I have been making pens from saguaro cactus skeletons, a pen is about all you can make from one of the ribs. The wood is very old and dry by the time I can get my hands on it and needs to be stabilized. I have a vacuum pump (ebay item) that I use but I have had trouble holding a vacuum of 20-24 in. for more than a few hours. I have used pickle jars, 2 qt. paint pots and even a thing for sucking the air out of wine bottles glued to the top of a mayo jar, which actually works great but can only pull about 15 in. of vacuum. Yesterday I think I solved the problem. I picked up a tube of "vacuum grease" at the lab supply store here in Tucson AZ. I smeared some on the gasket area of my two pickle jars and my paint pot. As of noon today, 18 hours later, they are still holding vacuum. I don't know if anybody else has been having this problem, but if so, you can pick up the stuff at any lab supply store or order it on-line; "vacuum grease" in your search engine will do it. About $15 a tube.
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Stabilizing, holding a vacuum
- Thread starter jamie
- Start date