For those who may want to invest in more Maker Tools:
Combining with a 3D Printer and a Glowforge would be useful for small batch manufacturing…
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Already missed the early bird special, into first and soon second groups.
Thanks for sharing.
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It’s tempting, but I am a little bit wary of someone who claims to have developed a superduper new pumping technology and is still going to come in at a low price with fancy case, display screen and so forth. (Did I mention that my biggest kickstarter loss was a dead-cert super-cheap vacuformer?)
Any other opinions?
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Early Bird is gone but Batch 1 (next cheaper one) is still available.
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I think we (with or without a GF) are capable of doing something fully functional, similar to this, and a lot cheaper.
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I’m with you. Tempted but no.
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I would rather make one out of a toaster oven and a vacuum. I have seen tutorials, and it looks pretty easy to replicate.
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Amazing… someone offering something for makers for $600 when you can build your own, more capable vacuum former for a quarter of the price. And why the heck does it need an LCD screen?
If you’re going to try to sell something to makers, it needs to do whatever it does better and cheaper than whatever you can build yourself in a reasonable amount of time. Vacuum formers are very simple things that you can make out of wood, toaster oven guts or halogen bulbs, and a shop vac, with a cheap IR thermometer on the side.
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as seen here…
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Wow! I was way ahead of my time. I can vividly remember my Mattel Vac-u-form. 4"x4" sheets of plastic (color or even clear!) inserted in a flip frame, heating over an exposed heat pad (where were the safety inspectors? that sucker was hot!), then throwing the frame to the vacuum side and pumping like mad to form the shape. Screw up? flip it back to the heater and start all over. The maker bug had me even then. I remember using this thing to make all sorts of plaster of paris molds, buttons, toys…
hmm, wonder if that thing is up in the attic?
george
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I think it looks cool and, personally, I think the price is OK. If is was $200 I would impulse-buy… impulse-back it, but instead the price is just reasonable so I’ll sleep on it.
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That was a great toy. We don’t see toys like that now for kids because of the safety rules. It’s too bad…
I associate that toy with another memory of trying to make candles by pouring molten wax into casting forms made from Lego blocks. Learned the hard way that Lego walls are NOT water-tight!
That led to my next learning experience of how to get wax out of the carpet!
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So with this vacu-former, you still need to come up with nice smooth molds to form over. I suppose if you have a 3D printer or CNC carver, that would be easier. My friend built a vacu-former (much bigger than this one) in his garage to make model submarine parts. This seems like a simple device that is easy to make if you want one. - Rich
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Man, if only I already had my laser, maybe I could come up with a way to make the $600 to pre-order. Personally I think the final $900 pricetag is a bit steep, but I love the overall concept. would look great on a desk next to my Glowforge 
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Yeah this is pretty much where I’m at. I bought a fancy desk top computer to add to the forge and 3D printer now these things need to start making money before I can buy more toys. $900 final price makes building my own a lot more reasonable especially since we will all be able to cut some precision vacuum beds sooner or later
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Yea, had the same thought. Like the small footprint, desktop size, but in reality I would probably go for something a little bigger if I was getting real serious about it.
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This looks like a simple version that wouldn’t be hard to replicate.
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You can’t beat how cheap that is! Looks like something I will make with the GF
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At 9x12 the price would have to be a lot lower to tempt me. This sort of tool is absolutely on my list but I think I will hold out to build or buy something larger.
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I’m assuming it’s a short burst high output motor, short duty cycle.
the coolest part was the temperature regulation and library of melting temps for different materials. when I switch materials on my vacuum forming table, it’s a lot of watching and guessing when it’s ready to go. overheating can bubble or loose your sheet all together, or stretch too much and cause folds in the corners/curves. under heating means you lose detail or have a failed part. I think it’s a cool idea for beginners or those that don’t do it often. That being said, I’m not willing to pay for it since I’ve already learned how to do it properly without the tech.
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