Official Luthiers Forum!

Related to Hesh's problem with the binding cutter I am considering a
vacuum holder.
A few questions for those who use them
I see LMI sells a holder that looks very nice but expensive.
Anyone have this one?
Also, do they hold an unfinished not so smooth guitar well????

TIA

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Andy Z.
http://www.lazydogguitars.com

I think Lance has one...

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Also, If you build a box for braces, how do you hold you braces so the they
don't shift when applying the vac.

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Andy Z.
http://www.lazydogguitars.com

I have one, I couldn't build without it. But that's likely because I've never had to. It was one of the first tools I bought specific to guitar building. If you'd like, I can donate one to the AndyZimmerman guitar cause. I've got one made of UHMW that I've never used. It might need a bit of work to make it fit your needs but it's a good starting place. Email me with your address and I'll get it right out. paul at woolsonsoundcraft dot com.
On the vacuum box question: I hold them down with a small strip of masking tape at the ends of the brace. When I hear the "POP" of the tape breaking, I know I'm getting close to full vacuum.

I have a Vacupres pump and use it with a vacum clamp.

Mine is fashioned after the LMII model. I made is from 3/4" plywood and consists of a base that clamps to the work bench edge. A vertical circular plywood disc is attached to the base and

Over hangs the edge of the bench. The circular disc is about the diameter of the width of the waist smallest of the guitars you hold and has a hole in the center to match the hose from the vacum pump. A circular ring of vacum gasket runs parallel to the edge of the disc about 1" from the edge.

Be very careful to place the vacum plug-in and/or the switch where you will not accidentally disconnect the vacum. From experience!

Many woods will require a seal coat. I use a wash coat of shellac or too much air penetrates the wood and weakens the vacum.

I have found the system to work well and is extremely useful.

Hope this helps.

I have it ... it is great.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

I simply hold the braces in place with right angle strips of masking tape and place the whole piece into a concave disc to match the desired plate radius.

Apply the vacum and then release the vacum after 10 minutes. Remove the masking tape, and the droplets of partically dried glues along the brace and the soundboard/back with a plastic scraper. Then reapply the vacum until the require time for the glue to firmly set.

Thanks all
Wow Paul....what an offer!!!!

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Andy Z.
http://www.lazydogguitars.com

Anybody use this method with HHG? If so are there any issues related to speed? I'm just thinking of how fast HHG gels, and trying to get the braces taped, then starting the vacuum...

-Mark

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Pullman, WA

The more I know, the more I know I don't know.

trippguitars.com
OR
Find me on Facebook

Mark, I don't use HHG very often, simply because I'm not confident with my speed. Throw in a vacuum setup and I'm sure I wouldn't be fast enough to pull that off.

Paul: <grin>

Yeah that was my thinking too. I've just started using HHG on my bracing - I'm fast enough for that with go-bars, but there is no way I'm fast enough for a top/back glue up! So I'm sure I wouldn't be fast enough for braces using vacuum.

Thanks,

-Mark
Mark Tripp39034.8383680556

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Pullman, WA

The more I know, the more I know I don't know.

trippguitars.com
OR
Find me on Facebook

Anyone have any experience with this vacuum pump?
I'm primarily interested in using it for clamping bridges and maybe some router hold down applications.
John How39034.7399768519

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Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

if you are going to use vacuum i would suggest you build a reservoir system along the lines of that described on joewoodworker's site. with a reservoir the clamping is instantaneous when the valve is opened and the time issues referred to above are not relevant.

i used to use a vacuum pump for a number of clamping/holding operations, particularly for routing, but eventually switched to using a venturi and built the reservoir.

Paul,
Can you share a few pics and comments of your vac clamp before you ship it out?

For those of you that would like an LMI type vise at a very resonable cost and an easier, smoother action, get yourself a PanaVise 300 and add a clamped on vacuum disk. Available on ebay right now from $10 to $34. Check out the vises at Panavise.com

Dean

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Dean

I have one and LOVE it. I don't use it as much as I could but only because of the way I am set up. Hopefully ( if I get my new shop...hopefully) I will have a seperate area for it's exclusive use. It is a great device...worth every penny.

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

[QUOTE=Dean] For those of you that would like an LMI type vise at a very resonable cost and an easier, smoother action, get yourself a PanaVise 300 and add a clamped on vacuum disk. Available on ebay right now from $10 to $34. Check out the vises at Panavise.com

Dean[/QUOTE]

You know, that's a pretty darn good idea there. Thanks for the tip.

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

Perhaps if someone would give us a line on a vacuum disk? That would be terrific!

Edit:

Google or Dogpile on "Vacuum Cups".Don Williams39036.6494560185

_________________
"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."