reddevved Most likely a tighter frame.
+reddevved seal or frame.
+reddevved oh its obvious he just needs a tighter
+reddevved that wood frame he put around the outside of the ABS after pulling the ABS down.
DanielRichards644 you mean seal?
Adam actually got me to build my own mini variant! I saw the Episode with simone and had to build my own mini variant! Thanks for that!
+TheZampa can I ask the cost and ease please
it is around 20x30cm. so around 20€ total i'd say, if you buy the wood (for the base) and the aluminium frame (for holding the plastic sheet). and you'd have to get a decent source for plastic sheets..
it's not for making huge things but enough for my needs
+TheZampa sounds really nice to me
excellent you can make props and toast at the same time :-)
We need MORE Adam and for longer!
if yo uh put a little hole to allow air to enter as you remove the mold would that ruin the vacuuming? because if it doesn't it would really help remove the form from the mold.
+Austin Jacob exactly what I was thinking. drill a hole, and plug it with a dowel while vaccuforming, and then remove the dowel and some compressed air might help release it. disclaimer- I've done exactly 0 vaccuforming but enjoy the demonstration.
+Derek Place When ive done it we drilled holes through the form as it helps remove the air especially if you have cavity's and weird shapes but you do end up with little dint's on the finished piece.
I don't really think the reason that the mold didn't want to come off of the buck had to do with the air flow. I think there's just a lot of friction between two items that are perfectly shaped around each other.
+Chance Price probably true.
+Austin Jacob This is often done in industrial applications of this technique where the mould has _tiny_ holes all the way through, vertically, to allow for easy de-moulding. A draft angle of 7° is also very common and good rule of thumb for designing moulds. But if you don't get the parameters right these holes might show up as dimples in your form.
Tips
Apply a stocking over the mould to allow suction to spread over whole surface.
Spray with silicon spray as a release agent.
Drill a hole in the top and blow compressed air in to blow the mould out if there are no undercut areas.
Also put a peddle between the tanks and the suction table so you can regulate the speed the air is removed and thus allow you time to ensure there are no wrinkles
A little talcum powder on your buck will work like magic to release it from the plastic
does it inbed in the plastic? Like say I want a transparent material. Would it leave artifacts in the finish?
This is a great Vac-U-form machine. We have the 2'x4' one in our Prop Shop at the University of Michigan. We use binder clips all the way around to clamp the plastic.
This video is constant "That's what she said" moments with all the warm buck pulling.
And fuse blowing.
+Firewisplet r/im14andthisisfunny
vacuum forming is such a cool thing and a simple concept!
savage
I used to run a 4000x3000 bed vacuum moulding machine exactly the same set up but on a larger scale. Just a tip i picked up over the years forming. Was never drop your material over a cold moulding tool always get it up to temp first. That way 9 times out of 10 you will get the mould correct on first drop. And also use a temp gun to read material temps that way you will know when its good to ready to drop. ABS was around 155 to 160 degrees for successful mould
man that thing totally SUCKS !! and in a good way! I wonder how many household vacuum cleaners kids have ruined trying to make tiny at home Vacuum formers.
+Nik Butler For having built with my friends, if you built the table itself right, you can't really blow the vacuum cleaner unless you over estimate the vacuum and let it on for like a minute when the plastic isn't pulling. The real problem you encounter is that you don't get a good pull. In the end, we used a commercial grade shop vac to do it.
+Nik Butler Should have seen the look on my face when I saw James Burton use a plain old household Dyson vacuum & space heaters in a wood "oven" lined with foil for his larger former. I was like, "What the Hell? That is the most brilliant cheap solution I've ever seen!" Thing totally works great too!
Volvary I used a 1980s wet vac and spliced it so it pulled from all 4 sides.. Amazing job it did....
Vacuum former i used has the clamped plastic in a stationary position, and the form would be raised to heated ABS, cooled with fans, then form is lowered, agitating up and down and the cooled plastic would pop out on it's own. It also helps if a powder similar to talc is applied to form before forming.
If it doesn't work, get a bigger hammer.
Adam, since you seemed to be having trouble removing the former, (and you didn't seem to have done it in the video), I have a method which I know of that makes it easier. I do electronic products at my school, and when we use a vacuum former to make our casings, we always rub paraffin wax across the side of the plastic that comes in contact with the former, find it makes mould removal easier. The source of wax we use is just a tea light that we rub onto it.
Instead of using the awkward extra frame that you pushed down by hand (risking minor burns) you can make an adapter insert (called a reducing window) that is sized to your outer frame and the parts perimeter. It's best to cut these reducing windows made to match the the exact part perimeter from thin plywood (keep lots of scrap plywood or hardware store mahogany door panel). That way you not only can keep the fixed and stable part of the frame close to the perimeter for more control of the amount of sagging or droop AND the vacuum use to do the forming CLOSE to the part's edges. AND for us peons without a large materials budget you even save plastic. Just remember that FOR DEEP PARTS (like this one) you have to plan for a little "extra" plastic around the perimeter to "draw" that extra depth. Adam accounted for this by letting most of the "draw" occur BEFORE pushing down his makeshift frame to close the perimeter for better vacuum. A more controlled method would be to replace his last second frame draw with the reducing window to control the vacuum space. This means you need to plan* for this by cutting and attaching the feed plastic larger then the actual opening in the reducing window. This minimized the chance of having those tall vertical sides from pulling out too thin while still allowing maximum vacuum with more control. Just use a heavy staple gun (and a little 600mph tape) to fix the to the inner edge of the plywood frame adapter. *from previous experience ...just GUESSTIMATE! LOL
All I want to see is Adam in the shop.
That's not true but I'm loving the shop stuff with Adam as well as the shop tips that have been happening.
Nice to see this in action
I love seeing Adam do stuff.
Adam, Been there done that. Looks great. It will release much easier if you drill (if you can) a small hole in the top and hit it with compressed air to help release the mold.
Vacuum forming is one of those old processes that you still see today that from what I see is the exact same(?) and I find that strangely fascinating, I did it in school only about 11 years ago and I suspect schools are still doing it now
We need more of those video on Tested ! More Adam. !!
Hey Adam. little tip for removing your work from the buck, blow compressed air between them. No need to cut or drill holes just push the tip of the air nozzle in where the two pics meet and give it a blast. I use air to pop fiberglass out of molds all the time it works great, also a great way to separate stacked buckets that are stuck together.
These videos are so much better than the other guys uncomfortable interviews
Adam: I love your videos. So does my six year old son. I'm proud that when he hears a four-letter word he'll switch off a video, but that means he misses out some of your pearls of wisdom. Suggestion / request: bleep the audio as needed!!
This is a channel for adults, not a kids show.
this taught me so much about why the vacuuformer in my secondary school's workshop was so diasppointing! fed right off the vacuum pump instead of storing negative pressure in a tank like a capacitor, AND no frame to slide down around it. the edges from hard shapes were so round and disappointing! though they got a laser cutter the next year so all future cases for housing electronics that i made were made from slot and groove laser-cut acrylic instead.
I love Adam he makes me happy. I’m so glad he still making videos. He’s awesome 😎
Make it longer! I want MOAR.
yay! just happened to come across this vid and was like "mythbusters on youtube? sold! lol new fav channel
So much to learn from watching Adam!
We want more Adam!
Best channel on You Tube.
Building a hollow mold and drilling a series of holes in the crevices, or inside corners with a piece of wire will accomplish a much tighter pull. Also a draft angle on the sides when possible is always nice.
Had one of these at school and college and it was sick!!
If I have one hero and person I strive to be it would be Adam Savage.
only adam savage would be that excited about using a vacuum former.
Awesome! We actually use the same exact method with a much smaller machine of course! In dentistry, this is how we make plastic
night-guards and also more rigid orthodontic retainers. The invisible active orthodontic appliances (clear invisible aligners) are made similarly
I worked in a factory using and fixing industrial vacuum formers, and we'd use a system at the very least twice that size for an item that deep to make sure the plastic formed smoothly and evenly.
I work with vac-forming machines, much more bigger and sophisticated to this one, illigs, keifels etc. It's nice to watch Adam do something I know a lot about for once lol
I love mechanism that lifts the plastic sheet.
I am late to this 2016 party, but I wanted to suggest spraying a mold release over the buck. Straight silicon spray might work fine. Also, some 40 years ago, I learned about pattern making for casting cast iron parts. For that you build in a slight taper into the side walls of the pattern to help with this mold-release process. (Look at anything cast iron and you won't find any parallel surfaces unless the were machined in after the casting process.) I think the compressed air idea mentioned below might work well depending on how stretchy the ABS is. If nothing else, that should automatically push the buck out of the ABS.
Very sweet! I'm following Punished Props' build to make myself a small one, but one day I'm gonna build a big top-loader like this one!
When I did vacuum forming I found it easier to cut the buck into wedge shape pieces. That way it is a lot easier to get out with breaking the plastic or the buck so it can be used again.
I'll be damned if you don't win best Halloween costume every year with all that cool tech.
That thing is so damn cool! I love the lever system for the frame, reminds me of the professionally made formers we used when I worked at Storyland Studios.
Compressed air is amazing for demolding vac form parts. Drill a small hole in either the part or the mold, stick the nozzle in, and off she comes.
Ive never used a vacuum former, or an injection molding machine. But im in the beginning steps on creating the former.
But from the research ive done, its important to make the walls slightly slanted, this allows the part to break suction from the mold much easier.
Good trick for getting forms out is to take your air gun and blow high pressure air around the edges to basically vibrate and float the thing loose and pop it right out. Works pretty much always, no cutting or slicing required
I've seen multiple videos of people doing this with their own homemade setups and not once have I seen one of them get the plastic stuck on the buck. Of course, they had the sense to use a buck that extended beyond the part they were actually going to use.
I remember in my prop class they had us drill a hole through the buck to help it not get suctioned on and to help in the undercuts. Though that was with smaller pieces. That's the biggest piece I have seen vacua formed before.
That was awesome to watch.
Gotta love Adams enthusiasm!
Using foam sculpting to produce casts with a vacuum forming machine is a very cool (and cheap) way to make your own replicas, props, armor plates, you name it.
I wish I had the financial means to do all this stuff.
Very cool, Adam! 👍
First time seeing a vacuum former in action - DAMN you have to be quick.
we used a release agent in school. another tip in getting it out was to use a compressed air gun to blow air in.
I remember building a vacuum former way back in high school. Vacuum via shop-vac and heat courtesy of my moms kitchen oven. Just an aluminum frame to hold the plastic sheet just small enough to fit in the oven. Carefully remove after heating and place on a sealed wood box with pegboard top and a hole in the side for the vac hose. Turn on the vac and shwoop.
i have a former built off the same plans, i made a 2 foot x 4 foot bed and a 200L vacuum tank. My favourite tool.
Adam could show us his morning routine and I would still be enthralled.
Works perfectly! Great!
_Proceeds to put it back in the corner for another 9 years._
@3:45 Adam tries to fix the wrinkles, moves the part and makes more! I love him!!!
Adam is my favorite human.
Thanks for sharing. I suggest you use the vacuum system to free the molding. Turn the mold upside down, fix the wooden pattern a beam and let the vacuum system pull it off ABS molding