Easy as pie vacuum bag

[Dave Bagwill]

This works great for gluing braces and other stuff - I use a much larger bag, made the same way, for laminating sides.

JoAnn fabric has a sale on '16 ga" clear vinyl - 2 bucks a yard. Some adhesive cement $2. Hose with fitting - 25 feet long, HF for $5.

Cut vinyl about 24" x 54". Fold it to make a bag about 24"x27".

Apply adhesive along 1 of the sides and clamp together. Then take your hose, snip off any fittings on one end, and poke some holes in it, a few inches apart, about 18" total. Stick that end into the unglued side, at the folded end of the bag. Put a good glob of glue where the hose enters the bag, and continue to glue the rest of that side. Clamp. After a couple of hours, unclamp and you should have an airtight bag, with the loose end of the hose read to be attached to your vacuum pump. I use a long hose so that I can stick the pump outside.

Not as elegant as the one Ken Cierp has on his website: http://www.kennethmichaelguitars.com/vacuumclamp.html

But it is easy and does work The pic is just showing it being clamped for the glue to cure.

[Kevin in California]

That is pretty simple Dave, and pretty cost effective too. I guess the pump is the expensive part heh?
Do you have a pic of something in the bag being clamped?

Kevin

[Dave Bagwill]

Yeah, the pump cost $105 at HF.
I'll get a pic for you.

edit: here you go. Does not show what a braced top would look like but if I remember I will shoot that process when I get to it.
This produces a lot of vacuum pressure.

[Dave Bagwill]

Just taped some braces on to show how that looks. There's a 40' radius dish underneath.

[Kevin in California]

How do you know you're getting enough pressure?

Kevin

[Dave Bagwill]

Experience, consistent squeeze-out, strong vacuum pump. I've made bags before so kinda know what to look for.

[Kevin in California]

It is pretty cool, I must admit.